Taking the plunge

KRviator · #1 10-22-2010, 03:41 AM

Well, after taking the KRviatrix for her first flight in a light aircraft last month, I've got her approval, the bank has just come good with $40,000 and I'm literally hours away from placing an order for what a lot of people reckon is the biggest mistake of my life. An RV-9A quickbuild kit.

After a bit of a false start with a second-hand KR2 that ended badly, I finally came to the realisation that I should have just built what I wanted from the start instead of being fixated on the KR.

So, to any of VAF'ers from the Great Southern Land, the kit should be leaving Van's around the end of December, travelling with Aussie Car Imports to Sydney. If you need something big shipped, we're probably going to have a 9 tonne truck to pick up the kit and bring it home. I'm sure we could find space for a few odds and ends.

To the rest of the international VAF community, I might as well apologise profusely in advance for the myriad of idiotic questions that will commence shortly as I find new and innovative ways to screwup the construction of the kit.

Vlad · #2 10-22-2010, 04:31 AM

I see good development in your case Rob. I guess two years from delivery to first flight

Congratulations!

bkthomps · #3 10-22-2010, 08:05 AM

congrats, why not pay as you go?

WingsOnWheels · #4 10-22-2010, 11:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bkthomps

congrats, why not pay as you go?

When you have to ship halfway around the world, buying all the kits at once saves a LOT on shipping.

Jaypratt · #5 10-23-2010, 07:15 AM

I am crating a RV7 that is going to Brisbane. The shipping charges are almost 5k. If you have a conainer going,,,, better fill it up!

wrongway john · #6 10-23-2010, 10:40 AM

My first homebuilt plane was the KR-2. I spent about 150 hours on her, and went to great pains to weigh the glue on a weight & beam scale on all of my mixes. My measurements were all on the money. But eventually, I just couldn?t have peace of mind with a wood and glue structure, let alone a VW engine, so I sold her.

Naw, don't anyone tell you it's the biggest mistake of your life. Even though you?re going in debt for your RV, look at it this way: Maybe some ten years after you are flying with it with maybe having 1,000 hours or so, you?re probably going to get back all of your original investment, maybe even make a small profit if you decided to sell then. You can even go 20 years, and she?s still going to hold her value. Wouldn't it be nice if our cars held that kind of value?

Australia ought to be a blast with an RV!

Good luck with your project.

KRviator · #7 10-24-2010, 03:15 AM

Well, it is now official. The forms have been emailed to Van's, the foreign exchange mob has recieved the grand sum of AUD$34,094.46 for my kit and I'm now left waiting....And trying to justify why I need a GNS430 and 3-screen SkyView setup to the KRviatrix...

Quote:

Originally Posted by bkthomps

congrats, why not pay as you go?

As mentioned above, I'm in Australia, and the shipping charges cost an arm and a leg. I could probably trade my firstborn, but he/she/it won't be ready in time for the delivery. The Aussie Dollar is a big factor too, I don't want the bottom to drop out of it and have my RV costing half as much as it did now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jaypratt

I am crating a RV7 that is going to Brisbane. The shipping charges are almost 5k. If you have a conainer going,,,, better fill it up!

The benefit of using ACI... They collate RV shipments to save everyone some serious $$. The quote is around $3,000. And that's Australian dollars too.

I'm fortunate in that I work a 2 week on-2 week off roster, so there's nothing to be gained by saying "It must be here on this date", rather, I'm leaving them to decide the shipping to maximise the savings for me and will just collect it when it gets here.

rv9av8tr · #8 10-24-2010, 08:28 AM

You won't regret your choice. I just finished my -9A and made a long X-country trip after flight testing... its is awesome!!
I went QB and was best $11K I ever spent. Still took me 1650 hrs of hands on building... so do the math and that's about how many months it'll take to finish.
This is a journey of blood, sweat and tears.. in the end you will give birth to a bundle of joy!!

bkthomps · #9 10-24-2010, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KRviator

As mentioned above, I'm in Australia, and the shipping charges cost an arm and a leg. I could probably trade my firstborn, but he/she/it won't be ready in time for the delivery. The Aussie Dollar is a big factor too, I don't want the bottom to drop out of it and have my RV costing half as much as it did now.

good reason!

Hornet2008 · #10 10-25-2010, 02:50 AM

Hi Rob

Good stuff, I'm still chewing over a 7 or 8, leaning towards the 8. Where are you in Aussie, I'm in Mudgee NSW

Pete