Pros and cons........I'm getting an urge about buying one.

Input about other models welcome.

I can let you know..... A long time from now.

Just started building an empennage kit. Factory gave me a demo ride.
Everybody talks about how responsive they are. When does "responsive" cross over into "twitchy"?
Answer: I don't know, but the RV-7 isn't twitchy. Delightfully light on the controls (just begs to be rolled, but no aerobatics allowed on demo flights), but still flies hands-off.
All around, a hoot to fly.

I assume you're talking about one that is already flying. Like all planes, a good pre-purchase inspection is in order as builder quality can be all over the map. You'll have to decide if you want a taildragger or tricycle, tip-up canopy or slider, but none of these features really affects overall performance.

An RV-9 is also a good choice - basically the same 2-place side by side fuse but with a longer, narrower wing and different airfoil (Roncz) to optimize cruise performance. The cost is no aerobatic capability like in the 7 but greater economy than the 7 in that this plane was designed to use a Lycoming 320 vs 360 .

This is the one I would get also.
Side-by-side is personally preferred for the experience of taking other riders.
Good tailwheel handling.

Lycoming with CS prop?
Basic aerobatics, fun get-around plane.

Much like.

Joe,

The RV-7 can be a terrific plane. Because it's experimental, trying to determine whether a specific plane is a good one becomes more difficult than buying certified. Let me elaborate.

A customer of mine thought the -7 would fit his mission well. He knew the handling, we figured out which options were important to him, and we found some candidate planes.

There are a couple of expert RV builders out there - and a couple of excellent DARs who know the type well. There's a guy in TX (no idea of his name) and a guy at Mallards Landing (outside Atlanta) who knew the type well.

In the course of trying to find a plane for my customer, we put three RV-7s into pre-buy. All three had significant airworthiness problems - and these weren't supposed to be bottom-feeders either. These were $110K planes. The problem we kept finding was poor riveting in the tailcone where the horizontal stab spar ties into the tail structure. I am told it is some of the most difficult riveting in the build, though I have never done it myself. Maybe I've gotten bad information. Anyway, this area is also completed relatively early in the build of a -7 so you have amateur builders doing difficult work. We observed misshappen rivets, uneven heads, etc. My A&P (who can be persnickety about other people's work!) wasn't generous in his assessment.

There are superb -7s out there. Just get a knowledgeable expert to do the pre-buy and inspect that area in particular.

As always, this is worth what you just paid for it! But I hope you find a great plane. Another friend has a good one and it's a delight to fly.

Zeke

All Pros no Cons But I am biased having built and flown one... It's an excellent choice for an economical yet a lot of fun ownership.

As mentioned build quality varies, so be picky and bring someone knowledgeable along. You may want to put a "WTB" ad on Vans Airforce in case someone's thinking about selling but has not put it up yet. That's how I sold mine (hassle free )

PS. Main advantage of the -9s is lower purchase price (probably 20k or so on average).

If you have more specific questions, fire away

I've not flown the RV-7 but have time in the RV-6 and RV-8. The side-by-side airplanes are much more comfortable for the passenger. All the RVs fly great. The tail wheel versions are some of the nicest tailwheel planes out there. I'd look at the specs before deciding on constant speed vs fixed pitch prop. The constant speed props add weight way forward on a small airplane. The fixed pitch props give great performance with less weight and complexity.

+1 on a careful inspection of any home built aircraft.

Jay Pratt at Hicks Airfield north of Fort Worth builds a lot of RV's and has some youtube videos.

I have only had a couple of rides in an -8, so I have no real knowledge. However, one owner told me that the ride in turbulence is pretty rough due to the light wing loading. Again, I have not compared RV wing loading to other airplanes, so that comment could be hooey.

A 7/7A has the same wing loading as a C-172 -- 14.8 for the 7 vs 14.7 for a 172 SP. Yeah kind of light relatively speaking but it's a small airframe with a good performing wing so it's to be expected. However, IMO the ride is about what you'd expect, no better or worse than most of the I(O)-360 powered GA fleet.

For side by side RVs vs tandem, give some thought to the tandem ones for their greater shoulder and elbow room. The performance is a wash; most RV-8 owners will admit something like a few knots (in other words, no great loss for the side by side 6/7) and the engine-prop combination and fairings/other random speed goodies probably make a bigger difference. It comes down to personal taste, just consider both (personally I prefer side by side).

A hardcore group of the RV guys are almost cult-like trying out different things like special wheel paints, cowlings, aerodynamic you-name-it in search of another knot. Really a lot of the same tricks as Wittman or LoPresti and I think their enthusiasm is great.

Fantastic info and very much appreciated.

I am really concerned about the quality of the build and absolutely will have a knowledgeable mechanic go over it meticulously. I'm interested in the tailwheel version.

Great points given.

I've owned my RV6A for 16 years now and absolutely love it. It's fun to fly, easy to maintain, and goes 160 kts on 10 gph. Mine has an O-360 and a Hartzel CS prop. The cost to maintain it and the speed are probably the biggest reasons I've never moved up to a four place certified aircraft. I just don't need the extra seats with just the wife and I and to be honest, most of the time it's just me.

If you look at the 7's they are a whole different airplane from the 6's...larger rudder etc. Pay close attention to the service bulletins on all the models especially the forward horizontal stabilizer spar for cracks. If the paint hasn't been removed for the inspection the cracks are most likely being missed. If you're looking at an A model there are several nose gear modifications that are worth looking into such as the Anti-splat Aero kit. I put one on mine several years ago.

https://antisplataero.com/

And lastly...go do some lurking on the Vans RV forum. You'll learn quite a bit over there.

http://www.vansairforce.net/

Dave

I like these; my neighbor has one and I've flown it 25 hours of so. Checks a lot of boxes: fun, efficient, fast, aerobatic, useful, easy to fly, etc.

I have another neighbor with an unpainted one for sale and must say it's probably the nicest construction I've seen on any airplane. PM if interested.

Partial built and have had a six for several years. The absolute most fun to fly, responsive and most economical airplane I can think of. Fast too!

Since there are thousands of RV's flying built by amateurs with miniscule structural failure stats, I wouldn't hesitate to pull the trigger on one after a good inspection from a good airframe mechanic.

I really appreciate all the input. I'm getting more interested with all the reading I have been doing on these airplanes.