Starting a Sonerai

[helogunner]

Hey everyone.. what was everyone’s first step for starting their project after plans.. newsletters etcetera?

im thinking searching for a nearly complete project is the way to go but who knows!

on a side note just celebrated my 40th birthday yesterday (great day to be born Dec 17th) and got a Garmin D2 watch..

 

[CdnMedic]

Get your plans, study them and see if it makes sense to you. Read the manuals that come with the plans set.

Then, I read every single newsletter as there are some gems of information in there, and made notes of what newsletter to find certain info that you want to reference later on. Maybe it's something that isn't noted very well in the plans, or it's a change someone else did that you would like to do. You can find the news letters on the Sonex site.

Basically I've built mine in my head, and have worked out the changes I'm making and how it is going to affect the rest of the assembly.

I started with my spar box since I wanted to complete something and I was posted that year so it was a small part to move.
My next stage is the build table and fuselage, then engine gets mounted, then spars to get them aligned to the spar box, then wings and covering.

Your work space sort of determines in what order to do things. I lost my big shop so now I'm doing it in a 12x30 space, so have to plan ahead.

Start looking for parts long before you need them. O'Keefe no longer offers landing gear (I scored the last set) so now your options are used or the $2000 Grove set.

 

[Aviacs]

what was everyone’s first step for starting their project after plans.. newsletters etcetera?

I hitchhiked (from Maryland) to one of the long weekend builder classes at Monnett's HQ in Elgin.
Very worthwhile for so many areas of vehicular construction - fiberglass plugs and molds, blowing canopies, riveting, cutting/welding tube, working with sheet metal, forming ribs, basic options for engine configurations, even some rudimentary fabric work.

But don't take my route - after a few false starts, one purchased S1 wreck (Bob Aymar's plane, he broke his back, but continued building other AC, as well as his props) & several spam cans, 46 years later i am making occasional sporadic headway on a purchased plans built "by others" completed AC that needs work and mods.

Start looking for parts long before you need them. O'Keefe no longer offers landing gear (I scored the last set) so now your options are used or the $2000 Grove

I have 1/2" gear for S2 FS in the sales section.
Might suit someone who is building a light, original, 950 GW version.
Esp. if they plan to fly it solo and light for Aerobatic (750 GW)