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I cast the aileron balance weights using the poured lead method. I had some lead bricks laying around from a previous employer, so no shortage of raw material. I was pleasantly surprised that a cheap second hand electric hot plate generated enough heat to melt the required amount.

I'm planning to use the FlyLEDs system exactly as you describe: Landing/taxi/position/strobe forward/side facing in the front of the wingtips. Aft-facing white LEDs on the trailing edge of each wingtip. The wingtips are still rough but here are a couple of photos. Be sure to talk to Paul at...

Yes, a Vise Grip dimpler is key to these tight spaces. When I realized I needed one I made a "home brew" 1/8" version by drilling and countersinking a bit of scrap steel (harvested from a wing crate) for the female side and then MIG welding it to the nastiest pair of Vise Grips I had. I notched...

Following the plans for my 4-place, I'm trying (and struggling) to use flush stainless steel rivets on my flap and aileron trailing edges. I'm using Cherry CCC-42 stainless rivets (w/stainless mandrel), but it seems the force required to break the stainless mandrel is so high that it's...

I've encountered a puzzle with my 4-place A-Model flap hinges. Background info: Kit was manufactured in 2006. The hinge plates (sheet metal parts that bolt up to the flap spar) were delivered cut, bent, and primed, but without any holes drilled in them. The plans call for MS21152-2 rod end...

After pondering this thread, I ended up just using an AN742-D16 clamp on the outlet bung of each tank (with No-Ox applied to all mating surfaces). Equivalent to post #28 but saved me a bit of fab time vs making my own clamp out of scrap (which I have plenty of!). :D .

On my 4 place I had to bush down the aileron pulley at the strut attach bracket. Not sure if that is applicable to the patrol though. ​

Same as Steve W, I use K1000-6 and dimple the rivet holes on the legs with a squeezer. For the #27 hole in the inspection ring (the clearance hole for the screw), I have followed what the factory did on my QB wings back in 2006, on the one inspection ring which was factory-installed. They just...

The pulleys that are with the very old QB kit I have are marked with a Lube Date of 2003 (yup, 20 years old, see photo). Does anyone have experience with the "Shelf life" of the bearings in these pulleys? They appear to have sealed bearings. I attempted to re-lubricate one of them: I was able to...

Epilogue: It took way longer than I expected but I got one cover done. Drilling out all the existing rivets worked great. The only significant challenge was that each rivet location, when updrilled to #27, has the remnants of the dimple that accommodated the AN426 rivet head which forms residual...

Hey Brooks, On my A-model the brackets that attached the outboard end of the wing to the crate are all 1/4 thick and roughly 2" wide. The one at the main spar is T-shaped (welded), and the one at the rear spar has a 90 degree bend. The plywood that sandwiched the ribs is roughly 3/4 inch. There...

Here's some photos of how I attached my wings to the rotisserie I built from wing crate material (inspired by the photos in the builder's manual). Root end: following the crate design, I used one 10-32 machine screw through the hole at the end of each spar. The MDF plates act as anti-rotation...

Hi all, I'm puzzled about locating the screws/nut plates for the aux tank covers on my A-model wings. The build instructions say to position them "...so they fall midway between the existing skin rivets (to give room for nut plates, etc.)," It seems if I do this I won't have screws at the...

Trying to wake this thread up... Today I finished up the nutplates for the right main tank. Lotta nutplates! Moving on to the right aux tank now...

I ended up going the "Buy" approach for sight gauges, following the guidance from the builder's manuals (old version and the updated guidance at https://bearhawk.tips/3609). Here's an abridged version of the story: What I purchased: McMaster 1106K24 (High-Pressure Oil-Level Indicator, Aluminum...

Hi all, I will start with caveats and disclaimers: This is my first build, so input from all is welcome! This is an OLD kit - delivered from Avipro to the first owner in 2006. Some work was done on the fuselage by that individual (landing gear install, tailfeathers initially fitted), and the...

Minor milestone: I finished up the plumbing for the main and aux tank in the right wing. I was a little puzzled about how to finish off the vent for the aux tank. I ended up bringing it outboard to the last bay, and then bringing it down to an under-wing vent (Cessna-style). I will have access...

Tubing Bender for 3/8" Fuel lines: Imperial 368-FH (YES) vs. Harbor Freight (NO) I am working with two tubing benders: Imperial 368-FH, and a Pittsburgh model from Harbor Freight (SKU 3755). Both are lever-action and claim to handle 1/4, 3/16, and 5/8 inch tubing. The HFT tool will bend to 180...

​​I hit a stumbling block last night when test fitting the upper strut ends to the steel straps that stick out the bottom skin of the wing. The strut ends contact the wing skin and prevent the holes from aligning properly - by eyeball there's ~ 1/16" interference. ​​ I notice that the strut...

Hi all - Sometime this summer I'm planning on match-drilling my A-model QB wings to the fuselage, and trimming/drilling the lift struts. I've scoured this forum and the other Bearhawk sites, and have found what I think are the most recent instructions for my (quite old) kit: Drilling wings to...