Panther Sport Aircraft Forums

Sale is Pending!

Dirty greasy core O-320 here I come

Thanks for your thoughts. Sound plan with multiple benefits.

Well the short answer is More Power!!

The long answer is that what drew me to the Corvair was the educational value in building it myself. I've come to terms with the reality that it's going to take me longer to build my airframe due to all of life's interruptions. At this stage I can finish my engine at a college this year and have it sit on the shelf for 5+ years, or I can sell these parts to someone with a more urgent timeline. With the proceeds I plan to purchase a timed out O-320, and overhaul it myself under the supervision of a friendly A&P, and log the time towards earning my own A&P cert someday. So while it will likely end up costing much more, with the longer timeframe I see this option as having the better value, from both a monetary and educational standpoint.

Nikolas, curious as to why you have moved to the Lycoming as the power plant?

I have flown behind both the Lycoming and the corvair powered models. Both engines are a good match for the Panther and can highly recommend both depending on your mission for the machine. The corvair is a strong smooth running engine that provides spirited performance at a low cost of operation. My mission was more specific in that I would be operating in a world of high powered RV's sporting 180 HP engines; I needed the HP.

Having been privileged to watch Will and Dan do their magic with the corvair engine and flying behind it, I can say, if you are prone to put the corvair engine on a Panther you will not be disappointed. And this appears to be an excellent deal.

Hello Everyone,

Last September I pulled apart my core and sent the parts on their way after CC#34 to SPA for re-manufacturing to 3.0L spec. They've now been completed, and are ready to assemble into a really nice engine.

However, in the mean time, I've decided to go with a Lycoming for my Panther. It's a bit ironic as I came across the Panther design while figuring out what to put a Corvair on. I'm bummed I won't be actively participating in the Corvair movement, as its a really great group of people. But 150hp is just too tempting.

Dan and Rachel have kindly allowed me to post these parts on here, and have agreed to ship them directly to the buyer. The package includes:

• 5th Bearing crankshaft service w/ new gear
• 5th Bearing kit
• Cylinder Head Recon for 3.0L
• Corvair Case 3.0L Machining
• Corvair Case Cleaning Service
• Shipping from SPA (depending on where the buyer is shipping costs might be in excess of what SPA quoted me)

If you were starting from scratch, you'd have to buy a core, pay to ship the parts to SPA, wait for them to be completed, and pay $5005 for these services. You'd also run the risk of bad core parts, or additional repairs required (such as welding on the case, which SPA is currently doing, but I won't be passing that cost on to the buyer.)

For $5000 I'll release the parts to be sent to the buyer. For an additional $100 I'll wrap up the remaining core parts (cam, rear case, valve covers, oil pickup, pushrod tubes, etc) and send them to the buyer.

It's nearly Summer. If you want to run a 3.0L Corvair at a college in 2016, this would be a great start.