Hanging the Rudder – RV-14 Build

Today was a big day, as I was able to attached the Vertical Stabilizer and hang the rudder on the aft fuse. I then added the elevators and finished up section 11. Well, it’s not really done, as there is some electrical routing that still needs to be done, but that can wait for now.

First I installed the VS attach bracket, then the Vertical Stabilzer itself. I used temporary fasteners, as this is all coming apart again soon.

Installing the VS was easy after the HS was finally installed.

With the VS on, I attempted to hang the rudder. Everything looked good except the gap on the top hinge was too narrow for the rod end bearing to fit. I took the rudder off and attempted to bend out the Ganges on the hing using a small wooden block. Measuring with my calipers, I found it to be about a millimeter narrower than the middle hinge. After several attempts, and with Jen’s help, I was able to get it to fit.

Installing the rudder took several iterations. The hold-up was an insufficient gap between the flanges of the top hung. Once I had widened these flanges, the rod end bearing slipped in perfectly

With the rudder on, I installed the elevators. This required supporting the tips of the HS so that the elevator counterweights didn’t cause the fuse to roll over as I installed these one at a time.

Amazing feeling to see all these parts come together. It’s a tangible reminder of the work I have put in over the last year.

With the elevators on, I measured the clearance between the rudder and corner of elevator and trim tab. It was 3mm more gap than the minimum, so I left it as-is.