rv8bldr
Well Known Member
Hey everyone
I'm building our new house this summer on our property (50 acres) and I have room for about 1300' of turf runway. The field is quite smooth (it has been both a hay field and pasture for about a century), and will be even smoother once I roll it a couple of times. In addition, I have 300'+ before any trees at either end. As you can imagine, I'd REALLY like to keep my -8 there, although that would preclude any winter flying.
My question is this: for those of you who fly off of turf, what kind of take-off distances are you seeing? Of course, that will depend on the prop, engine, and weight, so if you could tell me that too, that would be handy.
My -8 has an IO-360-A3B6D (200 hp) and a 3 blade Catto, so I am a little concerned about hot summer day take offs at gross weight. If I keep the plane at home, I'll save ~335/month in rent, so I could put a CS prop on instead and still be ahead ;-) However, if 1300' is marginal even with a CS prop, I'll have to rethink it.
I'm building our new house this summer on our property (50 acres) and I have room for about 1300' of turf runway. The field is quite smooth (it has been both a hay field and pasture for about a century), and will be even smoother once I roll it a couple of times. In addition, I have 300'+ before any trees at either end. As you can imagine, I'd REALLY like to keep my -8 there, although that would preclude any winter flying.
My question is this: for those of you who fly off of turf, what kind of take-off distances are you seeing? Of course, that will depend on the prop, engine, and weight, so if you could tell me that too, that would be handy.
My -8 has an IO-360-A3B6D (200 hp) and a 3 blade Catto, so I am a little concerned about hot summer day take offs at gross weight. If I keep the plane at home, I'll save ~335/month in rent, so I could put a CS prop on instead and still be ahead ;-) However, if 1300' is marginal even with a CS prop, I'll have to rethink it.