Guys,

Got a chance to pick up a nice example of a Kingcat but not sure if I'm buying something 'old' in terms of sport jets.

For those who have a Kingcat AND more modern sport jets like the bandits, flashes, shockwaves etc etc how does it compare? Good points? Bad points??

Cheers,
Mark

Don't own one but watched a test flight of a 7 year old King cat with a wren 160 nice plane more presence in the air then the flash better for older eyes.

I have a bobcat and a bandit. I bought the bobcat because I was told it was near indestructible. I think the kingcat is the same way. You can pretty much do anything maneuver wise you want and its gonna take it. Bandit fly's very well, easier to land IMO. If I could only have one it would be the bobcat though. Nice to know you can beat the hell out of it and not worry about anything falling off in flight ;-)

If you like the plane and the price is right, go for it.

I am the Third owner of one I got at a Great price last year. Still looks like new. Flew it for the first time at Winamac last month. If the price is right Jump on it. Very visible in the air and they all fly great.

It is one of the very few jets I've owned that I wish I hadn't sold. It was the best everyday jet I've ever had.

You have to consider that Bob Violet designed the Kingcat to outlive the typical Central Florida retirement community resident. And some of those guys live very long.

Best all around jet you can own, very tuff,sold my first one after 8 yrs., now into season 3 with number 2.

+1. Great all around airplane. Just sold my venerable bobcat prior to moving across country.
Great price grab it and fly til you need new tires, then fly some more

good points:

- solid airframe that can take plenty of Gs, especially as much of the lifting area is the fuse
- simple engine layout, with no heat, or pipe issues
- breaks apart for transport in virtually any vehicle
- flies well off of grass and pavement with super slow landing speeds
- very predictable in flight

bad points:
- not an "axial" patter flying jet .. because of the engine angle, it will not fly without a lot of down elevator inverted depending on throttle settings.
- while also a positive, potentially a lot of pieces to assemble .. it does go quickly however
- flex plates need reinforcing/doubling for consistent reliable flight from grass.
- does not resemble "conventional" airctaft/jet



I had a king cat years ago, and do have to say i miss it. good solid plane. For sport planes i however like the smaller ones ( bobcats / flashes ) as they are more agile ..



Voy

This.

The Kingcat was one of the first "big" jets that came around. After that, they just got too big, too thirsty, too battery thirsty, too space and transport thirsty...

Mark go for it ...... you know what I think


Plus you have owned most and need to add this one to the list, and a spare for me when you sell it

Its a posh boomerang !!!

A fiend of mine has one, about 8 years by now, he loves it to death, his #1 airplne, he damage it on landing once years ago, I had the opportunity to fix it and to go over it to inspect and redo all the instal also moved the CG about 5 inches back, the batts moved from the front of thr tray to inside the tail cone to get the CGper BVM, needless to say after he flew it for thr first time afer the redo he felt in love once again, he damaged it recently, it is very repairable, he is not ready to let it go, oh well I guest I wil have to wait another eight years.

I asked him that when the time came for him to let it go to concider me buying it in any conditon, the value of the BVM stuff is always retained.

Sometimes my KC starts to camel ride on the runway, what could be the reasons? CG? or landing speed high?

Slow it down. Watch this: https://vimeo.com/19371854
And this: https://vimeo.com/19407482
You can slow them down to a crawl.
Here's my new one with Ultra Bandit under wing tanks.

Most of the wow factor of the Kingcat has disappeared with increase in the sales of the smaller Chinese knock-offs.

The average joe will think it's a big Falcon 120. I would'nt buy one to impress anyone other than yourself.

A friend I'm helping to learn to fly jets has bought one.

John

I think it's in the top five jets of all time. It's larger so it's easy to see. It flies on a variety of engines from 120-180 and they're exposed so easy to work on. It sits on its gear during assembly at the field. It flies true and straight. It's rugged and stands up to day to day hangar rash. Top quality BVM plane with easy access to parts, great instructions and support. Just a very good, top quality jet.

Harley,

Do you know if BVM is going to offer the Kingcat in the new orange hi-viz scheme they've got on the bobcat?

Parker

Hands down my favorite jet ever.. I was the second owner of Terry's jet.. I stupidly sold it.. but I had another in the bullpen

Wow, this thread is two years old. I wonder if Mark is still deciding on buying the KingCat

I don't know for sure, but I will check with BV.

Like everyone else has said "wish I would not have sold my last one" Scotty

Scotty, you sold the one I sold you! LOL!

I sold three of them-And what I understand is that they all got hammered into little tiny king cat pieces-But Raffe-Yours was the best flying one of the bunch-Scotty