Hello All,
This may have been asked before but with the search not working I get no hits on the Xenos and none even on the Sonex. Hope this gets fixed eventualy.
Being 6'3" tall I never gave the Sonex line of aircraft any thought as I know I would never fit. I always liked the Moni and the idea around the Xenos as well. I test fit myself in Pete Buck's Xenos years ago at Tehachapi and it was doable as a single seater, but add another person and no way. Now with the addition of the B version and even B model upgrades to gen 1 aircraft the Xenos looks possible for taller pilots. I am not looking for Carat or even Grob 109b performance, just something as a midrange fun soaring machine that can also double as a 2 person fun airplane. Heck to this day my favorite sailplane is a Blanik L-13 so if its even 75% as good as a Blanik it would meet my needs. Also with the addition of the turbo to the aerovee engine it could do well up high as an XC machine. However I hear mixed reviews on the normally aspirated Aerovee and unsure if the added complexity of the turbo would make it even worse.
Also with the addition of the B mod upgrade it could be possible to buy a used Gen 1 flying Xenos and make the mods for much less than a full kit and finish sooner. There are 2 on Barnstormers now.
I see myself being in a position to buy an airplane this spring and I am considering something along these lines. Buy a straight tail C172 or 175 and use that to build hours and fly for a 3 person (myself, wife and baby) semi local XC and camping airplane, and also buy a kit that I build over 3 or 4 years that fits an entirely different role than the C172/C175 all for 75% the cost of a used Pipestrel Sinus or less. Are there any Xenos like options out there in a similar price range I am not considering? Used Grob 109?
Thoughts?
This may have been asked before but with the search not working I get no hits on the Xenos and none even on the Sonex. Hope this gets fixed eventualy.
Being 6'3" tall I never gave the Sonex line of aircraft any thought as I know I would never fit. I always liked the Moni and the idea around the Xenos as well. I test fit myself in Pete Buck's Xenos years ago at Tehachapi and it was doable as a single seater, but add another person and no way. Now with the addition of the B version and even B model upgrades to gen 1 aircraft the Xenos looks possible for taller pilots. I am not looking for Carat or even Grob 109b performance, just something as a midrange fun soaring machine that can also double as a 2 person fun airplane. Heck to this day my favorite sailplane is a Blanik L-13 so if its even 75% as good as a Blanik it would meet my needs. Also with the addition of the turbo to the aerovee engine it could do well up high as an XC machine. However I hear mixed reviews on the normally aspirated Aerovee and unsure if the added complexity of the turbo would make it even worse.
Also with the addition of the B mod upgrade it could be possible to buy a used Gen 1 flying Xenos and make the mods for much less than a full kit and finish sooner. There are 2 on Barnstormers now.
I see myself being in a position to buy an airplane this spring and I am considering something along these lines. Buy a straight tail C172 or 175 and use that to build hours and fly for a 3 person (myself, wife and baby) semi local XC and camping airplane, and also buy a kit that I build over 3 or 4 years that fits an entirely different role than the C172/C175 all for 75% the cost of a used Pipestrel Sinus or less. Are there any Xenos like options out there in a similar price range I am not considering? Used Grob 109?
Thoughts?
