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What?s my s/n?

S

SteveT

Member
I?m a newb to the Van?s process, having just received my first kit. My RV-14 empennage kit arrived this week. I?m curious, at what point is a serial number assigned to the airplane?

The only communication I received from Van?s after the order was the FedEx shipping docs, via email, and that doc contains a Purchase Order # of ?140437? ... that number seems like it could be my s/n since it starts with ?14? and it seems plausible that I?ve ordered the 437th empennage kit for an RV-14.
 
As the builder you can assign any serial number you want when you register the plane. Some people use #1 for the first plane, their girlfriend?s measurement or whatever. I use the Van?s builder number as the serial number for my projects.

Carl
 
SteveT said:
I’m a newb to the Van’s process, having just received my first kit. My RV-14 empennage kit arrived this week. I’m curious, at what point is a serial number assigned to the airplane?

The only communication I received from Van’s after the order was the FedEx shipping docs, via email, and that doc contains a Purchase Order # of “140437” ... that number seems like it could be my s/n since it starts with “14” and it seems plausible that I’ve ordered the 437th empennage kit for an RV-14.
Click to expand...

That number looks like your builder number to me. Mine is 140018.
 
Ref: #2 reply. Unless something has changed since I registered my -9A 10 years ago, the FAA Registration Office requires the Van's assigned builder number as shown on the Bill of Sale and it must have the word Van's in the aircraft description. For example: John Q. Public Van's RV-XX. I was told the change was made to facilitate incident/accident tracking. Dan from Reno
 
As you see it.

A long time ago, Van's used the first set in the format to be the model number, but some where down the line they started using the full number as your SN. Example when I started building my SN # was 888, but my customer number was 80888, to show I was an 8 builder with a SN# of 888. By the time we got to registering the aircraft and getting a bill of sale for the FAA, Van's had started using the full customers number as the bill of sale number, so we have our pink slip and registration with 80888 on it as the FAA will want every little detail the same all the way through the paper work trail.
I would think you want to keep everything as is with your customer's number so you will be ready for all the legal paper work to come down the road.
Hope this helps. Yours, R.E.A. III # 80888

P.S. you may wish to get with Van's and get your license agreement now. You will need it later on. As you have the 437th. kit shipped from Van's of the RV 14 flavor. Van's used to require the license agreement up front before you started your build, but here lately they are asking for it at the end of the build as you start your big paper work to have an airplane instead of a bunch of parts.
 
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guccidude1 said:
Ref: #2 reply. Unless something has changed since I registered my -9A 10 years ago, the FAA Registration Office requires the Van's assigned builder number as shown on the Bill of Sale and it must have the word Van's in the aircraft description. For example: John Q. Public Van's RV-XX. I was told the change was made to facilitate incident/accident tracking. Dan from Reno
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Not sure who you spoke with at the registration office, but I have never seen anything like this in the regulations. I've certificated quite a number of RVs in the last 10 years and VERY few of them have the word "Vans" in the aircraft description. Most people use the builder number as the serial number but it is certainly NOT a requirement.
 
Made me look

I just checked my registration on the FAA site. My model just says "RV-7A". However there is another field labeled "Kit Manufacturer" that says "VANS AIRCRAFT INC" and another field labeled "Kit Model" which has "RV7A". Note one model has a hyphen and the other does not.

Are these fields new? The homebuilt I registered in 1990 does not show them even though they are both Experimental Amateur Built. Maybe that is how the FAA is trying to track kit manufacturer and model.
 
n18pf said:
I just checked my registration on the FAA site. My model just says "RV-7A". However there is another field labeled "Kit Manufacturer" that says "VANS AIRCRAFT INC" and another field labeled "Kit Model" which has "RV7A". Note one model has a hyphen and the other does not.
Are these fields new? The homebuilt I registered in 1990 does not show them even though they are both Experimental Amateur Built. Maybe that is how the FAA is trying to track kit manufacturer and model.
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Yes, these fields are fairly new. Don't remember exactly when they came about but, again, yes, that's what they use to track kit built aircraft.
 
Kevin, I had the crate exactly one week after placing the order. They were fast.

I'm about to open up the crate and start taking inventory ... come on over and check it out.
 
guccidude1 said:
Ref: #2 reply. Unless something has changed since I registered my -9A 10 years ago, the FAA Registration Office requires the Van's assigned builder number as shown on the Bill of Sale and it must have the word Van's in the aircraft description. For example: John Q. Public Van's RV-XX. I was told the change was made to facilitate incident/accident tracking. Dan from Reno
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Either something changed, or you were being misinformed.

Serial #001 on my registration with the FAA, 5 years ago. (Because who knows? I might end up building 99 more planes LOL!)

ETA: Also, there's no mention of "Van's" anywhere in my registration...it's
Firstname MI Lastname (not Last, First MI...how they got that the way I wanted it is anybody's guess)
Serial #001
Model RV-7A

That's it.
 
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RV7A Flyer said:
Either something changed, or you were being misinformed.

Serial #001 on my registration with the FAA, 5 years ago. (Because who knows? I might end up building 99 more planes LOL!)

ETA: Also, there's no mention of "Van's" anywhere in my registration...it's
Firstname MI Lastname (not Last, First MI...how they got that the way I wanted it is anybody's guess)
Serial #001
Model RV-7A

That's it.
Click to expand...

The S/N is an interesting question.

My Bill of Sale from Vans - on a FAA 8050-2 form does state a specific serial number.

Since this is the only reference on the form, how does the FAA know that the kit bill of sale you present to them refers to the same aircraft that you are registering?
 
az_gila said:
The S/N is an interesting question.

My Bill of Sale from Vans - on a FAA 8050-2 form does state a specific serial number.

Since this is the only reference on the form, how does the FAA know that the kit bill of sale you present to them refers to the same aircraft that you are registering?
Click to expand...

Who knows, but then again...the 8050-2 that I got from Van's had "Aircraft" blacked out with a marker and the word "Kit" stamped next to it. But, the rest of the fields reference "Aircraft".

In the "Aircraft Manufacturer and Model" field, all it says is "RV-7A".

In short, it's pretty much the wrong form for what is being sold, but FAA has yet to change it to make it correct for kits. I guess it's really just used to start the official ownership/title of the actual, finished aircraft (and probably never referenced anywhere after that point).
 
RV7A Flyer said:
Who knows, but then again...the 8050-2 that I got from Van's had "Aircraft" blacked out with a marker and the word "Kit" stamped next to it. But, the rest of the fields reference "Aircraft".

In the "Aircraft Manufacturer and Model" field, all it says is "RV-7A".

In short, it's pretty much the wrong form for what is being sold, but FAA has yet to change it to make it correct for kits. I guess it's really just used to start the official ownership/title of the actual, finished aircraft (and probably never referenced anywhere after that point).
Click to expand...

Mine had a bit more detail - it said this in that field -

Vans Aircraft, Inc. RV-6A

The bit about having "Aircraft" crossed out and writing in "Kit" might sound tacky but is a method specifically suggested by the FAA - from AC 20-27 -

(2) A signed bill of sale from the manufacturer of the kit, if the aircraft was built from a kit. You may use AC Form 8050-2, Aircraft Bill of Sale, but strike out the word “aircraft” and insert the word “kit” (see Appendix 10 to this AC). If you cannot provide a bill of sale for the kit, explain why. If you are not the original purchaser of an uncompleted kit, provide AFS-750 traceability from the kit manufacturer through the previous builder(s) to yourself.
 
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