5 years, literally to the day. In that period I skipped 2 summers, more or less. Just too hot in the garage. Overall about 1800 hours. That also included at least 100 hours in the paintjob. My plane is all aluminum with over 2000 holes in each wing so a lot of layout, measuring and drilling. Now the wings are prepunched. Huge amount of self satisfaction and sense of accomplishment when complete. Would do it again in a heartbeat.

My Savannah took five months calendar time or 300 hours working time. One of the attractions of the Savannah over the similar 701 was most of the rivet holes were CNC drilled. No days Zenith is doing that as well, so shouldn't be much different. The Savannah also came with a nearly complete wiring harness, which helped quite a bit as well.

tom

Zane
Ya the Pegazair is not your every day plane and gets alot of funny looks on the ramp for sure. Or maybe the funny looks are because of the pilot??:D
Lance
I can not fly as slow as the prototype , it was built very light, but Michel ,the guy in Canada that sales kits, is very truthfull so I am sure he can back up any thing he says. And by the way , He is makeing some versions of it that are not shown on his web site,
By not being built from a kit, I was able to make mine to fit my wants and needs, like-- more fuel, bigger engine {0-320}, more cabin room ,more bagage room and more gross wt.
Sure this made it come up with a higher empty wt., 970# ,with the 31" bushwheels, but with a 1650 gross I can carry a good load.
A few years back I used it to hauled a 5 man moose camp into a 300ft island and then was able to haul a moose out of there in 2 trips .
One of the things I like most is even with its good STOL, I still have a good cruise . With the 31" bushwheels the 0320 pulls it along at 105 mph while only turing 2300 rpm, that seems to be the best rpm for fuel burn/cruise with the big tires. When I had 8:50's X6s on it 2400rpm was around 120mph. Now thats not a RV, but it,s not bad .
Like all planes it has good and bad but it fits me just right!!
Doug

It took me 2 1/2 years to build my Zenith 701. I work full time and I'd usually put in 2-3 hours on it after work every day, then about 6-8 hours each Saturday. Total time in hours was just under 1100 hours. Can't say I'd want to do it again, but I'm so glad I did. It's a ball to fly, and gets in and out of places you wouldn't believe.

Started a Murphy Rebel many years ago and ended up putting it on hold. The tail and flapperons were completed when we were in Georgia. I did get one wing ready to close while stationed in Hawaii. Wife was in the army and usually by the time I had things set up and started working on it it was time to move. I made the decision to put it on hold until I get settled in one place for more than 6 months.
I will guess at least another 5 years unless I decide to sell it and just enjoy flying the planes I have. Anyone looking for a Murphy Rebel?
WW

c170pete wrote:I am building a Falco F8L. Not a backcountry plane, but I have my 170. When I started, I was thinking five years. Now four years later, I think I will be done in 5 years. Plans-built wooden airplanes are not for the quick builder.

An heroic effort. I saw my first factory Falco sometime in the 1970s I think. This was before Lancair and Glasair came about. I can remember being hopelessly in lust for one from that day forward. Stay with it mister!

I was a week or two away from calling Vans and ordering an RV8 tail kit. Just talked to the Vans salesman at the regional eaa flying in in marysville. Then I saw my first Falco on the ramp. Red. I instantly new what it was. I had ordered the info kit when I was a senior in high school in 81.

Thin, tapered wing. Sliding bubble canopy. Italian design. Elegant engineering throughout.

Pure Lust. Never looked back.

Thanks for all of the replies. Lots of good stories about everyone's building process, which in a way makes a homebuilt that much more unique. I gotta get this move out of the way and really get going on this kit. Breaking it into small goals seems like a great approach, I have found myself in the garage staring at the wing for a few minutes thinking about how overwhelming it looks in pieces.
Hopefully this aircraft will be a good learning experience for when it comes time to build a 4-place like an 801 or Bearhawk when the kids get older.
Thanks again!

Our 701 took us 800 hours over three years.



It was a group effort and we had a lot of fun. A real sweatheart to fly!

Zane wrote:

brown bear wrote:Plans built Pegazair. Not a kit... 3 & 1/2 years. Doug
http://www.ericproellphotography.com/pe ... #h1469a84c

Cool! Definitely not something you see every day.

Never seen a Pagazair before. From your pic & google's images (where your airplane figures prominently), it looks like basically a 701 on tailwheel gear.
A guy who was in our local EAA chapter was building one, but talking to him you could tell he was never gonna finish it. Every time he started getting anywhere close, he'd tear something back apart & re-do it. He liked to build (and talk!) more than fly I guess. He had some sort of goofy turbo'd car engine (suzuki maybe?) he was gonna install on it, plus a bunch of electronic stuff. He was really excited about the electronics & was looking forward to that more than the actual flying. Too bad-- he has a 6 or 700 foot airstrip on his place for which a Pagazair or similar would be perfect. I overfly his place occasionally & the airstrip is so overgrown now that you wouldn't be able to spot it without knowing it used to be there.

Hotrod
While the tail is more or less a copy of a 701.thats about all that is .
4130 tube everyhing but the wing and tail
Different airfoil , landing gear, slats move like a helio and--- well you get the idea.
Like I said , fits me well.
Doug

Brown Bear, I like your Pegazair. An O-320 must really make that thing perform. Are the plans in french and the metric system?

Pdknight, don't approach it that you're building a wing or an airplane...that creates the sense of being overwhelmed. Take the approach that you're drilling 5 holes or putting 3 parts together. Over time it will look like a wing. I can't tell you how many times I felt overwhelmed...a lot. Focus on doing manysmall projects and you will get a sense of satisfaction as they become complete. After a while it takes on a life of its own and you are so committed it gets done. It IS possible.

Kevin
Plans are in english and are good plans, Michel sales kits ,or and part that you want.
A few guys have went to his shop and built most of their plane there.
Doug