My RV-7 Project

In mid-December 2003, at the age of 45,  I decided it was time to do something I've always wanted to do: build an airplane.  I decided to build the RV-7, which is a kitplane produced by Van's Aircraft Company. Van's is the world's largest kitplane manufacturer with over 10,000 kits sold and over 6380 RVs flying (as of October 2009).  The RV-7 is their latest, two-seater, side by side model.

The RV-7 carries two people comfortably side-by-side, is a taildragger and is made out of metal, mostly aluminum. It's fast, with a cruise speed at 8000 feet of 190 mph. 

Below is a picture of all the unassembled kit parts and the finished airplane. Most of the components are pre-cut, bent and drilled with Van's computer-aided, laser cutting, whiz-bang machine. This means they align perfectly when assembled. Not having to measure every hole is a huge time-saver. Building a plane still takes a lot of time, though. It took me five years, roughly 3,000 hours. In the beginning, I thought I could build it in a little less than three years.  The pre-drilled starter holes was one of the main reason I picked the Van's RV-7 as the plane I would build. (Well, the speed, the aerobatic capability and the cool appearance had something to do with it too!) I wanted a plane that I have a reasonable chance of completing. I did not want to start something where there was little chance of completing it. I have great respect for those that build planes from just plans and materials.

This web-site is more of an on-line diary of the building process than a step-by-step building log or "how I did this" reference. There are already a couple of really outstanding building references out there. So I didn't document every single thing I did. The site gives a flavor of what it involved in building one of these impressive machines. In addition to the actual RV building, so as to keep it interesting, I included my flying-related adventures as well. I think fellow flying-obsessed people out there will enjoy them.

Although I was new to the metal work aspect of building this plane, I did not come into it completely cold. Bruce, my brother-in-law, and I had restored a 1970 Citabria, which is a steel tube fuselage, wood spar wings, and fabric-covered ship. So I had some experience installing the powerplant, control systems, avionics and brakes.

As much as I enjoyed building the RV, I couldn't have gone without flying during the building years.  I was half-owner of a Citabria and when the weather is good, I went flying!  This took away from my building time, especially during weekends, but it had to be done.