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Ted (also an RV-7 builder) recently bent his longerons, so I asked if he would help me with mine, and he graciously agreed.

We used a set of dies loaned to Ted from Nate Jackson, to help with the task. We marked the appropriate locations, inserted the longeron into the dies, then pressed them in the vice. The pressure, along with the curve of the dies, bends the longeron. Do that a few dozen times, checking against the paper template, until propely formed.

Next the longerons were bent down at another measured point. The longeron is held in the vice, bent down by hand, then whacked with a mallet until the proper bend is obtained.

Then finally, the forward part of the longerons needs to be twisted to 17 degrees, which is done in the vice, with a wrench.

Ted said it took him 3 weeks to work through his bends. That's all the checking, double checking, bending (alone)., and rechecking. It's tedious. Having the recent experience in hand, it took the two of us far less time. Having 2 people is not a requirement, but it sure did help.

THANKS, TED!

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