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RV-7 First Flight

Jpm757

Well Known Member
After just under 14 months of building, RV-7 kit #72018 received her Airworthiness Certificate yesterday. After another day of putting everything back together, she took to the sky this afternoon. Quick Build RV-7 slider, Lycoming IO-360-M1B, MT prop, AFS-5600 panel, Classic Aero interior, manual trim and flaps. Came in at 1081 pounds empty, fuselage and wings vinyl wrapped, tail and cowl painted to match. She flew straight and level hands off with no squawks!


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Congrats!

Beautiful build. PLEASE tell us more about those sexy wingtip lights!!!
Woody.
 
Freakin' awesome! When you get back from flying please tell us about how you got it built in under 14 months?
 
After just under 14 months of building, RV-7 kit #72018 received her Airworthiness Certificate yesterday.

14 Months! My SN is 74152, and I've been at it ~5 years! (this is just envy talkin') What's the story there?

Congrats! Beautiful plane!
 
14 Months! My SN is 74152, and I've been at it ~5 years! (this is just envy talkin') What's the story there?

Congrats! Beautiful plane!

This kit was sitting in a friend's garage for a very long time, he bought the kit from someone else who bought it from Vans even longer ago! Neither of them did any work to it, as it was picked up last fall basically at quick build stage still.

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Thank you for the compliments! She flys like a dream. Wingtips are Aveo Ziptips with built in LED landing lights, position lights, and strobes
 
Congrats! Great paint scheme. Hoping for the first flight of my -7 this weekend if we get some good weather here in Northern IL.
 
The -7 flys just like my -6, however a very noticeable difference in directional stability, especially in turbulence, obviously due to the larger tail. Roll rate seems greater, but that may just be me. Also greatly improved ground handling with the 380x150 tires and Rocket link. I had a tip up on the -6 and the visibility was awesome. I am very pleased with the slider visibility and convenience, Super Tracks is a must for any slider installation.
 
Sweet!

I'm building a -7 slider and I really like the looks of yours...Great Job.

Several questions.

Can we see the wings with a rear view? (I like the paint scheme and would like to see how the checkerboard plays out...is it on the ailerons too?)

Are those tires larger than stock? I like the wheel pants clearance.

Are you happy with the MT prop...Looks really nice.

Very inspiring.
 
Sweet!

I'm building a -7 slider and I really like the looks of yours...Great Job.

Several questions.

Can we see the wings with a rear view? (I like the paint scheme and would like to see how the checkerboard plays out...is it on the ailerons too?)

Are those tires larger than stock? I like the wheel pants clearance.

Are you happy with the MT prop...Looks really nice.

Very inspiring.

I think this might be the angle you are looking for. Checkers are on the bottom of the flaps and both sides of the rudder. 3.5" squares. Tires are 380x150, which is slightly larger than the standard 5.00x5 but still fit the 5" wheel and standard brakes. Wheel pants have a generous opening in hopes of keeping them in one piece during soft field operations. 6 hours on the airplane so far and the MT has been amazing. It is unbelievably smooth. It is fairly light, so if you do go that route you will want to keep an eye on your tail weight during the build process. Our CG came out to be 80.62" empty which is well with in the 78.7-86.82 range, how ever once you start adding people and baggage it moves rearward fairly quickly. This is where a heavier prop would have an advantage over the MT if you end up with a heavier tail weight.

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I think this might be the angle you are looking for. Checkers are on the bottom of the flaps and both sides of the rudder. 3.5" squares. Tires are 380x150, which is slightly larger than the standard 5.00x5 but still fit the 5" wheel and standard brakes. Wheel pants have a generous opening in hopes of keeping them in one piece during soft field operations. 6 hours on the airplane so far and the MT has been amazing. It is unbelievably smooth. It is fairly light, so if you do go that route you will want to keep an eye on your tail weight during the build process. Our CG came out to be 80.62" empty which is well with in the 78.7-86.82 range, how ever once you start adding people and baggage it moves rearward fairly quickly. This is where a heavier prop would have an advantage over the MT if you end up with a heavier tail weight.

Thank you for the photo...that was exactly the angle I was hoping to see. Great looking -7!

Also, thanks for the details on the wheels and prop...very useful information.

-M
 
Can you share a pirep on the ZipTips please? They look really clean. Do they perform well? How was the quality as delivered and how much work was the installation process? Thanks!
 
Very nice! Love the checkered flaps and tail! You must have been very focused for such a short build time!
 
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