Wow, I’m surprised that it was only 2 years ago that I took delivery of the Empennage kit. Seems like I have been working on this project for longer than that! It’s hard to picture my garage without all the airplane stuff in it. Overall I’m still quite happy with my progress even if the wings really challenged my sanity!
At this point I have the empennage done, wings mostly done (still have a few items to finish up), and making progress on the Fuselage. I’m getting towards the part where I’m getting budget limited vs time limited. Parts and upgrades are starting to get more expensive and I’m constantly wondering when I’m no long going to be able to pay for things in “cash”. Engine and avionics will require some sort of loan, or the project is going to sit in the garage for a few years as I save up.
I still don’t have a hangar yet, but did put my name on the waiting list at Manassas Airport (KHEF). There is talk that construction is going to begin shortly that will demolish a good portion of the T-hangars on the field and rebuild new ones further back to allow some upgrades to the runways. They can only delay so long before their environmental studies have to be redone so it sounds like things will be a little crazy in the near future. This is also going to impact our local EAA chapter and build hangar/clubhouse.
I decided to skip Sun N Fun this year and instead head to Oshkosh. Planning to drive just in case I find some good deals (Not opposed to flying if someone has an extra seat however!). Also planning to camp there as I don’t want to deal with finding a hotel / driving back and forth to the grounds. (If needed I can sleep in the trunk of my SUV to stay dry). I’m hoping that by the end of the year, I’ll be close to having a fuselage I can sit in / working on the fiberglass parts. I have a little extra vacation time saved up so I’m sure I’ll be taking time off to work on the airplane.
The one thing that is suffering is my flying. I’m maintaining my currency, but not my profeciency. Somewhat of a deliberate choice as my funds are really dedicated to building. Granted maintaining IFR currency is a lot easier and cheaper with the updated rules. 2 hours of sim time every few months – easy! When I’m ready to start flying beyond some pattern work, I’ll grab a local CFI and get all the rust knocked off. Then find someone to get me some transition training.