jbertch

I think I should first start off by asking how many people have bought a turbine engine before they even had a plane for it? I'm tossing around the idea of doing just that for several reasons.

- One being I would like to know as much about the engines first hand.

- In case I come across a used turbine deal that is too good to pass up.

- I may discover after a couple bench runs turbines are not for me.

Would anyone recommend going this route? My main concern for doing this would be if turbines are anything like computers; every year new technologies arise making the previous models obsolete. If that were the case then perhaps it would be best to wait until I was ready to use it. Also, resale value may come into play?

Also, I would mainly be interested in the 12 lb class, and obviously would like to jump into the jet arena spending as little money as possible, perhaps around $1200 - $1400 for the engine.

After researching and reading these boards I've concluded my only real options would be the following:

- Building the Wren 54 kit. I've heard this is a very easy turbine to put together, even for a complete newbie, runs great and sounds reliable.

- Or purchasing a pre owned turbine, in particular a Ram 500. The Rams seem to be the most available, but I'm wondering if this is a bad thing. However, benefits to this is usually everything needed to run less the fuel is supplied. I'm not familiar with the different models, such as F, P, R, X. Are there any particular models to avoid, and what are the advantages of each? Or keep my eyes open for a Simjet?

- Are there any other options for my price range? I've heard of a couple overseas companies such as behotec.de and modellturbine.de but assume there engines exceed my budget.

I think that's all my questions for now. Thanks.