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Why has the RV been such a success?

I think Dan nailed it. I’m sure happy with my RV-8, and it was fun and easy to build, and I learned a lot during the process.

One addition to Dan’s list:

- permit to fly/approvals. Since there are several Van’s Aircraft RV models flying in almost every country, getting it “approved” by the local authorities can be much easier than other aircraft.

Fly more.
LSGY, Switzerland

A couple of years ago I compiled the individual data for each RV model, as published by Van’s. It is worth mentioning that those figures are, in opposition to some other designers and kit manufacturers, very close to reality
I then used the data to derive some more interesting figures, such as payload, etc. Of note, the table does not include the new fledgling (RV-15) yet

Vans_RVs_Comparison_Table_pdf

Last Edited by Dan at 30 May 20:46
Dan
ain't the Destination, but the Journey
LSZF, Switzerland

VANS customer service, in my (admittedly limited) experience, is fantastic. Really helpful people who are easy to get to on the end of a phone without any call waiting. I’m sure this will have quite a lot to do with their success.

There is no doubt that RVs are probably the highest selling kit build of the last few years.
And that is possibly down to a good business model, ie a quality product or products at the right cost, targeted and marketed well.
On a personal level whilst I find the taildraggers are great looking I am not quite so drawn to the tricycle versions.
The shortage of ready built versions on the market at the moment, does seem to have pushed the prices up to a level matching modern certified aircraft such as the Cirrus.
If you don’t want to build your own aircraft why would you want to buy a homebuilt for the same price as a second hand SR22 or TB20 a Mooney or even a Robin with similar hp? At present on plane check there is an RV10 for sale at €310,000.
Are the performance figures that much better than a certified.
This is not to criticise VANS, they are doing what they set out to do and do it well ie serving those who want to build and fly without spending too much time on the building and without the need for a great amount of engineering know how.
Built by pilot for the pilot.

France

Great summary – many thanks for posting it.

There is absolutely no doubt that an RV is an excellent aircraft.

What holds it back in Europe, including adoption in PPL training, is Annex 1 regulatory stuff (lack of IFR generally, most training banned etc) and the overflight/landing permit matrix. Annex 1 is intentionally limited in Europe as a quid pro quo for the less restricted maintenance regime; many would say it is just theoretical but the reality is clear; it limits activity. You basically stay in your own country, or fly to nearby ones where you don’t need a permit, and for the rest of Europe you do it in a low profile manner (and more south you go the less anybody cares). If this wasn’t the case I would probably have a Lancair Evolution by now There are 3-4 of them flying in Europe nowadays (with Mode S so one can see them, so there may be more, but an Evo is useless unless used for IFR, and for that you need Mode S in most countries).

In the US there are limitations too but far less relevant, largely because the US is one country, and IFR is possible in these.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Why has the RV been such a success?

Ok… 100 posts and none fully answers that question, so I’ll try to add a few things. To my credits are the build of an RV-4, and close to 1K hours on RV-4, RV-6, and RV-8.

- looks. Yep, beauty is subjective, but most of these RVs look good. I remember seeing an RV-3 flying in close formation to an RV-4 on the cover of an American magazine (which I unfortunately don’t remember the name, must have been 1979-80). I was struck in awe. These 2 aircraft had modern and racy lines, real cute sports aircraft. Maybe even sex appeal? A year later I visited OSH and admired the first ones in “flesh”… man, those machines were awesome, aaah, 😍 those cowling cheeks!
But for the -12 (sorry guys 🤭), RVs look plenty fast, even whilst sitting on the ground. Ok, those RV wings are squarish, short and fat 🤓

- handling. Responsive, finely tuned, manoeuvrable, plenty of control authority, light stick forces, neutrally stable in roll, slightly positive in pitch and yaw, honest, no bad habit, balanced in feel, easy to fly. For the French, a Cap10B, for the Brits a Chipmunk, will exhibit similar control feel as one of the sport RVs (as in -3/-4/-6/-7/-8/-14).

- visibility. Outside view is superb, 360° view thru a bubble canopy on the -3/-4/-8 is the best, closely followed by the tip-up types available on the -6/-7/-14, taildragger with sliders lagging slightly behind.

- performance. As in Van’s motto Total Performance.
An RV ain’t the best aerobatic aircraft, ain’t the fastest flying one, ain’t the slowest flying neither, ain’t the best tourer, and so on. But it probably is the best allrounder, multi-mission able homebuilt. A light structure powered by some able engine helps offset those fat wings after all 😉
An interesting measure of performance is the speed ratio. Guess what, those RVs are pretty good at that too. The venerable 150hp -3 wins with 4.06 (207/51MPH), the all models average being in the 3.61 mark.
By the way, the RV-10 is a real 4 seater 👍🏻

- buildability. The first RV kits were just raw materials, the plans contained a few mistakes. Things have vastly improved since the 80’s… the ability of buying a quick-built version will speed up the assembly by some and more. Even those willing to slow build will find help in the Ikea type instruction manuals, final size punched holes parts, bent and/or formed. Built tanks, firewall forward kits, custom built panels, interiors, and much more are all available to ease or speed up the build. This to say that the rate of completion by the original builder is much higher than it used to be, or still is for other homebuilt designs. Add Vans popularity and one also gets fantastic help during a build and flying as provided by many forums and groups. Van’s own factory support can also be qualified as very good, friendly and responsive.

- material. As in aluminum. Not without faults, but well understood by many. Mechanics around the world have been fixing spam cans for dozens of years. Most modern airliners are still made with that material, and probably will be for many more years. The stuff can be bent, drilled, inspected, strengthened, repaired, worked with in cold or hot weather, is light, and easily recyclable (wonder about the costs/energy to recycle them 787s when time comes…).

- affordability. Kit prices have been on a steep rise during last months. Despite this, there are quite a few RVs being finished for very reasonable costs. One could still buy a slow build kit, scrounge for 2nd hand engine/prop/parts, and end up with an affordable aircraft. Additionally Van’s offers some interesting OEM rebates on an engine and prop for each of the serial number. Being able to perform all maintenance on one’s own aircraft means some real savings. And most RVs are being flown on MOGAS, some other interesting savings nowadays…

- resellability. Probably for all the reasons cited above, selling an RV is usually no problem. Right now the problem is quite the opposite. Most, especially the updated glass panel types, will hold or even increase their value over the years.

Dan
ain't the Destination, but the Journey
LSZF, Switzerland

Vans is reporting that kit orders are up 250% on 2 years ago link.

Top Farm, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom

Yep, just messed up a fuselage bulkhead. If I repair it, the LAA mod fee approval fee will probably be GBP 60 (~USD 85). A new bulkhead from Vans costs just USD 18 and no LAA approval is needed. You can buy literally any individual airframe part from Vans for very reasonable money. Most of them are made inhouse on automated punching machines.

Top Farm, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom

If you mess up, you can order any replacement part (skin, rib, stiffener, flange, you name it). No need to order a new sub kit
A new skin will typically cost less than its shipping to Europe.

LFOU, France

Yes indeed.

One expert builder told me that 1st time builders are advised to start on the tail, for which the parts are (apparently; I have no idea myself) available quite cheaply, so if you make a bad job of it you just buy a new sub-kit, and this is intentional.

I think how good you are depends on, ahem, how good you are with “mechanical things”. I know people who can fly but who could not install a pop rivet

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom
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