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Reflections on the Build

Jpm757

Well Known Member
Thirty years ago I got the BUG. Past all of the flashy Lancair and Glasair ads in Sport Aviation, there was a small black and white ad for Van`s Aircraft, "Total Performance" it stated. If true, it was exactly what I was looking for, so I decided to pay a visit to North Plains, OR, and the modest facility of Vans Aircraft. I met Van and was shown the RV3, 4 and brand new RV6 prototypes. The weather was lousy so I didn't get to fly that day, but I sure liked what I saw and plunked down a deposit for an early RV6 kit. 2 years and $29,000 later I was the proud owner of one of the first flying RV6`s. Boy was that a great airplane, and I enjoyed it for 15 years. When I reluctantly sold it. I sure hoped I'd get another.
Fast Forward to 2016 when a friend had an RV7 QB kit that had to go. Just like that I was back into homebuilding! My son had been bugging me for years to get another RV, so he was totally on board. It is amazing how much has changed in 30 years, QB kits, pre-punched everything, and aftermarket vendors by the dozens. Of course there was also the internet with its wealth of information. All of this combined with the incredible community of RV builders made the new build a pleasure. Still a lot of work and a lot more expensive these days, but 14 mos. later we had another flying RV. What a great success story Van's has become, but yet I still feel they are still the same mom & pop operation they were 30 years ago - and that's a good thing.

Bill & Jake Mahoney

RV7 N767T first flight 11/21/2017
 
Congratulations on your completion and first flight of N767T just a few days ago. And thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences.
 
Congrats on your project and as a fellow QB builder, I appreciate the perspective on the early days.
 
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