Van's RV8

A short introduction to the RV8 from Van's aircraft.

Danny King's "Beautiful Doll"

Information about Van's Aircraft RV8 can be found here. http://www.vansaircraft.com/public/rv-8int.htm I chose this plane because I want a tandem, not a side by side seating. Tandem allows the best visibility on either side of the aircraft. When I want to fly side by side, I can use one of our aeroclub's Pipers (http://www.aero-club.ch/)

I have decided to equip my plane with the following:

1. A Mattituck TMXIO-360 engine
2. MGL Odyssey?
   
3. Garmin SL-40 VHF transceiver
4. Flightcom 403 stereo intercom
5. Trio Avionics EZ Pilot autopilot
6. Some kind of Mode-S Transponder
7. Ameri-king AK-450 ELT
8. Odyssey PC680 Batteries (2)
9. Proprietary Systems Angle of Attack (AOA) Sport
10. Garmin GPSMAP 196 (a bit old, but we'll see)
11. and some other cool stuff!

Here is some stuff that I saw that I liked: Appareo Systems

This product allows you to replay your flight with not only GPS track and altitude, but also the attitude of the aircraft. Good for proving the amount of crab or low wing on those wicked crosswind landings. The entry model is only about 600 USD. They will sell a lot of these!

RV8 Strakes

These are supposed to help eliminate the tailplane stall that most RV8s experience. This in turn makes full stall landings possible. These come from a guy named Frank Melder n2rv8fm -a-t- comcast.net

This person should be able to help you with the strakes.

RV-8 Strakes
a.. Distributor: Frank Melder an RV builder, N801FM, and pilot
b.. Manufacturer: Brad Heintz, Arlington, WA.
c.. Engineering designed by past military pilots who own and fly RV's
d.. Dynamics: Consensus is the strakes reduce the power off stall speed on an RV-8 about 5 knots. The strakes clean up the disrupted air coming off the wing/fuselage/gear leg intersection as it goes back the horizontal stabilizer. This is unique to the RV-8 only. Higher wing loading is allowed before the onset of the noted 'tail shake.'
e.. Fixed or constant speed prop not an issue.
f.. No measurable impact on cruise

Cost

$110.00 per set
$ 5.00 shipping anywhere in the USA USPS and handling
$ 2.00 insurance if desired

Preferred payment:

Check made out and sent to:

Frank Melder
4030 107th PL NE
Marysville, WA, 98271
USA

Shipping will occur when check clears. Delivery approximately two weeks from receipt of payment.

Other ways to Contact Frank: +1-425-330-6032 N2rv8fm@comcast.net

A rather cool tailwheel for the RV8.

OK, there was a lot more cool stuff at Oshkosh, but these were the first things that I wanted to get on the website.