New To EAA Chapter 747 and thinking of building

Hello everyone,

I'm 40, and full time college, full time work and Married with one girl age 6. Am I insane to consider building my own aircraft?

I have been "working" on aircraft for 20+ years and in the last 5 years moved into a managment position at Mooney. My tool box is covered in dust and cobwebs and I don't ever get to fly anymore. I don't have enough extra cash to buy a completed aircraft like a Mooney, by favorite being a 1966 M20E, so the next idea I had was to at least take care of one itch, that is to grab a tool and start working on airplanes. So what better way to do that then to work on building one that I will eventually fly.

I don't have a "shop" yet, but have plenty of land to build one on. I have a vast majority of the tools that I "think" I'll need.

The RV-6(A) seems the almost perfect aircraft for me.

What kind of advice would you offer me?

Thanks

Richard

Welcome!!

Hey Richard, welcome to the VAF.

You ask for advice----------O.K., here it is. GO FOR IT!!!!

The major drawback IMHO of the 6 is lack of a prepunched kit.

The 7 is an "refinement" so to speak of the 6.

You might want to look hard at the pro/con of the "A" configuration.

As to shop requirements, many have been built in single car garages. Build whatever shop you want. Things I would consider, bathroom, heat/cooling, lots of lighting, and outlets---electrical, and air. Put the compressor somewhere the noise wont drive you nuts.

Good luck.

Building an RV

RichardHeitzman said:

Hello everyone,

I'm 40, and full time college, full time work and Married with one girl age 6. Am I insane to consider building my own aircraft?

The RV-6(A) seems the almost perfect aircraft for me.

What kind of advice would you offer me?

Thanks

Richard

Click to expand...

Richard,
Whether you should start now would depend on how you handle life with a "full plate". When I was working full time, college full time, and raising a family, there's no way I could have started a project like building an airplane. Only you can answer that question (with a little help from your wife).

I don't think VANS sells new RV6A kits anymore, but you could adopt a partially built one from someone and get the parts you need to complete it. As was already mentioned, the RV7 is the replacement to the RV6, and is a much more modern kit.
Good luck

I have heard from several sources that there are studies that suggest someone with a job and family responsibilities has at most 500 hours a year to devote to a hobby. If your only hobby was the airplane, you could reasonably start and finish in four or five years.
I had a similar circumstance with job and family. Mine took 8 years, $80K, and one wife lost in the process. Worth every penny. (bad joke)

some things to think about...

Richard,

Just a few things to contemplate...

You say... "I don't ever get to fly anymore." Ask yourself if this is due to available time or money or both?

You also say..."I don't have enough extra cash to buy a completed aircraft like a Mooney, by favorite being a 1966 M20E,...". You can get a good E model for 50-60k. You will spend at least that much on a flying -6A,-7A. Granted, you can get started with a 6 or 7 with a couple of grand. As the old saying goes...time vs. money.

The "itch". Humm. When I get an "itch" for something, I tend to spend a lot of time thinking of senerios and over analyzing everything. The "itch" seems to fade over time and I make better, and hopefully correct, decisions.

One last thing. Based on your family situation, it seems that will be taking up a lot of time, as it should. Just figure that in when you do all this contemplating. I would also suggest that you get the full support of your wife. To me, my relationship with my wife is much more important than an airplane. There's nothing wrong with building and flying airplanes as a hobby. The key word there is "hobby".

Building an airplane is a huge undertaking and WILL take longer than you think.

My humble .02

Thanks for the response.

I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to add thier comments to my posting. I am working with the EAA 747 to start up a "in house" discussion on the pros and cons of building and what it takes to finish one up. As I need to build my shop first, this will be a great starting point to find out what I need "in house" to be a sucess story.

HHHmmm..Buy my project????

Whadda ya say buy my -6 project, have a virtually brand new engine and save yourself over 30 grand in the process???? See the classifieds...Glen...