by Sonerai13 » Fri Jul 25, 2014 2:05 pm
Brandon,
There's a lot of good advice in this thread, and a lot of thinking to do on your part. Let me add a little more grist for the mill....
First, don't try to do too much at once. Learning to fly is a commitment of time and money. Building an airplane is a commitment of time and money. Owning an airplane is a commitment of time and money. I highly recommend that you take the steps in that order, but one at a time. Before you even think about trying to decide what to build or buy, let alone whether to build or buy at all, spend your energy and money on earning your pilot certificate. The experience you gain while learning to fly will pay off handsomely when it comes to figuring out what airplane you want to own (whether you build or buy.) Without that experience and background, you have a good chance of making the wrong decision.
Once you have earned your pilot certificate, you will have a better basis for deciding what kind of flying you really want to do. And you need to nail that down before you can pick out an airplane that will fit that mission. Every airplane excels at something, but this always comes at a compromise of other performance characteristics. For example, a great cross country airplane will be a poor aerobatic airplane, and vice versa. And an airplane that tries to do several things well will be OK at those several things, but will not excel at any of them. Every airplane is a series of compromises, based on what the airplane's primary mission is intended to be. But until you have some flying experience you won't know for sure just what YOUR mission for the airplane will be, and thus won't know what airplane you will need to fulfill that mission. First things first.
Once you have defined your mission (which can change as you gain flying experience), you can narrow down the choices. This is when you need to start thinking about whether you really want to build or really want to fly. It's important to answer this question fully and honestly before making a purchase. If you really want to fly, but think building is a less expensive way to get there, you're fooling yourself. Many people have followed this path, and this is the reason for so many unfinished kits for sale. You really need to WANT to build an airplane before starting the project. If your end goal is only to fly, you'll soon tire of the building process and abandon the project. You need to WANT to build in order to persevere and finish the airplane. If you really want to FLY, then you are far better off to purchase a flying example of the type of airplane you've chosen, as this will ultimately get you the end goal you truly seek. There's no sense in adding to your frustration level and/or the used kit market!
Hope this helps! Enjoy the journey!
Joe Norris
Sonex N208GD (S/N 450)
Sonerai II N13NN (S/N 1206)
Fortes Fortuna Adiuvat