A 5K Contest

Would there be enough interest in a little contest to guess which model of Van's (-3,-4,-6,-7,-8,-9,or -10) will be No. 5000? Doug would have to rely on the factory to tell him which model (and possibly the name of the builder) for No. 5000. We wouldn't make a distinction between nose-draggers and taildraggers. Sounds like fun. Whaddya think? No prizes...just for kicks.
Don
 
rv7boy said:
Would there be enough interest in a little contest to guess which model of Van's (-3,-4,-6,-7,-8,-9,or -10) will be No. 5000? Doug would have to rely on the factory to tell him which model (and possibly the name of the builder) for No. 5000. We wouldn't make a distinction between nose-draggers and taildraggers. Sounds like fun. Whaddya think? No prizes...just for kicks.
Don
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I think we should just concentrate on whether it's a nose or taildragger, not what 'model' it is... ;p
 
Sounds like fun...

...but not really doable. I talked to Ken @ Van's about this when my 6 flew. I was very close to being #3500, but with the number of submissions they get per day, several flying on one day, late entries, etc. it is more or less impossible to nail it down exactly.

There are many well known certified airplanes that came nowhere near 5000 units during their production run. That is an impressive figure.
 
We are watching aviation history being made. Homebuilders making 5,000 flying aircraft in basement's, garages, hangers, shops, barns, ect. all across the world. It is simply amazing.

I talked to Vans years ago about how many kits have been sold and he said (if I remember right) It's hard to know cause there are many more empanage kits out than say finish kits. Guys start the tails and never finish. Having said that, I believe he said there were over 10,000 kits out and that was 2 years ago.

It was a great conversation I had with Van. He was looking at which engine to spec. in the -12 and we were heavy into the Rotax 912s. (a great engine BTW) During the conversation I asked him where did you come up with the design of the RV? He kinda laughed and said, "There is nothing special about the RV design, actually it is pretty simple. A blend of several designs not being noteable in anyone feature. What makes the RV series unique is we put it into a kit form just about everyone can assemble and fly at a cheap price, and we support our customers with extensive support from parts to tech advice." That alone makes the RV special.

It was inspiring to talk with a man that loves aviation as much as he does. Dedicated his life to aviation, and the world is a much better place with the RV flying in it.

5K flying aircraft is an amazing accomplishment. Keep pounding those rivits!
 
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Remember Van's doesn't always get notification for ALL Rvs, so the 5000th probably won't be an accurate number. Actually, I'm sure that there are already more than 5000 flying because there are a lot of RVs that aren't registered as RVs.
 
oods are ?

I say the 5000th rv that we know about will be a rv-7(a) simply because of what is being bought. I'd say the 6a has a great chance.. who knows... it might actually be an rv-3! However it seems that the people who buy the -10 are super serious and kick butt on construction time.... dunno
Best Brian
 
Doesn't Have to be Accurate to be Fun!

Why not make the contest the date the 5000th flies? Doesn't matter which model, A or B, or who exactly gets it (if multiple people fly on the same day)?
 
Interesting Numbers....

That 5,000 number rang a bell, so I did a real quick bit of research on the American/Grumman/Gulfstream line of two and four-place singles. According to the serial number data on one website, if every single serial number was used, there were 1,730 two-place "Grummans" built, and 3,207 Four-places completed. For a grand total of only 4,937 aircraft.

Congratulations Vans! Now, on to beat Cessna!!

Paul
 
i see it is up to 4,997 tonight. I would guess tomorrow it may hit the 5,000 mark. I didn't think they usually updated it all that often.
 
More than 5000 Rv's

We had a fly-in EAA meeting in Augusta, Ga. on Saturday and were discussing the RV's since four of them showed up. One guy who has built two said that Van's didn't know about this one flying and more than likely not the first one either.

I suspect that there are a lot of unreported flying RV's so the number has to be well over the 5000 mark easily.

I'm curious as to just how many total kits have been sold by Van. Anybody have an idea?

Celebrations,
 
I was told there are more than 15K tail kits sold. Obviously, guys start there first and most never finish.
 
I can attest to the fact that there are several "RVs" not registered as RVs. Mine for one. Mine is listed as "A&M-6". It was the sixth airplane built by Ann and Mel. I also know of several others.
 
Call Van's

I am sure they want to hear right away.

I remember when I broke mine on the first flight and called for a parts replacement-- the parts Guy actually sounded excited that I had it flying and wanted the info.

Call Van's when you have a first flight.
 
Oh, Van knows about mine. My point was that I'm sure there are many that he doesn't know about.
 
This is an amazing feat for a start up aircraft kit company.
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5000 flying aircraft truly is an impressive accomplishment, but Vans is probably no longer considered a start up company. They have been producing kits for ~thirty years and have certainly paid their dues. Van really cracked the code when he designed his planes and deserves all the success he has achieved since the days when kits were cut out of sheet stock with hand shears.

With the number of kits in the pipeline, 6000 completions shouldn't be too far in the future. (Let's see, 500/year......hey, 7000 will be here before we know it!)
 
Update on the '#5000 watch'

Just talked to Scott at Vans.He said their webmaster is monitoring the mail and that they are eager to update the Hobbs meter as soon as they get the news. He thinks it will happen today. If not, surely sometime tomorrow!

He also thanked us for watching with them.

This is like an airplane nerd's 'World Cup."
 
Augusta Fly-in Saturday?

Shucks, I was working in Augusta last week.
If I had known there was a fly-in scheduled for Saturday I would have definately stayed over. Hate I missed it. Was it at Bush or Daniel field?
That would have been a perfect time to admire Pierre's 6A. :)
 
A 5K Contest

Well, shame on me for not being more forceful over the naysayers about the 5,000th RV. It may not have been "accurate," but according to the factory, there was an OFFICIAL 5,000th RV completed and flown and entered into Van's database. A contest would have been fun. I'll let someone else head up one for the 6,000th RV. I've got to get out in the shop and pound some more rivets! :eek:

Congratulations, Steve for being the OFFICIAL 5,000 th RV completed and flown according to Van's Aircraft.

From the Mother Ship's web site today:

"This is the 5000th RV aircraft that has been completed and flown that has been recorded in our database.
Received February 13, 2007
From: Steve Formhals

Although it has been a few months and about 142.1 Hours of flight time (But who?s counting!), RV-8 N628RV finally flew for the first time on April 30, 2006. The kit was originally begun in Kansas, moved to New York and then to San Antonio where I finally purchased it from the second owner. So far, it has actually covered more distance as a kit than it has as a finished aircraft, but I?m working on that. Statistics are: ECI Titan IO 360, Hartzell Blended Airfoil prop, 2 Blue Mountain EFIS G3s and AP, Electronics International engine gauges and interior by Classic Aero. I thought the RV-6 that I built previously was a wonderful machine and I have not been disappointed in any way with the new RV-8. It is truly amazing!

All of the raving about RVs is true. I am already looking forward to another RV project, even though I still need to get this one painted!

Steve Formhals
Helotes, TX.
FLYING RV-8 N628RV
[ sf3543 at att.com"
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