![Pat McKiernan has found that he and his dad who built this beautiful RV-7 simply learned to enjoy the build. [Credit: Bill Wilson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Builder.jpg?w=534&h=462&crop=1 "Life Lessons From Building an Airplane")
![[Credit: AdobeStock]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/AdobeStock_51865118.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "FAA MOSAIC Rule Fully Implemented")
![My 36 year old clipboard from when I started at Boeing. Engineering ruler and fastener/fastener hole cheat sheets. [Credit: Andrew Robinson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Liaison_clipboard.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "What Is a Liaison Engineer?")
![At Sun ‘n Fun 2026, Viking Aircraft Engines surprised the crowd with its first complete kit — the V-42, a high-wing twin powered by two Honda-based engines. Here’s an early look. [Credit: Andrew Robinson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/P1020293.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Viking V-42 Twin")
![A STOL CH 750 [Credit: Mike Davenport]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/STOL-CH-750.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Why Are So Many Airplanes Yellow?")
Power, Scotty, I Gotta Have More Power
“I canna give ye more, Cap’n. The dilithium crystals are already overloaded.”
—Star Trek
This month’s article is more of a simple tutorial instead of a...
SCAT Tubing Cut
Be careful when routing SCAT tubing close to metal structures like engine mounts.
The hard spring wire can actually cut through the 4130 engine mount...
Some Old Favorites
For those building a new airplane, chances are you’re getting more than familiar with certain tools at different stages of the build. For me,...
Design Process: Vertical Tail Spin Considerations
Not every airplane is designed to perform intentional spins, but that doesn’t mean the designer can safely ignore the effect of the vertical tail...
Keeping a Battery Current
“With an anxiety that almost amounted to agony, I collected the instruments of life around me, that I might infuse a spark of being...
Archive: March 2013
On the cover of our March 2013 issue was the last fully new airplane introduced by Van’s Aircraft, the RV-14. As Paul Dye wrote...
In Case You Missed It
Cutting Aluminum on the Table Saw
The first time I watched someone cut a one-inch thick slab of 7075...
To Dream The (Almost Impossible) Dream
Almost from the beginning of aviation, the idea of a plane you could drive/car you could fly has captured both the popular imagination and the hearts of some dedicated experimentalists. The dream remains alive, and realization, the author says, is fettered only by the lack of willing investors; by Murry L. Rozansky.
Machinery Mobilization
Rich Seifert next to his Shopsmith Mark V combo machine. Factory wheels make...