I?ve read many of the excellent comments on this thread. I agree that with any organization it comes with pitfalls such as those that have been mentioned here. Heck, we all work for organizations where many of these problems already exist in some form or fashion already, and we don?t like it. I rarely ever get involved in the politics of stuff, myself. I just don?t have the emotional maturity for it. I learned how to lead and follow in the military and, frankly, think civilian life would be much better if you all would simply follow my orders.
There are people that VAF doesn't reach, believe it or not. I am finding that there are active builders who rarely take part in discussions here and I am willing to bet that there are lots of former builders happily flying around the skies who haven?t been to VAF since they finished phase 1. Lets also not forget the RVhaters who think they know our planes and us. A type club is an excellent public relations tool.
VAF is a smashing resource! I recognize that DR is our robot overlord and I, for one, welcome that. But a type club can offer so much more. An RV type club could be about promoting and supporting RV aircraft, the building lifestyle and the mutual camaraderie and fellowship that we enjoy.
What can a type club do? I recognize that some of you are building your 2nd or 3rd aircraft. As a less experienced builder I?d like to tap that knowledge. Not just a post on VAF, but face-to-face in an organized fashion. Sitting here eating my ham and cheese sandwich I have thought up ideas like these.
? Weight and balance workshop - Haven?t done this myself, but I can certainly see a place for it.
? Trim Parties - Fly in and get help with troubleshooting / fixing heavy wings, or rudder trim
? How to cut your canopy without shedding tears - Please?this is a perennial point of angst and only those who have done it successfully don?t sweat it.
? Using proseal wisely - Workshop where you make a mini fuel tank and seal it up with proseal learning how to make it neat and tidy and most importantly
? Advanced composites workshop
? Fuel lines ? The most common designs in RV?s, how to make them so they are effective, serviceable and safe.
? Common RV electrical system issue - Maybe get a sponsor to help with something like this
? Successful grass field operations with tricycle gear
Then there are the plethora of opportunities for online sessions with two way interaction between an experienced builders and less experienced builders.
? How I did my baffling and why its better
? LOP vs ROP
? Why do I want to consider prop balancing
? Auto pilots for newbies(hmmm that one sounds familiar
)
? Painting your fiberglass cowl; 5 steps to a perfect finish
? How to find AD information about your engine/avionics
? What nobody told you about your first flight
? What nobody told you about flight testing
? Wiring your RV to avoid RF interference
? Why aren?t you building yet?
? What you need to know to pick Lycoming engine for your RV
More and more we are seeing posts from good folks who have purchased an RV from a builder. How do we support them? We should all be interested in making sure that buyers are safe and successful owners. One day someone may want to buy our RV and we want to make sure that they take care of it, fly it safely and have resources to help with the care and feeding of it. Here on VAF we're so focused on bulding and the minutiae of our aircraft. Are 2nd hand buyers getting the help they want? What about international builders? I cant even find an EAA technical advisor here. What's it like to build in South America or Africa where the community is avid but very small?
Ok, I?ve finished my lunch and it is time to go out and dimple my lower wing skins and attach some nut plates. Yes I have been writing this because I am procrastinating, but that doesn?t lessen the fact that a type club is a good idea. I didn?t even get into all the safety issues that we can promote within our community.
Experimental type clubs have to be more technical, more safety focused, more informational and more hands on than certificated type clubs. All the stuff we don?t like about clubs, well, that?s up to us too.