Homebuilt, low wing, 5+2 place, mazda powered twin

[cub builder]

dougbush,
I want to say thank you for your support. What you mentioned is exactly what our family is facing right now. My dad has a 2 place Grumman AA1B, and is looking into getting a PA-32, but given that our family is 7, and we carry a ton of bags, it would be super impractical. you are probably right about the jump seats, but hey, the space is there, why not put stuff there. but thank you so much for all of the support.

thanks,
Christian L.

OK, so this may not be your dream, but why not buy the PA-32 and keep the AA-1B. On the rare occasion the whole family goes, fly both planes. Your dad flies one, and you the other. My bet would be that the AA-1B will see 3 times the annual usage vs the PA-32 because the vast majority of the time, you will find yourself flying either alone, or with one passenger, and the low cost of operating the AA1B will win out every time. Then when you're ready to build, build yourself a nice 2 place design that will outperform the PA-32. There are a lot of designs out there that will do so, are practical to build, and allow you to get real hands on experience building before you leap off into designing your own plane. I know this requires a lot more long term planning, but would be a more practical, and likely much less expensive approach to accomplishing your goals.

Whatever your decision, I'm glad to see you on here, thinking forward, and asking questions.

-Cub Builder

[AMDguy]

OK, so this may not be your dream, but why not buy the PA-32 and keep the AA-1B. On the rare occasion the whole family goes, fly both planes. Your dad flies one, and you the other. My bet would be that the AA-1B will see 3 times the annual usage vs the PA-32 because the vast majority of the time, you will find yourself flying either alone, or with one passenger, and the low cost of operating the AA1B will win out every time. Then when you're ready to build, build yourself a nice 2 place design that will outperform the PA-32. There are a lot of designs out there that will do so, are practical to build, and allow you to get real hands on experience building before you leap off into designing your own plane. I know this requires a lot more long term planning, but would be a more practical, and likely much less expensive approach to accomplishing your goals.

Whatever your decision, I'm glad to see you on here, thinking forward, and asking questions.

-Cub Builder

Cub Builder,
That is actually a really good idea, but the problem is that we cannot keep both. The AA1B's engine is at TBO, and we cannot afford to do it yet (and the plane has not been in the air for over 8 years). I still want to stick to my idea of building a twin, because while it is double the cost, double the work, and double the maintenance, I really want to do something more unique than a fast single. There are plenty of Lancairs out there, but there are not very many homebuilt twins. I am going to continue to pursue this project, but I really appreciate your advice and opinion.

thanks,
Christian Longobardi