K

kostick

Member
Gents, I'm looking to buy a RV-6 in San Antonio. It's loaded with FI, CS prop, IO-360, the works except for an inverted oil system. It's a really nice plane. I've been out there to see it but the owner isn't comfortable doing any aerobatics in it. I've been in a -6 once before with someone else and it was the same story.

I was hoping someone in the Houston area with some aerobatic experience wouldn't mind taking me up for a spin. I'm not talking about putting on an airshow, but I'd like to see what the -6 is capable of before dropping some coin on one. If possible I'd like to check out one with a CS prop since that is what I'm looking to buy and will give me a better idea of energy management with maneuvers over the top which quickly gain speed on the way down. I'm a bit concerned with the lack of drag and I'm hoping the CS prop will help out with that.

Cash and your flavor of choice will be provided for the willing...

I'm off work after 4pm Fri-Sun this weekend, and completely off work Mon-Wed next week.

Thanks for the consideration, Lee
 
Hi Lee,

I can tell you that once you get used to the right speeds for maneuver entry, the C/S prop makes the RV's a piece of cake for just about any gentleman's maneuver you'd care to try - you just don't want to start down with a lot of speed (ie, don't start a split S from level flight!). But I totally understand your desire to see it for yourself.

The problem you might have in a -6 is getting two guys with parachutes and fuel in under Aerobatic gross weight - I'd make sure to check the airplane's weight and balance if you want to stay legal. I know that we can't legally do two-up acro in Louise's -6 without a very small amount of fuel, and we're average -sized people. That might also be the reluctance you see in folks wanting to demonstrate for you.

Paul
 
kostick said:
I'm not talking about putting on an airshow, but I'd like to see what the -6 is capable of before dropping some coin on one.
Click to expand...

It sounds like you might not have any aerobatic experience at all yet? There is no need to worry about how much drag an RV has, regardless of prop type. Every aerobatic airplane requires a slightly different touch. If you have basic aerobatic skills, doing safe acro in any aerobatic airplane will not be a problem for you.

RVs are capable of all the basic maneuvers. Their aerobatic capability is on par with a Super Decathlon. Aerobatics is nothing but combinations of loops, roll, spins, and snap rolls. Aside from gyroscopics and tailslides, you can pretty much do everything else....not that you can't do gyro/tailslide maneuvers, but it wasn't designed for that stuff and you could damage the airplane. You can Youtube RV aerobatic videos to see what they're capable of. I would suggest getting some basic aerobatic training. You'll have a baseline to compare to, and you really won't need someone to take you for an aerobatic flight in order to understand the performance capabilities of an RV. And if you have had no aerobatic training yet, you won't really be in much of a position to judge and understand the RVs performance range by simply going up with some guy and riding along while he does a loop or a barrel roll. Good luck with the RV. You'll love it with or without acro.
 
Thanks for the info...

Paul, I remember running the numbers a few months ago and do remember it being tight like you said. I've read tons of posts on people arguing whether the 1375 includes fuel. Has van's kicked out any official guidance since then to clear things up for everyone? Seems most of the brains on here say it won't affect much either way with or without fuel included but it could potentially dip into the 50% margin of error built in by design. My goal for going up with someone isn't to see how far we can push things, but to just get a feel for the bird through some maneuvers.

luddite42, All my aerobatic experience falls within AF jets. The flight envelope is so much larger, the energy management is completely different, and you also have speed brakes if need be. I do lack aerobatic experience in anything close to an RV though. Many aerobatic planes are build to have lots of lift/drag such as the Pitts for example. One of my coworkers lost a couple friends in RV's due to getting too fast nose low. My concern was having an airplane so slick with a low Vne of 210. That's quick level flight, but pointed nose down coming off a Cuban 8 or botched loop, 210 seems like it'll be on the clock in seconds with no way to slow down other than loading it up. I was hoping to go up with someone who owns a bird with a CS prop so I can see how much of a difference it really makes and to get sense of what the bird can do. I've watched countless videos on YouTube but my hopes were to see it first hand before dropping the cash on one myself.

I was thinking of signing up for some formal training at Harvey & Rihn's as well, but in the mean time if anyone is interested in taking me up, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Thanks again, Lee
 
I'm thinking the 1375 is total gross weight for the aerobatic envelope in the -6. That pretty much puts most of them at single large or heavy pilot plus an hour's worth of fuel aboard. Also with little fuel aboard the CG goes aft pretty quickly in the -6, but a 360 + CS prop on the front will help counter the aft CG issue, but definitely not the weight. Still, nobody has ever broke the wing on a -6 yet, but if it's the small vertical stab/rudder, too many people have warned me to never get it into a spin. I'm happy to stick with good old aileron rolls myself, maybe a loop once I get more used to this aircraft, but I don't think it'll ever be as appropriate for acro like my friend's RV-8 which I got to fly the past couple years is.
 
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