Vertical Stabilizer

Going on the advice of many, I chose to deviate a bit from the plans and build the VS first.  It is supposedly a lot easier to build and gives a good indication of all the skills required.

First step is to cleco the ribs to both the front and rear spars.  It is interesting to note that the nose spar will be bent up slightly due to the angle of the front spar.  Although I was initially concerned, it very easily "conformed" to the pre-punched skins.

It is interesting to note that the forward-most hole on the nose and tip rib are not punched.  It shows to be punched in the plans, and it makes no mention of drilling it.  I spoke with Van's about the issue, and they confirmed that they quit punching the front hole.  You are to use the skin as a guide to drill the rib (makes it easier to align that way).  It is important to verify that the hole is lined up in the middle of the rib prior to drilling.

Vertical stab all clecoed together...it was amazing how easily it all went together.

Next came time to drill lightening holes in the rear spar doubler.  I debated a great deal about doing so (since it is a key structural part), but I really wanted a light plane.  I ended up making a compromise and drilling 5 of the 7 depicted holes.

To drill the lightening holes, I used a fly cutter in my drill press.  Although it was recommended to cut at less than 500 rpm with the fly cutter, I set my drill press (Harbor Freight cheapie) to 620 rpm and it seemed to work.  The first hole I cut took forever...I found that if you lubricate the cutter liberally with 3-in-1 oil while it was cutting it worked much better.

Next came time to countersink the rear spar doubler at the bottom to accept the flush rivets.  The microstop cage is an awesome tool.  It took me a while at first how to best determine the appropriate depth.  I heard from others that you should use dimpled scrap metal to make test fits on the appropriate depth of the countersink.  Others told me to make it so that the rivet sits flush when placed in the countersunk hole.  I found that it works best if you countersink it just a hair below flush.  This allows it to remain tight and make sure the metal lays flat:

Next came the first batch of priming...I am using the Sherwin Williams P60-G2, and I have yet to master the process.  To prep the material for painting, I tried using carb cleaner to remove all the gunk, followed by a lacquer thinner wipedown.  In hindsight I don't think that was best...as I don't think it removed all the oil.  When I first primed some parts, I put it on way too thick:

I later learned that it should go on almost clear and dry to a light haze. 

Rear spar and doubler clecoed up and ready to rivet:

You will notice that the primer on the flange edges doesn't look perfect...it seemed to stick to the plastic when removing after spraying it. 

First set of rivets on the rear spar:

I decided to prime all the internal structure (ribs, etc.) and just prime the rivet lines of the internal skin. The alcad remains relatively untouched on the rest of the internal skin, so it should provide sufficient corrosion protection.  Problem with priming the internal skins is that it is not very easy.  You will see from the photos that it ran...fortunately this portion of the skin will never be seen once it is riveted:

I also ended up priming the rivet line on the outside.  I ended up removing the primer later with lacquer thinner, as it really looked bad.

With everything primed and clecoed together, the VS was riveted together quite easily.