whifof100ll
Well Known Member
N666LT began life as S/N 22636, a mid 90's RV-6 empennage kit originally purchased by Rufus Clark of Groton Ct. Fuse and finishing kits are of the late 90's vintage. Rufus suffered from cancer and halted progress in 1998. Rufus passed away and the project sat dormant until I bought it from his widow, Karen in 2005. It was in good shape, and Rufus had done lots of work. The project was not quite at the quick build stage when my good buddies Andre Olivier and Jesse Diggs worked in the snow to help me pack it up and ship it home to Louisiana. I owe them big time!
The project was completed on 5/14/08. DAR inspection was 5/23/08 and I test flew her the same day. It was a heck of a day. Thanks to Jim Shaw to flew chase (as best he could) in my C177. The plane had a few minor squawks , but these were mainly easy fixes. She is a very straight flying plane and betters Vans numbers by a knot or two. Power is by a new Superior XPIO360 with 1 mag and 1 Lightspeed Plasma II. The prop is a Catto 3 blade. The panel features and AFS 3500EE, Garmin 396,SL30, GTX320A, & ICOM A210. I'm really happy with these choices. Something that struck me is that the vendors supporting this industry are genrally top notch. Van's Aircraft, Craig Catto, Rob Hickman of AFS, and Robert Avery all shine in terms of customer support. The paint was by Dennis Goodner of AOG paint service in Mena, AR. He did a fantastic job applying the SW Jet and Acry Glo. I would not hesitate to use any of these vendors again.
Today I have 134 hours tach time. I have been all through the Colorado Rockies and Back Country Idaho this summer. The plane is fantastic and continues to surpass my expectations.
I really enjoyed the build process, but not nearly as much as the flying.
Every airport visit is like a mini Christmas.
Last edited by a moderator:
