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pilot lesson while building

joe1968

Well Known Member
What are the opinions on getting a pilots and starting to build at the same time. I want to build an RV7

Thanks
 
Go for it

If you are sure that you really love flying go for it.

My RV7A is the easiest landing airplane I have ever flown.

Get plenty of time in rental planes before you venture out in your RV.
 
I enjoy flying as much as possible. Building a plane, getting married, completing college, raising a family, all the same thoughts. These days when someone asks about earning a PPL I advise the following:

- Complete a Ground School and pass the written before starting the flight lessons. Learn the information in a calm, quiet environment. Start flying after the ?Why? is in your brain.

- Flight lessons are like Dr. appointments, half-day events. Drive out, arrive, brief, pre-flight, fly, debrief, drive back to normal life. Less than two lesson each week and you?re not making progress.

- Talk to current students and new PPL holders. The estimated minimum hours to solo, and eventually complete PPL may be optimistic. How many calendar months did it take them to hit those milestones?

Flying is great. Start with realistic expectations...

YMMV

Carl
..
 
I did it with my first build - a Sonex. It slowed the build down because I made sure to put plenty of time into flying. It was my first priority until I got my private. Then I was able to give more time to the build.

By the time the Sonex was ready it was four years later and I had 250 hours in my logbook. I didn't actually order the kit until I had about five hours of instruction. It was enough time to convince me that I could finish lessons.
 
Get enough flight experience to know what you want/need in terms of avionics and engine/prop combo and that flying and it?s costs work for you. They don?t for everyone. I would argue this means at least getting close to your completed ppl before pulling the trigger on a build. This may also cause you to consider a different model RV. Good luck.
 
Ditto.

Where there is a will, there is a way. If it is your thing and you know it will stay your thing for a long time, then be yourself and get started one way are the other. It is not an easy road and not for everyone. I would fly a little and make sure you want to do this and work it out as you go. I agree with the others above, that if you do both at the same time it will take longer, but if that is what you like doing into your older days, then your on the right track anyway. Hope this helps. Yours, R.E.A. III # 80888
 
Make sure you want to fly

I think you will notice that everyone has said this, make sure you want/like flying! I'd suggest that you need to take at least 10 hrs. of flight instruction to make sure you really do want to do this. Some people find out that they really don't like flying as much as they thought. Just make sure before spending a lot of money on a kit. 10 hrs will also give you a timeline of how long it might time to complete. Like others have said you need to plan to at least to fly 2 times a week or you want be making any progress. Then if you like it, go for it!

I had my license and built my 7A at the airport, no place to build at home, and it took me 5 years and 7 months to complete. I tried to do at least some work every day that I could.
 
Go fot it

If for some reason you decide flying is not for you a well build RV7 can always be sold for more than what you paid for it, and the build process will be a once in a lifetime experience.

As for lessons, I'm not sure I would recommend taking the ground school and written test before you begin flight training. There's a lot you will gain appreciation for with actual stick time that will help a lot with the learning process. Do what you can afford. I took one lesson a week because that's all I had the $ for at the time. I don't think is affected my progress at all as I soloed with less than 11 hrs dual, and had my ticket with less than 60 hrs total time. Could I have done it faster? - Probably, but that was the right pace for me, allowing me to absorb and process information as fully as possible.

Remember, good judgment comes from experience; experience comes from bad judgment. Don't rush your experience. :D
 
One of the less expensive ways to get a pilots license is to buy an airplane, get it in that, and then afterwards sell the plane. That also gives you a flying airplane to get some experience in. Perhaps when you've flown for a while you'll want something other than the RV-7. Or perhaps that's what you'll want then.

The thing is, with experience, people sometimes change their goals or desires.

Dave
 
Tom, thanks for the post was kinda my feelings I want to build one for the experience I have been in aviation industry as an avionics tech and have the bug now.

thanks
 
Get your ppl first and figure out what kind of flying you want to do. Lots of people have visions of all these trips they are going to take, only to find out they are really $100 hamburger guys, or vice versa. See how your family responds to flying, what your typical missions are, etc... and then build appropriately.

BTW, I respectfully disagree with the idea of buying a plane to learn to fly in. While your hourly costs will be much cheaper ($35/hour fuel vs. $120/hour rental), there are some significant fixed costs that come with aircraft ownership such as hanger, insurance, mx, etc... Everyone's situation is a little different, but when you add it up you'll probably find the own/rent point is somewhere around 80-100 hours per year. We all want to fly 150 hours a year, but the reality is that most people don't do a 100. It's harder than you think. So you won't be saving much/any money, and you'll have all the distraction of ownership while learning to fly.

BTW, I am a STRONG proponent of aircraft ownership. (Full disclosure: I sell new aircraft for a living, but would feel the same regardless.) There are a lot of very good reasons to own your own aircraft. However saving money during flight training is usually not one of them.

DEM
 
Not to be Debbie Downer, but unless you have a lot of time at least riding in small planes, you might want to at least get past solo before starting a build. Supposedly, the attrition rate shortly after solo is pretty high. A lot of people feel like they've proven to themselves that they can do it after solo, & the drive just disappears.

Unless of course, you're a builder by nature. A lot of hobbyists are repeat offenders builders cars, furniture, even houses. So if you're cut from that cloth, you could approach the build as a hobby.

One thing to remember is that you'll finish flight training a lot sooner than the plane. Can you keep renting to stay current while you build?

Charlie
 
Get a simulator put together with x plane 11 get pilot edge and start flying, the even have a program to follow for learning to fly. You will pick up so much from this service the cost of the simulation will be more than paid for in your ability to get your license in less time.
There?s plenty of you tube videos or m0A or pilotowprkshops videos etc to get you going as well.

Fly the simulator while studying for the written and you?ll be ready to rock and roll by the time you get in the airplane.

The addition of pilot edge makes the simulator feel far more real. They even have a service where CFIs will watch you fly and direct you for an additional cost. I am not associated with pilot edge or any of these guys other than being a client, I just really appreciate how realistic it makes it. It?ll never be exactly the same as flying in the plane but I can tell you some of these sim guys are better pilots than real world guys... very knowledgable.
 
I'm in the "get your PPL first" camp. Or as some have demurred to, at least the solo part. I rem my first day of ground school was full of bright eyed people. Half way thru, half were gone. One guy summed it up "I thought I could just get in and go fly. Whats with all these rules?"

Its true, the bummer of flying these days is not the actual flying part - thats perhaps the funnest/easiest. Its the take off, landings and the real killer...the book work FAA airspace knowledge and how to operate in it without getting jailed or killed.

But like driving a car, once you get the book stuff in your head, the fun comes back out. Building however, is a completely different experience, and in some ways has little or nothing to do with actually operating your machine in the air. The two are separate types of "fun" for me, only linked together by the category "Aviation".
 
As an RV owner, a builder, and having extensive experience as an instructor, I can tell you your goals are not mutually exclusive. You may start building and love it, or lose interest, and the same is true of flying. Either way, no harm done, kits and tools can be resold and you'll still be richer for the flight training experience should you decide to walk away. It IS quite a lot to take on at once, both financially and in terms of time to devote to the projects. A majority of the people I have trained who were working a full time job and had family or other obligations struggled just to find the time to study and fly often enough. Depending on where you live, weather may slow down your progress. Many student starts drop out eventually because they underestimate the time and money involved, or because they realize it just isn't what they expected.

The same is true of building; it's quite easy to be starry-eyed and motivated at the beginning. We finished our empennage in less than 6 weeks, and thought "wow, this is so easy!" Six years later... But we're still plugging along and I have nothing but admiration for all the amazing builders here because I now understand the scope of the job they've accomplished. It takes an exceptional person to commit to and complete either endeavor.

Nevertheless, what you're contemplating can of course be done, it will just likely be neither as quick nor as inexpensive as you might imagine. Either would be rewarding, so I would say go for it. Just be realistic about your expectations, and be prepared to sideline your build to focus on your training because the kit will quietly keep, but flying is an acquired skill that requires repetition and frequency to maintain.
 
Your PPL will cost you in the neighborhood of $7500 - a/c rental, CFI rental, study materials, testing fees, and the medical.
Have all the money on hand before you begin and plan on at least 2 hours of flight time per week. Don't forget your homework, your job, and your family. Build the plane afterwards.
 
I'am doing it.

Is it hard work? yes!
Will you wan to quit? Probably!

I started My PPL training in May of 2014
Bought my tail kit second hand in September 2015
PPL Completed in December 2017 - 14 000$ CAD. 76 HRS
Rudder and Horz and Vert Stab complete Still working on elevators...

Since I started
Met a girl August 2014
Got Married 2017
Bought a house 2017
Baby Boy 04/07/2018

Im still moving forward!....Slowly.

Life gets busy and hobby/family balance is more important than anything
The important thing you need to take from this is Small Progress is still Progress

Baby steps add up to Big dreams

One day ill be flying an aircraft i build with my own two hands rivet by rivet!
Cant wait!
 
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