rv7quest: Completed rudder and elevator leading edges

I've been working on finishing the last items on the empennage over the last few days. My wing kit arrived a few days ago, and I'm anxious to start working on the forward spar. The leading edges on the elevators and rudder needed to be closed up, and I have a small amount of work on the left elevator where the trim tab motor sits, and that's it for the tail section!

Getting the leading edges of the elevators and the rudder to come together nicely takes a bit of work. It's easy to roll the leading edges, but it's challenging to get the outer skin to sit flush without any gaps after the blind rivets have been set. To resolve this, I ended up slightly over bending the outer skin, which allows the two skins to sit flush next to one another. Bending one section at a time, outboard to inboard, makes the process easier.

Several builders have written that they used a pipe wrench to grip the dowel (3/4 inch) that is used to roll the leading edge. I found that a steel handle, such as that used for a bending brake, worked much better when inserted into a hole drilled through the dowel. The wrench was hitting the forward spar of the elevator, limiting the amount the leading edge could be rolled. Using the steel handle at the inboard end of the elevator by the control horn eliminated this issue.

After I had the skins rolled, I taped them in place with strips of duct tape and match drilled the holes. I didn't find it necessary to use the ultra sticky duct tape that some builders use - the standard duct tape worked great, and didn't take the primer or blue vinyl off where I didn't want it removed. The tape was then removed, the holes deburred (with a scotchbrite pad on the interior surface), and the blind rivets were set. I wasn't happy with one of the elevators after it was finished, so I drilled out the rivets, slightly adjusted the leading edges by bending the skin a bit more, and re-riveted. I was very pleased with the results.