Thanks for the replies to all.
Very sensible suggestion to try both props (fun and informative). I am just a
little
limited in funds available for this project and honestly my plane won't
be ready for a year (or most probably more). The opportunity came up to buy a
prop now so I am considering it. But yes, I will talk to my friend and see if
we can reach a deal. I am certainly curious and tempted to try both props but
not sure my wife would be as thrilled of my curious nature :)
One thing I wanted to share with the group (and getting off topic a little) is
the reason for me building the Europa and why I am very careful with the money
I spend on it. That may explain why I make decisions (or asks questions) that
may not make sense to everyone.
This is not my only plane. I also own a LongEZ which I love and a Kolb Firestar
(essentially an ultralight). I really don't need another plane but I love
building
planes so I asked my wife (and got approval) to find an orphan kit to buy
at a relatively low cost and enjoy building it (sorry Marty for calling your
plane this but that's how I ended up getting it). I found Europa A291 and
purchased
it.
Two motivators for this project where that my flying buddies are continually
going
to grass fields and I can't do that with the LongEZ. Also, most trips are
short (less than 100 miles). Too long for the Kolb but short enough not to need
a fancy fast plane (much less IFR capable). With that in mind I am trying to
build my airplane as light as possible and with almost no instrumentation except
for what is absolutely required by law. Designers always rave about the
performance
of airplanes when they are light (no frufru as Rutan used to say) so
I am trying to see what all that is about
.
The other motivator, and most important, is that I am a long time EAA member and
miss the original's organization charter of constructing a plane for relatively
little money. I wanted to demonstrate that there are a number of unfinished
projects out there that could be purchased for less than the cost of a new kit
and finished for a reasonable amount of money. BTW, it is very hard to beat
the price of some good finished airplanes out there. My LongEZ is a fantastic
plane and it cost less than what I will have in materials for my low cost Europa
project.
One more thing I forgot to mention: I wanted a side by side plane to take my
kids
up and let them fly (Im a CFI). The LongEZ is really not a good plane for that.
So there you have it. I have been buying good (and safe) but used components and
counting the beans when it comes to how much I spend on the Europa. I have
limited
the number of mods to keep weight, complexity and build time to a minimum
(except for what is mandatory and makes sense once weight is factored in).
But that doesnt mean that once finished, and if the need for a faster Europa
comes
about, I spend more money on stuff like a CS prop or additional frufru to
make it as pretty as you guys out there made your Europas.
Regarding speed, and here I may get in trouble with some of the forum members,
it seems to me that the biggest gain in performance in the Europa is gained from
having a 914 and being able to fly high with the turbocharged engine. The gains
I hear from people doing mods, such as CS prop and aerodynamic improvements,
but flying the non turbo engine at low altitude are impressive but not sure
worth the cost and weight unless you want to fly longer distances than what
I am planning to do. Dont get me wrong, I want a CS prop, just being very
pragmatic
about making a decision to go that route. the nice thing about CS prop to
me is the extra power on takeoff. The LongEZ is a dog on takeoff when heavy
(fixed pitch)!!
Now let me see in how much trouble I got for writing this post :)
Chris
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http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=484888#484888
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