Lynne, I'm still in the building process, but I did a lot of thinking -
about two years' worth - before selecting a design and beginning
construction. I analyzed my typical mission profile and what it is
likely to be ten or fifteen years from now. That narrowed down the
field quite a bit. I thought about the building process and my own
skills and preferences and whether I'd prefer to work in wood, metal,
or fiberglass. That narrowed it down some more.

I bought several info packets and a couple of sets of plans. I read
pilot reports, joined listserves, and visited builders of several
different designs. I "tried on" one prospective design and saw that to
get in and out I'd need to bend my knees in a way they really didn't
want to go. I looked at completed components of another design and
realized that it was a far more complex aircraft to build than I wanted
to take on.

Feeling pretty sure that I was settled on the Fly Baby, I build a test
elevator out of scrap material, to see if I really would enjoy the
building process. I did.

FlyBabyBuilder

wrote:
Hi:
I'm doing research for my latest magazine article and I was wondering
if you could help me. I'm collecting information for people who might
be trying to figure out which kit/plans/finished homebuilt to buy. I
suspect everyone who buys an airplane has a set of factors they're
looking for, but once they start flying the airplane, they find out
there are some other things they should have considered.
For instance, one guy I heard about took so long building his airplane
that by the time he'd finished, he had outgrown it. Cabin size didn't
seem so important when he started.
Do you have any tips from your own experience that might help a new
buyer make a better decision? What did you think was important before
you bought the plane that didn't seem so important afterwards? What do
you wish you'd considered before you bought your plane?
Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
Lynne Wainfan
Long Beach, CA