RailDriver

RailDriver

Member
After lurking for a long time I finally registered as I have decided to build an RV. Now to decide which to build. I love the RV-8 because it is a tandem, but I think the wife will want to be sitting next to me.

My background, I am an Army CW4, currently in Balad, Iraq flying RC-12 Guardrail aircraft. Prior to my 2 1/2 years in RC-12's I flew Apache attack helicopters for 16 years both the A model and D model Longbow.

I will be using mainly for just fun flying but will still want it IFR capable.

Anyway, I look forward to this adventure. I will be starting my ordering once I get back home to central Texas.
 
Welcome!

Welcome!!!!!
Thank You for your service!:D And welcome to this forum, there are a lot of great people here. So welcome and I say go for the 8 once my wife sat in one she was all for it, actually more room in the 8 than the 7 we sat in.
All the Best!
 
Jerry,

Welcome to the club. I'm a fellow helo bubba myself (navy). You're gonna love the RV, look me up when you're back stateside, I'm not too far south of Ft Hood, in Corpus Christi.
 
I think the wife might like a tandem cockpit I am just not sure, I will have to get her in one to see. Tandem is natural for me coming from the apache for so many years. We use to tease the side by side guys about holding hands when things got rough. Well now I am flying side by side in RC-12's so that joke doesn't apply anymore. :D
 
Tandem

I too thank you for your service to this Country.

I have an -8. I started it before I met my wife. She loves it though. Says she doesn't mind looking at the back of my head.:p

At first she wasn't satisfied because she couldn't see out well enough. We got her a booster cushion then installed my old handheld GPS on the back of my seat so she has more "situational awareness" now.

She loves the idea of traveling to out of the way places quickly, and has actually flown with me about a third of the 150 hours I've put on the plane in the last year and a half. She flies with me a good bit more than the average wife though. (I beleive, at least from some of the posts I've read). She says that she'd fly even more if I'd let here retire! Oh well, someone has to pay for the fuel!

The best advice I recieved back when trying to decide which model to build was; "What do you want to see when you open the hangar door"?
 
Welcome to the club! One of my friends and helpers is a former RC-12 pilot. He retired about ten years ago though. We get a lot RC-12 flights going over our house on the way to Hunter AAF. Hope all goes well for the rest of your tour!
 
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Tandem

Raildriver,

I went through the same decision process you are now. I flew fighters in the Air Force and loved the look of the RV-8 tandem setup. I originally was thinking of the RV-7, but two things changed my mind. I took a ride in the RV-8 from a coworker. He pointed out rightly so that the RV-8 cockpit is quite roomy compared to the room you have when seated next to someone in the side by side models. I did sit in the RV-7 at a show with a buddy next to me. I am a large fellow and the -8 gives a big guy some room. The other thing is I know most of my flying will bo done solo and though I am sure my wife would like to be seated next to me when we do fly together it did not seem like I should weight my decision for just 10% of the flying. My wife and I talked about it and she thought she would not mind sitting in the back. She does want controls though she is not a pilot yet but she wants the option in the future. I have seen RV-8's with a Dynon 10A in back giving the GIB the option of both attitude and engine information.

Thank you for your service, god speed, check six!
 
Check both options out.

Thanks for your contributions to our, and other countries.
I recognize that though the US will benefit from the efforts of our armed forces, so will other countries. I think that is one thing that really pee$ off our enemies is that when the U.S. is making progress, so are our allies.

Keep up the good work.:cool:

As for RV'ing, see if you can get you and your wife to sit in both types you are interested in and see what impression she gets.

Go over all the benefits and drawbacks a few hours after you do you RV sit in, write them down, and be objective and understanding.

Unless it's really clear wait till the next day or more to decide.

Remember she may be like my sweet wife and want to please you by giving you the answer you want to hear the first time and, let you know how she really feels later.

We decided not to go tandem, for the reasons of shared cockpit duties and instructional capabilities. She also wants to see what I am doing and get that everything is under control check from my facial expressions.

The other big thing. The dog will be in the baggage compartment where we can both pet it when conditions allow.
 
Thanks for all the kind words of support guys. Once I get home to Texas I am sure I will be able to find a -7 and a -8 to compare the two. I have about 39 to 45 days left. Funny I am taking the "incoming" alarms more serious now, I don't want to be a short timer that gets hit with a mortar round my last few weeks.

TSwezey, so at least you know what a RC-12 is, when I would fly into civilian airports in the states they would always ask. Especially if I was flying one of our "Q" models which has a large hump on the back of the fuselage. Four of the 224th aircraft out of Savannah are here with us, a good bunch of guys.
 
Copperas Cove

You are between Tobin and me. Give a call and we can meet you and give you RV7 and RV8 experience the same day.
Thanks for your service.
 
Welcome.

I live in Gatesville and work in Cove. I will be starting the fuse for my 6 in the next couple of weeks. Contact me when you get back and you can stop by if you like to check it out.

Thank you for your service and get home safely.
 
Centerline vs side by side

Having flown my RV-4 for 9 years and a KC-135 boom for 21 years, I can appreciate the centerline seating situation (even if it's looking backwards out of a tanker). However, in the end, I chose the RV-6 to build. There are pro's and con's to both but the following conversation best describes my feeling about the subject.
On the way to Oshkosh last year with two other couples, one in an RV-4 and the other in an RV-8, this was the telling transmission:

RV-4 driver- "I'm 48 out and 183 knots".
RV-8 driver- "We're 47 out and 183 knots".
Me- "We're 54 out and 179 knots and I have my hand on my wife's leg".

The decision was right for me.

Steve Hamer
RV-6
Apple Valley, Ca.
 
Hooah! Got back from Mortaritaville myself back in Sep. I'm AF but was attached to 1st TSC and was providing direct support to the 316th ESC and the 402nd AFSB there at Balad. Lived in H-6 and flew out on Sherpa's all the time so I was always taking a gander at you boys on the flight line. I also enjoyed seeing you guys pop flares on approach--I'm easy to amuse. Sort of like watching a CRAM light off-- neat until you realize you're in possible danger. Odd thing was you get so complacent that when that happened after thinking wow that's cool, my next thought was aw **** now I have to run accounability on everyone instead of holy **** someone's shooting me, take cover.

Has the new DFAC 2 opened yet? It was just a iron frame on a foundation when I left. But anything would be an improvement.

Take care, hooah!
 
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Options

Raildriver,
Thanks for your service-and I know you're looking forward to getting home!

I retired from the Army 1 1/2 years ago and (after getting settled in 2007) decided to build an RV. I was lucky enough to do some comparison flying last August and decided to build an 8. I liked the dual baggage compartments, centerline seating (with great visibility) and elbow room.

Having said that, all of the RVs I've flown (6A, 7A, and 8) have excellent flying qualities. I spent 8hrs in the right seat of Keith Schult's 6A yesterday (see the Texas-South forum) and it's definitely a great traveling machine. Nothing like a fast, well handling plane to keep you entertained on a long trip!

As has been said many times, you have to want to build an airplane. For me, that meant building the airplane I wanted to look at every day during the construction process, and as Tandem states in this thread "What do you want to see when you open the hangar door"?

Despite some of the chatter on VAF regarding tricycle vs taildragger, tip-up vs slider, etc. you can't go wrong with any of the RVs IMHO. Build what you want and have fun.:D

Good luck and good hunting,
 
Well, I was a CW-4 a long time ago. CH-47s and AH-1Fs and I got to like the tandem then.

Sue really likes the back seat-she reads, sleeps, etc.

An awful lot of my time is solo, and the centerline is awesome, and I'd recommend it highly.

If, you want someone to share the flying/landing duties, a side by side might be nicer, but I love my -8

and BE SAFE and bring it all home!
 
I crossed two thirds (Savannah to LOE '06) of the country in one day in the back of an RV-8. It gets a little snug after nine hours but I don't think most people would do nine hours of flying in one day. I do have to say the views from the -8 are great! It is great to be able to see both sides. I felt like I was in a P-51 flying escort missions over Europe. If I ever decide to build another RV it would be an 3,4 or an 8.
 
RailDriver said:
After lurking for a long time I finally registered as I have decided to build an RV. Now to decide which to build. I love the RV-8 because it is a tandem, but I think the wife will want to be sitting next to me.

My background, I am an Army CW4, currently in Balad, Iraq flying RC-12 Guardrail aircraft. Prior to my 2 1/2 years in RC-12's I flew Apache attack helicopters for 16 years both the A model and D model Longbow.

I will be using mainly for just fun flying but will still want it IFR capable.

Anyway, I look forward to this adventure. I will be starting my ordering once I get back home to central Texas.
Click to expand...

Hey just wanted to say welcome to the forum and more importantly thanks for serving your country. From one veteran to another, I don't know how you guys do it these days, it was diffferent when I was in, no war. Anyways, if you ever make it up to Minneapolis make sure you e-mail me and we'll go for a kick *** ride in my RV-7A!

Travis
 
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