Experimentals?

Bartman

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My distinguished fellow members,

The nice thing about a site like this is the focus on the specific family of airplanes that we are all involved with in our own ways. Even the RC guys that know a Decathlon as quickly as the rest of us do are welcome to come join in. There's a Piper Cub sub-forum, just because, but would anyone like for there to be an experimentals sub-forum for whatever anyone feels like putting in there? I thin it was @aftCG that bought a Kitfox recently and new member @longez is the proud papa of three.......wait for it......... LongEZ's. I might be shifting gears to an experimental build in the near future, so would anyone like to have that content hosted here and mixed in with all of the Champ, Citabria, and Decathlon stuff?

It won't cost anything, just a few minutes of my time. Any other suggestions, throw 'em out there and we'll see what everyone has to say. Don't be shy!

Bart
 

aftCG

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posts about your Kitfox will probably open a lot of people's eyes, myself included. there's got to be a reason why they're so popular! lol
I'm seeing the category for "restorations and experimentals". Is that where you intend for this to go, or are you going to create a specific sub forum for those of us on the dark side?
 

Bartman

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I think that that was originally meant to include the experimental Citabria types out there. we were discussing them months ago and I thought I'd build them in somehow.

what I was talking about was a sub-forum for anything related to experimentals, projects, questions, building skills, etc.
 

longez

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I'd be very interested in both, having been in Experimental Amateur Built exclusively for the last 40 years. I'd love to learn how one would legally convert a 7KCAB to Experimental, and what the upside and downside would be. I built 3 EZ's, and have maintained them personally for 38 years - I may go into withdrawal if i can't work on (and improve upon) a new to me Citabria. I might be resource to those who are considering homebuilts.
 

aftCG

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I'll start entering posts about my kitfox project as soon as I see the sub forum.
I'd be very interested in both, having been in Experimental Amateur Built exclusively for the last 40 years. I'd love to learn how one would legally convert a 7KCAB to Experimental, and what the upside and downside would be. I built 3 EZ's, and have maintained them personally for 38 years - I may go into withdrawal if i can't work on (and improve upon) a new to me Citabria. I might be resource to those who are considering homebuilts.
The short version is "you can't". The exception is if you move to Canada and take your plane with you. They have a category allowing an owner to perform their own maintenance. It's not undoable though, which is something to keep in mind if you ever see a plane listed in Canada and think you must have it.

Now, having said "you can't", my own airplane still shows up in a search of the FAA database as experimental. It was used as a test bed to develop two different engine conversions. One was an inverted fuel/oil O-320 similar to the 7 KCAB and the other was an O-320 wide deck. The category used was "Experimental for purpose of demonstrating compliance to FARs". My standard airworthiness certificate was restored, so I'm not concerned.

You could theoretically chop shop a citabria and license it as "experimental exhibition only". Normally done so people can do aerobatics in a GA plane, or create a replica of a plane using the bones of another. The category has a lot of restrictions, and is really for air show and demonstration airplanes. You probably shouldn't get caught camping with your family in one.
 

longez

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Well, maybe someone had gone before me. I have a 0 time non-certified wide deck IO-320 in my hangar than never made it onto the EZ - it has angle valve heads on 320's cylinders. If I'm successful in buying my friends 7KCAB it would be fun to hang the mongrel Lyc on the Citabria. It produced •a lot• of power on Mattituck's dyno before they shut down.

I think the 7KCAB uses a conical motor mount, so I'd need to build a dynafocal mount - a fairly easy task.

Sounds like that motor might have to wait for a different project.
 

Bartman

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I was referring to the experimental Citabrias that are kit built, I forgot who the vendor is, it's here somewhere if you search. It's a dead ringer for a Citabria
 

aftCG

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I was referring to the experimental Citabrias that are kit built, I forgot who the vendor is, it's here somewhere if you search. It's a dead ringer for a Citabria
These guys?
 

Vicsgt

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Don't forget the Christavia series of aircraft, very similar to the Citabra...
I would also enjoy an EXP sub forum.

Chris
I fly a 7GCBC now in Canada on Owner Maintenance. It is almost exclusively on floats and skis. I used to have a Mark 1 Christavia on floats with an O200. It was a great little airplane.