Challenger Ultralight Construction Log Book
| Date | Construction Details | Time Required | Picture Click on to Expand |
| 04-Apr-06 | Kit received- tail -fuselage – wings. Wing box damaged. Spar crushed in transit. Remainder of kit seems OK. Noted damage on waybill. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 05-Apr-06 | Reported damage to Geri at QCU. Emailed report and pictures. Started unpacking kit. Returned wing box to QCU factory. | 4.0 Hours |  |
| 06-Apr-06 | Drilled 5/16″ diameter holes in root tube for shoulder harnesses. Cut sheet metal for nose storage pockets. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 07-Apr-06 | Drilled 1/4″ diameter holes in root tube for flaperon crank. Assembled push/pull rod to aileron slide assembly | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 07-Apr-06 | Drilled and riveted seats and seat backs. Added extra middle seat support to front seat. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 07-Apr-06 | Finished upacking fuselage. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 09-Apr-06 | Drilled and rivetted storage pockets in nose. | 0.5 Hours |  |
| 09-Apr-06 | Cut, filed, drilled and rivetted into place sheet metal pieces for joining and supporting fabric at tail, nose, and around gear legs. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 10-Apr-06 | Disconnected spine and torque tube at tail end and corrected torque tube interference by bending spine tube back to normal position. It had been bent slightly (1/4″) in shipping. Problem fixed. Partially assembled rudder push/pull rods. Installed FG99 flanges on tail. Cut and installed plate for intercom box on right side of cockpit. Assembled tire and wheels. | 4.5 Hours |  |
| 11-Apr-06 | Drilled holes and installed rubber grommets in bracketsalong left side of cockpit for wires and primer tubes going from instrument panel back to the engine and fuel tank. Planned and laid out instrument panel. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 13-Apr-06 | Installed mounting plate for throttle/choke quadrant. Installed sheet metal strips below drag cable holes for brake cable exit hole. Trial installed vertical stabilizer and rudder assembly and drilled 3/16 holes for rivets and hinge brackets. | 3.5 Hours |  |
| 17-Apr-06 | Trial installed horizontal stabilizers and elevators and drilled 3/16 holes for rivets and hinge brackets and tail struts. Assembled, drilled and rivetted elevator push rods. | 4.5 Hours |  |
| 18-Apr-06 | Filed and sanded tail components. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 19-Apr-06 | Filed and sanded tail components. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 24-Apr-06 | Filed and sanded tail components. Rounded off gusset edges. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 24-Apr-06 | Drilled out cross tubes for Turbulence 15 gallon fuel tank. Redrilled front cross tube and uprights for 10-24 bolts. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 25-Apr-06 | Temporarily installed top door frame, sanded and prepped for paint. Sanded down and prepped for paint large twin tail tubes and tail wheel assembly. Required disassembly tail wheel to paint brackets. | 5.0 Hours |  |
| 28-Apr-06 | Spray painted cockpit exposed metal tubes with galvanized metal primer. Spray painted twin tail tubes and tail wheel assembly with primer. | 0.5 Hours |  |
| 30-Apr-06 | Finished taping gussets on tail section components. | 1.0 Hours | |
| 05-May-06 | Finished spray painting tail tubes, tail wheel brackets, upper door frame, and cockpit tubes. Installed aluminum belly pan for bottom strobe light. Installed and rivetted tail wheel assembly and upper door frame. | 2.5 Hours | |
| 08-May-06 | Ordered flip-up nose mod option from Steve Busby. Ordered streamlined door mod from Don Sampson | 0.5 Hours | |
| 11-May-06 | Fitted nose cone, drilled holes for mounting screws, cut hole for nose wheel, drilled hole for pitot tube. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 13-May-06 | Worked on right door assembly. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 14-May-06 | Completed framing right door and streamlined fuselage mod behind door. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 16-May-06 | Finished left door and streamlined mod behind door. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 22-May-06 | Installed Turbulence 15 gallon fuel tank. Sanded and primed door frame. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 23-May-06 | Cut slot for rear pax seat belts behind rear seat. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 23-May-06 | Built storage space above fuel tank with aluminum sheet metal and installed hinges and doors behind seat. | 3.5 Hours |  |
| 24-May-06 | Primed and painted door frames. | 1.0 Hours | |
| 26-May-06 | Riveted door frames together. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 26-May-06 | Cut lexan and installed right door and hinges. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 26-May-06 | Drilled and clecoed left door. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 29-May-06 | Finished left door lexan and hinges installation. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 01-Jun-06 | Installed lexan cockpit ceiling sheet. | 4.0 Hours |  |
| 02-Jun-06 | Cut out instrument panel from 1/8″ aluminum sheet, filed edges, cut out holes for instruments. | 4.0 Hours |  |
| 03-Jun-06 | Filed instrument holes to fit and drilled mounting screw holes. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 08-Jun-06 | Began mounting Kuntzleman Hotbox in framework in nose between rudder pedals and began running wires through fuselage. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 09-Jun-06 | Installed more electric wires and tie wrapped. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 09-Jun-06 | Installed Kuntzleman strobe driver box on floor pan under rear seat and wired it to Hotbox. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 30-Jun-06 | Wired strobes with quick connectors. Installed fuel tank level probe and wired it to panel and Hotbox. Installed fuel primer line, Fuel filter, and tee” fitting in fuel line to primer line. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 08-Jul-30 | Finished filing instrument holes. Cut square Hobbs meter hole. Sanded instrument panel, primed and painted. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 10-Jul-06 | Began mounting instruments and electric switches. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 11-Jul-06 | Began wiring up panel instruments and switches. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 17-Jul-06 | Installed 2 EGT and 1 CHT gauges and Hobbs meter. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 01-Aug-06 | Wired up EGT CHT Tach gauges to Hotbox terminal strip. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 18-Sep-06 | Sanded aluminum tubes on fuselage. Removed ink print. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 22-Sep-06 | Covered rudder and vertical stabilizer with fabric and glued. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 24-Sep-06 | Ironed rudder and verticle stabilizer. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 25-Sep-06 | Covered,glued remainder of tail section pieces. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 18-Oct-06 | Ironed remainder of tail section pieces. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 16-Nov-06 | Glued protective fabric tape strips and gap seals on tail pieces. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 23-Nov-06 | More gluing and ironing of tape strips and gap seals on tail. | 5.0 Hours | |
| 30-Nov-06 | Completed fabric on tail. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 05-Dec-06 | Sealed tail components with thinned glue. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 06-Dec-06 | Started main landing gear temporary install. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 10-Dec-06 | Mounted wheels – main gear. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 11-Dec-06 | Drilled main gear axles and mounted nose gear, drilled shaft. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 13-Dec-06 | Cut and mounted 3 fibreglass wheel pants. | 4.0 Hours | |
| 14-Dec-06 | Installed rudder pedal push rods, nose wheel push rods, brake lever on control stick, hand grips on control stick. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 14-Dec-06 | Punched, drilled, trimmed 60 of the W1X rib gussets, started grinding off the sharp corners. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 16-Dec-06 | Finished grinding off the sharp corners of the W1X rib gussets. Also ground off sharp edge on wing rib ends. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 20-Dec-06 | Marked and drilled holes in wing ribs for fabric rivets. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 22-Dec-06 | Finished drilling holes in wing ribs for fabric rivets. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 27-Dec-06 | Fitted nose cone, aligned, layed out cut lines for flip up nose option. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 01-Jan-07 | Built tables for wing construction. Started building wing boxes on right wing. | 5.5 Hours |  |
| 02-Jan-07 | Continued work on right wing boxes. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 03-Jan-07 | Finished wing boxes on right wing. | 1.0 Hours | |
| 03-Jan-07 | Installed ribs and leading edge gussets on right wing. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 04-Jan-07 | Finished ribs and trailing edge gussets on right wing. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 04-Jan-07 | Temporarily installed fibreglass wing tip and drilled holes, held with clecos. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 06-Jan-07 | Finished right wing tip. Hung up wing. Started left wing boxes. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 06-Jan-07 | Finished bottom of sheet metal wing boxes at root and wing tip left wing. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 09-Jan-07 | Finished top of sheet metal boxes on left wing. Started rivetting. | 3.5 Hours | |
| 10-Jan-07 | Finished rivetting bottom of wing box and started installing wing ribs on the left wing. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 12-Jan-07 | Installed, drilled and rivetted all ribs for the left wing. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 12-Jan-07 | Started Install of left fibreglass (Hoerner) wing tip.(Temporary with clecos) | 1.0 Hours | |
| 13-Jan-07 | Finished left Hoerner wingtip installation. (Clecoed) | 1.5 Hours | |
| 14-Jan-07 | Primed and spray painted wing strut outside attachment brackets. | 0.5 Hours | |
| 15-Jan-07 | Primed jury struts and spray ed another coat on wing strut brackets. |
0.5 Hours | |
| 16-Jan-07 | Finished spray painting jury struts and strut brackets. | 0.5 Hours | |
| 16-Jan-07 | Mounted left aileron hinges and aileron assembly with clecoes and checked for proper range of movement. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 17-Jan-07 | Moved wings. Started right wing aileron install. | 0.5 Hours |  |
| 19-Jan-07 | Installed right aileron hinges and aileron assembly with clecoes and checked for proper range of movement. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 16-Feb-07 | Installed AeroControls throttle/choke quadrant front and rear cockpit. Ran the cables through holes in the support gussets along the side. | 4.0 Hours |  |
| 19-Feb-07 | Installed reinforcing sheet metal to belly and sides. | 1.0 Hours | |
| 20-Feb-07 | Installed receptacles on right side of cockpit for electric heated seats. | 1.0 Hours |  |
| 20-Feb-07 | Installed Tiny Tach electronic tachometer to instrument panel and ran wires back to engine along gussets on left side. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 08-Mar-07 | Filed, sanded, covered, and glued both ailerons. | 5.0 Hours | |
| 11-Mar-07 | Added protective tape to ailerons and sealed fabric weave with thinned glue. | 5.0 Hours | |
| 15-Mar-07 | Sanded left wing. Added protective masking tape over gussets and other sharp edges. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 16-Mar-07 | Covered bottom of left wing and ironed fabric 3 stages. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 17-Mar-07 | Trimmed fabric edges on left wing and glued down. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 18-Mar-07 | Covered top of left wing. Ironed first stage 250′F. Trimmed edges and glued them down. Glued ribs. Hot knifed holes for fabric rivets. Redrilled the holes. Taped over the ribs. Rivetted fabric down on all the ribs. | 6.0 Hours |  |
| 25-Mar-07 | Started to install fabric protective strips over the ribs. | 1.0 Hours |  |
| 26-Mar-07 | Finished installing and gluing down the protective fabric strips over the ribs. Installed the aileron onto the left wing with stainless rivets. Installed 3″ fabric gap seal strip between aileron and wing. Installed 4″ protective fabric strip on leading edge of wing. Ironed top of wing 300′F and 350′F. | 5.5 Hours |  |
| 29-Mar-07 | Sealed weave of fabric on top of left wing with thinned glue. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 30-Mar-07 | Sealed fabric weave on bottom of left wing with thinned glue. Added fabric reinforcing patches around area where holes will be cut for strut brackets. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 01-Apr-07 | Sanded right wing. Removed ink marks. | 1.0 Hours | |
| 02-Apr-07 | Masking taped rib brackets. Covered bottom of wing. Ironed 250/300/350′F | 3.5 Hours | |
| 03-Apr-07 | Moved fuel gauge. Removed analogue tachometer. Installed Ammeter into panel. Covered top of wing. Ironed 250/300′F. Poked holes for rivets and pulled all 140 fabric rivets. Started attaching reinforcing fabric strips on ribs on the leading edge side. Installed aileron with clecos. | 7.5 Hours |  |
| 04-Apr-07 | Finished Installing reinforcing fabric strips over ribs and ironed down. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 05-Apr-07 | Installed leading reinforcing fabric. Painted wooden doors behind rear seat. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 06-Apr-07 | Ironed top of wing 350′F. Sealed top of wing. Installed aileron gap seal. | 2.5 Hours | |
| 09-Apr-07 | Touch up ironing on bottom to remove glue gobs. Sealed bottom of wing. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 09-Apr-07 | Wired and soldered switches for electric heated seats. Dismantled wing assembly tables. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 09-Apr-07 | Sanded fuselage frame. Began taping over gussets, sharp edges and rivets. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 11-Apr-07 | Finished taping over fuselage rough edges. Replaced belly pan for strobes. Added sheet metal to blend fuselage sides to nose cone. Re-routed throttle cables along side. Mounted throttle cable H clip on deck below engine. Glued fabric onto belly of fuselage. | 7.0 Hours |  |
| 12-Apr-07 | Ironed belly fabric 250′F.Trimmed fabric and touched up glue on edges. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 12-Apr-07 | Started covering port side with fabric. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 13-Apr-07 | Finished gluing down port side fabric rear panel. Ironed 250′F. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 15-Apr-07 | Covered starboard rear side. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 15-Apr-07 | Trimmed edges, glued and ironed starboard rear panel 250′F. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 16-Apr-07 | Added front fabric panels to fuselage both sides, trimmed, ironed 250′F. Began adding protective fabric strips. | 4.0 Hours | |
| 20-Apr-07 | Added more protective strips to fuselage and cleaned up glue blobs. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 24-May-07 | Finished protective strips and sealed fuselage with thinned glue. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 01-Jul-07 | Wrapped fuselage in plastic to prep for painting. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 02-Jul-07 | Finished wrapping fuselage in prep for paint. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 02-Jul-07 | Primed fuselage sides and tail pieces with Cecofill. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 04-Jul-07 | Applied second coat of cecofill primer to fuselage and tail pieces. Started bottom of right wing one coat primer. Painted tail struts 2nd and 3rd coats. Started to apply fibreglass flange to flip-up nose cone. | 5.0 Hours |  |
| 05-Jul-07 | Applied primer to top of right wing and both sides left wing. 2nd coat primer to right wing. These coats are applied with 4″ foam brush. | 4.0 Hours | |
| 06-Jul-07 | Installed LG9 gear leg inserts. Painted both brakes black. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 06-Jul-07 | Applied 2nd coat primer to left wing with foam brush. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 11-Jul-07 | Cut holes and slots in gear leg plastic streamliner. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 24-Jul-07 | Sanded primer. Glued in fiberglass flange for nose cone mod. Sanded ridge of of wheel pants and filled holes with Bondo. Cut and separated two nose cone halves. | 4.0 Hours |  |
| 25-Jul-07 | Sanded wheel pants until ready for primer. Added fiberglass reinforcement to nose conefor elastic retaining strap posts. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 26-Jul-07 | Installed flip-up nose hinge assembly. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 27-Jul-07 | Installed nose cone posts. Sanded nose cone assembly for priming. Filed edge for clearance and smooth open and close action. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 27-Jul-07 | Added 3 coats primer to tail pieces. Added 3 coats of primer to wheel pants and gear leg streamline strut cover. Added 3 coats primer to nose cone. | 3.5 Hours | |
| 28-Jul-07 | Sprayed 3 coats yellow paint to tail pieces. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 30-Jul-07 | Sprayed more coats yellow paint on tail. Sprayed 4 coats blue paint to wheel pants, nose cone and gear leg covers. | 6.0 Hours |  |
| 01-Aug-07 | Sprayed gloss coat to bottom of horizontal stabilizer/elevators and one side of rudder and fin. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 03-Aug-07 | Sanded paint on tail pieces. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 04-Aug-07 | Sanded nose cone. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 06-Aug-07 | Gloss coat on one side of rudder. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 07-Aug-07 | Final gloss coat on horizontal stabilizers/elevators. Sprayed more coats on nose cone and wheel pants. | 7.0 Hours |  |
| 08-Aug-07 | Sanded nose cone and wheel pants 600 grit. Final coat of blue on nose and wheel pants. Cleaned the spray gun very thoroughly. | 4.0 Hours | |
| 09-Aug-07 | Washed fuselage. | 1.0 Hour | |
| 10-Aug-07 | Sprayed 4 cross coats of Ecofill primer on fuselage and sanded. | 3.5 Hours | |
| 11-Aug-07 | Sprayed 3 cross coats of blue paint on fuselage. Clean painting equipment | 2.5 Hours |  |
| 13-Aug-07 | Sprayed more blue paint on fuselage to cover primer. Got some runs in paint. Need to sand and recoat. Primed fiberglass wing tips and mid-wing. gap covers. | 4.0 Hours | |
| 14-Aug-07 | Spray painted wing tips and mid wing gap cover through to final gloss coat. Sprayed gloss coat on one side of fin and rudder assembly. | 4.0 Hours | |
| 15-Aug-07 | Painted gloss coat on second side of fin and rudder. | 1.5 Hours | |
| 16-Aug-07 | Sprayed 4 cross coats of primer on right wing. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 26-Aug-07 | Lightly sanded left wing. Sprayed 4 cross coats primer on left wing. | 2.5 Hours |  |
| 26-Aug-07 | Sanded right wing. Sprayed 4 cross coats of yellow paint on right wing. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 28-Aug-07 | Sanded left wing. Sprayed 4 cross coats yellow paint on left wing. | 3.5 Hours |  |
| 03-Sep-07 | Sanded and spray painted fuselage gloss coat. It did not gloss up enough. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 03-Sep-07 | Spray painted left wing more covering cross coats then final gloss coat. | 4.0 Hours | |
| 04-Sep-07 | Sanded right wing. Sprayed more covering cross coats then final gloss coat. Cleaned the spray gun thoroughly. | 6.0 Hours | |
| 07-Sep-07 | Sanded fuselage. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 08-Sep-07 | Spray painted fuselage final blue gloss coat. Cleaned spray gun. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 09-Sep-07 | Removed plastic masking from fuselage. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 12-Sep-07 | Installed flip-up nose cone and nose wheel and pant. Began installing velcro strips for upholstery on interior. | 2.0 Hours | |
| 16-Sep-07 | Installed rudder/vertical stabilizer assembly, horizontal stabilizer/elevator assemblies, fin, and rudder cables. Trimmed pitot tube. Installed strut brackets onto fuselage. | 5.0 Hours | |
| 18-Sep-07 | Installed rudder push rods. Note- do this before installing fin! Installed gear leg streamliners. Installed wheel pants and brakes. Connected ASI to pitot tube. | 3.0 Hours | |
| 25-Sep-07 | Installed bottom and top strobe lights. Installed and tensioned landing gear wires and drag wires. | 2.0 Hours |  |
| 02-Oct-07 | Cut, fitted and installed lexan wind shield. | 3.0 Hours |  |
| 05-Oct-07 | Installed right fiberglass wingtip. Installed nylon door latches. | 1.0 Hour |  |
| 08-Oct-07 | Installed left fiberglass wingtip. Installed strut brackets to wings. | 1.0 hour |  |
| 15-Oct-07 | Installed vinyl graphics to tail section and yellow “Challenger” logo to sides. | 1.5 Hours |  |
| 3-Nov-07 | Started cutting out cockpit upholstery in dark blue denim. | 1 Hour | |
| 15-May-08 | Ordered 582 Engine and re-drive package. | 1/2 Hour | |
| Final | Total time spent assembling Challenger = | about 400.0 |