Paul Tuttle

Paul Tuttle

Well Known Member
I am wondering what has caused people to stop building their RVs for extended periods of time and how they kept their eye on the prize while not being able to build.
I?m in a situation where I have everything in place to complete the project, I can afford it, I have my engine, firewall forward kit etc. and a considerable amount of work is already done. My big problem is that another opportunity has come up that I have to take advantage of. The down side is it absorbs a huge amount of time. It appears this will be the case for quite some time. When I go into my garage and see everything just waiting for me, I feel a sense of guilt that I am not making any progress. Anybody else been through this?
 
Life in general!

Paul,

I did a relatively simple bi-plane from plans and took almost 8 years, now I'm over 5 years on a slo-build -7. We're supposed to be having fun doing these things so in the course of these lengthy and complicated projects, there's bound to be other priorities that take precidence. Jobs, weddings, divorces, relocations, illness, and of course, the addition of our little people all inject themselves into the build process. In short, its' just life.
 
5 Years was spent between emp and wings going to night school to finish earning my BS degree and creating two beautiful girls one now 6 and one 2 1/2

Oh and also the total lack of available funds for the wing kit!

:D
 
shiney said:
Reading the Vans Airforce forum ! :)
Click to expand...

Classic. :)

For me, as others have said, it was the combination of kids, career (two jobs in my case) and family (the big one).

Susie agreed to the build project on the condition that I not spend more than 10hrs per week on it. This signed contract (not kidding) was on the refrigerator for 5.7yrs. Witnessed and signed by neighbors. She held me to it, I might add :eek:.

b,
dr
 
Many Things

My delay was mostly due to the fact that I do not enjoy the building all that much. I have a great support staff that has pushed me to the point of getting back on track. My divorce deraild me for awhile and through that chapter I told myself that I would not build until I had my head on straight. Well it is straight and I am back at it. I have trained myself to look at it in a new light and I cannot wait for my son to start his flying in it. He wants to be a Navy aviator and I think that I should give him every advantage before he turns 18, graduates and assults this world with his generation.

Besides, it would be ultimate cool for him to be young with a license and be able to take his girl to lunch or breakfast just like us big kids do. Thank goodness I 8 years until he gets to that point. I know that he and I will be seeing a lot of this nation and maybe the world after it is done.
 
1 Divorce, a marriage, 3 relocations, 1 business purchase, 1 sale of business, a couple of jobs in between and now the owner of 3 restaurants that consume between 10 - 14 hours a day. In fact, in this very difficult staffing climate, my wife and I have not had a whole day off in the past 20 days or so.

No complaining, but that's the facts and it's what contributes to the long term build time of a -6 kit that I started around April '97 and we've just recently flipped the fuselage.
 
I took a month off of work one time to finish my plane working up to 14 hour days at times, seven days a week. At the end of this 30 days it wasn't anywhere close to being done and it kind of deflated me. Two years later it finally flew. It was the baffles that got me if the truth be told with 8 days spent fitting those %@&*$##@#$ pieces of sheet metal. The next one that got me was actually right at the end of the project while putting nutplates on the wing tips. This wasn't a hard job but I remember the feeling of being overwhelmed and considering quitting the build. It also got pretty old cleaning the garage up and putting everything away every so often.

Best,
 
My daily driver decided to have an injector leak which filled a cylinder full of gas which did not compress when I tried to crank it after it sat for a weekend and broke a rod. I have spent the last several months rebuilding it and hope to have it running in a week or so. Wish me luck. I have a fuse kit that is mocking me.
 
A lot of life can happen...

In the past four weeks -

My dad passed away.
My wife's dad passed away.
Our first granddaughter was born.

Last night my wife helped me start riveting the aft fuse. The rivets look good and I slept like a baby.
 
Well, I've got an RV-7 QB, s/n 0027. Received the empenage kit back in 2001 and finished the rudder right before the big rudder change. That discouraged me for a while but I eventually got over it and built rudder #2.

Probably because I have a flying airplane (Piper Dakota), there was no immediate rush to complete. I was working full time up until retirement in 2003 so things progressed slowly. I have no other good excuses from 2003 till now other than I have a lot of other things to do but I have made some good progress. I've accepted the fact that I will have to spend a lot of money on the engine and avionics, that was an obstacle for a while. I constantly considered selling the project over the years but I'm glad I didn't.

Currently working on the finishing kit and I bought the prop and interior last month. Right now I'm extremely motivated and I've been working on it 7 days a week for the last two months. Seems like I like working on it in the fall, summers are too hot and the winters are too cold. Hoping to finish it in 2008!!!
 
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Think about how lucky you are.

For those who just want to fly... go buy an RV that's already flying.

I quite enjoy the build. It isn't going as fast as I thought it would, but it is progressing. I find that for me (office job... meetings, sitting in front of a computer) that the building is therapeutic for me.

No question, I want to fly (and rent as often as I can... about 50 hrs. a year, even while building), but building puts you in a different category. There are flyers, and there are builders, and there are those who are both. For now, I'm both. When I finish my plane, I expect I'll move into the flyer role... but (and don't tell my wife this), I already wonder about puttering on a Pietenpol or something once I'm done with the RV.

The best advice I ever got when considering to build, was that if you're thinking of building just because you want a high performing plane for less than you can buy certified, then you'll never get it. Build because you want to build. It doesn't really matter how long it takes... If you want it and enjoy working for it... you'll get there.
 
oooooooh that

i didnt want to talk about it anymore.......necrotising vasculitis.:mad: what a nasty little disease. 1 in a millon, the variant that i had. lucky to be alive. european docs sdaid i would never walk again WTF do they know.i ride my bike 30 miles a pop at 20 mph. and can out run my 10 year old. thank GOD ;)for Duke medical university (notice the hat in the avatar pic.)and cytoxin and prednisone in the 1500mg range (cyclophosphmide in large quantities) .. three years later im almost normal.....yes i know the reprocussions later in life but given the options im already three years ahead of where i wouldve been.


added : cost me a year...couldnt squeeze the cleco pliers but that didnt really matter cause i couldnt stand up for more than a few minutes:eek:
also nothing against the euro's it was probally their collaboration on how to treat my lottery ticket that saved me. they just did not expect much recovery.



MESSAGE WILL SELF DESTRUCT IN 48 HRS.:p;):rolleyes::cool:
 
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Long about mid way through the wings, my mother got sick. Took lots of my time. She passed at age 92 right before Oshkosh '06. That had taken about six months of my time, but it was time well spent.

BTW, William, my wife (RN-OCN) spends her days pumping the drugs you mention (and lots of other nasty stuff) into the veins of folks with similar problems. I don't blame you for wanting to put it behind you, but it can be important that others know IT CAN BE DONE! We never know when that info might be important. Thanks..

Bob Kelly
 
1 sprint car, tavern ownership,family construction co,and most important Duck hunting. Getting ready for a duck season is unbelievable the stuff that you have to to get together is crazy. Having done it for 20+ yrs you would think you would have it but it is a time robbing work missing deal. But pale in comparison to Cytoxin's hand he was dealt and others in this thread After responding to this post I realized how lucky I am to be forced away from building by things I choose. Good luck to you Cytoxin and others forced to stop building by things out of your control.
 
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Roads are never straight. My younger brothers car was ran over by a semi loaded with brick that failed to stop at a stop sign.
We have become care-givers for him. We also decided to build a hangar this year. We are in but no utilites yet. Ready to finsih fiberglassing the windsield and the other 90%.
 
Life happens and I am building this plane for fun! All a time line does is add stress. It will be 4 years on Nov 14. The things that are slowing me down now are waiting on other people and the plane is 30 minutes away from me. The distance really slows things down. I think it will fly this year! But if it doesn't I'm not going to worry about it.
 
Winter.

Building comes pretty much to a halt in the cold weather. Unheated garage and now I've moved much of th eproject to an unheated hangar. Since I'm working on the canopy... cold weather stops the project....um... cold.

But right now, since I'm about ready to spend money (that I don't have) at the avionics, engine stage, I'm looking very closely at the markets and reading the business pages and keeping an eye on the business at work (I'm 53. If I lose this gig -- in the media -- there isn't another one to fully replace the salary). The possibility of a recession (and a cut in ad spending) could be disastrous fo rthe project.

Fingers crossed.
 
First time around (1994 RV-4) Divorce, Second time around (2006 RV-8) prostate cancer this past spring. Everything seems to be going fine now. However, after returning from Oshkosh, I started a new job Aug 6th. In an effort to make a good impression with the boss I've been keeping my nose to the grindstone. I have a RC model floatplane wing on one workbench, RV emp ribs on the other workbench, a 75% complete 8 train HO set up in the basement (I occasionally let the grandkids WATCH them run around the tracks). I'm in the boat business. So until we get all of our customers stored for the winter it's all work and no play. Around early Nov I'll be all RV building.

That's my story (and I'm sticking to it.) BTW I have some great shots of Doug Reeves at Oshkosh on the Canon photography stand bending over backwards, taking pics overhead, of the RV formation flying.
 
Moved

Had to move from the house I was renting while I'm building another house...currently I am a roommate while my project has sat in storage for the last 5 months. The end of the layoff is in sight as I will be moving into my new house on November 3rd. A week to lay down the new epoxy floor and the project comes home. Have spent the last few months endlessly agonizing over the electrical system and the panel. Thought I'd have it all figured out by now...
 
Borrowed Horse

My RV8 is flying. ,,,,NOT Finished.... The FIBERGLASS is holding it up from being FINISHED??? or is it,, me??? flying it?, and having too much fun???
 
trans atlantic

I packed up an moved to the Netherlands. I knew it would be a minimum of 2 years till the project will get any work. 1 more year to go..... then I'll be back on track to finish the RV7 within 10 more years.


Jeff
 
Neither rain nor snow

Nothing stops our RV project. Neither rain nor snow nor flu nor complaining wife nor aching back stops this project. If the earth still rotates, we work on the plane. Every day, Christmas included. I may take a day off if the better half shoots me but the manuals I need to study will be at my hospital bedside.

1 year and 4 months from QB stage till now. We're 95% done, you know the rest. Oops, it's 1:30am and the internet research is gonna stop for some sleep.

Then, back to building.

Barry
RV9A - finishing windscreen, panel done, the plane was completely assembled, engine runs, instruments work, ready to start paint as soon as the wing skins are riveted on.
 
Well let's see, with the first one I was moving house with my job (military) about every 4 -6 months, that didn't help progress. Then, when I did get to stay in one place for a couple of years, the airplane I was flying needed a new (different type) of engine fitting. Next was a job change. I thought buying a wreck and robbing all the useable parts would be a good idea, but that turned into a re-build, and the new house only had a single car garage and the wife has a convertible. Once the garage was extended I could make some progress, until I was invited to take a short term (max 2 years) job 5000 miles away. Pack up everything, sell all the airplanes, leave the kit in the attic and move. Buy an RV on arrival, then buy another airplane but get building bug again and buy a QB. 2 years turned into 4 1/2, then pack everything up and move back 5000 miles. Kick renters out of house and start long process of putting everything right. Trying to put together the RV (flying), other airplane (nearly done) and the QB (how long?), can then start on the original kit again. All part of life's rich tapestry - would change anything if you gave me the chance.

Pete
 
the magic of movies.

I think it's the way long workdays, followed by the maintenance of a semi-normal life that just saps the will to build. When my discretionary time amounts to a maximum of half an hour to 45 minutes, and even that is eaten up by things I've been putting off, it's really difficult to go out to the shop and get anything done. Mostly I just want to watch Scrubs and go to bed. But this fall, I've taken a different tack, breaking down the tasks of the build into half-hour jobs, or half-hour sections of a job. The only tasks I can think of at the moment outside that category are those involving paint or fiberglass. Once I got to that point, it's been a lot easier to go out to the shop and get some little part done, knowing that after a while, there'll be an airplane.

BTW, I finished rudder2.0 yesterday, so with the exception of the fiberglass work the empennage is DONE!
 
9/11, and its repercussions, did it for me -- for a while. My RV-8 empennage was done and I was preparing to break ground on a new house and hangar in an airpark. Then everything changed.

That afternoon, I called my house builder and told him we'd have to delay things for a while, because the airline I work for was undoubtedly going to undergo some changes. In fact, I wasn't sure the whole industry wouldn't collapse.

Over the next few months, I really had the wind knocked out of my sails, emotionally and financially. A 60% pay cut (which persists to this day, BTW), total loss of my pension, an employer in bankruptcy for over 4 years, and all sorts of other fun stuff. It was hard to spend any money on RV parts when, for four and half years, I wasn't sure if my next paycheck was going to be my last paycheck.

In the summer of 2006, I decided that this thing would never get done unless I put aside my career fears and just do it. Ordering the rest of my RV-8 kit was my way of symbolically giving the finger to the terrorists and extremists who are bent on screwing up my industry and my country. Just filling out the order form was cathartic.

I'm not on a timeline. Building, for me, is a very rewarding and fun. I'd probably feel a bit more pressure to complete it if I didn't have flying opportunities on the side, though. :)

Keep moving forward, even if you have to take a break now and again...
 
Out of Business....

The company I started 18 years ago with my two brothers went out of business this year..... I am a home builder and real estate developer and we were hit pretty hard in Michigan this past year. I worked on Juliette Whiskey for about 3 out the nine months this year. I am done with the wings and I would like to order the fuselage, but I might need that money to eat with next month!!!

It's really not that bad, as I have pulled my self up by the boot straps and started another company (Juliette Whiskey, LLC). I am now a consultant and real estate investor.....(I can always go back to my roots (Architecture) ,if I need to). I should be in good shape to continue the build in month or two.....
 
Thanks to everyone for taking the time to reply. Cytoxin, glad to hear you?re doing alright, you?re an inspiration!!! When I posted this I was not feeling sorry for myself, just a little guilty for having so much time and money invested then having to stop for a while when the end is in sight.

Some of you may know I paint aviation art for a hobby / sideline. I?ve recently got involved with some veteran helicopter pilots from the Vietnam War era. The result of this is the commitment to produce a series of paintings depicting their experiences. Next month I will be going to Washington DC to attend their reunion and meet with them to discuss the scope of the project. The whole thing is kind of exciting as I?ve read about these guys in a rather famous book about the helicopter war in Vietnam and will get to meet them face to face. I guess for what I do as an artist, it?s kind of a cool deal.

I?m not exactly sure how long my -8 will remain neglected in the garage, but I hope I can get back to it before too long. I?m guessing it will feel pretty good when I do.
 
I just took a four month break to serve our troops in OK by government invitation (Army Reserve Nurse Anesthetist). Can't complain as I wasn't shot at and didn't have to suffer an Iraq summer. I even found time to help concieve my next no-time-to-build excuse due Apr 23. I just got back out to the shop for the first time yesterday and deburred some wing ribs. What a drag (deburring)? But I'll get past it soon and get to do fun stuff after another couple hours of the tedious stuff.
 
Brantel said:
Oh and also the total lack of available funds for the wing kit!

:D
Click to expand...

I have a feeling this is going to be my case for at least a year...

Because of this, I have slowed my build down to a trickle to drag the empennage out for a few extra months.
 
thumb

in sept/oct 2004, when i was fluting wing ribs, i developed a tumor in the web between my thumb and forefinger of my right hand. had it surgically removed around the end of november (all the tests, mri's, carpal tunnel tests, etc, it took that long to get it scheduled.) tumor was benign, but i had to wait until the surgery healed (end of december) to crank back up.

the friday before labor day of this year, i had a similar symptom in my right thumb. no visible tumor, but the thumb is basically 1/2 to 3/4 numb, and if i grip something wrong, i get a significant pain followed by full numbness. went to the same hand specialist who did the previous surgery -- he diagnosed it as a "neuroma of the sensitive nerve", and basically has had me curtail the use of power tools until it heals. (he says there is no good surgical remedy for this condition.)

so i've slowed down a bit. right now i'm working on the wiring diagram -- i've been doing instrument panel stuff, and don't need much in the way of riveting or drilling (most of that is already done.) my wife made me a padded glove for when i absolutely have to use a tool. and the thumb is improving -- the doctor said 3 to 6 months to heal, and i've been about 2 months now, with significantly less numbness. i surely hope it heals in the next month, as my engine is supposed to be delivered in november.
 
Military service. Started building in Twentynine Palms, CA but was transferred to San Diego for five years. Now I'm retired in Texas.

Oh, and a divorce! (Not aircraft related.) :rolleyes:
 
Paul Tuttle said:
The whole thing is kind of exciting as I?ve read about these guys in a rather famous book about the helicopter war in Vietnam and will get to meet them face to face.
Click to expand...

That book wouldn't happen to be "Chickenhawk", would it? Loved that book. If your paintings convey even a fraction of the emotion and feeling in that book, I'll be lining up to buy one!
 
What Derailed my progress...?

Geeeze, lemmme think. I bought a tail kit in Lockhart, TX back in 1999. Thought it would be a great father/son project (still is). Also thought they (folks at the Plane Talk Hanger) would assist me in my absense (I live in the Memphis area - 500 nm away). Not the case. Dad said it is mine and I should know each and every rivet by several first names...He is correct by the way. Anyway, long story longer, it is there in that part of the country and I see it from time to time. Every time I go there to work somebody wants to go to Cooper's in Llano or Brenham for a milkshake. Who am I to turn down a flight in an RV-10 or 9A, or whatever is going that way with an empty seat!!! May find a set of wings before 2010. Progress is progress.
 
The Best layed plans of man's flying machines

I bought into the idea of building an RV 6 in 1996, started building, then moved and bought a Cherokee 180. Building stopped for seven years. Flew and when not building still fly nine years later. One evening, 4 or 5 years ago, after seeing what I thought was the best example of an RV 6 eventhough an A, I had ever seen, and then talking to its owner Paul Rosales at Fullerton airport the desire re-emerged to build. I remeber Paul telling me to sell the Cherokee and finish building you'll be much happier. I had almost cleared Fullerton's airspace when I heard the tower clear Paul for takeoff, Paul caught me, flew alongside me for a moment then raced ahead and did a most beautiful and memorable climbing turn over my flight path. That's it, I thought I am going to finish this thing. Just when, building had slowed again one evening at Corona fueling the ol' Cherokee this RV taxi's up to the fuel pit and after talking with the owner Dan Checkoway I find out that what I thought was an RV-6 was an RV-7, I thought then that if I don't finish this thing it is going to become obsolete and parts will become scarce if not unobtainable. Work and commitment began in earnest. Shortly after that my Cherokee owning buddy Dave Cudney begins building an RV-7. Each of us unknowing of the others interest and building find out though another common friend that each of us is building an RV, small world. Now we find out how small the world really is and that our Cherokee 180's were built about two to three weeks apart. Fast forward today, I have hung an Aerosport IO-360 with roller bearing tappets dual E mags, dual Dynons, EZ-pilot autopilot an all electric airplane with 80% of the panel done and starting work on the electrical system and a supportive wife that doesn't want to know how much this thing costs. N number reserved. Thanks Dave for your help, Paul and Dan for your inspiration.
 
jrsites said:
That book wouldn't happen to be "Chickenhawk", would it? Loved that book. If your paintings convey even a fraction of the emotion and feeling in that book, I'll be lining up to buy one!
Click to expand...

Those are the guys. They are just a great group of people. I'll know more about where this project is going after I meet with them in November. If you are interested in hearing some of their accounts visit this site. It's a little slow downloading, but worth it in my view

http://www.star.vietnam.ttu.edu/sta...ewweboh&pass=&search1=WEBOK=YES&format=format

check out the interviews referring to the Pleiku / Ia Drang veteran's collection

The attached image represents one of the night missions to LZ Albany November 17, 1965

rescueatalbany2rs0.jpg
 
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