Which RV? 8,10,14?

[AaronG]

I have both an 8 and a 10. Both have roughly the same speed and range. More fuel needed on the 10 due to the 6 cylinder engine.

The 10 has more room, is more stable, and has a much better heating system. The 8 has no heat in the back, and is cold if cold outside. So when I fly cross country or IFR I take the 10. The 8 is more fun to fly however. The 10 costs more to build, for fuel, insurance, etc.

If I did it again, I would have gone with a side-by-side vs tandem. In the 8, you are just a passenger in the back. I have the throttle and rudder pedals, but you just can?t see out the front very well to fly from the back. The side by side lets a second family member get more involved in the flight, and training is easier. My kids started flying more with me when I finished the 10 and they could sit up front and participate.

Relative to a 10 vs 14, I think it comes down to needing the extra seats. You will pay more across the board for the extra seats.

[SantosDumont]

I'm at BVU and there's a guy with a glass panel beautiful RV-8 that was featured in the EAA magazine this month. I sat in the front seat in his hangar and when I closed the canopy my initial reaction was, huh, this seems small.

I still need to take him up on his offer of a ride (or one of you guys) just to make sure I make the right decision for me, but the more I think about it, the 14 seems like it would fit my flying style, and I could actually get my kids/wife interested in going with me, and give them individual tasks, dial in a frequency, hold a heading, etc that might get them interested in training.

I guess to seal the deal I could put my wife in the back seat of an 8 and get her reaction, since she already knows what the Mooney is like.

I really don't need 4 seats, since I need 5 to fit my whole family, and we're at the point where the van really is a more comfortable/practical vehicle for the whole family to go somewhere.

[Toobuilder]

The front of the -8 seems smaller than it actually is due to the canopy rails and the gear leg towers. That is one of the biggest things to

You notice when switching back and forth between the -8 and the Rocket - the front pit in the Rocket seems like its 50% wider, even though it isn't.

[David Paule]

Modest suggestion - after discussing the various different characteristics of the various airplanes with her, ask your wife which plane to get, and then take her recommendation.

Dave

[Capt]

It's the age old question in any field...."which one"?
The answer? There's isn't one!
EVERY A/C is a trade off, just pick one that has the least amount if trade off's

I bought an 8 (the mans version) purely cause I fly solo 90% of the time. Sold the wife years ago (best decision ever!) kids not interested in aviation (Phew!)
We each have our reasons as to how we go about buying anything in life.

Enjoy the ride, trust me life slips away so fast, 40 years driving planes as a career you will wonder where did all those years go?
Good luck, an RV is about as close to heaven you will get whilst above ground & verticle

[gereed75]

I fly almost all cross country in my -6. I have loaded all kinds of stuff in it from time to time - skis, golf clubs, car transmission, passenger and bagage, etc. oh yea, and my dog. Just don’t see all that happening in an 8. Get the 14 (or why not a 7?) and rent if you need room for four.

Oh yea, also don’t like the idea of annexing a pax to the back seat of an 8. Side by side is much more convivial with a pax, and I suspect much more comfortable/reassuring for them.

Fly safe

[N941WR]

Only you can answer the question as to which is best for you.

As to why the -14 is more expensive than the other two seat kits, the answer is simple. The level of completion in the -14 kit is much much better than the older kits. The documentation is better, more parts are milled/cut to final size, the build manual is better, etc.

Good luck!

[Northernliving]

Originally Posted by SantosDumont

I'm a relatively new pilot / Mooney driver. Got my PPL in 2016. I'm up to about 800 hours now and I'm to the point where I want to be more hands on with the airplane maintenance, but you know, certified.

Mostly I'm concerned about being able to control the quality, and I figure the only way to do that is to do it myself. There are a lot of things that I would do different, and a lot of mistakes that I would rather be my own, than someone else's that I just have to tolerate. So I'm ready to get started on building my forever plane.

So far my missions seem to be 90% solo XC, 5% passenger, 5% training. Probably 1% of my flights are IFR, shooting an approach through the marine layers in CA.

I signed up for one of the RV Builder intro classes in January, and if that doesn't scare me off I'd like to pull the trigger on an empennage kit and get started.

But I can't decide which kit I should actually build.

I have 3 boys, ages 11,9,7. Right now they would rather play Minecraft than go flying, but I'm expecting that could change in a few years. 10-20 years from now I see the need to have a XC machine for the wife and I to cruise around and visit the kids in college, see grandkids, etc.

The Mooney has really spoiled me. It has 100GAL tanks, and while I usually only fill the inboard tanks to 64GAL, if I'm doing a long 600 mile round trip XC I can fill it all the way up and not have to worry about fuel for the whole trip, there AND back.

Here's my thoughts:

RV-8.
This would be my "All about Me" plane. It's the fastest, best looking, most sporty. It could meet my 90% XC mission, but it doesn't really seem like a XC plane. Only 40 GAL tanks, kind of cramped cockpit, and not a super great experience for a passenger in the back. Doesn't seem like it would be great for IFR. The most I think I'd want to do in it is 2hr legs. I live in Vegas and a sliding cockpit would be great for summer taxiing. If the kids ever got interested in flying, it would be a long, long time before I ever let them fly it.

RV-10
This can haul more stuff and has more panel space. 60 GAL tanks gives it a similar range of the Mooney. Seems like the most comfortable. But I still can't fit my whole family in the 10, so I'm not really sure I need all the space. Probably too powerful for a trainer, but something the kids could quickly graduate to.

RV-14
Similar characteristics to the 8. Not as sporty but can still do aerobatics. More roomy than the 8, side by side seating = more comfort, especially for passengers. 50 GAL tanks = 1 more hr range than the -8, but 1 less than the -10. Side by side seating means it could be used for training if the kids wanted to use it.

One other consideration in looking at the cost of the kit, why is the -14 $10k more than the -8? The -3 to -9 kits all seem to be similarly priced. Is it just because it is bigger, newer, easier?

At $2k for the starter kit, the -8 seems like an easy impulse buy... although the -10 or -14 isn't out of reach, but I would have $2k more to spend on tools to get started.

I'd appreciate any insight on the different models that anyone is willing to provide.

I?ve sort of concluded that we all need 2-3 planes. A station wagon for hauling the family(RV10), a jeep for going off road or in the water(Kit Fox, Carbon Cub on floats, etc), and a sports car for having fun (RV8, Rocket, etc). My kids are 28, 25, and 22. I?m building an 8, but I purchased one to fly while I build. I?ve learned a lot by owning and the one that I?m building will be much better as a result. My mission is probably similar to the one that you envision. I fly my older kids around occasionally, but I transport my youngest to and from college (and his friends), constantly. I fly my wife to see him play football at college, I fly my wife to see her parents up in Northern Maine in the summer and down the Carolinas in the winter and all over the mid-west with my wife to see old friends. Occasionally, I fly with other guys to breakfast on Saturday mornings by myself. You get the idea. The experience in the back seat of an 8 is fine, especially for non-pilots. The experience in the front is spectacular. My bride wouldn?t trade the visibility out of both sides of the plane for anything and looking at the back of my head when she isn?t enjoying the scenery out of either side is a small price to pay. The 8 I?m building will have long range Tuckey Tanks, so your bladder will determine how long you stay in the air. Overall, the 8 has been a very economical time machine that my family thoroughly enjoys. But don't discount it as only a sports car that is all about you. You really can?t go wrong with any of the RV?s, though!

[PropMan]

Its going to take more than one plane to fill your needs. Build one and buy the other

[DanH]

Originally Posted by SantosDumont

RV-8.
This would be my "All about Me" plane. It's the fastest, best looking, most sporty. It could meet my 90% XC mission, but it doesn't really seem like a XC plane. Only 40 GAL tanks, kind of cramped cockpit, and not a super great experience for a passenger in the back. Doesn't seem like it would be great for IFR. The most I think I'd want to do in it is 2hr legs. I live in Vegas and a sliding cockpit would be great for summer taxiing.

I've flown a lot of 3 to 4 hr legs in mine, at 180 KTAS or more. I'm 6-3 and about 225.

Don't neglect variations on the base model. The Showplanes tip over includes narrowed cockpit rails, the center roll bar is marvelous for entry and exit, and the raised turtledeck allows a lot more baggage.

Ms Patti likes her nest. We're both tall, so the 6-7-9 series do not have enough room. Best if you arrange a flight for your wife in whatever you consider. A 14 would work for us if we went side by side.