Shop/Tools 1

A lot of time was spent getting the garage in shape to build an airplane.  First step was getting the compressor installed.  The unit is a 6 hp 32 gallon Porter Cable.  It is not the oil-free type, as I found them to be extremely loud.  I mounted a rigid self-retracting hose to keep everything up and out of the way.  In line with the hose I mounted an air filter to keep the water out of the tools:

The bench covering the compressor is an old door I found near a dumpster....gotta save money somewhere!  I also mounted a auto-oiler in-line with a leader hose.  This allows me to remove just the leader hose and use the permanent hose for painting if need be:

I taped off a corner of the garage to create a mini-paint booth.  You want to be sure you mount a fan to provide some sort of ventilation to the booth...primer really stings when it gets in your eyes.

Close-up of some of the key tools:

Believe it or not, I ended up selling the pneumatic squeezer.  If you do end up buying one, I recommend the type C.  I have been told that the type A (which is what I had) is much more difficult to use, as the plunger travels through an arc (easy to get mis-aligned).  Of all the benchtop tools, the 1" belt sander and grinder with scotchbrite wheel are invaluable.  You can see that I made a die/rivet block out of a 2x4 scrap.  It is very useful to have them all easily accessible.  A hint when you are getting started...buy all the dimple/flush dies you can. I got every size from 3/32 to 3/16 (#10), and I have used them all.  A few more invaluable tools:

The screw bins are invaluable in keeping all of the rivets organized.  The orange totes can be had for $3 at Home Depot, and they make an excellent cleco caddy.  The item on the right is a postage scale.  It makes an excellent pro-seal scale, as it is accurate to 2 grams. 

To install the rod-end bearings, I bought a tool called the "Gator Grip".  It is an as seen on tv special, and it worked really well.  It has spring-loaded steel pins, and it conforms to the shape of just about anything.  I know several have made special PVC tools to install them, but this particular product seemed very useful for many other purposes.