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RV-7 OR 7A

A

Agent Cooper

Member
I have now had the oppertunity to fly both, BUT never had the chance to land the RV7 as my taily experience is limited to very old hours.
Then last Monday I went up in a brand new 7A and it was so easy did a perfect takeoff with the nose lifted of the ground and the a/c just flies itself off thye groung and away you go. Then for the first landing the instructor just kept on pepping me on speeds hights and as per his words I did a perfect landing, still haveto get use to the toe brakes though. After refueling we flew back to our home base and again a very good landing, BUT still the nose gear remains a worry. Then yesterday also an RV builder said to me that the RV 7 does not handle rough runways landing and or takeoff, my thoughts were always that a taily was better on rough terain. The taxi experience in the A was also new to me, but the taily I found easier but one needs to concentrate on surrounding wind directions.
Please share your experiences with me as I need to decide which one of the two I will buy.
Thanks in advance.
 
Sorry just an add on , what I also found unpleasent was the ground handeling of the A model, then again it was the first time and with a bit more experience it can get better BUT the taily I know is much easier.:)
 
Do you have some reservations of either one? It sounds like you already have your preferences. If you feel the tail wheel 7 is the way to go then I am sure you will love it. If you feel the nose wheel 7A is better for you then go that route. I am not sure anything any of us will say would alter your decision if you already have some ideas growing in your mind.

I am not sure what your concerns are for either tail wheel or nose wheel. If I assume you are leaning one way or the other based upon discussions on this forum or elsewhere dealing with nose wheel collapses or the difficulties of controlling tail wheels then you are going to find more opinions than facts in the replies to your query. The truth is both have their pros and their cons. You have to decide which pros you like more and which cons you like less, then make a decision. The truth is the RV is going to perform far beyond your expectations no matter which one you choose if your only comparison is with spam cans. I am sure you will enjoy the plane no matter which road you go down.

I am not sure what ground handling characteristics you found unpleasant in the A model. I have a 9A and think it is very docile on the ground. I also did my transition training in a 6 and did not think it handled adversely on the ground either. Either style is different in the way in which a pilot must handle them but neither seems overly problematic.
 
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Ditto!

Ron Lee said:
My opinion: If you want to go to unimproved fields., get a taildragger.
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I was very disappointed to find out, after building the 7A that there were so many flip overs. If I had it to do again, I'd build the 7. I am not a TW pilot, but that is easier to fix than a flipped airplane.
 
The ground handling in the 7A should not be an issue, I really enjoy mine. It goes where you point it, turns on a dime (really!) and you can see where you are going. You will get used to it very quickly. I think you should base your descision on other aspects of the 7/7A that appeal to you. My 2 cents.
 
Unstable vehicles

I have never landed an RV 7A on a grass strip but I do know one thing.

Just because a vehicle has been shown to be unstable does not mean its a terrible design.

You might be thinking "that is ridiculous!" but there is a reason I say this.

I used to race motorbikes and a motorbike is inherently unstable. Close your eyes for even 2 second on a bike and your headed for the pavement. Lose the slightest amount of traction on the front wheel and your also kissing dirt. If some one even touches you at high speed your over and if you apply too much power out of a corner and brake too hard going in, your over the front and on your back.

This is not a story of a highly stable vehicle, yet motorbikes are designed well. Use them the right way and they do as they are told. Take liberties and they will make you pay.

This is not to say that everyone who has ever fliped a 7A is incompetant, I have lost it on my bike and I know how to ride. Its just a loss of focus or lack of caution sometimes.

So in the end there are Car people and there are Bike people, some think that the 7A is dangerous, some think that with respect it is fine.

Neither are actually correct. Both are just attitudes. I guess you have to ask yourself which attitude would you like to live by. That will probably give you an answer.
 
Another consideration.

The airplanes with CS props are a lot heavier on the nosewheel.

My -6A weighed 1065 at first flight and only 245# on the nosewheel. The FP Catto was very light and consequently, the nosewheel could be held off the ground at a much lower airspeed and I took it into half a dozen grass strips, a couple not too smooth either.

Best,
 
pierre smith said:
The airplanes with CS props are a lot heavier on the nosewheel.

My -6A weighed 1065 at first flight and only 245# on the nosewheel. The FP Catto was very light and consequently, the nosewheel could be held off the ground at a much lower airspeed and I took it into half a dozen grass strips, a couple not too smooth either.

Best,
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AMEN to the comment on NG weight.

My airplane NG came in at 364 pounds with the Subby H6 and MT CS prop.

With the Lycoming and Catto it weighs 244 pounds up front.

The flying qualities are a light year apart, I much prefer the lighter NG weight with the CG in the aft half of the envelope rather than bumping the forward limit.

Flying off of grass is a matter a personal adaptation and not a big deal. If the normal operation is off of 5000' of concrete the brain is in one mode, if it is off of a short piece of turf it is in another. The RV does just fine either way, you simply have to adjust your thinking a bit - over four years off of grass without a flip, most of it with the heavy NG.

Beyond all that, the choice of training wheel or tail wheel is mostly a matter personal preference, no one shoe fits everyone. (But we all do pull our pants on the same way.) :)
 
I occasionally fly off of grass and don't worry about. I do worry when I'm at a grass strip and watch some other folks in their nosewheel RVs come in -- can't tell you how many people I've seen stick the nosewheel on the ground almost immediately after the mains. Sorry, but that is not soft field technique. I have a hartzell C/S on the nose and I have absolutely no problem keeping the nosewheel off the ground.
 
Oom G
Gotta be a taillie....;). Simple (if I can do it an use the aerie again so can u) to land and a dream to fly. Go for it...:)
 
Jamie said:
I have a hartzell C/S on the nose and I have absolutely no problem keeping the nosewheel off the ground.
Click to expand...

And in reality, the pilots/ passenger weight.............and other items moved to the rear, do offset the nose weight of a C/S prop. Some RV's with light weight fixed pitch props have a problem with capacity for cargo, since the nose is too light. Some even have to add weights out front. I'll stick with my C/S & Lyc! :)

L.Adamson --- RV6A
 
tail drag or not

You ask a question that no one can answer. As for the nose wheel issue on grass, I have had both gear types and nose wheel failures are pilot driven events not the airplane. On the tail wheel ground looping is a concern, cross wind landings take good tail wheel skills. The A model will give you confidence on cross wind landings and the tail wheel will give you confidence on grass strips. One is not better than the other. Ground handeling will be much easier with the A model.

Again I have had both and this is my opinion.

Pat Stewart
 
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