repeat offenders?

prkaye · #1 09-21-2012, 07:16 AM

After my recent big trip, and talking with lots of pilots lately, I'm starting to get an itch. The itch to build an RV-8 with a big engine and that sexy looking fastback mod. Definitely not something I can start in the next couple of years with a 4 year old at home and a second child on the way, but maybe in a few years. For any repeat offenders out there, how have you found it has worked-out from a financial point of view? I think the usual thing is to start building the second, and when you get ready for engine/fwf/panel then sell the first RV to finance that stuff. Hopefully only be a year or so without a plane under that scenario. Of course, there's a bit of a risk here. If you find the market is dry for used RVs and you can't get a decent price for the old one, you've got the shell of a new RV sitting in your garage that you can't afford to finish. For those that have gone down this path, did you find it worked-out financially as well as you hoped? Was building that second RV a big strain?

Ironflight · #2 09-21-2012, 08:01 AM

Well Phil, we currently have three RV's in our stable - two of them that we've built. No money borrowed for any of them, and built "pay as you go". I am quite certain that we couldn't get our money out of them now, and I don't count on getting it out anytime in the future (although circumstances can always change...). We talked of selling the -6 if necessary during building of the -3, but didn't need to - and prices are so depressed, it wouldn't have brought what we think it is worth (to us) anyway. All of which is a long way of saying that if financial considerations dominate (ie, children and other family to support), then airplane building and ownership are dicey propositions.

My thought is that if you really want to FINISH the second airplane, plan on selling the first at some point - but not for what you have in it. If all you want to do is have a building PROJECT to satisfy the itch, well....Lousie and I saw a pretty little Baby Great Lakes at a museum last week, and I said to her that it would be a cute project to keep me busy sometime.....even if it was never finished.

Jeff R · #3 09-21-2012, 02:26 PM

Van's gives a discount for repeat offenders. I think it is 5%. Or course, the price of the kit is maybe a third of the total cost, but it helps!

f1rocket · #4 09-22-2012, 04:03 AM

I've always sold my airplanes for more than I have into them (discounting labor) so it's kind of a no-brainer. I'm getting ready to build number 5 (RV-12) as soon as I finish chemo treatments. Everyone's financial situation is unique but in the end, you should come out fine on the other end as long as you don't overbuild it too much.