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Some comments on the comparison of the Lancair
Sport (FG Legacy) and the RV-7A.
The kit price of $17,000 for the 7A is for the
standard kit. The quick build is $25,050.
Van's site says the standard RV-7A should take
about 1800 hours to build, the quick build (they claim) should be roughly
half that. (Never heard of one being built that fast.) Why such a
high estimate (2500 hours) for building the Sport? I would think it should
be faster to build than the Legacy. My guess is the Sport and the fast
build 7A will take about the same amount of time to build.
Need to be more specific on the engine
comparison. An IO-360 could be a 200 hp angle valve or a 180 hp parallel
valve. I live in the heart of RV country (Van belongs to the same EAA
chapter that I do -- 105) and I've found that a lot of RV builders go
for used engines, either running them for a while as is or doing a lot of
overhaul work themselves. If you do the same with the sport the engine
cost should come out the same for either aircraft, and potentially a lot less
than the $38,500 shown in the comparison. Used angle valve IO-360s are
probably easier to come by than the parallel valve. The angle valve was
used in a lot of production aircraft and has not been in nearly as much demand,
so far, in the kit market as the parallel valve.
So, using the same engine, same prop, same
panel, same paint, the only real cost difference should be the airframe
kit. If you compare with the fastbuild -7A that's a difference of
$7850. The -7A is a darn good airplane, but I'd rather build, and fly, the
Lancair.
Tom Gourley
Banks, OR
L2K #122
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