What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

First time Builder Introduction

WJaviation

Active Member
Hello everyone,

First time poster but long time reader. Ive been following the forums for about 6 months and finally committed to the RV12is build. My Emp kit arrived recently and is sitting in my shop be waiting to cracked open (hopefully by next weekend!). Ill likely be posting here in the future and id like to get my name out there ahead of time.

AD Navy Pilot, currently stationed in Pensacola, Fl. I flew the P8 Poseidon for 3 years and about 1000hrs out of NAS Jax. On to my shore tour here in the Panhandle for the next 3 years.

Iv wanted to build and fly my own plane for a long time and chose the RV12 mainly for the simplicity in design, affordability of operations, ease of building (or so i think!) and the ability to remove the wings and trailer. Ive got a sizable workshop on my property where i can build the plane and hangar once completed. planning on building or commissioning to build a custom trailer for the bird once completed and driving to the airfield (82J) for flights.

Anyways i thank all the posters that regularly answer questions around the forum. Most of my questions have been answered in the past by other builders and Ive gotten better at utilizing the forum search function.

Im planning on joining the local chapter here in Pcola once Covid dies down and using the knowledge and experience from the other RV builders.

RV12 building is a team sport!
 
Flying it is just a bit more fun than building it, but that’s a lot of fun! Great to see a fellow squid On the forum —— even if you are an Airedale!😜
 
RV-12 trailer

I have a fairly good example of an RV-12 trailer design if you're interested. I'm one of the few 12 owners that trailers to the airport for every flight. Going on five years now, just a few mods since the initial build. My wife and I can have the plane assembled and ready to preflight in about 15 minutes. My father was Navy fighter pilot in the Viet Nam era, he also instructed at P'cola. He lives in the lower Alabama area and I visit on occasion in the -12.
 
Excited to Start

Hey all, thanks for the welcome responses. Cool to see fellow Navy folks on the site, but yeah i did my squid time on the boat as well as a lowly deck ape....when they asked me what i wanted to fly I said" whichever airframe CANNOT land on ships!

@ DBRuth far as the trailer, im VERY interested to see what you are using. Even just a few pictures to give me idea on how it works. i can find hundreds of trailers available for sale, but almost none are wide enough to fit the -12 main mounts (around 7 ft). Im not sure how PM's work, but if you could send me your email id love to talk further about how your trailering operation works...

82J has hangars but they are $375/month and there is a 24month wait list. Id rather teach myself how to weld and build my own custom trailer for that price and that wait time!
 
You can buy a Flux Core Wire fed welder from Harbor Freight for about $150, so easy to use, you will learn no problem.
 
I have a fairly good example of an RV-12 trailer design if you're interested. I'm one of the few 12 owners that trailers to the airport for every flight. Going on five years now, just a few mods since the initial build. My wife and I can have the plane assembled and ready to preflight in about 15 minutes. My father was Navy fighter pilot in the Viet Nam era, he also instructed at P'cola. He lives in the lower Alabama area and I visit on occasion in the -12.

Could you share a little bit about the trailer here, or in it's own thread? There may be others interest, like me. Or do I have to learn a secret handshake or something to see what you came up with?
 
RV-12 trailer

No secret handshake required! There are a few trailer threads already, I posted ( or rather Jetguy posted for me) pictures of first flight and trailer in Aug 2015. I've made a few minor changes to my design since then to make it easier to remove the wings from the cradle, and one more cradle for each wing. Five years in and it's still working great. Best I remember, total cost of materials ( 2" square steel tube, 1" angle, 2" electrical conduit, 20' 5" aluminum channel and 4 4x8 aluminum diamond plate) was $2500. A fellow in Australia by the name of Roger made his out of aluminum ( I shamelessly borrowed his brilliant design). If you PM me an email address or smartphone number I'll be glad to send some pics. I have some rough drawings,at home but it will be several days before I get back from the job I'm on.
 
Back
Top