Wayne: An RV-6 seats two side by side, not tandem. The -3, -4 and -8 are tandem, the -6, -7, -9 and -14 are side by side, the -10 seats four. My wife doesn't mind seeing the back of my helmet on the bike, but I didn't want to stuff her in the back of a plane too so I went with the -7a.
Mafoo: I know of one RV-6 for sale at $26K. Don't know what kind of shape it's in. There do seem to be a number of older RV-6's (though we're still talking 3-4 decades newer than most affordable certified) for sale at prices that would make a 2-way partnership affordable. Now, how good a deal is that? Dunno, you'd have to look. It will outrun the 182 and burn a lot less gas doing it, but of course it's not going to carry nearly as much.
The 182 might turn out to be exactly what you want. It might turn out to be a life lesson. Again, it's impossible for anyone but you to know. You want a real flood of discouragement and gloom-and-doom predictions? Mention building your own!
I'm 1/45 owner of three planes -- a 172, a 182 and an Arrow. I almost never have to work around other club members, and if I were endorsed and experienced enough to be able to fly all three I'd
never have a conflict. Fully half the club members don't ever fly, and they still keep their membership even with an extra monthly charge for non-flyers. The airplane with the most hours on it this year is the Arrow with nearly 300 total for the year so far. The 182 has less than 80, I think. So... if you want to figure out how available the plane will be, you've got to see how the other partners plan to use it. Their uses may put them in direct conflict with you often, or they may be flying when you're not.
So... while you'll have no shortage of well-meaning advice here, much of it good, all of it comes from other peoples' experiences. Your experience will be different to some degree or other. You've got to decide if the deal is right for you.
