Quick Build or Legacy for RV-10?

[ledude]

Hi all.

I've been doing my research for my plan of attack with the RV-10. I've been watching the youtube channel that Jason Ellis made with his adventure to build the RV-10. A bit on the scary side with the amount of work that needs to be done. Not from the complexity perspective but the time consuming part that kind of make me wonder whether i should go with the QB route.

My concern (has not been confirmed yet) is that the QB was built without priming against corrosion/rust on the inside part. I thought it's a best practice to rust proof the inside part of the plane in order to avoid future headache with corrosion and rust. Can someone who has bought the QB RV-10 confirmed whether the QB kits come pre-primed with all the good stuff? Cuz if not, that'll be a major strike against QB for me. I just want to make sure that it's being built the right way.

Also has anyone ever look at the aeromomentum engine? They don't have the kit for RV-10 yet but I've been emailing back and forth with Mark Ketteing(I think he's the owner) and he said he'll build the firewall kit for me if I ordered the engine. I'm thinking of using his brand new AM-20T which is supposedly lighter than Lycoming IO540, it's very energy efficient and it used MOGAS. Here's the fuel consumption result from his test.

AM20T fuel consumption:
% power HP GPH
75% 195 13.3
65% 169 11.0
55% 143 9.3
45% 117 7.6

The spec on their website is 260HP. Not sure why the test is on the lower end of the spectrum. Its a conversion brand new engine from suzuki, if I'm not mistaken. Very interesting engine spec though.

http://aeromomentum.com/am20t.html

Any comment on both of my questions? I'm curious to hear your thoughts. Many thanks.

[Mike S]

Hey Dude, welcome to VAF

[digidocs]

If you have the money, go quick build with a factory Lycoming and the Hartzell prop.

The 10 is a big project and after all that effort and expenditure, you'll be really glad to have followed a proven solid recipe.

[awmuhs]

i strongly reccomend a tried, true and reliable Lycoming engine. After all that building work why risk a problem when you have 3 of your friends/family on board.

I admire those that are working on alternative engines but I am not willing to risk my butt on an engine that has not been really put to the test through millions hours of real world experience.

[Kyle Boatright]

Start building. QB is the way to go if you have more money than time.

Even with a QB, you're probably 2-3 years from needing an engine. In that timeframe, let someone else (or several someone elses) be the early adopters for the Aeromomentum engines and make your engine decision with their experiences in mind.

[rocketman1988]

The qb kit is primed with p60g2...

[RandyAB]

I went quickbuild with no regrets at all. In my view it will pay for itself by putting the plane in the air 1-2 years early. What is flight time worth?

[iwannarv]

While I do not fall in the category of more money than time..... I am doing a QB wing. Travel work schedule and a 18 month old at home warrants it for time. I am lucky to have a friend/building partner working on the fuse to bring it up to QB stage, so I will essentially have a full QB kit. If purchasing outright I probably would not have the finances to go with the QB fuse. I've been told if you do one QB kit out of the mix, do the QB wing due to its level of completion.

[Brantel]

Like Bob said, the QB kits are primed with a wash primer.

QB's are a great deal if you have the money, why not? Unless you just love the build process.

To build a standard build 10 is gonna take at least 2400 man hours and that is without much deviation from the standard Van's plan. Any modifications you do are going to take longer.

Almost anyone can build a plane but if hand tools, mechanical concepts, reading and following technical documents, assembling complex assemblies, etc. are hard for you, expect more hours. On the flip side if all that stuff comes very easy, you may get away with a few less hours. You may be great at mechanical concepts but stink at electrical and vice versa or you may be great or poor at both. The 10 has a great deal more composite work required with the cabin top and doors. This can be a huge learning curve for some.

Fancy interiors, fancy panels, and alternative engine installs can drive up the work required drastically. Builder paint jobs can also pile on the hours.

Jason's videos are fairly representative on what it takes to build a plane. The only thing is understanding how many hours of work are really behind a few minutes of time lapse video.

[UnPossible]

Originally Posted by iwannarv

While I do not fall in the category of more money than time..... I am doing a QB wing. Travel work schedule and a 18 month old at home warrants it for time. I am lucky to have a friend/building partner working on the fuse to bring it up to QB stage, so I will essentially have a full QB kit. If purchasing outright I probably would not have the finances to go with the QB fuse. I've been told if you do one QB kit out of the mix, do the QB wing due to its level of completion.

I am doing the same thing as Brad.... My slow build fuselage is being delivered next week, and I plan on ordering QB wings when I am 9 months or so away from flying. In my case, I currently have a 7A that I finished in 2012, and will need to sell it at some point in the build to fund my 10.

My goal is to "back-load" as much of the costs as possible to minimize the period of time I am without a plane.