ccarter

ccarter

Well Known Member
A Builder Turning Pilot
Part ?Won?

No doubt for all you veterans of G.A. out there it may seem a bit odd but, yes, I?m the guy who spent two years building an RV-7 BEFORE getting his pilot license.

I did my share of hours over the years in a 150 and a Cherokee 6 (right seat) however, I was unable to book the time via FAA rules. So, when the ?build your own airplane? disease took over I felt it more expedient to get into the commitment of the build before I chickened out. It actually worked for me. And, I wanted to train in my own plane for a number of reasons. I discussed it with a number of folks, including my CFI and we decided it was okay. Terry flew off the 40 hours for phase I so it worked out great.

The flight training has been awesome. Terry (my CFI) is a great instructor (over 8500 hours in his log book). He has time in many types including B-52?s as well as competitive acro. And he doesn?t mind phrases like,

?Oops?, :p

?Sorry about that?, :eek:

?What did that guy say?? :eek: and

?She?s a little light on the stick, isn?t she?? :rolleyes:

Sometimes I think all we do is climb to 3500 and practice stalls. Clean stalls, dirty stalls, take off stalls, approach stalls. ?Gee, do ya tink he?s tryin to tell me sumptin!? And GPS, it?s like it?s not even in the airplane. I always have to ?look out the window? and ?pilot the aircraft? and ?identify that landmark?. When do I get to play with my cockpit toys!? I think I?ve switched the autopilot on twice in 20 hours. Geesh. ;)

But, I have to admit. I am learning to fly. Yes, and with just a map and a compass. You gotta love these veteran military types. They?ve been there baby! We are wearing out our main sectional map and it is taking hold I must admit.

I can?t wait for that first cross country, although it seems most of our flights these days are 50 miles out or better. The RV does?em like they?re nothing cruising at about 152kts at 65% power. We made McMinnville (KRNC) from (KMQY) last weekend in no time at all!

?Sweet?..?

So, the builder is turning pilot. It?s happening, finally. I have noticed something recently however. I think, but I'm not sure, I've contracted a bit of repeatoffendorRV3Btrichinosis. Symptoms are, loitering over various builder sites on the web (with drooling), uncontrolled and spontaneous visits to vansaircraft.com, particularly the RV-3 section and reading and re-reading the specs. on the RV3B. Once, I looked down at the desk and my credit card was laying out and I do not remember how it got there! :confused:

A friend of mine is finishing up his 7. He has prescribed weekly visits to his shop to assist him in finishing his project. I have complied and it is helping some.


Now that I'm flying and my build is "mostly" over I ask myself if it was worth it?

?Does a bear live in the woods??, he says with a grin.

I attended ?Osh? in 2007 with my oldest brother when I was half way through the build. We met in Chicago (via SW Airlines) rented a car and ?slogged? our way up to Oshkosh Wisconsin. How many of you would care to wager on the method with which we will arrive there in the summer of 2009?
 
THAT was an awesome read, Chris. Made me laugh out loud on the 'I don't know how it got there' line....

Many congrats on getting your ticket!

b,
d
 
Enjoyed reading your post!

Chris,
That was great!
You're an inspiration to those that don't yet have their PPL and are considering to build first.

See you at OSH :D

Mark
 
Way cool!

Chris,

Awesome post! I'm in the same boat. I tons of FAA recognized hours - as a USAF Flight Engineer (4,600+), but no PPL. So I'm gonna build then get the permission to fly legally. I got the preview plans for Christmas!

You reminded me of a story.....we were flying over a country in South America several years ago, with the classic scenario of a Lt Col in the left seat and a 1Lt in the right. As normal, the pilots would switch off being "in control" of the airplane. The co-pilot had the jet while the aircraft commander grabbed some lunch. I'm sitting in the FE seat just hangin' out. Out of nowhere, the A/C says "Ok co, you're on fire and you need to get this thing on the ground now! Where's the nearest runway?" Of course the Lt reaches for the GPS to look and the A/C says, "nope, use the chart". Well, let’s just say that after about 2 min of not being able to locate where the jet was by using the chart......the Lt (all of us) got a thorough chewing out! I can tell you that we NEVER went more than 10-15 min without cross-checking the GPS/Chart/TACAN etc to verify our position. It's funny now, but not too funny then!

Thanks for stirring up the memories,
 
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Don't think your the only one....

I am just about finished with my RV6 and taking lessons in a Champ. Sometimes I think (know) I am crazy, but I have wanted to do this all my life. Just never give up, never give up and never, never give up.

Good Luck on your training.
 
builder/student pilot

Glad to hear of others doing things like me.

I started flight school last summer when I was about 1/2 thru my -9A fuselage.

My instructor turned out to be a nearby neighbor. We became friends & he comes over Sunday afternoons to cheer me on with the build.

He's agreed to be my test pilot (at least for the first few flights); has thousands of hours in all kinds of AC.

I now have about 33 hrs and 2 solos.

I (we) hope to be hanging an engine next year....

Dave
student pilot & builder
 
ccarter said:
Sometimes I think all we do is climb to 3500 and practice stalls. Clean stalls, dirty stalls, take off stalls, approach stalls. ?Gee, do ya tink he?s tryin to tell me sumptin!? And GPS, it?s like it?s not even in the airplane. I always have to ?look out the window? and ?pilot the aircraft? and ?identify that landmark?. When do I get to play with my cockpit toys!? I think I?ve switched the autopilot on twice in 20 hours. Geesh. ;)

But, I have to admit. I am learning to fly. Yes, and with just a map and a compass.
Click to expand...

You have a great instructor, and you will be a good, and safe pilot.

Keep up the good work.
 
Same here

Both my build partner and myself are working on our plane and our ppl's simultaneuosly.We figured that if we started building on the 7A ,and it took a few years, that there would be plenty of time to get our tickets before phase 1.Well,George is well on his way to completing his ppl,and I am far from it.The difference being that I am raising kids and simply dont have the disposable income, yet.The idea of completing my ppl in my own plane is both kind of depressing and exciting.Depressing 'cause that means I had no time and money,and exciting 'cause I wouldn't have to spend all those hours ,[and dollars!], on the spam cans which hardly resemble my own plane anyway.It's actually kind-of intriguing now that I am really thinking about it,and kind-of takes the pressure off a little.Anyone know ,off hand, what kind of monetary savings wer'e talking about if you train for your ppl in your very own plane?What's it costing you per hour Chris?
 
I've completed 70% of a Cozy MKIV not yet flying, finished building another Cozy MKIV which is flying, and am now almost done with the tailcone of my RV-10,,,,,,and I STILL do not have my PPL! Hopefully the weather will cooperate and I will do my check ride New Year's Day in my C-152.
 
(place witty title here)

What's it costing you per hour Chris?
Click to expand...

Harland,

It's MUCH cheaper doing it in your own bird. I handed the "reigns" to some very qualified people at each critcal flight step. The mentoring has been priceless. The RV-7 is much more nibble than a trainer so we have taken it slowly until I got the feel for it. If nothing else, I don't have to rent the "spam can" to which you referred. Those rentals get ridden pretty hard, at least at MQY where I hanger. I feel much better in the "Winddancer" cause I built her myself. If you wait and train in your own bird you will at least save the rental costs. I made sure the person with whom I trained was not only qualified and experienced but had sufficient time in type before we started the actual flight training. It's working out well, but as always, I've adheared to a discipline of safety and checklists. Terry has been great to stop me if I've overlooked something or he anticipated a problem or wanted to use a situation as a chance to "enlighten" me about safety.

:)
 
Hey Chris, I too am chomping at the bit a little. I currently have not gotten my PPL, although I would like to start building. My only drawback right now is a 2004 HD Road Glide for sale. The nice thing that comes to mind is I have something to do if there are scheduling conflicts. Thanks for the thread.
 
Was on my roof yesterday pulling down the Christmas lights with my son when I heard the sound of an approaching airplane. We bought our house in the flightline at MQY on purpose for just this kind of moment. Look up and what do I see? A bare aluminum RV-7 with a primer cowl zipping overhead. Looked good from the ground Chris!
 
So, what's the -7 like as a primary trainer?

Chris and all,

I am another guy who is putting the RV cart before the pilot horse. I'm working on my -7 wings right now. I've flown enough to know that I'm determined to get my ppl. I'm hoping to resume training before I finish the plane, but I may still be a student pilot or a low-time pilot by the time I get my ticket.

As I read your post, I'm wondering... what do you all think of the flying qualities of a -7 as a primary trainer? Am I better off training in a more docile aircraft and then transitioning, or is it better to learn things once on the plane that will be mine for a long time? What are the pros/cons of training on a plane like a -7 vs. something like a 172?

Appreciate your thoughts, even if it's just to reassure me that I'm not crazy to think that I could get my ticket in a -7.
 
This can be done. I completed my 10 then got my medical (after triple bypass) and got my ppl. The first flight after my check ride was in the factory demo with Mike Seager for transition training. Now I have about 50 hours in 805HL. I didn't even notice the difference in speed from the 172, thats how new I am. But these RVs (at least my 10), is easy to fly and land and the best stress releaver ever invented. I only regret I didn't start building when I was 20.
 
Were there any challenges with getting insurance for doing primary training in your RV? One insurance agent I spoke with told me it was very costly and in some cases almost impossible, but I would like to hear from you guys.
 
Primary Trainer and Insurance

As a primary trainer my RV-7 has provided a quality experience. I have right seat time in a Cherokee 6, C-152 and some DA-20 time. The later two are considerably more docile than my RV-7. I think one has to take a very honest and objective look at your own capabilities physically. Next, find experienced people who will tell you the truth about what is required to fly a sport aircraft like the RV's and if possible go up in one with an experienced pilot/CFI if possible. For me, the RV is not a handfull (I've heard some say before that it is, why I do not know.) but it is very light on the stick. It is also what I would call a slippery aircraft, meaning, it doesn't always "want" to slow down. My propensity is to come in too high and too hot in my 7. This is mostly due to inexperience. Consequently, I'm crossing the threshold at 70/75kts. That's Too fast. 65kts is about right, , (dp on winds), that way the flare is spongier. I litterally fly the plane with my left forearm resting on my left thigh and use just my wrist and a few fingers. After you build that muscle memory things get way better.

I've planned on owning an aircraft for well over a decade. Getting there was a matter of priorities and an act of will. Therefore, it was easy for me to make the decision to start building knowing I did not have a ppl yet. I planned my project carefully and then executed the timeline... which was about 2 years.

On the insurance issue, well there are some problems you just have to throw money at them unfortunately. :(
 
I started..

...in a C172 rental back in 2000. After about 13 hours stretched out over 4 months, the rental became unavailable, (long, dirty story) and after weighing all of the options, I determined that buying my own was cheaper than any of the alternatives. I bought a clean '59 C172, did my first solo in it, finished my training in it, passed my checkride it it and ultimately put about 850 hours on her. (I also had the pleasure of giving the new owner his first RV ride! Priceless!) When you have a plane available to you at all times, you will fly a lot more, the learning curve will go up exponentially and your progress will accelerate significantly! I started my -7A about 6 months after getting my PPL and it took 6 years to build. The thing I found similar to the two planes was simply: experience. If you fly the same plane all (or at least most) of the time, you will become one with your bird. The big thing with owning your own is that it is in exactly the same condition you last left it in. Lots of piece of mind in that. And, I figure it cost me about $50/hour to fly that Cessna even with payments, hangar rent, insurance, etc. The transistion to the -7A wasn't a big deal and the increased speed means I go a lot further on a day trip which I may not have even considered with the slow-poke 172. IMHO, the RVs are just fine for training as long as you expand your envelope slowly and realize that they are high-performance (FAA description notwithstanding) and respect the capability of the machine. Press on, and enjoy the ride. It's great!
 
Chris,
Congrats on both completions, was lurking through the posts and spotted the airport indentifier. I started my flight instruction at Symrna-saki many years ago but didn't finish until I moved to Texas. You gotta love those big military runways!!
 
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