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1. 12:32 PM - Re: RV-9 & RV-4 as LSA (RScott)
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Subject: | Re: RV-9 & RV-4 as LSA |
I have to wonder about this RV-9 as an LSA business.
Yes, it has been done, but just because something can be done doesn't
mean it's a great idea. Ford thought the Edsel was a great idea (ok,
some of you are too young to know about the Edsel), the government
thought ethanol in gas was a great idea, etc. Lots of bad ideas look
like good ideas, especially if you want them to be.
I understand the heartbreak of giving up a project that a person has
been working on for years--I am in that exact situation myself with
medical issues that make my passing a physical questionable and a half
done RV-9A in the garage.
So, I have to ask,
Why? The plane designed for LSA is the -12, not the -9. So you have to
modify and watch every gram to keep the weight down. You have to
downgrade the prop and engine from what the plane could have had. And
when you are done, if you are concerned about money, will it have the
resale value? A buyer looking for an LSA RV would logically look for an
RV-12 which would have a better payload. And once a -9 is registered as
an LSA, it is LSA forever, so it will always be a bastardized RV-9.
So here is my situation and my own reasoning.
My project is for sale. The only justification I can see for finishing
the -9 is if I thought my workmanship was super and the plane was a
potential prize winner so I could charge big bucks for the newly
finished airplane. But realistically, my workmanship is probably about
typical, so why finish it? Why make it LSA-- just because I have time
and emotion invested in it? I learned a lot while working on it so all
is not a waste of time--I got an education.
If I want an LSA RV, I'll build a -12 and probably have it in the air
before I could have finished the -9A anyway. Or I can wait until a
project is abandoned and have it in the air even faster. Having built a
-9 part way, I can do a decent job of evaluating workmanship on a
project and I can build it faster than I would as a beginner.
As it is, my Interstate Cadet that I have flown for 20 years is an LSA,
so it may just be a matter of getting out of the building business.
Dick Scott
Estacada, OR (28 miles from Van's)
503-630-4739
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