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RV-14 Kit availability

DRBuilder

Well Known Member
Anyone on the forum have any "insider" information as to when the RV 14 wing kits will be available to purchase? After 6 years of construction to complete my 7, I am experiencing "builder's withdrawal" waiting for the kits to become available. After sitting in the prototype at Oshkosh this summer, I was completely sold on the kit. I recently sold my 7 and feel lost without an airplane in my shop. Having built and flown my own RV for 90 hours before I sold it, I know what I am missing and can't wait to get to work on my next one.

Looking forward to joining the "Repeat Offender" club! :D
 
"this fall"

I called the factory a couple weeks ago, there seems to be a list of people who are waiting, she told me they will email when it is ready. I assume that will happen the same time that their website is updated...thinking there will be a mass exodus of aluminum shortly following that date!
 
I've been wondering the same thing

I'm hoping that now that they've got this S-LSA RV-12 thing out of the way, they'll focus on getting the RV-14 wing kits out the door. I'd like to see a little bit better pricing info than "plan for around 85k", a solid price on the wing kit would be a good step.
 
KC

I agree. Vans vagueness about pricing and availability of the 14, was a HUGE turn-off for me, that's why I chose the 8.

Hey, I'm still buying an RV, vans still wins ;)

Then again, so do I.
 
I agree. Vans vagueness about pricing and availability of the 14, was a HUGE turn-off for me, that's why I chose the 8.

Hey, I'm still buying an RV, vans still wins ;)

Then again, so do I.

Many of the popular (but expensive) kits from the passed (note I say passed... most of them are no longer around) were priced based on the amount of profit they needed to operate the company profitably, while only producing the X # of kits they wanted to produce per year.
A big part of what makes RV kits such a good value is Van's setting the sale price of the kits at a very tight profit margin, and then being successful based on volume.
[Kit plane trivia - do you know that Van's ships more complete airframe kits every year, than the majority of the other kit manufacturers sold in the entire history of their company?]

Anyway, it would be nearly impossible for a company the size of Van's to publish a projected sale price for a kit section (let alone the complete kit), in advance of actually producing the first batch. Sure, it could be done, but because it would have to be done in a very conservative manner, customers would probably pay quite a bit more.

So, price speculation on the RV-14 is being handled pretty much the same way it was for the RV-12 and all of the other models before it.
Years ago, when the next new model was very similar to the previous (like when the RV-7 was released after the RV-9), it was much easier to make a close estimate on what the total kit cost would be, because there wasn't a very big physical difference between the kits. The RV-14 is a huge difference from any previously released kit, so pricing estimates will be kept rather vague until they are well documented.
 
14

The RV-14 is a huge difference from any previously released kit, so pricing estimates will be kept rather vague until they are well documented.

That all make sense and is fair enough. I guess I'm just ready for the wing kits to start rolling. A final price for the wing kit and estimates for the rest will probably be enough for me to pull the trigger.

The non-brutally hot productive season in Texas is wasting away:rolleyes:
 
Anyone on the forum have any "insider" information as to when the RV 14 wing kits will be available to purchase? After 6 years of construction to complete my 7, I am experiencing "builder's withdrawal" waiting for the kits to become available. After sitting in the prototype at Oshkosh this summer, I was completely sold on the kit. I recently sold my 7 and feel lost without an airplane in my shop. Having built and flown my own RV for 90 hours before I sold it, I know what I am missing and can't wait to get to work on my next one.

Looking forward to joining the "Repeat Offender" club! :D


Hey Dennis, I see that you had built a super 7 with a 540 up front. I guess this is what you are probably going for with the 14. It will be very interesting to see the performance #s on the new setup. Since Vans calls the 14 a 10 on a diet I suppose the 540 should be a good match for the bigger platform of the 14. I am sure Vans also must have anticipated the possibility of folks amping the 14 up with something bigger than the recommended 390...Its gonna be fun watching all the new build sites popping up real soon...Hec, I wonder if anyone will try to strap a turboprop on to this baby.:rolleyes:
 
I wonder

I wonder what it's specs would be with the longer -10 wing (obviously no aero) and a 540 in front for a ccx machine?
 
Anyone on the forum have any "insider" information as to when the RV 14 wing kits will be available to purchase?


Vans? 2 weeks? 2 Months? Somewhere in between?
Any news would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!
 
Not This Time Ryan

planning a 540 on front of the 14 DRBuilder?

The 390 has 210 HP and the cost difference in the build wouldn't be worth all the modifications and effort it took to hang a 540 on my 7. I normally cruised at 210mph and the 14 cruises at 190mph @ 70% so I really can't justify the added $ and effort it would take to hang the 540. The 14 kit is supposed to be much easier to build, along the lines of the 12 from what I am hearing from Oshkosh and other builders. We'll see once the kits become available... Which hopefully will be SOON!
 
Anyone on the forum have any "insider" information as to when the RV 14 wing kits will be available to purchase?


Vans? 2 weeks? 2 Months? Somewhere in between?
Any news would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!



Vans has an email list of folks interested in the 14 wing kit. If you have'nt already I would call and get on it asap so as to get all the latest and greatest news.
 
One reason to hang a 540 on the nose is price. You can probably get a 540 (rebuilt) for less money than an IO-390. Lycoming lists the IO-390 for 57K - with a core to trade in (15K). There are no cores to trade in for the most part. The IO-390X (experimental) will be sold by Lycoming for about 42K, and for about 45K if built by a designated engine builder. Get the one built by a designated builder, rather than one off the shop floor at Lycoming - you'll get a better engine (this from an expert at Barrett who designed the engine). At any rate - the cost issue on the RV14 all adds up when you consider a much more expensive engine. I think 85K for a finished airplane is conservative. My calculation, based on a 9K wing as comparison to other kits, is about 115K for a finished airplane. That's with paint, nice interior, Garmin 3X dual screen panel, and two axis autopilot. Is this too expensive? Not when you consider what you get and compare it to anything production. The RV10 is similar to a Cirrus for about 1/2 the price if equipped the same. The RV14 would be about 1/2 what you would spend for a production two-seater if you could get one. It will be able to comfortably seat two full sized Americans and handle like an RV in a stable cross-country machine. That's why my name is on the list for a wing kit, which should be ready before the end of the year.
 
Engine cost

The IO-390X (experimental) will be sold by Lycoming for about 42K, and for about 45K if built by a designated engine builder.

I think that the engine will be a little less from Vans. I emailed them and was told that "An IO-390 will probably be a little less than the IO-360 we sell,
$39,300."
 
I spoke with Vans today. They report about 40 orders for RV14 wings. The nice lady on the phone speculated that the hold up may be just because of one component. Her guess is that the first kits will be shipped in about a month.
 
I'm on the list

I talked to Vans about 3 weeks ago just about a week after the order hit the website and they had about 25 orders and expected the first shipments to go out the week after Thanksgiving. I'm spending this time getting my basement shop converted from woodworking to metal working. This is my 1st airplane / 1st Kit -- I figured the -14 would be much easier for a novice to build than a -7 or -10. I am also thinking about buying a flying -6 or -7 while I build the -14 over the next few years, I'm a renter now, so I am doing the finance analysis now to determine if it makes sense. As I know absolutely SQUAT about maintenance (right now, at least) I am going to have to rely on others advice and workmanship to get me thru the next few years... Finally, when someone gets their -14 wings, how about giving me a yell, I am anxious to get started....:)
 
Any updates on delivery times? I too am getting ready to make the commitment and am anxiously awaiting the pricing updates and the ship dates on wing kits.
 
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The wing kits are now in the hands of some builders and on the way out to many others. The wing kit price is now on Van's site , but no other kits are priced yet.
 
Delivery Times!

On Vans web site it says 8 week delivery time. Being a new kit release for Vans it may run longer. So plan accordingly.;)
 
140026

Mine arrived today. Spar box is 141" x 10" x 11". Other crate is the same 32" x 96" that they use on the other kits. 400 lbs total. I would guess 175 and 225 per box.

Inventory underway :)
 
Just finished inventorying my kit. I found two of the spar reinforcements were labeled L and R and they were exactly the same. Within 10 minutes from the time I noted that, the UPS driver showed up at my shop with an 8' long tube from Van's containing the "correct" L spar reinforcement. How's THAT for service!!! I guess they already figured out the spars were labeled wrong and sent off the new one to all of the kits that had already shipped. The rest of the kit was correct with the exception of one snap bushing missing. Oh well. No big deal. I'm sure I'll be ordering more in the near future anyway.

Let the fun begin!!! :D
 
RV-14 Kit update please

I thought i would wake this thread up and ask the obvious, can someone please post an update on kit availability please? Sorry for being so impatient :D
Ive not built before and I am reluctant to start a project when only part (wings) of the plane are available.
I am also looking for more feedback from owners which won't happen until full kits start flowing.
 
I thought i would wake this thread up and ask the obvious, can someone please post an update on kit availability please? Sorry for being so impatient :D
Ive not built before and I am reluctant to start a project when only part (wings) of the plane are available.
I am also looking for more feedback from owners which won't happen until full kits start flowing.

If you are asking when the entire kit will be available, that can not be answered at this time.

A very rough estimate would be some time at the beginning of 2014.
 
Let me look into my crystal ball.

From the previous post which says the entire kit won't be available until early 2014, maybe. I would guess quick build kits might come in late 2014, maybe.;)
 
Updates on prediction?

Yes sorry Jetguy for not being too clear:-
  1. I was indeed asking when the full kits may be available?
  2. And I would love to know when the quick build kits may be available as well?
Anyone able to contribute with some non-binding information please?

I agree starting to build now may be faster then waiting for the full quick build kit, but I am balancing family commitments with additional NVFR, CSU ratings etc. Also still working on the wife, its going to take a lot of brownie points ;)
Lastly a quick build kit may push it over the line for us as she will see the improved build time even with higher cost as a big plus.
 
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