In the spirit of the titled posting from the gentleman from Spring, TX, I am submittingmy list of tools for the edification of the Piet list.............pleasedon't share it with our more sophisticated brethern lest they think of usas less than millenial.My longerons, rib caps, fuselage diagonals and all the tail pieces were eagerlyripped by two friends. Having them do it accomplished two things,1. gave themwarm and fuzzy feelings having helped a fledgeling and 2. allowed them the satisfactionof informing their mates about how great it was that they bought that$1500 table saw so they could lend a helping hand to one less fortunate thanthey. I always tried to do something for them in return and have now made acouple of more good friends!My plywood was cut with my 1968 vintage Sears saber-saw. The blade was not identifiablebut looked "about right" for the job. The edges were finished with apiece of sandpaper wrapped around a scrap of spruce.Speaking of spruce; I got everything I needed from a couple of lumber companysin WI. Seems they stock it for iceboat construction and sailboat masts. They graciouslylet me pick out the pieces I wanted. No, I don't live in WI but sinceI was at Brodhead anyway........... My spars are the only certified wood inthe project. After getting jerked around by Aircraft Spruce, I ordered them fromWicks.My landing gear legs were cut to angle by another friend who had just bought achop saw and was eager to try it out. It works fine Fred, thanks. The shapingof the legs was with a pocket knife, rasp, and sandpaper.Steel parts were cut with my armstrong-powered hacksaw and a fairly expensive bladefrom the local hardware (worth the price), finished in my 2 1/2" hobby visewith a hand file and emory cloth. Aluminum was cut with snips from the same hardware store and finished with a fileand sandpaper.My holes were drilled with a hand-cranked drill or an electric drill dependingon what was being drilled and how much control I wanted to have.......sometimesthe electric drill just didn't seem right for the job.I painted the whole shebang with a used $80 Wagner sprayer from Home Depot. Guesswhat? It's an HVLP machine JUST like the $6-800 kind!!That's about all I can recall at the moment. Of course I'd love to have a welllighted shop full of top-of-the-line tools but I was able to buildmy entire airplane without having a pile of money tied up in stuff that I mightnot use again. In the seven years it's taken me to go from a set of plans toa real-live airplane, I made many friends and have preserved the "flavor" of whatI believe Mr. Pietenpol's memory is about. But that's just me!!!Now, having told on myself and evoked images in your minds of some hick-built planethat will be an embarassment to the marque, my Piet has gotten great reviewsfrom tech counselors, a&p's, other Piet builders, airportbums and my wife, SO THERE!See y'allLarry
(that means "a wink and a smile")________________________________________________________________________________