Bill Watson
En-Route
So many variables in terms of scope; quick build or not, panel bought or built, builder skill and experience, paint, etc. I don’t have the experience to say.
When I was closely following the many builder pages years ago I recall more than one build was completed in a year. Some were repeat offenders, others not. Many more have been built since then so I’m sure many more 1 year or less builds have been completed. Seems reasonable to me.
I started my build with a builder assist group that specialized in RVs. They complete the tail feathers in a weeks work of hands on training for the smaller RVs. We didn’t quite get that far with the ‘10 that week but 1-2 more days would have done it, the rest of tail kit would be done in less than a week. No short cuts were taken (all was epoxy primed). I came out with everything I needed to complete the aluminum work. My main instructor was 19 years old and had a dozen or more tail kits behind him but I did most of the work.
Re skills and experience: If every type of work requires a learning curve climb, that will take longer than someone with minimal familiarity/skills with riveted aluminum, composite work, and basic wiring. Someone with any other RV building experience will be significantly faster than someone with no aircraft building skills.
Re scope of build: I did quick build because I could afford it and there is little new to learn after the tail. The wing is just repetitive and seems easy, I regret not slow building the fuselage because I missed some fun (but the composite work on the fuselage makes up for the missed ‘fun’ (sarcasm here). But I did everything else; custom electrical system, panel build, and paint. All involved a very pleasant learning curve which is one of the reasons I wanted to the project. I was originally planning to buy a pro built panel and farm out the paint but I guess I enjoyed the challenges.
I was anxious about the engine install and setup but that was perhaps the easiest task of all, perhaps because I just did exactly what Vans outlined with a stock engine That is a key point that gets more important as time goes on. There is an seemingly infinite number of aftermarket products and options available to the builder. Vans is a minimalist of the highest order and builds to a VFR cruiser standard, e.g. building a pitot tube per Vans takes about 30 minutes to bend a piece of tubing and mount it. Installing a heated pitot probably took me 10 hours.
A fully tricked out, quality built ‘10 is arguably nicer than anything you can buy or at least will be your dream airplane. A stock Vans version (see their demonstrator) is exactly the plane everyone raves about. It’s a high performance VFR cruiser that will do everything Vans claims and probably out perform most of the dream planes despite 3 bladed props, customer induction systems, AC, and state of the art panel simpler because it will be lighter. You have A lot of choices and everyone of them will cost time.
I was a very part time Inexperienced. builder with a good sized shop in my back yard. A more full time approach would be fun and rewarding as well. How long depends on your personal skills, energy and the choices you do or don’t make.
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