January 22, 2007


The kit arrived today via Con-way.  They did an acceptable job of delivering it from Oshkosh to Atlanta with little damage.  I had it shipped to my office because there was no way a semi was going to get to our townhouse easily.  

The truck driver had the pallet unloaded before I could really get any pictures, so they start after the pallet was out of the truck.

Justin and Allen analyzing the situation - "This guy is NUTS".  The tube on the floor next to the pallet contains the spar caps.



Conway did a bit of damage, but it doesn't appear that there is any internal damage.  The driver called it in anyway, so I have a claim number should I find something as I unpack.

Pallet damage - Probably loading it in the trailer.  



This box has the leading edge skins in it - the damage looks superficial though.


The canopy box...  This one I'm concerned about; the canopy is basically the most expensive single part on the plane.


A slight tear in the "cowling box" (according to the packing slip) - I think that is the side of the cowling showing through the hole.



Apparently when the busted the pallet corner it also shoved the aluminum angle bundle forward - I think the red is part of someone's shipment (paint or wax).


This thing is pretty big - but it appears to be packed pretty well.



Good thing I borrowed a big truck to bring it home in.



Now to unload it - its obvious my helper is ecstatic  It is a cold and hazy day today - hard to get excited about being outside.  My last project is on the right - a '62 F100 Flare side.  Its got the original 223ci I6 and has about the same HP as the AeroVee.


I didn't get any in progress shots except for these - almost done!  Most of the boxes on top of the pallet aren't that heavy - one person can easily lift them.





Now to see whats in all these boxes.

Box 4 of 11 - Formed Aluminum Kit.  This box has the flaps, rudder, ailerons, elevators and some formed channel.  Open it up and it's "instant airplane parts".  The rudder (the silver one) was inside of one of the flaps as you see it.  At first glance there are all kinds of scratches and writing on it - WTF?  I'm planning to polish, but if some of the parts come pre-scratched that may be out.  After a closer inspection I realized that it has a clear film on it and the scuffs are just in the plastic - phew.  Sonex did a great job packing this stuff - it's all intact and damage free so far.





Up next is the engine mount box.  This is the only truly heavy box in the bunch - I'd guess around 70lbs.  The guys at the Sonex factory are definitely staple happy; check out the top of this box closely.  Most of the boxes are WELL stapled and well packed.




There's all kinds of fun stuff in this box - engine mount, rivets, most of the welded components, spinner, seat belts, block of lead, rudder cables and the gear legs.  There is some other stuff in the box, but I don't remember off hand.








The horizontal and vertical stabilizer skins are next, this is where the kit really shines - laser cut skins.  They fit in such a small box, it really is quite amazing.




The laser holes are great.  Once I get a worktable set up (using wood from the pallet) I think I'll have something resembling a tail in short order.



And now for the last box of the evening - the cowling box.  There is all kinds of goodies in this one.  It really is quite amazing how well this stuff is packed - nothing I've unpacked has been damaged.



Here's the ribs all bundled up.  I stacked them together to get an idea of the depth of the wing.


Most of the fiberglass parts are in this box.  This is the wing tips (in cardboard) and the wheel pants.


The cowling - no damage where the box was torn in shipping.  The main spar webs are the coil at the bottom of the picture.  The fuel tank was also packed in this box.  


Not counting receiving the shipment and getting it home this is 2.5h of work so far.  It is a slow process going through the packing list and ensuring all the parts they marked as shipped really did.  I'm not worried that I'm missing anything, but people do make mistakes - it's human nature.  I'm glad I made the decision to purchase the kit - this is definitely giving me a head start.  Only 997.5h of work left to go :)