Opinions of a Fisher FP-303?

[lancie00]

I found a Fisher FP-303 with a 277 Rotax near me for a good price. I have no experience with these but they sure look fun. Does anyone have any opinions or comments on these? I haven't seen it in person yet but it appears to be in good condition and the current owner still flies it regularly.

Thanks

 

[zaitcev]

How much is a good price? I'm curious, because I'm selling a Carlson with HKS 4-stroke for $10,000 right now, which is like a thousand times better airplane that a Fisher 303 with a 277 1-cylinder 2-stroke. Although, you can plausibly claim that the 303 is a Part 103 ultralight, which is a big advantage if you were denied a medical.

 

[lancie00]

How much is a good price? I'm curious, because I'm selling a Carlson with HKS 4-stroke for $10,000 right now, which is like a thousand times better airplane that a Fisher 303 with a 277 1-cylinder 2-stroke. Although, you can plausibly claim that the 303 is a Part 103 ultralight, which is a big advantage if you were denied a medical.

The guy is only asking $2500 for his Fisher. I'm just looking for something I can keep at the farm that's cheaper to fly than the Arrow. I can see where yourSparrow would be a lot nicer, I just don't have the money right now. Thanks

 

[Glenn D]

2500 for a Fisher 303 is a good price... the motor is ok, not a ton of power but will pull it around... I like them and would also like to get something like that, or an Airbike, to just kick around the clouds in ...

 

[zaitcev]

The guy is only asking $2500 for his Fisher.

Indeed, $2.5k sounds like a great price. You have to be unafraid to deal with the wooden construction: know how to inspect and how to store it so that mold and dry rot do not cause a structural failure. I would not want to deal with a Fisher, Mini-Max, or FlyBaby because I know that I don't have the skills to survive it.

As it says on Ron's website, FlyBaby must use flying wires, else the periodic loads are focused on the attachment points and there's going to be a fatigue crack in the metal, with fatal consequences. It happened to someone who used flying braces. However, Mini-Max and Fisher 303 somehow manage to use solid braces and nothing happens to them. I was always curious as to how they manage that.

 

[Dana]

All the Fishers have a good reputation for fun flying and safety, if not breathtaking performance (especially with a 277!). Fisher claims a 235# empty weight for the 303 which is firmly in ultralight territory, and even if it's overweight nobody is going to care. I've been having a great time with my Fisher 404 (which is definitely not an ultralight), though I'm starting to look for something with a bit more performance.

You'll have to learn about not only the care of wood structures but the care and feeding of 2-stroke engines... not as horrible as it's popularly believed, but different from a 4-stroke.

$2500, if it's in good flying condition, sounds like a great price.

As it says on Ron's website, FlyBaby must use flying wires, else the periodic loads are focused on the attachment points and there's going to be a fatigue crack in the metal, with fatal consequences. It happened to someone who used flying braces. However, Mini-Max and Fisher 303 somehow manage to use solid braces and nothing happens to them. I was always curious as to how they manage that.

Cessnas use struts, not wires, too. The structure is designed for it. The Fly Baby was designed for wires, simple as that.

 

[l8evator]

If I recall correctly the issue with the FlyBaby arises from substituting solid, usually streamlined, flying wires as used on most homebuilt biplanes for the stranded wire cable called out on the plans. As Dana noted, aircraft can be designed with struts, solid flying wires or cable bracing, but the FlyBaby plans call for cable.

Scott

 

[Acrodustertoo]

If you are just going to poke holes in the sky then it would be a great choice. They are good designs, strong and light.

 

[Vaflier]

Have a friend that flys one and loves it. You can see his grin from 2 miles away in the air.