I'm finally getting close to finishing up the elevators after having started working on them almost 2 years ago. The few tasks remaining were to
- finish rolling the leading edges
- attaching the counterweights
- attaching the trim tabs
I had considered implementing Van's service bulletin
SB-00043 at this time to address potential elevator skin cracks, but decided not to do so for the following reasons
- My elevators have already been completed to a stage that makes applying tank sealant in the required areas somewhat difficult
- I had primed the elevator skins and spars meaning any tank sealant applied would likely not adhere well to those surfaces
- The RV-10 was introduced in 2003, and the service bulletin wasn't issued until twenty years later in 2023 for both the RV-10 and RV-14. This made me think cracking was a relatively rare occurrence in the RV-10, and may be more likely to occur in a higher stress aerobatic environment that the RV-10 is not designed for.
My plan is to inspect the elevator skins for cracks during pre-flight inspections (which I would be doing anyway), and if I encounter any to stop drill them, and then decide at annual inspection whether to implement the service bulletin or build new elevators with proper sealant application. If I never see any cracks during my time flying then I will have saved myself a fair amount of work.
Back to building, I began by spending some time on how best to roll the leading edges. I had started this process a while ago using duct tape, a 1.25" dowel and vise grips, however I found it hard to get a good initial roll.
After doing a bunch of online research into what other techniques builders had used, I landed on one that made rolling those edges extremely easy. I'll be making a separate post on the rolling techniques that worked well, but ultimately I ended up with a nice leading edge, with zero pillowing between the rivets and very little additional force needed to line up the holes in the rolled skins. Look out for that post coming shortly!
 |
| Leading edges rolled and clecoed |
 |
| Blind riveting the leading edges |
 |
| Both leading edges complete |
Next I moved on to match drilling the trim tab hinge from the trim tab spar top flange. After lining up the trim tab uniformly along the hinge, I match drilled the holes (randomly) to 3/32" and then reamed to #40. You need to be careful while drilling the hinge here, because until there are several clecoes in the hinge, it is easy for the drill bit to push the hinge away from the trim tab while drilling. I found that light pressure during drilling worked best, allowing the drill to work its way through the hinge without forcing it away.
 |
| Trim tab clecoed at outboard end and lined up with even spacing along the hinge |
 |
| Even gap at the outboard end of the trim tab. Trailing edges line up perfectly! |
 |
| Cleco clamp used to hold the trim tab in place on the hinge while match drilling |
 |
| After drilling a few holes and adding clecoes, it was much easier to match drill the rest of the hinge holes with less risk of pushing the hinge away while drilling |
 |
| Once all hinge holes had been drilled, the inboard end of the hinge was marked for cutting... |
 |
| ... and cut so that it was even with the elevator top skin and trim tab. Note that the hinge pin was NOT cut! |
 |
| Checking to make sure the trim tab swung freely with the hinge clecoed in place |
The hinge pin is left long because the end needs to be bent and secured with safety wire to ensure it doesn't slip out. The plans indicate that the pin bend starts as soon as it exits the hinge. However, if the hinge is flush to the skin, after bending the pin would visible right next to the skin.
To avoid having the pin visible, I decided to make a small modification here so that the pin would be under the skin after bending and remain hidden from view.
 |
| Small part of inboard hinge knuckle cut away to allow the pin bend to be made in a way that keeps the pin hidden from view |
 |
| Another view of the inboard knuckle with a small part cut away to allow the pin bend to keep the pin hidden |
 |
| Same modification was made on the other elevator |
I was then ready to prime the hinge pieces. I did not prime the hinge pin, or the hinge knuckles which were taped off.
 |
| Trim tab hinge pieces cleaned with EkoEtch and ready for priming |
 |
| Both hinges primed and left for a couple of days while the primer cured |
While the trim tab hinge work was on hold, I decided to quickly finish attaching the counterweights to the elevators. These had previously been trimmed to fit and it was just a matter of bolting them in.
 |
| Counterweight in place with bolts inserted from the inboard side... |
 |
| ... and torqued to spec from the outboard side |
Returning to the trim tab hinges, I clecoed each hinge half to the respective elevator and trim tab, and then used the pneumatic squeezer to set all the rivets. While riveting, I did put the hinge halves together and inserted the hinge pin several times to ensure the trim tab continued to swing freely.
 |
| The outboard most hinge rivet on the elevator was the hardest to set due to limited space, but I was still able to get the squeezer yoke in there. I also used a couple of magnets here to keep everything together while riveting the end of the hinge |
 |
| Using the squeezer to rivet the hinge half to the trim tab |
 |
| After riveting both hinge halves, I once again checked the trim tabs for free movement, and using a digital level made sure they swung through the full tab deflection of 35 degrees down |
The last steps in section 9 involve bending the trim tab hinge pin and securing it to make sure the hinge pin does not slip out.
 |
| The initial bend of the hinge pin was made with the help of the vise. After measuring the location of the bend, and clamping the pin in place, I was able to make the bend by hand |
 |
| After making the initial bend and adjusting it to the correct angle, I marked the location of the next bend... |
 |
| ... and placed the pin back in the vice to again make the bend by hand |
 |
| Both bends formed using the vice |
 |
| I then refined the bend angles a little using a clamp. This allowed me to push on the pin slightly beyond the required angle and account for spring back |
 |
| The final step in bending the pin was to cut away the excess so that it fit nicely next to the elevator spar |
 |
| With the pin bends complete, I drilled a 1/16" hole into the elevator rear spar in between the two inboard most rivets |
 |
| Safety wire was inserted through the hole and around the hinge pin and twisted to secure the pin in place |
 |
| Excess safety wire was cut away leaving a 1/2" tail with the very end bent over to prevent scratching |
 |
| The hinge pin is nicely hidden under the skin thanks to the cut away hinge knuckle, while still allowing the trim tab to swing freely through the required range |
 |
| The elevator section is now complete, finally! Both elevators were put into storage until needed again. |
Primer used: ~15g + 1g distilled water
Time Taken: 12.7 hours
Dates: November 24 2024 - November 30 2024
Elevators Total Time: 116.3 hours
RV-10 Build Total Time: 874.2 hours
Priming Total Time: 104.7 hours (not included in build time totals)
