I haven't had a chance to do much work on the plane (even though it's getting really close to being ready to flip the fuselage over so I can move a lot faster), but why should that stop me from buying goodies for it?
The high pressure fuel pump and filter are needed to back up the mechanical fuel pump since I'm going with the fuel injected engine. Van's sells a kit that includes the pump and filter, as well as the housing for it. It'll be installed on the floor in front of the seats.
This is a picture from another builder's site. The housing has a place for the fuel selector valve and covers the pump.
The standard Van's fuel selector valve leaves a lot to be desired. It looks like a valve I would build with parts from Home Depot. I'm sure it works and is a cheap solution, but it seems like a shame to spend a lot of time making a nice interior and then have an eyesore for a fuel selector. I decided to spend a few extra bucks and get the Andair valve, which is a beautiful piece of machining.
Van's used to include super cheap plastic air vents with the kit, but virtually everyone threw them away because they leaked so bad. So now the kits don't include vents as standard. I ordered aluminum vents instead of going with the cheaper plastic version. I can't remember the last car I had that didn't end up having a broken plastic air vent. I think aluminum will last a lot longer, and they look much nicer.
The electric flaps don't include a way to set any position detents. I suppose I could go the counting method and always count to 3 for X degrees of flaps, another 3 seconds for Y degrees, but I'd much rather have a method that is just automatic. The Show Planes system has a collar that goes over the flap actuator and can provide a reference point for varying degrees of flaps. The control box hooks up to the switch on the panel so that the flaps can be set with just a flip of the switch, and you can bring the flaps back to full up without having to hold the switch.
I'm going to install the ADAHRS box for the EFIS behind the baggage compartment in the tailcone. In order to be calibrated, it has to be level and not necessarily with the angle of the airplane structure. The tailcone doesn't sit level, but Van's has already done the geometry and has a cheap, slightly angled bracket that can be riveted to the J-stringers of the top tailcone skin and it automatically sets the bracket at level.
Lastly, as much as I hate the stuff, I ordered more ProSeal (well, not actually that brand, but it's kind of like Kleenex vs tissue). I am all out of the batch I used to seal the fuel tanks. I definitely didn't need this much, but it's the smallest container. I will just need some for varying things as I build. It's not technically a glue, but that's what everyone uses it for. I'll use it to glue in the naca vents for the air vents, sealing leak paths in the tip up canopy at the hinge, attaching wire zip tie brackets, etc.
