Confirmation Letter Received

Yesterday, I received my confirmation letter from Van's. I am builder 120088 (#88) and the projected shipping date of the wing kit is the week of 8/11/2008. Good news and bad news. Good news is the date is after Airventure. So I don't have to worry about the kit sitting on the porch while attending the forums, et al. Bad news is the date is some 10 weeks away. Guess I'll have to use the chair as shown next to the mailbox. Hope it gets warmer as the nights have been quite cold here in the midwest. Or will have to study the plans received in detail and then hope the build process goes without a hitch!!

The Shop (aka "Da Hangar")

I intend to start building the RV-12 in the garage. We have a 3 car garage and will use one of the bays for the initial building process. I have built two workbenches and they are shown to the left. I intend to build a large shelf above the tracks for the garage door. A few 2x4s and some plywood should make a nice shelf for the much desired storage space. Lucky here, in that, the ceiling in the garage is on the order of 10 feet.


The drill press, bandsaw, disc sander and grinder are not new. Had them for years and am finally going to be able to put them to "good use"!!!


The air compressor is on the floor behind the bandsaw and disc sander.


NOW, waiting for the wing kit to ARRIVE. Builder #88 per an email from Van's. Unfortunately, the quoted lead time is smack dab during Airadventure or very close to it.

What is a Van's Aircraft RV-12

The RV-12 is Van’s newest design and meets the standards of the new Light Sport Category. It’s a two-seat all-metal side by side airplane with a large cabin that seats the occupants ahead of the wing spar for maximum room and superb visibility. It is powered by a Rotax 912ULS 100 hp engine turning a Sensenich composite propeller. The wings are quickly and easily removable, making the RV-12 easy to transport on a trailer and keep off-airport. The low empty weight allows a generous useful load — two 215 lb people, 20 gallons of fuel and 30 lbs of baggage.

The best news is that it flies like an RV! The RV-12 has all the performance the Light Sport Category permits as well as excellent handling qualities at all speeds. It is very docile on take-off and landing and pleasantly quick and agile in the air.

The reason I chose an RV-12 is that I am familar with the products that Van's Aircraft sells. Have done a lot of looking at the available LSAs and the RV-12 fits all of my requirements.

For a bunch of information, go to:

http://www.vansaircraft.com/public/rv-12int.htm

For some detailed photos, go to:

http://www.vansaircraft.com/public/n412rv_photos.htm

Introduction

My name is Marty and live in the midwest. I hope to chronicle the building process of a Van's Aircraft RV-12 on these pages. the wing kit was ordered at the beginning of April 2008, and I will be starting the build in one bay of our garage. I have the majority of the tools that I will need, and will place an order with Avery Tools for the remainder. The workbench has been built and will include photos of the shop in an upcoming post.