Source: 2023 Q1 Beartracks, Tyler Williams
When I was floating the idea of building our next family airplane, I was told directly and read in the magazines many times, “If you want to fly, buy an airplane. Only build an airplane if you want to be a builder and flying is secondary.” That’s what “they” say. But I’ve never cared much for what they say.
At the time, I had an airplane. A Piper PA-16 Clipper. And she fit the mission at the time. I was a newly minted private pilot with my tailwheel endorsement and this was my first airplane. It had a stick, a tailwheel, just enough room for passengers OR gear for my adventures. With one passenger in the copilot seat, I could cram 2 mountain bikes or surfboards, camping gear and head off to our favorite places. My kids were only 2 and 4 at the time. With my wife in the copilot seat, we could actually cram the kids in the backseat with just enough room for a small picnic cooler and head out for some day trip fun. After many mountain bike and surf trips, camping trips with my son and sunset dates with my wife, it was clear that this passion of mine was something my family loved being a part of. We realized we were quickly going to outgrow the Clipper.
I started searching for the ideal plane that would fit the mission for both my own adventures and our family adventures. It would need to be a rugged, versatile airplane that could get us in and out of small and interesting places, with our outdoor gear and fuel to get us there. I love the pure act of flying and landing in cool places. But my pursuit of general aviation doesn’t stop there. For me, an airplane provides wider access to trails to ride, waves to surf, snow to shred, and nights under the stars. It opens the possibilities of what I can reach in a day or a weekend to pursue these outdoor passions of mine, but the gear has to fit in the back.
After a lengthy search for the ideal certified airplane, what I found was outside of our budget, or didn’t fit the mission. However, around this same time, I happened to run into Jared Yates on a paragliding launch. That day turned into a wonderful aviation story of its own, that I’ll save for another time. He proceeded to tell me about his Bearhawk, the building process and all the great things about the airplane. That lit a fire and I let that burn for a few months while still doing some looking around. Then, news of the Model 5 came out.
This was it. This was the one! I called Mark and discussed it a bit. I asked a few questions about the process and when kits would be available to the public and sat on the idea for a couple of months, until I had the cash to write a check to Mark. I was going to build an airplane. Really I didn’t have a choice. I wanted THIS airplane, so I had to build it. I had just finished a DIY total renovation of our home, so I was full of can-do confidence for a big project. I had also just watched a friend of mine complete a Kitfox and was excited about having the experience of building my own plane. The naysayers around the airport were still pretty loud. “Don’t build an airplane if you want to fly!” In their defense I certainly didn’t fit the profile of someone who had the time to build. I am a full-time dentist in a practice I started from scratch, have two toddlers, am a dedicated husband and enjoy a large handful of outdoor activities. Time is definitely something I make these days, not something I have. Ambition on the other hand, I have plenty of. So, I jumped in. I reserved a Model 5 quick-build kit, with all available options (dual brakes, wingtips, hardware, etc.) and would figure out the rest later. Right?
Well, fast forward 2 ½ years and we are on the home stretch! The fuselage is finished, covered, currently being painted and will be ready for avionics and firewall forward install this summer. I will be closing up the wings this spring and getting those into the paint booth too. The family excitement to fly is growing and I have to constantly remember to keep pushing and not get ahead of myself. The build process was very eye-opening for a first timer. The last couple of years have been filled with challenges, victories, frustrations and life lessons. Sometimes I wonder what I got myself into. But after pushing through those moments and showing up in the garage every week those feelings fade into an extreme sense of accomplishment and fulfillment that only comes when you push yourself beyond your current abilities to do something you’ve never done before. I’m learning so many skills and gaining experience that is bleeding into other parts of my life. I’ve learned to better optimize my time through thoughtful planning, review and adjustment which has resulted in even more quality time with my family while balancing work, play and airplane projects. There have been financial setbacks with the many surprises that real life throws your way. But as a family, we stayed in the game, dedicated to seeing this through and making some sacrifices along the way. We are getting there and enjoying the journey.
My approach to the build has been very similar to my home renovation. There are a few things that I was happy to outsource to save a little time and stay efficient. Instead of making my own seat covers and cushions, I called up Daniel at Sport Aircraft Seats and ended up with a great seat kit that was a breeze to install. They look and feel great. I got my wiring harness built for me by Advanced Avionics to go with the instrument package I bought from them. And the big one was paint. I heard from enough people that did not enjoy the spraying process that I decided that I could outsource that final part of the process too. That turned out to be a great choice. A local pro aircraft builder has a great paint booth and a bunch of experience. I was also able to get this done in stages which allowed me to keep building. I covered my fuselage in Poly-Fiber and finished that through the final Poly-Brush step. Then, I sent it to the booth to be sprayed. That allowed me to get the wings out and finish those while it was gone. In a few weeks I’ll be exchanging the wings for the fuselage and while the wings are in the booth I can get my engine mounted and get the firewall forward rolling.
For an engine, I called up Bob. He was great to chat with about options and very practical about where I could save money by using some new parts and some overhauled parts. He built me a 290hp angle valve Lycoming O-540 with bendix mags. This got me a great engine at a reasonable price. I have not yet been spoiled by fuel injection and e-mags so I won’t know what I’m missing. The Model 5 kit has been going together really well and the factory work on the kit parts is great. Now that we are feeling like we are actually going to finish this thing we have started dreaming about destinations. My son (6 now) keeps asking when we are going to Alaska. So that’s definitely a family trip on the list. We have a long list of destinations near and far where our Bearhawk will take us to camp, ride, surf, paraglide and meet new people. We are also looking forward to getting to know the Bearhawk community as we begin crossing paths with folks, hopefully sharing a few campfire stories.
Taking a somewhat blind leap into aircraft building to get the airplane we want at a price that fits our budget has turned into an amazing life experience. We are still building to fly, not building to build. We are looking forward to the flying chapter of this story, but the journey is providing its own rewards and has been very much worthwhile. Staring at the sky on a calm clear evening is all the motivation I need to get back in the garage and keep progressing. They say, “Don’t take any weeks off and leave the project sitting! You may struggle to get started again.” But sometimes the surf is good and the project needs to wait. Sometimes the mountains call and we need to head up and spend a week riding and unwinding. These are refuel stops for my mind. They keep me going. Besides, I’ve never really cared much for what “they” say.
