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RV-1 On the Move!

Yup!!!


It is now in Columbia, SC (KCUB).

Thanks to Bob McDonald (President of EAA Chapter 1514 and designer/builder of his OWN plane) for taking good care of it in Savannah.

Thanks to Tom Roberts (President of EAA Chapter 242, RV7A builder and RV4 builder) who ended up flying me to Savannah and escorting me back to Columbia.

Of course, this being my hone base, I hear on the radio as I am coming in "... nobody's watching!! tee hee :D ". And then when they see the "adjusted gear leg", I hear "... I didn't think you landed THAT hard! :D ". Yup, these are my buddies.

Time for a bit of maintenance and a couple of "features".:)
This will be done while it is here at my home base for a week or so.

Maybe some more photos later. Maybe.

James
 
Great job once again CB - we got your message but were out on a lunch run ourselves. I am hopign that the Garmin contribution to the project will catch up with the airplane at your place.

Paul
 
Thanks for the report, James

Good to hear it is safely settled into it's next temporary home. Now, check those tire pressures!
 
Me too!

Great job once again CB - we got your message but were out on a lunch run ourselves. I am hopign that the Garmin contribution to the project will catch up with the airplane at your place.

Paul

If it does, I am motivated to make it work. :)

CB
 
Done already ...

Good to hear it is safely settled into it's next temporary home. Now, check those tire pressures!

With Bob's help, I pulled the wheel pants and per Van's suggestion lowered the tire pressure. I **think** it helped. I also think I need to try a lower still pressure. Will do that later. After:

Oil change
Better fuel calibration
Check on airspeed calibration
Potentially improved navigational aid or repositioning of current
Replacement of a few screws
etc ...

None of which are likely to happen today as I am fighting a cold.:(
 
Delivered today with Ron Schreck at the controls up to Suffolk VA.
Dropped the tire pressure from 19 to 12. More better.
No visible drop in the tire though. Those big 6" tires and that light weight RV-1... Probably could go a couple more pounds less.
I managed to get SPOT working. Little buttons not very intuitive.

Cruised at 9.5k' and 125KTAS.

She is off to the next adventure.
 
Excellent Report Kahuna - thanks again to you and the Team for taking good care of the "ONE" this month. I think you've definitely set a modern altitude record for the airplane!

Paul
 
Speaking of climb. The 'One' was easily able to out climb a 180hp c/s RV-8 at 7k'. She could use a lot more pitch in that prop.
 
Please be careful with very low tire pressures (as in "not recommended"), a stiff ride is preferable to a flat.
 
Speaking of climb. The 'One' was easily able to out climb a 180hp c/s RV-8 at 7k'. She could use a lot more pitch in that prop.

I couldn't quite keep up climbing with the -1 in my 180hp c/s -6, either. It does climb spritely!
 
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Headed to Johnstown, NY (NY0)

The RV-1 is on the move, near Albany right now and probably landing at NY0 very soon. EAA Chapter 602 will have a brunch to accompany the RV-1's visit in a few hours. Happy Mother's Day, folks!
 
Watch the RV-1 cross the Canadian-US border!

The -1 is on the move up to Stanley, NS. Fingers crossed for good weather and smooth flying for this challenging week of touring the eastern part of Canada.
 
Weather looks good.

It's supposed to be nice for the weekend, but this is the Maritimes and that can change by the minute.

You have a seasoned group of RV veterans looking after the RV-1 while it's up here, it will be in good hands. :)
 
And I just got a call from Kevin saying that they have cleared customs, they are handing the airplane over to the next pilot for the weekend, and the weather continues to be perfect!
 
Does the RV-1 speak French?

Looks like they have set down at an airport--Aeroport de Bromont-- in the middle of some French-speaking folks (based on the map). Nice touch of internationalism. (And, I'm a bit relieved to see that loooonnnng leg done!)
 
I miss it already!

Thanks for sending it our way. It was thoroughly enjoyed by all of us. It was in great hand and well cared for. :)
 
On to Smith Falls!

Looks like Kevin has put the RV-1 back in the air and headed to Smith Falls, ON, for the evening.
 
The RV-1 is in Smiths Falls, ON, and the local RVers have started to gather around. It'll be here for a night or two, depending on the progress of the cold front that should arrive tomorrow morning.

The next stop will be Tom Martin's field in St. Thomas, then the RV Fly-In Breakfast in WIndsor on Saturday the 26th (rain date is the 27th).
 
Tom Martin took over the RV-1, and is now on his way to his private strip at St. Thomas, ON. He'll likely do a leg stretch stop in either Peterborough or Oshawa.
 
We have stopped in Peterborough for lunch and a splash of fuel. Airplane is still in one piece after the landing.
 
Tom called - the RV-1 is at his private grass strip just north of CYQS. The next move will be to Windsor for the event on the 26th (or 27th, depending on the weather).
 
Ok, that was a fun day! My first flight in the RV1 from Smiths Falls to Peterborough went fine but I was a tad apprehensive about landing the plane the first time! There was a bit of a crosswind on landing and the plane is lighter then my rocket and it took a while to settle on to the runway.
The second flight along the North shore of Lake Ontario with the City of Toronto in the background was amazing. The tower had me very close to the CN tower. Close enough that I was able to wave at the people that were doing the "sky walk" on an open platform at 1000agl. They got their monies worth with a personal fly by!
The landing at my home grass strip was uneventful. This is a neat little airplane, light and fun to fly. It was a real treat to be involved in this RV1 odyssey.
 
Waiting

Hey Tom, fun watching the spot progress. Looking forward to having it in Windsor this weekend. Hope to have good weather and a full crowd for breakfast.

Might have to send up a few rvs to fly escort.
 
Of course, there is one more stop to go, but I just have to commend the Canadian contingent for their work with the RV-1 this week! they have lived up to the standards we set for conservatism and care, and have flown more hours (and miles) in a short time than anyone on the tour so far.

Great job! we look forward to the finale in Windsor, then seeing it safe in Bob Mills hands for the great "Barnstorming Tour"!
 
I just returned from Windsor. The RV1 is under the care of the Windsor crew until I return to fly it to Toledo, KTDZ, on Monday. We had a nice showing of RVs this morning and the flying club served a good breakfast. Particularly interesting is the Lancaster and Mosquito bomber restorations that are going on at Windsor.
My escort today was Charley Murray in his RV9a. He gave me a ride back to St.Thomas in his beautiful airplane. Charley flies quite a bit and likes long distance travel. He also does a lot of trips on his BMW motorcycle, he just had to replace a drive shaft after 200,000km!!!
I am keeping my fingers crossed for a weather window on Monday, we are pre booked with customs for 14Z(10am local).
 
RV-1 Airborne

The RV-1 is up again, on its way from Windsor to Toledo (TDZ). The handover from Tom Martin to Bob Mills in TDZ will end the eastern Canada portion of the tour.
 
RV-1

Ya, watching it right now. Great job to all who were involved with the RV-1 in Eastern Canada. Thanks Kevin for bringing it this way for all to see.

Brian Eisner
RV4 C-GRJT
 
RV1 Tour

We're looking forward to the link-up in IL and the overnight stop here at Lee's Summit, MO (KLXT) on May 29.

Full schedule is in the Midwest section of the forums.

We have 77 BBQ dinner reservations so far...so 8 more are available. Contact me via email or PM to reserve today...or call 816 956-1887.

Weather is looking great for our part of the tour!

Mike
 
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Today my journey with the RV1 ended. This was a remarkable experience, both flying the aircraft and interacting with other pilots. The weather worked out perfectly for the Canadian trip with all events met on schedule. I had care of the aircraft for seven days and had four flights. Although I throughly enjoyed myself I must say that I was a bit relieved to see it in the capable hands of Bob Mills. He is on the move and I wish him well in his marathon of stops over the next few days.
 
On the ground near Elkhart, IN

Looks like Bob Mills and the -1 are on the ground at Mishawaka Pilots Club Airport for the night. I'm anxious to hear Bob's impressions!
 
<snip> I had care of the aircraft for seven days and had four flights. Although I throughly enjoyed myself I must say that I was a bit relieved to see it in the capable hands of Bob Mills. He is on the move and I wish him well in his marathon of stops over the next few days.

Tom did a great turnover brief of the RV-1 with me, and it was funny how fast he pulled out the turnover paperwork and said, "now just sign here!" ;)

Then he slapped me on the back and said, "we're all counting on you!"...big RV Grin on his face!

Tom, Kevin and the entire Canadian RV-1 team did a great job and the airplane is in great shape and ready to head west!

Looks like Bob Mills and the -1 are on the ground at Mishawaka Pilots Club Airport for the night. I'm anxious to hear Bob's impressions!

The airplane flew nicely. As has been discussed by previous pilots, the pedals are a bit close, but I fit pretty well (5'9"). Taxiing was very straight forward, but there is a tendency to grab just a bit to the left...occasionally. For the most part it was not too bad. Takeoff was as briefed...add power slowly, and it'll fly before you hit the stop...exactly what happened. Flying qualities were that of an RV...a forty year-old RV with a fabric fuselage...but an RV. Tom's adjustment of the aileron trim tab must've been spot on, because I didn't think about it when flying. Elevator trim and/or the elevator system is a tad looser than what we are used to in modern RVs...I was flying very loose route/cruise formation off my escort Don McNamara, and I'd feel all trimmed up for a while (almost hands off...almost), then I'd start to float up or down, and have to re-trim. Nothing radical, but just not quite the trim of a modern RV. The -1 feels the bumps a bit more than other RVs I've flown as well...even though its a light airplane, the wings are short and stiff, so the ride today was one of feeling all the cobblestones in the road...when they were there. However, it is a solid little plane...didn't feel like I was tossed about in the occasional chop...more like riding on an old clay washboard road at times. Overall, it flies sweet and fairly true, has great visibility, and though a tight fit, it was really a fun ride. Landing at Mishawaka in 10-20 kts of wind (down the runway) was straight forward too...very RV-like, and not too squirrelly (knock on wood). Oh, it will float if you come across the fence a bit fast...the Mishawaka boyz let me know they appreciate me not wearing out the first third of the runway (hey, I had lots of room, was feeling out the winds, and those power lines on short final...that's my story and I'm sticking to it!). Touchdown on grass at Mishawaka was nice, and it tracked straight!

I'll save up the flying impressions over the next few days and post a pilot flying report down the road, so other RV-1 pilots can chime in as well.

More info (and pics) on today's visit in Toledo and Mishawaka in the Toledo thread!

Off to KC tomorrow!

Cheers,
Bob
 
Bob, you flying it into Denver Wed? Im thinking of coming over to see the 1 and the other RVs that show up.
 
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Tuesday Update

As Bob said, The One made it safely to Elkhart and a small crowd of admirers oohed and ahhed over the Granddaddy of All RVs and reverted quite naturally to hangar flying and telling lies. :D

This morning Bob and I are expecting an 0800 liftoff for Marshall County, IL. We should arrive there around 0830-0900 CST.

Whether I pass the escort baton and head back home or become an RV-1 groupie remains to be seen. The weather looks good, and I took the day off work, so why not fly?

Besides, I wanna see Junior ... err ... Tsam in Moberly. Maybe even tag along to Lee's Summit. We'll see ...
 
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