The biggest dollars to be saved by scratch building are in the wings. Between the center spar, wing spars, rear wing ribs and nose ribs a kit builder pays over $3,500. For less than $300 in materials I completed these components at a considerable savings. Of course the price I paid was in time, and plenty of it. It took me over 260 hours to finish those parts, so on average I paid myself $12.45 per hour to work on my plane (after subtracting the cost of my materials). I know I get a whole lot more than that in my day job, but this is a whole different kind of fun...or at least satisfaction when things fit and work. I'm still energized by the project and glad to be considered a scratchbuilder.
