My mission will probably be changing in a year or so and I’m starting to look at other options. What are the pros and cons of a 4 seat turboprop? I see through past post that several of you have experience with these so would like your feedback. I would love to build my own but after making some calls last week there are not any kits available yet. I was told they were starting up again but could not give me a timeline. I called Lancair but I saw a RV with a turboprop as well. Any other brand I should research/recommended?

I don’t think it’s sanctioned by the manufacturer, but there are some videos of turbine Velocity’s , both single and twin. Actually, thinking out loud, I believe the factory V-Twin that crashed after Osh was a turbine. Although a 6 seater.

Bryan,

There are innumerable threads on this topic so I'd try searching for a lot of useful discussion.

With that said the obvious advantages of a turbo prop are safety, ease of engine operation, speed, perhaps range, ability to fly above some or most of the weather and pressurization comfort.

I'm not really aware of any certified 4 seat turbo props. Perhaps I'm overlooking something and someone else will suggest. Most single engine turbo props are six seats except the Pilatus.

There are lots of pros, most mentioned above. Depending on the airframe you pick you may also get a slightly larger cabin than you might in a piston.

Cons for the turbo prop option are: capital and operating costs (both generally higher than piston), increasing insurability issues for low time pilots, training requirements (which I actually think are an advantage but do add time and cost) and maybe hangar space issues.

Your options are: TBM, Piper Meridian, Caravan, Epic, Kodiak, Cessna P210 and PC12 for SE turbo props. You didn't limit your question to single engines though and three twins stand out as entry level turbo props: King Air 90, Cessna Conquest I or II (depending on budget, engine preference and other factors but the 425 is smaller, P&W powered and less expensive).

There are lots of good options but you need to consider your pilot experience and budget before picking a direction. Once you've done that there are lots and lots of threaded discussion on all these options here. I'd recommend resurrecting one of those old threads with questions you don't see answers to.

My meridian is a 4 seat turbo prop! Try doing a W&B with more people. :-)

I think only Lancair is the true 4 seat turbo prop. My memory when I was looking is they didn’t have de-ice (I could be wrong) and you lose a lot of space for some performance improvement.

Good luck.

The 6-place Velocity V-Twin was piston powered. They are working on a turboprop version but I don't it's flown yet. They haven't done a turboprop single although a few have been done. To my knowledge, there is only one currently flying.

Sorry Tony I should have specified I’m not interested in certified particularly and have researched a lot on the experimental side but will admit it is very new to me as I’ve only had experience with certified aircraft. However, the experimental side seems to be very good and getting better. I looked at LX7 and evolution and like how customizable they are. Not crazy about just the nose wheel retractable setup I think I would rather have full RG. Doing the math I can fly cheaper with a turboprop vs twin piston and retain a high level of dependability

I think you're confusing the LX7 and Evolution with the Lancair Mako. The Mako retracts only the nose gear. The LX7 and Evolution retract all 3 legs.

That’s correct, I moved mako to bottom of my list for that reason. Really liking the evolution, except for the price tag but it is nice and really perfect for what want I believe. Any rumors of more manufacturers getting into this market?

Murphy make a Moose which is OK a 6 seat but at only 3,500lb mtow isn't too big. Someone has installed a pt6a-20 onto it and sells the conversion. Alternatly Aerocomp did do a range of airplanes which have had Walter turbo props installed by the factory. However there have been a few discussions about them and it appears they only see a piston model at the moment. As for 4 seat certified turboprop there is a 1 Meyers 400 which they made and is flying.

I will look those up

I think you're confusing the LX7 and Evolution with the Lancair Mako. The Mako retracts only the nose gear. The LX7 and Evolution retract all 3 legs.

If you are OK with an experimental I still have this one for sale

https://motoplaneparts.com/czechmate/

I am motivated to sell. Proven design and concept.

Is this not classic JetProp land? Or if looking for something more exotic, golden eagle or turbine bonanza?

I spent a fair amount of time with the LX7 people and the Evolution people at OSH. Both are great airplanes. Same engine used in both (the -135). LX7 is a bit faster and holds more fuel but the cabin is smaller. JMB/Evo said they had two engines available for folks wiling to put down a deposit now. LX7 said it’s about a 2-year wait on the build …. LX7 conversion might be a little cheaper and you don’t have to do any of the build yourself, but if you’ve ever spent any time flying in a Lancair IVPT, it would be challenging for any long trips especially in the back seat. The Evo looks a lot more comfortable (and there’s huge thread on those here - Dave Van Horn’s plane was in the booth at OSH and won an award -beautiful plane!) Each of these options will cost you well north of 1.5 mm (the Evo price starts at 1.7 mm).

Not sure why you’re limiting yourself to 4 seats vs. a 6-seat TP and just filling 4 or 5 of them … most of those 6-seat SETPs can’t fill the seats and the tanks anyway. You can get a used Meridian for less and it’s probably easier to insure. I fly a Piper M600 and it can carry a fair amount more than the Meridian for a much longer distance (and with a much higher VMO), but even it has limits.

Good luck in your search!

Good info comparing the two cabins as I thought they would be close to the same. I did see Dave’s thread and is one of the reasons I started looking at this option. Only reason I say 4 seats is I won’t need any more than that. A carbon fiber turbine scooting around the 300kt mark would be an awesome traveler for my wife and I. No doubt the M600 is a nice machine but I hate the inflated prices on everything certified. I do realize I could buy used and pay inflated prices for parts on certified and probably still be cheaper.