Oshkosh 365 - Discussion Boards

Rutan Defiant 74

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#1 Posted: 2/8/2010 14:47:51

Hi all,

A friend of mine has decided to buy a Burt Rutan design Defiant 74. I think I can get some help here since there are not too much information around, at least I couldnt fnd at a glance. Apprichiated if you help on some questions..

Information: Is there any on line or other form of information available?

Engine: It is desgned with 2x Lycoming 160HP. Since there are 180HP injection engines are available, should we consider to use that? Do you believe there is a significant difference? Even is there any other alternative to Lycoming since there are now many new technology engine producers?

Man hour: Do you have any idea about the overall manhour neede to complete the aircraft from scratch? Is it a simple aircraft or not to build?

End of the Line: Do you know any spesific reason that the aircraft is not popular for this moment?

Plans: Do you know if there is any plce that plans or parts will be availabe?

Cost: Do you have any idea about how much the plans should cost? Also the finished AC?

Thanks in advance,

Gokhan Koyuncu

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutan_Defiant

Matt Kwiatkowski

1
Post

#2 Posted: 2/17/2010 17:24:47

Gokhan,

There is an alive an well yahoo group of Defiant Builders and Flyers. I actually have my Project for sale!
Link is here:
http://lisasimpson.homelinux.com/gallery2/v/defiant/for_sale/

Yahoo group is here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/defiantflyers/

Yes, 180 HP engines have been used and are preferred. I was fitting TCM IO360 210+ HP engines And can be included with sale.
4500+ Man hours can be required...it's a HUGE undertaking and builders take between 2 -20 years to finish! The latest Defiant off the production line was being built for 22 years.
It's not popular because of the time investment to build. People can get the same people capacity out of a 4 seater velocity and not have to worry about overhauling two engines in the future. However the Defiant is an Excellent IFR platform where you want twin reliability, not sure I'd take a velocity over a large body of water.
Plans are hard to come by, but can be found if you look hard enough....my project comes with plans! Parts must all be scratch built, there are a very limited amount of prefab parts still available. PLans run about $1600 if you can find them.
Finished cost depends on a ton of moving factors, engine TBO's and size, instrumentation, etc. You could invest anywhere from $60 to 100K depending on the configuration.
Same goes for final purchase price, depending on config and TBO on engines, when a Defiant comes up on the market it varies.

-Matt Kwiatkowski (LongEZ N213MK) A+P
Defiant Project for sale!