Volmer amphibian plans wanted

pbharcourt · Post by **pbharcourt** » Sat Mar 15, 2008 2:48 pm

HI, Does anybody have some Volmer VJ22 plans, part built/restoration project for sale?
In fact anything, just fancy landing on the water for a change!

pbharcourt · Post by **pbharcourt** » Fri Mar 21, 2008 11:26 pm

OK, So nobody has any plans in the UK!
How about an unfinished amphibian project?

ivanmanley · Post by **ivanmanley** » Sat Mar 22, 2008 4:47 am

I doubt you'll have much luck as there can't be very many about (which a great shame). Good luck though and do go ahead. I'd love to see a few more amphibians about

pbharcourt · Post by **pbharcourt** » Sat Mar 22, 2008 11:01 am

I cant understand the lack of amphibians in the UK considering we are an island!

ivanmanley · Post by **ivanmanley** » Sat Mar 22, 2008 11:13 am

Plenty of water yes, but plenty of people and organisations out to make sure you don't use it

God forbid you disturb a ruddy duck or two!

pbharcourt · Post by **pbharcourt** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 9:55 am

Well lookout ducks! because I am considering buying a set of Volmer plans from the US

Lots of updates available from the thriving US Volmer club so should be able to improve on the originals performance!

macconnacher · Post by **macconnacher** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 5:10 pm

Try below for the Volmer

http://www.volmeraircraft.com/Plansandinfo.html

Both the Anderson Kingfisher and the Periera Osprey are approved: click on Engineering and the Specification sheets to find amphibians.

pbharcourt · Post by **pbharcourt** » Wed Mar 26, 2008 1:31 pm

Thank you Stuart, I like the look of the Anderson but the performance of the Osprey!

John Brady · Post by **John Brady** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 10:20 pm

My chum Dave Fletcher has a Volmer Sportsman. He now lives on Vancouver Island. He is an aviation buff and I am sure he would help if you have any questions. His website is:

http://mars.ark.com/~dcf/volmer2.html

and this has links to the Volmer club of america

John

John Brady · Post by **John Brady** » Tue Apr 01, 2008 10:26 pm

Oh and I remember Dave telling me there was a Volmer in the UK but he thought it was not in service. G-INFO says it is G-BAHP, on a PFA permit but it appears to be out of permit in 93. So there may be something around after all. See G-INFO for owner contact details

John

pbharcourt · Post by **pbharcourt** » Fri Apr 04, 2008 9:41 am

Hi John, Thanks for that, I traced BAHP to a small airfield in scotland, it apparently is on a long term re-build following a wheels down water landing!
It would be great if I could purchase BAHP as a starting point but cant find a contact for the owner.
There was another british registered one but I think it went to Norway.

gasax · Post by **gasax** » Tue Apr 15, 2008 11:15 am

The Volmer is at Aboyne under rebuild. reputedly it was like all volmers a bit of a dog in terms of getting off the water. I can tell you from experience it is heavy!

There was a Kingfisher advertised at Cumbernauld - again needing work. You should be able to find the owneer via GINFO. Again they are not a ball of fire in terms of getting off the water. Equally the Osprey's have issues on water - not helped by its high approach speed. My understanding is that they do not operate off water much.

MDF1 · Post by **MDF1** » Thu Aug 07, 2008 11:42 am

I bought some plans a few years back, they were generally of good quality and clarity. However, I sold them as on investigation there turned out to be very few freshwater places to fly in Southern England! A lake in Sussex and possibly the Medway were about the only locations that were viable.

In terms of building, the Volmer club have a good network for advice and mods. The wings can be bought 'second hand' from ACA for a reasonable price and there are a number of engine options. Water handling sounds better than most but still has it's problems, especially getting 'on the step'!

Had traced both the UK ones, one was described as 'such poor condition it would be easier to start again' and the other was no longer a complete airframe if I remember correctly.

Hope this helps?

pbharcourt · Post by **pbharcourt** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 6:07 pm

Thanks, I have been offered a part built volmer from Canada that I am considering, it has Spencer Aircar Jr wings instead of the usual Aeronica wings would this be a problem in the UK?
I also have the option of a Lycoming O-235 engine with about another 500 hours left for about £2500 is this reasonable?
As to fresh water landing I think I would probably be using the Solent area for water landings and storing at a local farm strip.
I have tried to contact the Solent strut via e-mail without success are they still in existence?

Brian Hope · Post by **Brian Hope** » Mon Sep 08, 2008 8:31 pm

Hi pb, please check what approval you might need to go through with LAA Engineering if the Volmer you are looking at has different wings to those fitted to previous UK examples. If the price is right it might make sense to sell the Spencer wings and buy a secondhand pair of Aeronca wings.
An O-235 for 2500 sounds OK provided it is in reasonable working condition. If it has sat around a while without having been inhibited then it is likely to have corosion issues which could be costly to put right. Best bet is if it is still in use and being swapped by the owner for a bigger/lower houred engine, then you can see and hear it running. Buying secondhand is always a gamble, reduce the risk by taking along an inspector or knowledgeable expert with you to give it a good look over before parting with any money.
Solent Strut Co-Ordinator: David Skertchly, phone:01329 847 952