RetiredRacer

1st pilot taxis out onto the runway and see’s the second pilots plane for the first time (as he had his back to him before taxing) stops to decide what to do. So he taxis over to the side of the runway and gives pilot 2 enough room to get by. Pilot 2 finish’s his pre-takeoff checks and looks up but does not see the 1st pilots plane as it is sitting right in the almost setting sun (you can see the long shadows from the 1st pilots plane going straight towards the 2nd pilot so he powers up and starts his t/o roll......

I have a Thatcher CX4 90% complete. I expect to have it finished in the next couple of months. New Rev Master Fitted. Message me if you want more info or to negotiate. Will be selling well below build cost.!!

It looked and sounded awesome Jimbo... and climb.. holly sh!t.!!! I’ve never seen a Nieuport climb like that before.!!! Apart from that one circuit when you richened it up the engine sounded sweet all day What I was so impressed with was... all take offs and landings were straight as a die... a very well behaved aircraft . The only disappointing thing about the day.. was you had to drive home and we couldn’t celebrate Congratulations mate.!! Bob

Sarah... welcome!!!

The places I run into you phill.... you must have snuck in the back door while I wasn't looking! Bob

Are they counter sunk flat head rivets? If they are you could back rivet them. You will need a bit of heavy steel plate or flat. Or even a bit of steel RHS or SHS. With the panels sitting flat, drop some rivets in, run a strip of tape along over the rivets to hold them in (paper type tape like masking tape). Then turn the panel over and carfully place the new rivets on top of the heavy steel plate, the plate now becomes the bucking bar on the head side and this allows you to carefully use the rivet gun to squeeze (hammer) the other side Bob

There's a couple or more at Watts Scott

This was our first time and won't be our last and thanks to Scott's photo (the third photo in his post) we have proof that we camped. I don't think it was what you would call cold, but we kept ourselves well rugged up! Well organised.!!!......Top entertainment.!!!!!...... the air marshallers did an excellent job with big smiles.!!!....and mother nature turned on perfect weather for the weekend.!!!

Welcome Isak... where are you training or plan to train? Bob

Watts Bridge Association bought the land off the water board last year so the sub leasing and living there is now not a problem. Sales have increased to a point where I don't think there are any chalet blocks left for sale.!! Bob

Sportstar has MPPC.

The $us/$au being all over the shop pumped up the cost of my RV9a. Not knowing if the $ was going to drop more I decided to order the complete kit and every thing I would need (except the motor and prop) when the au$ was sitting on 61c. And it was 74c when I paid for the motor kit and prop. Bob

Skippy, I read Robin Austin's story. He really deserves every record and award he has received. Amazing, WOW!!! And the Rotax was most likely the best choice for his project but you cannot claim the Rotax is what achieved his success! His engineering ability and his dedication, sweat and tears over megga hours is what achieved his success. BUT!!!! The original poster wanted a engine that would pull four up at 120 kts and that is why Yenn suggested a 0-320 lycoming.!!!!!! Now the TWIN TECNAM that is ANOTHER story.!!!!!

Hey bex, I'm trying to work out if your tongue in cheek statment was, you don't believe that's all it cost or you think it cost too much.??? I got our 9a in the air for $86k but the engine was a rebuild and there was no labour charge. The Vans kit was a quickbuild and I never paid for any labour as I did it all myself.

Skippy, My original post was objecting to your post cutting down Yenn's suggestion of a Lyc 0-320 for a 4 seat 120 kt cruise aircraft to build. Not to see who has the biggest one. But It seems you just want to compare RAA/LSA aircraft and power plants. Lycoming don't have much to offer here but I'll bring you up to date. Lycomings only LSA engine, the 0-233/i0-233. I can't remember the actual weights but the Lyc is a bit heavier than the Rotax. 116 hp, roller rockers, electronic ignition, TBI (Eagle throttle body injection) on the i0-233 and tuned 1.5" cross-over exhaust system. Runs on ULP and like all lyc's has manual mixture controll so can go LOP at cruising altertude. Oh, and has a slow reving prop as it is a slow reving engine with a TBO at 2500 hrs.

Bex, back when I was deciding (about 8 years ago) what to build and what engine. Horse power to horse power, Lycoming engines and parts were cheaper to buy than Rotax's. Have things changed? Also Lyc's are direct drive so don't have the cost of gearbox parts. The original poster was asking for suggestions of what to build, not what to buy. Yenn offered a suggestion which I thought was valid. There was no need for Skippys bagging post. Bob

Ok so your one eyed. But you didn't answer my question, what terrifying ongoing costs?? I've flown 60 odd hours behind Rotax's in Tecnam's and a Sportstar and if I pull the throttle back in the 9a to cruse at the same speed as the Tecnam's and the Sportstar I get the same fuel economy. I have over 450 hrs up on the 0-335 now and apart from regular service it doesn't use any oil between services. So I don't know what you are trying to say here Skippy??? Bob

Yenn put forward a reasonable suggestion and you cut him down with your unnecessary post. "Can't argue with the horrific Acquisition and terrifying ongoing cost" ????? Back when I was investigating what to build, 0-235 & 0-320 Lycomings were cheaper to buy than Rotax's. Has this changed? And what terrifying ongoing costs?? Bob (0-235 RV9a)

Hi Vlad, Welcome to the site. Like rgmwa I've been following your travels on the VAF forum. You will be able to find plenty of grass strips here and some islands to land on but we haven't got anything like Alaska. Have you got any plans in place yet? I'm on the east coast (Brisbane) and rgmwa is on the west coast (near Perth), so if we can help in any way just ask. Bob (RV9a)

Scott, I've found this not the case. Hearing loss (in my case) not only reduces the volume it also distorts the human voice and the louder the background noise the more the human voice is distorted. It depends on the pitch of the voice as well, higher pitch is not so distorted but lower pitch is "what did that person just say?". The ANR headsets do overcome most of this problem by reducing the background noise and therefore the distorsion with radio calls. The hearing aids are designed to reduce (if not eliminate) the voice distorsion. There has been the odd time I,ve forgotten to take the hearing aids out but as soon as the engine fires up the louder noise soon lets me know I still have them so I remove them. On our return flight yesterday, Robyn was flying so I did some testing with my hearing aids in and out. I have a Bose headset which I have found reduce my hearing problem the most. The Bose have a large ear cup and I have found they do cover the hearing aid unit behind the ear but the aids are doing their job and are magnifying what noise that is getting through. Hence the louder noise! I want to point out here that we fly behind a Lycoming, but the loud un-muffled deep throated exhaust is not being magnifyied the aids are magnfying the more high pitched sounds what sounds like tappet clatter. But there is a plus in this!! The radio calls are also louder AND CLEARER!!!!!!! Turn the headset volume down so the radio calls are not so loud and this also reduces some of the background noise that the aids have been magnifying and the calls still stay CLEARER !!! Feedback was not there most of the time but it did raise it's ugly head so I'm going to have talk to my aids techo and see if that little bit of feedback can be adjusted out. Bob

This is a very interesting chat. I don't wear mine when I'm flying. The first time I tried it was just too noisy ( I thought I had forgot to turn my ANR headset on). Mine are Siemens with the small pod behind the ear and the ear plug speaker and either they are not being sealed 100% by the headset or the aids are just magnifying the sound more.

Holly crap John, couldn't you find your way home.!!!!!!

David, RV12's were designed for the LSA (600 kg MTOW) market. Vans Aircraft list the RV9/9a at 735 kg MTOW with the 115 hp Lycoming0-235 and it easily meets the RAA stall speed. Like the RV12 the RV9/9a is not a aerobatic. Bob

I saw a BMW plate that said it all, "WATEVR"

If he was flouting the rules he sure wasn't flouting them with me.!! He told me from the start he would not register my 9a with RAA.!!! I had to fight "hammer and nails" with him for three months and keep presenting him with evidence of it's legality before he had no option but to register it.!!! During this period he sent out a guy from Brisbane to independantly weigh the aircraft ( which proved my weights) but it took a letter from Scott at Vans to bring it to his attention that there were 9's and 9a's registered LSA in the states complying to that MTOW before he would register our 9a with RAA. Bob