Tools

So let's get this out right up front: I am hard on tools. I don't abuse them, and I seldom wear them out. So why do I go through tools at a prodigious rate?

Loss.

The tools in my toolbox in my hangar, the very tools that built my airplane, have a few weaknesses. 

The first of which is that I have no idea what tools I actually have. 

I have a multi-drawer toolbox and there are individual drawers for screwdrivers, wrenches, sockets, etc. It's organized enough that I know which drawer hosts the ratchet wrenches and sockets, but they're all mixed in together. SAE and metric sleeping in the same bed... that would have been scandalous back in the 50's. I suppose I could put the effort in to straighten them all out, but that wouldn't last long at all. 

As it stands right now, its just a big pain in the rear.

The other issue is that I do not want to use my brother's tools. I lose things, I break things, and I leave things lying around all over the place. He's being kind enough to give me some work space in his shop - I sure don't want to be responsible for breaking or losing a tool (or five).

I decided to buy a separate subset set of hand tools (I think I'll be able to use my air riveter, drill, tube bender, etc. without problems) to be dedicated to the Cobra. I gave Harbor Freight a chance (I used a lot of their tools for the plane) but found something I liked more on Amazon.

To some degree, tools are tools. What this set has that I think will definitely work in my favor, though, is the big briefcase to carry them all. At a single glance I can determine whether or not I have returned every tool to its place. I'm hoping that will cut down on leakage. They probably aren't as strong or professional as Craftsman (although I don't think that name carries the weight it used to), MAC tools, etc., but they come with the same Lifetime Warranty as Craftsman. 

Well, almost. I doubt that I can waltz into Lowes or Home Depot and demand a new wrench handle. It's more likely that I would have to deal with a call center and a lengthy wait to receive a replacement. Having never, ever broken a tool, though, I'm not all that worried about it. I think it's $150 well spent.

I also bought new drill bits. Same reasons.

I have everything I need to get started. I would have started already if I hadn't come down with a wickedly bad cold that I am just now getting over. There went a week that I'll never get back.

I spent some of that time poring through the first few pages of the Build Manual. One of the first sections detailed the tools I will need. 

See above.

The first "real" work is the removal of a coupe dozen aluminum panels from the chassis. Each will be identified with some kind of ID and I'll take a picture of everything that gets removed. The step after that is the process of laying out the rivet holes in the aluminum and chassis. Some (or all, I don't remember at the moment) of the panels will then be remounted on the chassis. That should be good for a couple of days of work that I already know how to do.

I have mentioned that I built an aluminum airplane, right?

After that is the assembly of the front right and left A-arms. At least that's what I think they're called. We'll see if I'm right in a later post.

Oh, one more thing: inventory. I'm not doing it. There are 40 boxes containing literally hundreds of parts in them. I don't have anyplace to store those parts, and some of them won't be needed until months of time. That's a lot of time for things to get lost, damaged, corroded, etc. I think those parts are safest right where they are.

Delivery Day!

Six months after ordering the kit, I received a phone call from Stewart Transportation notifying me that the kit would be delivered on either Feb. 19 or 20, with the earliest time of arrival. Naturally that caused a bit of a mini-panic - we have the grandboys on Saturday nights and I would have to be on the road by 6:30 am Sunday in order to be there at the earliest possible delivery time (8:00 am). The boys are at that stage where they're into everything, everywhere. It's a two-person job to round 'em up and get them to the breakfast table. And keep them there.

Suffice to say, this was awkward timing with regards to managing a pair of unruly toddlers.

An alternative plan was found, to my great relief - I didn't necessarily need to be there, but I very, very much wanted to. At least that was resolved.

Still, I didn't sleep well. I never do when there's an alarm clock set to get me up early. I hate the sound of the things so I wake up every half hour on average checking to see if its about to start blaring.

It's a 90 minute drive. I arrived at 7:45. Being the eternal pessimist (which I truly believe I come by honestly) I assumed that the truck would roll in right around dinner time. My truck has a big 'ol crew cab. The back seat is typically only used when we take the dog with us, we we keep a little padded dog mattress back there. I crawled back there for a nap.

As it turns out, it's more comfy than you might expect. I certainly surprised me. I think I was lights out within five minutes. Unfortunately I was rudely awakened by a deep-throated honk at 8:15.

 Stay tuned - next up is Inventory.

The kit has shipped!

 After a rather lengthy waiting period, both the kit and engine have shipped!

The first contact came from Factory Five telling me that they were ready to send out a truckload of kits, with ours being the first stop. Considering that FF lives in Massachusetts, I was a little surprised that Ohio would be the first stop, especially as we're located on the very western edge of the state.

The delivery date (either the 19th or 20th) is awkward - the 19th is okay for me to get there, but the 20th has a bit of a conflict. That’s lucky - I don't need to be there, but I very much want to be there!

Shipping costs are a thing - it's a cool $1,800 to bring the kit right to our shop. The engine shipping is around $300, but its not coming from Massachusetts. It probably wouldn't cost us that much to rent a trailer and go pick up the kit ourselves, so it's just one of those things. The truck they use to deliver has a specially configured trailer has a built in hoist to drag the kits out. I don't think they're crated; the boxes of parts etc. are packed into the chassis and some of the aluminum panels are temporarily mounted to the chassis.

I think. We'll see.

Looks like they have adopted solar power to a respectable degree. Good on 'em.