3 ms·

You also don't have to understand anything about anything. That's not to take away from what you are doing, but the title completely misrepresents the amount of

You also don't have to understand anything about anything. That's not to take away from what you are doing, but the title completely misrepresents the amount of competence of these (likely spoiled) kids. Also, what's the total cost (for ALL parts, but without labor)? I looked at their site and it seems to list $30-40k but I don't see the engine included in the part list.

bdamm 7y ago
That's an entirely unfair characterization. I've seen many different clubs working on many different kit planes, and they all require high-level capability, attention to minute detail, and very little or no tolerance for a sloppy or partial job. It's true that people can start these projects with no experience, but they sure don't end with no experience. Typically people that see these projects through at any level of involvement become experts in some part of the work by the end.
- ohaideredevs 7y ago
  I am pretty sure a redneck doing custom welding and ECU mapping on a LS1 turbo is much more of a technical accomplishment. Genuinely.
  - AWildC182 7y ago
    I had to weld up tooling for the RV-8 and am currently working on a 100% custom CB-550 ECU. The CB has so far been an easier project... I think you need to check your attitude. Unless you also built a plane in high school, that is?
    - ohaideredevs 7y ago
      No, was too busy working a minimum wage job to pay for clothing and save for college. What a productive use of time that was. Anyway, I stand by my point. Not that I have a workable solution for wealth inequality.
  - dang 7y ago
    "Please don't post shallow dismissals, especially of other people's work. A good critical comment teaches us something." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
AWildC182 7y ago
Wat. You can go off and just buy the kit if you want to die I guess... I ended up taking a class on airframe construction from a licensed A&P and probably spent several hundred hours doing research at this point. Engines can be anywhere from a 10k run-out old Lycoming or a $40k+ brand new IO-540 in a crate. On the issue of "spoiled kids" there are a bunch of schools in the US that do a similar build project (typically an RV-14 LSA). It's not uncommon for more vocationally oriented high schools.
- ohaideredevs 7y ago
  Thanks for info on costs. I wonder how these compare to Cessnas.
  - lutorm 7y ago
    A new Cessna 172 is just north of a quarter million dollars, it seems. Experimental/amateur-built aircraft are the fastest growing segment of aviation, precisely because it represents a fairly affordable avenue for getting into flying. The prices of certified aircraft have skyrocketed way past what any normal, even reasonably affluent, person can justify.
    - ohaideredevs 7y ago
      I mean performance / safety wise.
      - lutorm 7y ago
        Ah sorry. Safety-wise EAB has a slightly worse accident record than certified small airplanes, but not much. The majority of the accidents are due to pilot error, so it's not clear the type of aircraft makes a difference there. Performance-wise, you can get better performing airplanes, with better instrumentation, for far less money as experimentals. This is because they do not have to pass any FAA certifications, so there's much more innovation taking place in the EAB market. Of course, it's also dependent on the builder and designer doing a good job, so especially second-hand markets can be iffy since all the due diligence for figuring out what you're buying is on you.
dang 7y ago
Please don't take HN threads further into flamewar. We detached this from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20396583 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20396583.

bdamm 7y ago

That's an entirely unfair characterization. I've seen many different clubs working on many different kit planes, and they all require high-level capability, attention to minute detail, and very little or no tolerance for a sloppy or partial job. It's true that people can start these projects with no experience, but they sure don't end with no experience. Typically people that see these projects through at any level of involvement become experts in some part of the work by the end.

ohaideredevs 7y ago
I am pretty sure a redneck doing custom welding and ECU mapping on a LS1 turbo is much more of a technical accomplishment. Genuinely.
- AWildC182 7y ago
  I had to weld up tooling for the RV-8 and am currently working on a 100% custom CB-550 ECU. The CB has so far been an easier project... I think you need to check your attitude. Unless you also built a plane in high school, that is?
  - ohaideredevs 7y ago
    No, was too busy working a minimum wage job to pay for clothing and save for college. What a productive use of time that was. Anyway, I stand by my point. Not that I have a workable solution for wealth inequality.
- dang 7y ago
  "Please don't post shallow dismissals, especially of other people's work. A good critical comment teaches us something." https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

AWildC182 7y ago

Wat. You can go off and just buy the kit if you want to die I guess... I ended up taking a class on airframe construction from a licensed A&P and probably spent several hundred hours doing research at this point. Engines can be anywhere from a 10k run-out old Lycoming or a $40k+ brand new IO-540 in a crate. On the issue of "spoiled kids" there are a bunch of schools in the US that do a similar build project (typically an RV-14 LSA). It's not uncommon for more vocationally oriented high schools.

ohaideredevs 7y ago
Thanks for info on costs. I wonder how these compare to Cessnas.
- lutorm 7y ago
  A new Cessna 172 is just north of a quarter million dollars, it seems. Experimental/amateur-built aircraft are the fastest growing segment of aviation, precisely because it represents a fairly affordable avenue for getting into flying. The prices of certified aircraft have skyrocketed way past what any normal, even reasonably affluent, person can justify.
  - ohaideredevs 7y ago
    I mean performance / safety wise.
    - lutorm 7y ago
      Ah sorry. Safety-wise EAB has a slightly worse accident record than certified small airplanes, but not much. The majority of the accidents are due to pilot error, so it's not clear the type of aircraft makes a difference there. Performance-wise, you can get better performing airplanes, with better instrumentation, for far less money as experimentals. This is because they do not have to pass any FAA certifications, so there's much more innovation taking place in the EAB market. Of course, it's also dependent on the builder and designer doing a good job, so especially second-hand markets can be iffy since all the due diligence for figuring out what you're buying is on you.

dang 7y ago

Please don't take HN threads further into flamewar. We detached this from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20396583 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20396583.