Jack Tyler
Well Known Member
I've made a bit of a pilgrimage here at VAF and have surely benefited greatly by the advice so far...and now I find myself here on the '6' forum.
I originally came to VAF because of my interest in building a RV-12, after a great introduction by Mitch Locke. However, I've been troubled by its low value equation (cost + effort vs. the size, payload & level of performance provided). That led me in turn to the RV-9. (We have cross-country plans and, aside from my Navy son who can meet his need in other ways, no one has aerobatic aspirations). I was again provided a very pleasing intro flight in a 9A (beautiful 779RV based at CRG) but, on reflection, both the total kit cost and the build time are higher than I'm willing to accept. And so...we now find ourselves (Patricia is also a pilot) looking at 6's & 6A's out there on the For Sale lots. But other than the Vans website and some unproductive lurking here, we really don't have a feel for what we'd be accepting (relative to the 9 and 7 series) if going with the older design and the no-CNC kit build.
I'm no doubt missing some key topics...but could I please ask some of you to address the following Q's that we have?
-- is the 6 more 'twitchy' (one notch past 'responsive', let's say) than the later side-by-side models? (I realize the 9A I tried on isn't quite like a 7).
-- for those of you who are familiar with the later SxS models, is the 6 noticeably smaller and/or with a less functional luggage area? are there any significant differences in the form factor (e.g. range of seat adjustment, wing loading, slow flight characteristics)?
-- we don't have tailwheel endorsements; just how much more of a handful is a 6 than a 6A in crosswinds, assuming the training is good and the students are capable?
-- and perhaps our main concern: how much more variability in build quality might exist in a 6 model (vs. the later CNC-punched models), and so more of a risk if the pre-buy isn't as thorough as we thought we would be getting?
If there are some other topics worth considering, we'd surely welcome hearing about them. And many thanks for your patience and coaching as we (continue to) climb the RV Learning Curve.
Jack
I originally came to VAF because of my interest in building a RV-12, after a great introduction by Mitch Locke. However, I've been troubled by its low value equation (cost + effort vs. the size, payload & level of performance provided). That led me in turn to the RV-9. (We have cross-country plans and, aside from my Navy son who can meet his need in other ways, no one has aerobatic aspirations). I was again provided a very pleasing intro flight in a 9A (beautiful 779RV based at CRG) but, on reflection, both the total kit cost and the build time are higher than I'm willing to accept. And so...we now find ourselves (Patricia is also a pilot) looking at 6's & 6A's out there on the For Sale lots. But other than the Vans website and some unproductive lurking here, we really don't have a feel for what we'd be accepting (relative to the 9 and 7 series) if going with the older design and the no-CNC kit build.
I'm no doubt missing some key topics...but could I please ask some of you to address the following Q's that we have?
-- is the 6 more 'twitchy' (one notch past 'responsive', let's say) than the later side-by-side models? (I realize the 9A I tried on isn't quite like a 7).
-- for those of you who are familiar with the later SxS models, is the 6 noticeably smaller and/or with a less functional luggage area? are there any significant differences in the form factor (e.g. range of seat adjustment, wing loading, slow flight characteristics)?
-- we don't have tailwheel endorsements; just how much more of a handful is a 6 than a 6A in crosswinds, assuming the training is good and the students are capable?
-- and perhaps our main concern: how much more variability in build quality might exist in a 6 model (vs. the later CNC-punched models), and so more of a risk if the pre-buy isn't as thorough as we thought we would be getting?
If there are some other topics worth considering, we'd surely welcome hearing about them. And many thanks for your patience and coaching as we (continue to) climb the RV Learning Curve.
Jack