Luked

Here are some details about the engine I'm planning to use. It's a Continental A-65. I know this isn't the engine most people would choose for this plane, but I think it will be a good fit for what I'm planning to use the plane for. I will probably build it as an A-75, but even still, I expect performnce to be modest for an Avid. About like a J-3 with an A-65. Maybe my next Avid will be a STOL fire breather!
 
The engine I bought was kind of a gamble. It was cheap, and local, and it has the flanged crank shaft, but no logs. It was also missing all accessories, and the accessory case. The main thing I wanted was the crank. I'm planning to tear it down this week, and send the crank for inspection and have them do whatever needs to be done to it (assuming it's usable). I asked the seller if I could pay him half of what he was asking to start with, and pay him the the other half if the crank checks out. Fingers crossed. Here are the pictures.
 
Engine the way I brought it home.

 
Setting it on the stand

 
Parts to save

 
Parts to trash

 
Engine after I stripped off the cooling tins, and induction system

 
That's about it for now. Any comments of advice are welcome.
 
Thanks,
Luke D.

 
Small world. My wife's family is actually from Trout Lake, so we usually pass through Hood River at least once a hear to go to visit relatives. It's a nice area.   I'm really looking forward to the getting the Avid flying. Economy is one of my main goals. Like you say, when I get it flying I want to fly it a lot without worrying so much about the hourly cost.   Hope to make it up there at some point. My Grandpa used to live there, and always talked about how beautiful it is. Oregon is pretty, but not quite the same.   Luke D.

Hey Leni,   Yes that's us. We've been doing it for a little over ten years now. It does seem like the market for "Avid type" (counting the various derivative designs) aircraft is having a resurgence. I remember being interested in Kitfoxes back in the early 90s when I got my license when they were the hot item.   We would love to offer products to more aircraft owners, but unfortunately there are some practical considerations that complicate things. Without getting into the gory details, it takes a fair number of sales for most of our products to even break even on the design work that goes into them. Also, there are quite a few items that our current RV customers want that we have not completed yet. Right now our biggest challenge is not volume of sales (we stay pretty busy year round), but improving the profit margin. People would be amazed if they say the number of seats and other products we produce in a year, compared to the profit we end up with. I think we are already perceived by some customers to be one of the higher priced options (our products do in fact cost more than some competitors, but that's because they are more expensive to produce), and in the current economic climate, customers are pretty sensitive to price. We have been focused on reducing the cost to produce our products through buying materials in larger volume, and improved efficiency in all parts of our business (I could share lots of detail there, but won't bore you). Once we feel like we have gotten things where we want them in terms of efficiency, we will probably go back to focusing on new products.   I have people with various aircraft types ask me about this fairly often, and I hate to sound like a wet blanket when I answer. It's just that after doing this for a while, I've learned to limit my commitments (in the early days, I started trying to make seats for Glastars, Zeniths, etc.). For the past 10 years I've usually worked about 70 hours a week, and that doesn't leave as much time as I would like for family (I have 4 kids now 8 and under).   I view the Avid project as my own personal recreation vs. "business". On the other hand I would be happy to help anyone here with advice when it comes to seats, upholstery, etc. if it would help. Offering free advise is much more relaxed than providing paid goods and services. That's probably a lot longer answer than you were looking for. I guess I got into some of the gory details after all. Who knows we might make seats for Avids and Kitfoxes someday. If I can help anyone here, just let me know.   Luke D.

Yeah, thanks Leni for getting things running again. I know it costs money, so this was a good reminder to send the PayPal I've been meaning to send. I'm starting to get used to checking the site every morning. I was bummed to see that it was hacked the other day. Thanks again!
 
Luke D.

 
Thanks Randy,
 
I'm just south of Salem. Btw, I've looked over lots of your pictures. I'm totally jealous of the kind of flying you get to do up there  . The pictures are great. I love the ones that show the planes parked on the gravel bars. Thanks for sharing them. I've got a brother in law that lives in Fairbanks. I'd like to get up there some time to see some bush flying in person. Maybe go see the Valdez STOL competition some time.
 
Unfortunately I don't have the budget right now for a high performance STOL plane, so this one will be a basic Avid for local flying mostly in the Valley. I think it will still be a lot of fun, and it's got to be better than the 172.
 
Luke D.

 
Thanks for the welcome. I'll probably get some better pictures up in the next day or two. Then I'll start with the questions...
 
Luke D.