Posted: 3/28/2008 7:09:11 PM EDT
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My current favorite is the Cessna 400 (formerly Columbia 400) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cessna_400 
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Big +1 (hoping to get out to the hanger to work on mine a bunch this week) |
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Over all? Cirrus SR22 Of the experimentals? The RVs & KRs are pretty nice planes... What am I building? Something a bit more eccentric:  T-40 No name yet, but will probably give it something to reflect that the whole damn thing was built from parts scavenged off E-bay (yes, that means the avionics are rather old... To the point that I will probably have a 'turn and bank' instead of the more modern TC)... |
Hey Chief, What are you expecting your RV-6 to cost by the time it's all said and done. And yes, I realize that can be a floating target and sometimes it's best not to think about it! I've never flown a Vans, but I'd love to see what they're all about. They seem like the perfect little sports car. Fast, sips fuel (for their speed), fun to fly... etc.. |
The T-Porter would have been a very close 2nd .. that pic looks like the props are feathered! |
Staggerwing ftw! |
I've talked with a guy who used to fly jumpers in one of those, he said it was a POWERFUL airplane but very exhausting to fly. He flies a King-Air now, 20+ loads a day only stopping for fuel, but would only fly a couple of loads in the Stallion before letting someone else fly a few. My opinion is that the best GA planes have the little wheel in the back and the wing on top, and almost anything that has those two characteristics can't be bad. I personally fly a Cessna 150 tailwheel. |
I'll have about $92K into by the time it's done, although they can certainly be built for much less (or more). That gets me a 180HP IO360 w/constant speed prop, IFR avionics (including GPS), auto pilot, and glass cockpit w/steam gauge backups. |
Looking around that seems par for course with that kind of set up. It will be a nice ride!! Do you have your builder's log online or pix? It's always interesting to see the process. |
I been flying the Liberty XL 2 here in Melbourne Fl for a couple months. I gotta say, it is a hell of a little airplane.    Performance * Never exceed speed: 162 knots (186 mph, 300 km/h) * Cruise speed: 130 knots (150 mph, 240 km/h) * Stall speed: 50 knots (57 mph, 93 km/h) * Range: 500 nm (575 mi, 926 km) * Service ceiling 14000 ft (4260 m) * Rate of climb: 682 ft/min (208 m/s) * Wing loading: 14.76 lb/sq ft (72.06 kg/sq m) * Power/mass: 0.0756 hp/lb (124 W/kg) Aviator |
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A couple of interesting things about the Liberty... FADEC Engine... TBO is currently 2700 hours. It has no toe brakes. The brakes are the two levers on the right in the center console. The lever on the Left is the throttle. I figured this would be hard to get used to, but after taxiing about 300 feet I was fine with it. Aluminum Wing, carbon Fiber body. Aviator |
Thats one hell of an aircraft. I wish the FAA would give a type certificate to the Antonov AN-2, but Cessna seems to be still able to use their money and influence to keep that from happening because it would compete with their Caravan. I hate Cessna's politics.  
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The RV-6 is +6/-3 at aerobatic weight, and around +4.2/-2 at gross. -3, -4, -7, and -8 are similar, I believe. 4G turns are an everyday experience in our -6. Starts getting a little uncomfortable above that... |
Few things in the world sound as good as an R-985 running at 36 inches for takeoff, especially when I'm sitting in the Beaver with my feet hanging out the door! The dropzone I jumped at for 3 years operated out of a 2000' grass runway, and the Beaver was the primary jump plane. It had NO problem taking off with 8 jumpers and the pilot, even on 90+ degree days with 2500+ DA. Maybe they'll make some more of them one day. |
There is a company in BC called Viking who bought all the rights to the old DHC series of aircraft. From what I read if the demand is there and I think there is, they are gonna start producing new Beavers and Otters! 
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and can take off in 700 feet
They are starting with an improved Twotter, and are thinking about an improved Dash 7 with PT6-42 engines. That would be a tiltroter in all but a name. |
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Coolest single engine GA plane? no. Don't get me wrong, the Mooney's a good aircraft. But the drivers who constantly asked me if I knew how to tow a Mooney means it goes near the bottom of my personal list. . . . it was really bad during the Mooney Caravan. I was the only one over there working the ramp, which was full of Mooneys, and yet I was repeatedly asked this by most of the pilots. . . Made me want to paint on the side of the terminal "YES I KNOW HOW TO TOW A F#@!ING MOONEY!" in 10 foot high letters. . . I think the coolest one would have been the BD-10J, but that never amounted to much. Too bad, as I would have loved to fly one. . . |
so how do you tow a mooney?? |
The Mooney has a very small tow turn limit. It takes a lot of maneuvering to get one backed into a hanger packed with other aircraft. I can’t imagine towing one with a tug, it was a bitch enough using the hand tow bar. ETA: Pic from one of my Mooney Eng changes. 
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Here’s some on-line history behind the Champ above that I posted a pic of. This was written by the owner, and for those who don’t read German there is a link on the page to the English version. www.aeronca.de/d-euuu |