Badland Part 103 Pilots and Builders Forum

I'm not new to aviation as I retired from one of the big four airlines (not a pilot) in January of '06. After 7 years my bride of 46years and I left north TX for the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas. It's where I took up I took up radio controlled flight. This is a photo of my hangar.
https://1drv.ms/i/s!Amsx5YztZ9eugq1ebHu ... g?e=IscJb9
It's a bit of a mess and the opposite 'hangar' wall is covered with planes as well. As I'm not getting any younger, I started toying with the idea of a project I could work on my my son's who are still in north TX - the Dallas/Ft Worth metroplex. We'd do the build at our summer place in Lake Texoma.
At first, scratch build caught my attention. Then it was kit build and the 'itch' has been somewhat scratched. I'm still going through the decision process but there are several possibilities. I've become familiar with three; The AffordAPlane, Aerolite 103, and the Badlands suite of kit possibilities.
There are lots of possibilities but there are a few must haves. 1. FCC Part 103 compliant 2. Foldable wings (I'm thinking of a portable hangar) 3. Learn to fly. My plan at this time is lessons toward licensing at least getting far enough to pass the written portion and actual flight experience with demonstrated proficiency as being ready to solo. I am not adverse to used as long as it satisfies the 'big 3',
There you have it. Be gentle with me and wish me luck.

First, welcome to the forum! Nice to have you here. I really like your current hangar. Where in Vegas do you fly them? (And have you landed one on the F1 start/finish line yet? haha)

I wish I had that kind of space for my RC planes, but sadly (well, not really) my garage is mostly occupied by my Badland.

I bought the Badland for the same reason you are showing interest - it is Part 103 compliant, and it has folding wings. I also leaned toward the Badland over the other two options because it looks (and likely behaves) more like a "real" plane than your other choices.

I don't have much experience with your other two options, but I do know that neither is intended to have folding wings. You might be able to modify either to fold, but it's not a project I personally would want to tackle as a first time builder. Also, it's very difficult to "make weight" with the A-plane. You really have to stick precisely to the plans and make a very light engine choice. For this reason adding folding wings would not be an option. I can't speak to the Aerolite in that regard.

Welcome to the forum!

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm I'm not new to aviation as I retired from one of the big four airlines (not a pilot) in January of '06. After 7 years my bride of 46years and I left north TX for the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas. It's where I took up I took up radio controlled flight.

Now that's funny, only because in 2001 I moved from Las Vegas to the Dallas area (Rowlett) and have been here since. I was also stationed at Nellis AFB from 85 to 89, so very familiar with LV. One thing I certainly missed was Mt. Charleston. Heading up into the mountains during the summer was such a relief from the heat that we don't have here in Dallas. Winter was fun too, seeing the snow. I certainly hope that the states get their act together with Lake Mead. I used to rent a boat from the MWR on base and head out for a weekend camping trip on the lake, loved it.

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm This is a photo of my hangar.
https://1drv.ms/i/s!Amsx5YztZ9eugq1ebHu ... g?e=IscJb9
It's a bit of a mess and the opposite 'hangar' wall is covered with planes as well.

Very nice.

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm As I'm not getting any younger, I started toying with the idea of a project I could work on my my son's who are still in north TX - the Dallas/Ft Worth metroplex. We'd do the build at our summer place in Lake Texoma.

Now that sounds like a good plan, and I'm in the same boat of not getting any younger. In fact my house goes on the market tomorrow (if the real estate gods allow), and once sold I'll be moving to just south west of Jacksonville, living with family back there until I find a place of my own.

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm At first, scratch build caught my attention. Then it was kit build and the 'itch' has been somewhat scratched. I'm still going through the decision process but there are several possibilities. I've become familiar with three; The AffordAPlane, Aerolite 103, and the Badlands suite of kit possibilities.
There are lots of possibilities but there are a few must haves.

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm 1. FCC Part 103 compliant

Yes indeed. We started this forum because we saw the growth in ultralights and of course are fans for Badland Aircraft, but also of all other ultralights. Though some look at the Part 103 regulations as restrictions, we see them as providing a lot of freedom. Part 103 does this very nicely and keeps the costs way down compared to government registered aircraft.

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm 2. Foldable wings (I'm thinking of a portable hangar)

Hanger space is so expensive that folding wings just makes sense to most of us. Plus, many years ago I had an RV pad poured next to my house. I have a 32' travel trailer, and it occurred to me that those who park their RV's in storage (meaning out of sight), rarely use those RV's. The out of sight, out of mind comes in to play. Since you've been around airports in the flight industry, I'm sure you've seen those rotting aircraft at some airfields. What a shame. So, saving on hanger storage as well as a reminder that a plane is sitting outside calling for a flight, all good in my book.

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm 3. Learn to fly. My plan at this time is lessons toward licensing at least getting far enough to pass the written portion and actual flight experience with demonstrated proficiency as being ready to solo.

Excellent plan! One of the sore spots in ultralights is the people saying "hey, no license required", but forgetting, that doesn't mean that qualified training isn't needed. After all, it's still your life hanging on a wing and a prayer.

acemakr wrote: ↑Wed Oct 25, 2023 4:29 pm I am not adverse to used as long as it satisfies the 'big 3',
There you have it. Be gentle with me and wish me luck.

And the same back, be patient with us too. We certainly don't know it all, we do get into some good discussions with differing opinions, and with what you've described it sound like we're all pretty much in agreement with what attracted us to ultralights as well.

Not knowing much about the Affordaplane or the Areolite 103 I can only tell you as Peer mentioned, the Affordaplane must be built to very exact specifications because it hints on going over weight fairly easily. Inexpensive? Yes, most certainly. From what I've seen on YouTube, it also appears to be forgiving in flight. Useful load is most likely a bit of a problem with it, but I can't say for sure on that. The Aerolite 103, from what I understand is also a very forgiving aircraft, and a little more capable than the Affordaplane. However, the Aerolite 103 I would believe is going to be much more expensive. Because it is a very popular ultralight, parts and modifications have been made by many owners, so the online support is most likely very good. The Badland, is going to be the most expensive of the three, but as Peer pointed out (and we know this to be factual from current Badland owners) - it behaves exactly like a regular LSA/GA aircraft. I'm not sure if you saw the entry post on the main forum page from one of our members - "How do we feel about our Badland Aircraft? Best said by one of our members - Barry (AKA: broughtonkicks) "The Badland Aircraft is not an ultralight trying to be an airplane, it is an airplane that happens to meet the Part 103 criteria."

No matter what you choose, we're here to help answer questions as best we can. Peer is getting close to taxi testing now that he's got a new engine installed and looking really good. My Badland is in production and I hope to have it by the first or second month of next year. Like Peer, I'll be building my Badland from a kit. You'll hear the name Chris mentioned a lot on this forum. Chris Deule is the owner of Badland Aircraft.

Welcome again to the forum. Please feel free to ask any questions, and good luck on whatever direction you decide to go.

Sincerely,
Todd Crenshaw

Welcome. Good group here. Lots of info and help.

I also looked long and hard at the Affordaplane before deciding on the Badland F-3. I chose it because of the folding wing and tge fact that it really looks like an airplane.

Check out the entire build sequence on YouTube (I think it's 42 videos) under HomebuiltHelp.Com Affordaplane. Step by step. Very well done by John Coke.

I've tried to document my F-3 build on this site and it too may be of help.

Working the kinks out of my Polini 303 and starting the Oratex covering process. It's been just over a year on the project.

My 4th A/C project and I like it the best.

Good luck.

One of the things I'm sure you're taking into consideration is that with the Affordaplane, you and your sons may be able to build two or even three planes at fairly low cost and all fly together. Though, the folding or at least removable wing would most likely be out of the question. Kurt points to Jon's YouTube video build of the Affordaplane, and it is an excellent series. Highly recommend watching it for any build as Jon covers typical issues that can affect just about any build. The F1 and F2 series Badland Aircraft are also fairly inexpensive, and have the folding wings, offering the possibility of flying together. I think no matter what you eventually decide upon, your desire to build an ultralight with you sons is exceptional. Like you mentioned, we're not getting any younger and the build and flying time you and your boys will carry for the rest of all your lives.

Todd

Not to throw a damper on the Badland for your projects, but the only drawback I see is that Chris' is basically a one-man shop (hence the real quality if his kits), so the lead-time on the F- series kits is considerable.

My F-3 is serial number 15. The kit took about 9-10 months from order date to pickup in September 2022. Order early.

Ksatter, don't forget your oratex issues!

Greetings Acemakr! As the apparent pot-stirer on the forum, I wish you good luck! Get your order and deposit in, post haste, or your youth may well have fled entirely by the time your order is filled. Chris is in quite a pickle, with a need to both expand, and yet have his name on everything.

Edited for spling arrers