Building an RV - Standard Kits

RV kits provide all the parts to build a complete airframe. The builder must provide the engine, instruments, propeller, avionics and upholstery. All RV kits have been reviewed by the FAA and have been found eligible for licensing in the Experimental Amateur Built category. This means that the fabrication work we do on the kit parts is less than 50% of the total required to complete the aircraft, and that at least 51% of the work remains for the kit builder.

Two kinds of kits are available: the Standard and the QuickBuild.

All RVs, whether built from a Standard or a QuickBuild Kit, are built from the same parts. The difference is the degree to which these parts have been pre-assembled when the builder receives them. The Standard Kit is perfect for the builder who enjoys the process and is working on a limited budget. Using some combination of the several time saving options available, he or she can balance the time/money equation to suit their circumstance.

If the builder has a little more to spend, and wants to fly even sooner, then the QuickBuild Kit is an excellent value. Please visit the QuickBuild page for more information on the QuickBuild kits.

The Standard kit is far more than just a "material package." When the builder receives the kit, any work requiring mechanical equipment not readily available to the homebuilder is already done. All welding is complete, skins are sheared to size and many are pre-punched. Sheet metal, steel and fiberglass parts are pre-formed -- if a part needs to be bent, rolled, hydro-formed, heat treated or welded to be ready to use, it has been done. It is not the job of the builder to make parts...we do that at the factory. What we do not do is all the small trimming and adjusting jobs which the average homebuilder in the average shop can do as well as we can. This keeps our labor to a minimum and the cost of the kits at a reasonable level.

Because of the volume of material we buy and the efficient way we run our shop, the price of the kits is not substantially higher than an individual would pay for the raw material. The builder is spared not only the necessity of expensive tools and form blocks that he would use only once, but also the tedious and often frustrating job of shopping piecemeal for materials and parts, and the waste of having to purchase larger quantities than actually required.

Although RV kits are very complete and very successful, this does not mean that we are not continually improving them. For example, over the years pre-drilled spars for the RV-4 and RV-6/6A have become standard (and completely assembled spars an option), bellcranks and empennage hinges that the builder originally fabricated are now supplied ready to install, and wing ribs come with all the lightening holes complete.

Empennage skins, spars and other components for the RV-6/6A, RV-8/8A, and RV-9A are pre-punched using computer controlled tooling. All wing skins for the RV-4, RV-6/6A, RV-8/8A, and RV-9A are similarly pre-punched.

And what of the RV-3? Due to low demand for single-seaters, new sales of the RV-3 were suspended in 1996. However, due to popular demand, the RV-3 with a new wing spar design is back on the market.

RV aircraft are marketed in four sub-kits: Empennage, Wing, Fuselage, and Finishing. There is no price penalty for buying incrementally; and sub-kits may be ordered in any combination. Almost all the kits sold in the USA and Canada are ordered incrementally (foreign buyers may find it advantageous to order the whole kit at once to save on shipping and importing costs). The advantages of spending money in smaller chunks and not having to find storage space usually outweigh the disadvantages of having to plan ahead.

The sub-kits are intended to be built in the order listed. The sequence may be varied slightly, but, because of the way the parts interface, the wings must be built before the fuselage. All individual parts of each kit are also available separately. On the following page is a brief description of what each standard kit contains.

• All skins pre-cut, bent and rolled. RV-6/6A, RV-8/8A, and RV-9A skins are pre-punched for all rivet holes.
• All spars formed, essentially ready to install. Several spars in RV-6/6A, RV-8/8A, and RV-9A kits are pre-punched for all rivet holes...you can cleco the skins on without drilling a hole!
• All ribs press-formed.
• Spar re-enforcement strips machined to size. RV-4, RV-6/6A, RV-8/8A, and RV-9A strips are pre-punched to match the spars.
• Hinge bearings and hinge brackets stamped from aircraft grade steel.
• Fiberglass tips for all surfaces.
• All necessary nuts, bolts, rivets, washers, bearings, etc.

• Main spar and fuselage bulkheads completely pre-drilled and matched. All spar strips tapered, lightening holes cut. Completed spars are optional on the RV-4 and RV-6/6A. Completed spars are standard on the RV-8/8A and RV-9A.
• All the wing and control surface ribs are hydroformed to shape and the lightening holes complete (except the RV-3).
• Wing skins sheared to size. Leading edge and fuel tank skins pre-bent. For the RV-4, RV-6/6A, RV-8/8A, and RV-9A, all wing skins have rivet holes pre-punched.
• Aluminum tube, steel tube and aircraft hardware provided for control rods, pitot tube, and fuel lines.
• The aileron bellcranks, fuel tank access covers and other similar parts are stamped to shape and ready to install with only minor clean-up (except RV-3).
• Aileron mounting brackets of aluminum and steel, pre-formed and riveted; ready to install.
• All nuts, platenuts, washers, bolts, screws, rivets, pop-rivets & tube fittings.
• Molded fiberglass wingtips.

• All skins accurately sheared and formed. In the RV-8/8A and RV-9A, fuselage skins are pre-punched.
• All fuselage bulkheads and ribs press-formed.
• Extruded angle for longerons and stiffeners. Formed aluminum angle for skin stiffeners.
• All the pre-cut and bent aluminum panels and channels used in the cockpit and baggage area.
• Ready-to-install rudder cables with stainless steel fittings.
• All steel parts such as control sticks, rudder pedals, flap controls, tail wheel fork, and roll cage are welded.
• Tail wheel and tail spring on RV-4 and RV-6 models; main gear legs on the RV-6A, RV-8, RV-8A, and RV-9A.
• Brake master cylinders, lines, and fittings.
• All nuts, platenuts, washer, bolts, screws, rivets, pop-rivets, tube fittings needed.

• Plexi-glass canopy, light gray tint is standard; clear available on special order.
• Welded canopy frame.
• Fiberglass cowl and mounting materials.
• Engine mount.
• Main gear legs (RV-3, RV-4, RV-6).
• Fiberglass spinner with aluminum mounting plates.
• Fiberglass wheel fairings.
• New Cleveland 5:00 x 5 wheels and brakes with hardware.
• All brake lines and hardware.
• New 5:00 x 5 tires and tubes.
• Wing and empennage root fairings.
• Nosegear leg on RV-6A, RV-8A, RV-9A.