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What tools do you use most?

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wally

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 31, 2004
Messages
932
Location
southwest TN.
I was sitting on a plastic milk crate today working on my cowl parts and was thinking about what tools I might have that would make the job easier. I couldn't think of any. I wanted to trim and fit slowly so I didn't go too far and have to make another of what I was making.

That got me thinking about what tools I or anyone really needed to build an airplane.

So this is a short list of what tools I use most.

A small 2ft by 2ft stand with a 4" vise and 6" grinder on it. I can move it close to where I am working.

A couple of hammers, including a plastic face one.

Hack saw.

Files: a 12" mill file for straightening snipped sheet metal edges and lots of other shaping jobs, a couple of rat-tail files and a chain-saw blade sharpening file. The chain-saw file is nice for small inside curves. It is smooth cut and they come in a couple of sizes.

LH aircraft snips, (red handle) and rh?? green handle offset snips. I could not get along without my offset snips.

I use an X-acto knife w/#11 blade a lot for trimming stuff and even for enlarging or "adjusting" holes in aluminum.

3/8 electric drill and a bunch of bits and a couple of 100 degree countersinks and a rotary file cutter.

oxy-acetylene torch set from Harbor Freight. The bottles cost over twice as much as the torch but I can weld 4230 tubing, yea! Building my engine mount myself saved enough to pay for it.

Small air compressor.

A $20.00 spray gun also from Harbor Freight.

$6.00 muffler hammer that I use as a rivet gun!!! Hey, it works. I was surprised that the .401 dia rivet sets fit it just fine. If I was building a Vans RV-something, I would for sure get a real 2X rivet gun tho.

some screwdrivers and wrenches.

I am lucky that where I work we have a bench roll to curve the sheets for my cowl and very luck our EAA chapter has a 10ft bending brake for the rare times I need to make long bends.

Scrap wood for backup when drilling parts and for clamping aluminum between to make shorter bends in metal.

Poster board, masking tape, and scissors for making paper patterns that I then trace on aluminum.

And that is about it. Sure there a LOT of other tools I could have but so far I have been doing just fine with this.

So don't think you need a 30x30 hangar and a Snap-On truck full of tools and equipment to build an airplane. Start little and add just what you need to do a job.
 
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