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How do we get a demo ride on the East Coast

MrDan27611

I'm New Here
So the boy and I head to Sun N Fun last week and look at all the shiny toys. We are trying to find a project to build. It's our first build after years of flying certified aircraft.

Mom says go, have fun, buy something. Checkbook says go, money is already sitting ready to spend. It's a shopping trip of the best kind.

Of course we go to the Van's display, multiple times. The RV-10 looks really good for what we have in mind and everything is great. All my questions are getting good answers and the room in the 10 is just astonishing. I cannot fit in TBM 900s or any current Piper, but I can wear a hat in the 10!

Then I find out I'm talking to the new President of Van's aircraft, Mitch. How cool is that. The boss man is on the line selling airplanes.

So I ask Mitch how I go about getting a ride in an RV 10 so I can check off that final due diligence and get a kit ordered. Turns out that now that he is President, he's moving to the left coast and there isn't a real option right now for someone on the East coast for demo rides. Hmm. If the boss man doesn't know how a demo is going to go, what is a customer to do? I'm not complaining, I understand things are in flux with his new position, but I'm not buying a multi-year project till I see the spiny thing in the front spinning and get some air under the wings. Anybody in NC (near Raleigh, preferably) have an RV-10 they want to take for a hamburger? I really don't want to wait till they have another rep out here. I'd love to take the ride to Van's instead but the time to justify that trip is difficult just having come back from a week in Florida.

Thoughts?

Btw, first post here. Probably many more to come as time passes and rivets get bucked.
 
At the moment. You can't. I had been scheduled to fly the 10 with Mitch today, however at the end of Sun N Fun it was decided that the 10 would go back to the mothership. He offered me a demo in the 14 as it has similar flight charastics, but I ended passing as I was planning for the wife to see the 10.

I would say give it time. Hopefully we have a new east coast rep in the near future. Will the new rep have a 10? Who knows.

May be faster to see if anyone near you has a 10 you can get a quick ride in?
 
I purchased my RV-10 kits and never had a demo ride. In fact, the first time I had ever even flown in an RV aircraft was during my transition training prior to the first flight in my completed RV-10. I did sit in the demonstrator at Oshkosh and that was enough to sell me! If your willing to travel a little, I am sure there is an RV-10 owner who would gladly give you that ride.
 
Dan, welcome aboard the good ship VAF:D

Pierre Smith and Vic Syracuse are both 10 owners who have helped out lots of folks interested in the 10--------both in your neck of the woods, I believe.

http://www.vansairforce.com/community/member.php?u=438

http://www.vansairforce.com/community/member.php?u=1415

Thank you. I reached out to Vic directly to see if he was available.

I also checked with a buddy of mine who's family lives in Bend, OR. Maybe I could go out on his annual trip to visit his family and tag along for a free place to stay. If I can make it to Bend, surely someone at the factory can hop down and pick me up for a demo flight. If I can make it 2400 miles, surely they can make the last 150 for me.

I also reached out to my local EAA chapter to see if anyone has a 10 flying they'd let me take a hop in. I should have done that originally but it just didn't occur to me.

Thank you for your help!
 
If you can get to Atlanta I will take you for a flight in my 10.

Vic

Lol! While you were typing that, I was emailing you directly. What timing! Vic, I think I'm heading to Atlanta anyway to look at a Cherokee Six. It's not even remotely confirmed yet but I'm hoping to put something together on it in the next week or so.

Thank you, I will be in touch. And thank you for your kind offer!
 
Take a trip.

I can only tell you what seams to work for us. If you really like the 10 and many do, I liked the 8. It is more than worth it to just get on a cheep flight and take a ride out to Portland and spend a couple of days visiting the plant and taking a ride. You will be much more at ease with a situation where you are going to spend this much money and time over the coming years if you do.
Yours, R.E.A. III #80888
 
Free RV-10 Ride

Please come to Atlanta and I will happily give you a free ride in mine.
I will also ask Vic Syracuse if I can fly you to his Fly-in community where you can meet him. He is a excellent A & P and quite the Vans Guru, not to mention a super guy.

Ted Chipps
N498EC

Please Email me at
[email protected]
 
Who needs advertising when you have guys like Ted around. :)
Seriously, stop by and let me know how I can be of help. There's a lot more to talk about than just an airplane ride whne it comes to RV's. :)

Vic
 
RV-10 Demo

I wish I would have seen this while you were at Sun n Fun. We have a an RV10 down in Delray Beach Florida. If you find yourself in the area we will be more than happy to take you up. It can also work as an excuse to take a couple of days off and come back to Florida :D
 
So I received a ton of wonderful offers to come and ride in your airplanes. Thank you all SO much. I promptly went to work on trying to coordinate a trip to see a Cherokee 6 we were looking at buying as a family hauler that just happened to be in Atlanta. This would have coincided wonderfully with a chance to ride with Vic and pick his brain. Alas, it was not to be.

Before we could get the trip together on the Cherokee, it was sold. That caused us to reshuffle on some other Cherokees that are on the market and that took all of my airplane budget time for a week or so. Then we finally had a sit down with the Mrs. and my son to review all we'd learned at Sun N Fun and finally select the RV-10 which I just knew we were going to get. I mean, I fit wonderfully, it's four seats, it's an RV. It was a foregone conclusion. But, gotta keep the rest of the team in line, right? Make them feel like part of the decision.

When the Mrs. got to the line on my spreadsheet about the build time in hours, she didn't even blink. I'd already verbally told her the numbers over the past few months so I guess she was listening that day and remembered. But being the helpful analyst I am, I had extrapolated the build hours of 2000 into the number of weeks and therefor years it would take at our projected availability per week. Turning those hours into weeks caused he to shut down almost immediately. Very quickly it became we weren't building an airplane at all! Not even something with considerably less build time like a Zenith CH-750 was quick enough when she realized how long it would take.

I was beyond frustrated. This was her idea originally, to build a plane. She's the one who talked me into it. I knew I didn't have lots of free time. I'd told her, repeatedly over the last 8 months what kind of build time it would take to do this. But it wasn't until I put it on paper and literally forced (she refuses to talk airplanes) her to sit down and review it that she finally understood how big of a project this is. She then promptly decided to just trash the whole idea and called it quits. Sigh.

So I later talked to the boy and after the experience of Sun N Fun, he's still game. Going to the airshow I think sparked some more interest in him in aviation and talking to all the kit manufacturers and getting a ride in a Carbon Cub showed him the fun of airplanes. I'm the one most acutely aware of my lack of time to take on a project like this and I'm still game. But I think short term, we are going to have to take on a much smaller project than an RV. Something in the hundreds of hours to build rather than the thousands.

So while I'd still dearly love to come and take a ride with any and all of you, I think the RV is going to have to go on the back burner for a few years. We're going to find a simpler, shorter, first time project. If we have a lot of fun with that, then we'll sell it off and maybe an RV will be the next project. This isn't what I'm saying, this is a quote from the Mrs. I'll get there someday, just not today.

Thanks again for all the warm offers of help.
 
Don't give up!

So I received a ton of wonderful offers to come and ride in your airplanes. Thank you all SO much. I promptly went to work on trying to coordinate a trip to see a Cherokee 6 we were looking at buying as a family hauler that just happened to be in Atlanta. This would have coincided wonderfully with a chance to ride with Vic and pick his brain. Alas, it was not to be.

Before we could get the trip together on the Cherokee, it was sold. That caused us to reshuffle on some other Cherokees that are on the market and that took all of my airplane budget time for a week or so. Then we finally had a sit down with the Mrs. and my son to review all we'd learned at Sun N Fun and finally select the RV-10 which I just knew we were going to get. I mean, I fit wonderfully, it's four seats, it's an RV. It was a foregone conclusion. But, gotta keep the rest of the team in line, right? Make them feel like part of the decision.

When the Mrs. got to the line on my spreadsheet about the build time in hours, she didn't even blink. I'd already verbally told her the numbers over the past few months so I guess she was listening that day and remembered. But being the helpful analyst I am, I had extrapolated the build hours of 2000 into the number of weeks and therefor years it would take at our projected availability per week. Turning those hours into weeks caused he to shut down almost immediately. Very quickly it became we weren't building an airplane at all! Not even something with considerably less build time like a Zenith CH-750 was quick enough when she realized how long it would take.

I was beyond frustrated. This was her idea originally, to build a plane. She's the one who talked me into it. I knew I didn't have lots of free time. I'd told her, repeatedly over the last 8 months what kind of build time it would take to do this. But it wasn't until I put it on paper and literally forced (she refuses to talk airplanes) her to sit down and review it that she finally understood how big of a project this is. She then promptly decided to just trash the whole idea and called it quits. Sigh.

So I later talked to the boy and after the experience of Sun N Fun, he's still game. Going to the airshow I think sparked some more interest in him in aviation and talking to all the kit manufacturers and getting a ride in a Carbon Cub showed him the fun of airplanes. I'm the one most acutely aware of my lack of time to take on a project like this and I'm still game. But I think short term, we are going to have to take on a much smaller project than an RV. Something in the hundreds of hours to build rather than the thousands.

So while I'd still dearly love to come and take a ride with any and all of you, I think the RV is going to have to go on the back burner for a few years. We're going to find a simpler, shorter, first time project. If we have a lot of fun with that, then we'll sell it off and maybe an RV will be the next project. This isn't what I'm saying, this is a quote from the Mrs. I'll get there someday, just not today.

Thanks again for all the warm offers of help.

You know you don't have to build--plenty of folks have no desire to build at all but enjoy owning and flying E-AB aircraft that they bought already flying. RV-10s are no exception. Really rough estimate is you'll pay about 25% for an already built plane vs what you'd paid for a COMPLETE kit and you can't spread that cost over time, but you'll be flying immediately vs. spending years (and most likely more than your estimated 2000hrs) putting it together.
 
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Noooooooooo

Mr. Dan,
May I make a suggestion. If your wife doesn't want to commit to the build, fine, don't build but don't give up on the RV10 or other RVs if you can live with a 2 seater. Take it from me. Many many years ago when I was just a fool that flew certified airplanes I always wondered, "why is it so darn expensive to keep these planes flying". Frankly I was tired of paying, $5,000 to $20,000 for an annual (yes $20K one year). Then I met a friend of a friend that had an RV. Man talk about love at first site.... Within a few months I had sold my plane and bought an RV. Although I was very picky on the build and wanted an excellent quality build, I spent a few months finding the right RV that met my criteria. I won't lie to you it was tough going around the country and looking at different RVs but I was determined to find one that met my criteria because I knew I didn't have the time to build at this point in my life. 2 months after the search started I found the one (see below) Bought it on the spot. That was over 3 years ago and I'm still in disbelief as to what an incredible airplane I own. I don't want to "jinx" myself or my plane and I certainly don't want to brag but I do want to say that buying and flying an RV has been one most rewarding things in my life (well as far as toys go ;) ). I fly much more than I ever did during the past 19 years that owned other certified airplanes. I have made so many new friends both in person and virtually through the wonderful Vans community. Aviation and flying has really become a much more enjoyable part of my life rather something I want to do and can't afford.

I think you should reconsider. Start looking at buying a flying RV10. Be patient, you will find one that meets your criteria.

May I make another suggestion, Bring you wife and your son to Atlanta for a ride in a 10. You already have multiple offers and I'll add one to it. My close friend has an RV 10 across from me and I'm sure he would be willing to take you and your family up. I have to say as much as I love my RV-7, I really enjoy flying the RV10 with my friend. So much that I'm sure I will end up with either another plane one day or replace my -7 with a -10.

A cherokee is not even in the same category as an RV10. You won't regret a single day of RV flying.... The power, the speed, the look, comfort, payload, most importantly the cost of operating an experimental vs. a certified plane. Just no comparison.

Alright all this talk about RV Flying is making me excited... I'm headed to the airport :D:D:D:D:D

 
Mr. Dan,
May I make a suggestion. If your wife doesn't want to commit to the build, fine, don't build but don't give up on the RV10 or other RVs if you can live with a 2 seater. Take it from me. Many many years ago when I was just a fool that flew certified airplanes I always wondered, "why is it so darn expensive to keep these planes flying". Frankly I was tired of paying, $5,000 to $20,000 for an annual (yes $20K one year). Then I met a friend of a friend that had an RV. Man talk about love at first site.... Within a few months I had sold my plane and bought an RV. Although I was very picky on the build and wanted an excellent quality build, I spent a few months finding the right RV that met my criteria. I won't lie to you it was tough going around the country and looking at different RVs but I was determined to find one that met my criteria because I knew I didn't have the time to build at this point in my life. 2 months after the search started I found the one (see below) Bought it on the spot. That was over 3 years ago and I'm still in disbelief as to what an incredible airplane I own. I don't want to "jinx" myself or my plane and I certainly don't want to brag but I do want to say that buying and flying an RV has been one most rewarding things in my life (well as far as toys go ;) ). I fly much more than I ever did during the past 19 years that owned other certified airplanes. I have made so many new friends both in person and virtually through the wonderful Vans community. Aviation and flying has really become a much more enjoyable part of my life rather something I want to do and can't afford.

I think you should reconsider. Start looking at buying a flying RV10. Be patient, you will find one that meets your criteria.

May I make another suggestion, Bring you wife and your son to Atlanta for a ride in a 10. You already have multiple offers and I'll add one to it. My close friend has an RV 10 across from me and I'm sure he would be willing to take you and your family up. I have to say as much as I love my RV-7, I really enjoy flying the RV10 with my friend. So much that I'm sure I will end up with either another plane one day or replace my -7 with a -10.

A cherokee is not even in the same category as an RV10. You won't regret a single day of RV flying.... The power, the speed, the look, comfort, payload, most importantly the cost of operating an experimental vs. a certified plane. Just no comparison.

Alright all this talk about RV Flying is making me excited... I'm headed to the airport :D:D:D:D:D


You sir are of course correct. I ended up having to finish my post rather quickly so my ending was truncated. In my search through the homebuilt world my eyes have been opened to the possibilities of experimentals. I'm fairly well sold.

As I looked through the different airplanes, both certified and home built, I found that the RV-10 was my first choice in almost every category from a ground based perspective. I really only needed a test hop to confirm what I believed to be true.

However there is one discrepancy in the statement that the Cherokee six isn't in the same category as the RV-10. I have 5 people in my family. (I child proofed my house, but they still got in!) The RV-10 is not going to ever haul all of my family at once. Once my oldest goes to college (in 5 years), well that's a different story. Once the next one goes to college, now W&B is easier. Once the last one goes to college, now we have a go places airplane with room to spare. Yep, the RV-10 wins in all categories except build time and people carrying for me.

With that said, my plan is this.

Step 1. Find something to build with my boy. Something we can fly before he goes off to college. Something we can enjoy, operate from our 800 strip at our farm, and unofficially learn to fly in.

Step 2. Find a Cherokee six. Something we can all fit in. Something we can travel as a family with. I'm trying to put a deal together on one right now.

Step 3. Send the boy off to college with a transcript that says, "Smart, good looking, private pilot, built a (insert aircraft here) in conjunction with my father see attached pics, SATs, grades, etc"

Step 4. Sell the Cherokee six and buy an RV-10 exactly as you suggested.

Step 5. Get to be one of the cool kids driving an RV.

I like building stuff. I'm a machinist, a welder, a woodworker. I'm actually a little disappointed that the planes go together so easily as it looks more tedious than challenging. But with the available time I have, and the time frame I'm working with, I don't see another way at this point. However end game, I do plan on joining the RV club.

Thank you for your words of encouragement. They are much appreciated.
 
Easily...

Building an RV is a lot of things...

Tedious? Yes, at times.

Frustrating? Yes, at times.

Challenging? Definitely, at times.

Easy? Sometimes. However, I would not classify the whole project as "easy".

When looking at the plans and the project prior to building your first airplane, it can look easy. You say to yourself, "I can do this! Only 1500 hours to completion! That is only 15 hours a week for two years!" And it seems so easy.

Then you start the build and soon realize that 15 hours a week is 2 1/2 hours a day, every day for 2 years, which still isn't so bad. Then you realize that every day building leads to an ever increasing number of options or decisions or modifications to make this airplane your own, and unique. Pretty soon it dawns on you that there needs to be a line drawn, to keep you on track to finish the project in your lifetime...

Now factor in Life...When I started my -10 build, the deal I made with my family was that the family life would not suffer while I was building. That means going to the kid's functions, be it academic, sports, fun, whatever. It also means NOT neglecting my better half! All of this adds time to the build and challenges in finding time to build.

So, you finally get to the point where the structure is mostly complete and you are looking at the "pot of gold" at the end of the rainbow. You know, the engine hanging on the end of the fuselage:D. You say to yourself, "Ah, the light at the end of the tunnel!" and marvel at your creation that actually looks like an airplane. Then you realize that although you are 90% done, you still have 90% to go! The good news is that now it looks like an airplane and you can actually sit in it and make airplane noises...

This is where I am in my build...trying to get to that day when the creation comes to life...

Yes, building an airplane is many things. One thing is for sure, it is rewarding...

Can't wait to get that RV grin!
 
It isn't clear to me that Vic is going to have an RV-10 available for demo flights or transition training. Hopefully, he'll step in with definitive information.
 
Thanks for the kind words, everyone. I have a Van's RV-12 and RV-14, along with my own RV-10 available for demo rides. Transition training is not in the plan at this time.

Vic
 
Congratulations

Vic, big congrats on the new adittion to your already substantial work load:D
 
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