Builder: Gary Hamilton

Project: RV-7a

The project started with order and delivery of empennage kit in November 2000.  Construction continues to this date.  Even a quick build can take a fair amount of time with other priorities in ones life.  Most of the work has been done on Saturday and Sunday afternoons putting in 2 to 6 hours on either or both days.  Many thanks go to the late Jim Stugart who helped me over the learning curve on riveting the horizontal stabilizer.  After that done the rest of the empennage went quite easily.  However I did have to build two rudders after Van changed the design to resemble the RV9 rudder. 

 

After the empennage, I worked on all the miscellaneous items going into the quick build fuselage and wings.  Some help came from Chuck Martin, Brian Rogers, and Ralph Salyer when my arms were not long enough to reach around and hold both rivet gun and bucking bar.

 

Don Dison helped install the engine to the airframe.  Thanks guys.  I’m down to the last 90% of the job doing electrical work, all the firewall forward stuff, clean prime and paint just a few more parts.

  

So with all this, I hope to have a RV7A powered by an IO-360 and Catto two blade prop, VFR with Dynon D10 and Vision VM1000 engine monitor.

  

Keep on building….

 

Gary Hamilton

N769RV