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builders' remorse?



 
 
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  #1  
Old September 14th 06, 04:29 AM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
[email protected]
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Posts: 3
Default builders' remorse?

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

  #2  
Old September 14th 06, 04:11 PM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
flybabybuilder
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Posts: 3
Default builders' remorse?

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


  #3  
Old September 14th 06, 04:45 PM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
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Posts: 1,130
Default builders' remorse?


Having had several projects, and watching friends doing theirs,
I have seen a few things to watch out for:
-Picking a design that promises too much. There have been some
airplanes for which kits or plans have been sold well before adequate
test flying has been done, some before any prototype was built. Not a
good bet. Some of those airplanes never flew at all, and some flew
poorly or dangerously. Older homebuilders can spot those a mile away,
and the airplane seeker needs to listen those those guys.
-Picking a design that is way beyond the builder's financial or
time capabilities. Somehow, we think we will be able to afford it, but
we're not taking into account the kids' needs as they grow up and the
needs of the spouse. You gotta maintain the marriage and the
relationship with your family. Seen some homebuilders lose it all
because they spent too much money and time on something that will
rust/rot/corrode away anyway. Suddenly the builder can resent the
airplane and what it did to him. A family is worth more than an
airplane any day. Keep the desires within reason. I have friends who
have spent 30+ years on airplanes (while properly balancing family and
homebuilding) that aren't finished yet, and now age and/or loss of
medical means that it was mostly for nothing.
-Time-to-build estimates can be reasonable or can be too rosy.
Talk to the builders who have finished that model and see how long it
took. 2000 hours sounds achievable until you realize that 2000 hours is
a full-time 8-hour-a-day job for one year. How many of us can afford
that sort of time and still get an airplane built in two or three
years? And keeping motivated is a problem. To come home after a hard
day's work and still get in a few hours of building is hard to maintain
for years on end, especially considering the family's needs.
This isn't intended to be negative, only that a prospective
builder needs to be realistic. Homebuilding is really rewarding,
espcially if the builder can get the family involved. The quick-build
stuff can be a boon to those who can afford it, especially those with
too few spare hours. And homebuilts often outperform the factory spam
stuff, some are fantastic works of art. Some are so uniquely ugly they
appeal to some. Some can get into and out of tiny places so we can get
away from it all. Only in homebuilding is there so much variety, and
there's a real cameraderie among builders. Too bad most of us have to
work for a living...

Dan

  #4  
Old September 14th 06, 07:18 PM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
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Posts: 9
Default builders' remorse?


Dan said it with very good words for advice. Read number 3, many times.

In aviation now for 40 years, I have seen many Kits companies, just
looking for Kit Investors
so they can build or finish the Proto-type aircraft. Be very careful
with the Advertisers.

CAUTION, Many aircraft builders end up with AIDS (Aviation Induced
Divorced Syndrome)
Always pick a aircraft that your girl friend or wife likes and can work
with you.

Stay away from a buddy partner in a aircraft project, unless maybe
your Father.
I have see many, many partners lose interest in the project and want
their investment paid back.
It happen to me in the 1960's. I did finish the project and got it
flying.

It is a must, to get a flight in a 2 place aircraft you like. Pay him
the money for the flight as a thank you.
Check out the Demo's pilots experience for advice on the plane. Many
times the Builder-Pilot will say
"It is the best plane he ever built and flown" Then you later find out
this is the second type he has ever
flew. His first airplane was a C-150 that he got his Private pilots
rating in.

Join the EAA and attend Oshkosh Airventure. www.eaa.org

A Magazine with a good source of information, with some very good
editors is Kitplanes.
The October 2006 issue, has some very good information articles for
you.
Read, Barnaby Wainfan, Wind Tunnel, page 68. He does write about the
good and bad information of the aircraft.

Their are some editors that will take a 45 min. to 1 hour flight in a
aircraft and write a 6 page story about it.
Then they always list the positive flight fetchers of the plane, never
the negative ones. They sound like
they work for the Companies advertising Dept.

You will be investing a good part of your life in time and money.

You want the aircraft you love!!!

Larry Fitzgerald

www.fitzair.net

  #5  
Old September 15th 06, 02:35 AM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
Barnyard BOb
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Posts: 169
Default builders' remorse?




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.



FlyBabyBuilder

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Same here.

WHEN THE EARTH WAS VERY YOUNG,
there were several aircraft that I dreamed of owning
some day. One dream machine was a Mooney Mite.
I would have given a left nut for one....
Until I sat in one of those torture racks.

Poof... end of dream!
Ditto for a Smith Mini-Plane.
Ditto for the Midget Mustang.
OTOH, the Van's RV-3 fits me like a glove.

Try before you buy/build, fer sure.
It can $ave a lot of heartache.


-Barnyard BOb -
FlyBaby driver of the early 1960's




  #6  
Old September 15th 06, 03:13 AM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
DonMorrisey
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Posts: 43
Default builders' remorse?

Real Good question and the advice/tips above are real good. I wrote an
article for my EAA Chapter on the plane I chose and how I got to that
decision:

http://www.eaa279.org/newsletter/mar06.pdf

Click on that link or paste it in your browser if it doesn't highlight
and scroll to the end of the newsletter. I chose to build a Bushcaddy
R-120 for the reasons outlined in my report and did a ton of research
beforehand including visiting the factory and flying one. I am one
year and 414 hours into it. I love building it and my wife and family
are very supportive. The tech support from Bushcaddy is fabulous and I
wouldn't change anything at this point. You have to commit yourself to
it and that means choosing the right time in your life to start
buuilding. It is important to be peristent, try to do something every
day, even if it's clean up the shop. Contact me if you have questions.
Don....

  #7  
Old September 15th 06, 03:32 AM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
UltraJohn
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Posts: 8
Default builders' remorse?

wrote:

Read, Barnaby Wainfan, Wind Tunnel, page 68. He does write about the
good and bad information of the aircraft.

Their are some editors that will take a 45 min. to 1 hour flight in a
aircraft and write a 6 page story about it.

Larry Fitzgerald

www.fitzair.net


Larry
Read the original posters name at the bottom of their post! ;-)
John

  #8  
Old September 15th 06, 04:42 PM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
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Posts: 9
Default builders' remorse?

Larry
Read the original posters name at the bottom of their post! ;-)
John


John

Lynne and Barnaby and I know each other for many years at Oshkosh.

The Wainfans have worked very hard for many decades, writing books and
information articles in many magazines. They give some very excellent
EAA Forums at Oshkosh. When you view the people at their forums,
you will see many well known Airfoil and Aircraft Design Engineers in
attendance.

I always bug them, to have some one gather all their past articles and
put them in a book.

Just my thanks to the Wainfans for all the time they spend, sharing
their knowledge and
experience, with us.

So, send them the tips you have experienced over the many years on your
aircraft.

Larry Fitzgerald

www.fitzair.net

  #9  
Old September 16th 06, 04:49 AM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
Ernest Christley
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Posts: 199
Default builders' remorse?

Barnyard BOb wrote:


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.


FlyBabyBuilder


I have some remorse, and I'm not even done building my first one yet.

My problem is that the world refused to stand still and wait for me to
finish. I had criteria for plans built, cross-country speeds, 4
passengers, and a unique appearance. The Dyke Delta fit perfectly, and
I'm 80% done (with only 80% to go). But once I got enough of it
together to sit in it, I crave more room. Well, not true, actually. I
crave more room for my passengers. I just know the family trips (the
ultimate goal) will be limited due to the "crampness".

Now I'm being drawn to the Bearhawk. Gobs of room, front and back.
Plans built, or kit sections if there's some cash in the budget to
spare. Decent cross country speeds. Not very unique looking, but I'll
have a Delta for the fly-ins 8*)

I guess you could say that my remorse is not have one of everything 8*)
  #10  
Old September 16th 06, 06:18 PM posted to rec.aviation.homebuilt
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Posts: 3
Default builders' remorse?

Larry, I appreciate your kind words. You probably remember my Kitplanes
Article, "How to Build an Airplane and avoid AIDS (Aviation-Induced
Divorce Syndrome)" It chronicles the lessons Barnaby and I learned
while buiding the Facetmobile and trying not to kill each other with
the rivet gun.

Thanks to all who have posted so far. These are great insights; Keep
'em coming!
-Lynne

 




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