Buying a Homebuilt

[Bill Greenwood]

There are many quality homebuilts, just as there are some owner built houses that are not just shacks.
BUT, there is also a lot of junk out there, some of it cheap and corner cutting and some of it actually dangerous. I an not an expert, but have bought one homebuilt and been a partner in building one.
First I'd look at what kind of plane you want. Buying the finest Super Cub type is not going to be satisfying if what you want it to go on long trips and fly ifr with passengers. Likewise the coolest Lancair with all the glass cockpit doddads is not much use if you want to fly into back country strips.So find out what you want or at least what type. If you want overall all around , there are a lot of good Vans R V s out there.
Next, do you have enough money to buy a top of the line plane, as far as quality? If you are buying a homebuilt mostly to save money , you may be giving up a lot if you get the bottom end of the scale.
And if you buy some half done project, thinking you will save money; then it is kind of like buying stock in a company that doesn't even have a product; only ideas and promotion. Maybe that company will be the next Starbucks or something, but maybe it is making the next Edsel and is a long ways from being a real useful, fun , safe , reliable , airplane.
And homebuilding leaves an opening for some real talkers like Jim Bede who can talk the skin off a rattlesnake, but the end product isn't always there.
I'd buy a flying, well built airplane, not a pipe dream, and from someone who has built some good ones and who has proven them by flying them. Go take a look at what is on display and even for sale at EAA Oskosh.