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Homemade always beats store bought!

AV8ER

Well Known Member
I had an interesting experience last week while cruising VFR on top, north of Los Angeles at 11,500’, near gross weight, and on a converging path with a same direction 2022 SR22T G6 Cirrus who was cruising at 11,000’.

Scroll to bottom and find clip. Starts at 24.13

The Cirrus Driver asks LA Center what the RV is burning at that speed.

I respond directly to the Cirrus Driver’s question on frequency - “Eleven and a half, how’s the Cirrus?”

LA Center Controller then asks me - “Seven Zulu Kilo, the Cirrus above you wants to know what’s your fuel burn at that speed”

I respond - “Eleven and a half, how’s the Cirrus?”

Cirrus Driver - “Thank you”

LA Center Controller - “For my education what’s the Cirrus burning?”

Cirrus Driver – “We are burning 17.2. I thought the RV gets down to uh 7 an hour”

LA Center Controller - “Oh, it’s an RV-10”

I was thinking, you can’t be cirrus? I have high expectations for our lovingly crafted, normally aspirated, 260 horse power RV-10 but burning only 7 gallons an hour while moving (4) seats 184 kts over the terra firma below, well that’s something Van himself hasn’t been able to do! Hahaha

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An SR-22T needs to go much higher in order to get into its most efficient cruising regime, needs to exploit that turbo for what it was put on there for.

But still, I'm very pleased with how well the wing on the -10 performs.
 
Passing the Spam Cans.....

I had an interesting experience last week while cruising VFR on top, north of Los Angeles at 11,500’, near gross weight, and on a converging path with a same direction 2022 SR22T G6 Cirrus who was cruising at 11,000’....

Great story! Puts on an RV Grin of another type!;)

When I first started flying SuzieQ, a 160hp RV-4, I was amazed with the overall performance but also amazed with the cruising speed. Yes, I was used to a J-3 Cub but have flown a Howard DGA, Rangemaster and Navion L-17. But sitting in the front seat of my new airplane and watching the land below me SCOOT by was thrilling. Then I realized the airplanes I could not only stay up with but PASS! Mooneys and Bonanzas! With the gear UP! Cessnas were like stationary pylons but I soon found a wry pleasure in sneaking up on a "fast" airplane and slowly passing it, at a distance, of course. All the while sipping 7gph! And that was at economy cruise of 152kts! Could I do 170kts? Yes but at 10gph. Why bother? Unless I needed to pass a faster airplane. ;) I will not challenge a Cirrus but that is another topic.....:p

The RV series are some amazing airplanes for multiple reasons! And it is good to know but not surprising that the RV-10 proudly carries on that tradition! Total Performance!

"How's it feel to be the fastest plane in the sky? You were spanking two Cirrus planes, a Mooney, and another plane. I took screen shots" - Quote from the best wife in the world. LOVED that quote!
 
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I must admit that, when I want to carry more than one passenger, I "cheat" on the RVs and rent an SR20 :eek:

It's only 200-215hp, so, the speed and useful load are quite a bit less than an RV-10 (or an SR22). However, at ~10,000 feet, I can do 155 KTAS and only burn about 11gph. That's decent... although, yes, as you can see here and here, an RV-10 can get you more speed on 11gph.

(That seems to be the sweet spot for the SR20; You can go a little faster but only if you burn a lot more fuel. Max range means powering down to 9gph which gets you just below 140 KTAS... but, let's be honest, I don't have the patience for that, especially given that I rent it wet).

The Cirrus is no RV (especially when you look at the runway requirements) but it's not bad for a roomy four-seater. Once you get used to the weird angled side-stick, the handling is more RV-like than Cessna-like, i.e. it's pretty fun to fly. But, the most important thing about it: It doesn't say "Experimental" on it, which means that I can rent it for only the few times per year when I need more than two seats.

(MOSAIC can't come quickly enough. I'd totally rent an RV-10 instead if I could!)
 
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Back when flying the RV-8, I had the opportunity to overtake a twin. I was amazed at how fast the -8 was while burning only 8 gph...unreal ! My passenger at the time was tickled to witness this speed advantage the RV had and kept saying that he couldn't believe I built this machine in the garage. Van has designed some great all-around machines!
 
Cookies?

When I saw the thread title, I thought you were talking about cookies!
 
I must admit that, when I want to carry more than one passenger, I "cheat" on the RVs and rent an SR20 :eek:

It's only 200-215hp, so, the speed and useful load are quite a bit less than an RV-10 (or an SR22). However, at ~10,000 feet, I can do 155 KTAS and only burn about 11gph. That's decent... although, yes, as you can see here and here, an RV-10 can get you more speed on 11gph.

(That seems to be the sweet spot for the SR20; You can go a little faster but only if you burn a lot more fuel. Max range means powering down to 9gph which gets you just below 140 KTAS... but, let's be honest, I don't have the patience for that, especially given that I rent it wet).

The Cirrus is no RV (especially when you look at the runway requirements) but it's not bad for a roomy four-seater. Once you get used to the weird angled side-stick, the handling is more RV-like than Cessna-like, i.e. it's pretty fun to fly. But, the most important thing about it: It doesn't say "Experimental" on it, which means that I can rent it for only the few times per year when I need more than two seats.

(MOSAIC can't come quickly enough. I'd totally rent an RV-10 instead if I could!)

Yeah, but it's still a Cirrus.

Your momma raised you better than that... :D
 
Renting a LIFESTYLE

Keep in mind - When you're renting an SR-20, you're not getting an airplane. You're getting a LIFESTYLE.
 
The Cirrus is no RV (especially when you look at the runway requirements) but it's not bad for a roomy four-seater.

I think it's a bit optimistic to call it a 4 seater; I've yet to see one where you could fill the tanks and still put 4 adults on board (unlike the -10; I can fill the tanks and fill the seats). Of course the load difference is due to the parachute. How you feel about that is a matter of opinion.
 
I'm not here to defend a Cirrus but did want to play devils advocate for a minute.....

Years ago when we had covid (remember that?) there was a webinar called "Which RV is Right for Me?" and since I'm not building an RV (I'm more a high wing taildragger guy, but still find a lot of value with the engine/ignition/panel conversations) I decided to listen in and see what people really liked about the design.

At the end of webinar there was a Q+A section and someone asked the question, "Which RV can I put my golf clubs in?" After a little bit of thinking about it, the answer came back probably the the RV-10.

A year later I decided to fly my current airplane to OSH and while I was there I bumped into an RV builder/pilot who went on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on about how fast his RV was. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I packed my wife, my stand up 5 man tent, an inflatable mattress, a weeks worth of clothing for both of us, towels, soap, tp, camera gear, laptop, ipad, ham radio gear, a cooler full of Bohdizafa, and a small portable BBQ grill in my lowly C170A.

Lately I've been packing around 70lbs of little electric scooters and they are a hoot. They go 16-17mph and have a 15 mile range. I can land in some little strip around the Oregon coast and zoom to the restaurant/town and back. It's pretty great. The only RV that would do that for me is the 15 as the gear on the 10 is too fragile for where I want to go.

Anyway, thanks for the education, and carry on, just providing a different view point.
 
SR-20 Rents for? (Wet)

A few years ago, I looked into renting a -20 and the FBO wanted almost 2k for manuals and documentation. I decided to wait. Nice airframe...Value marginal.
 
I'm not here to defend a Cirrus but did want to play devils advocate for a minute.....

Years ago when we had covid (remember that?) there was a webinar called "Which RV is Right for Me?" and since I'm not building an RV (I'm more a high wing taildragger guy, but still find a lot of value with the engine/ignition/panel conversations) I decided to listen in and see what people really liked about the design.

At the end of webinar there was a Q+A section and someone asked the question, "Which RV can I put my golf clubs in?" After a little bit of thinking about it, the answer came back probably the the RV-10.

A year later I decided to fly my current airplane to OSH and while I was there I bumped into an RV builder/pilot who went on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on about how fast his RV was. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I packed my wife, my stand up 5 man tent, an inflatable mattress, a weeks worth of clothing for both of us, towels, soap, tp, camera gear, laptop, ipad, ham radio gear, a cooler full of Bohdizafa, and a small portable BBQ grill in my lowly C170A.

Lately I've been packing around 70lbs of little electric scooters and they are a hoot. They go 16-17mph and have a 15 mile range. I can land in some little strip around the Oregon coast and zoom to the restaurant/town and back. It's pretty great. The only RV that would do that for me is the 15 as the gear on the 10 is too fragile for where I want to go.

Anyway, thanks for the education, and carry on, just providing a different view point.

Yep! And you did all that at Vfe of my RV6A......:D THAT is why we have so many choices of aircraft, and why The RV15 will be such a hit.
 
Yep! And you did all that at Vfe of my RV6A......:D THAT is why we have so many choices of aircraft, and why The RV15 will be such a hit.

Agreed, choices are good. The 15 looks good, though I wish it was an actual 4 seater. I occasionally take a 3rd or 4th passenger or remove the rear seat and pack it full of gear.
 
I The only RV that would do that for me is the 15 as the gear on the 10 is too fragile for where I want to go.
.

Yup, You sound like the target customer for the RV-15. As capable as the C-170, but better climb, faster cruise, energy-absorbing gear, easier loading through the BIG doors, maybe even slower landing.
 
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