The Bearhawk is an Experimental/Amateur-Built 4-place aircraft with a maximum gross weight of 2,500 pounds. The fuselage and tail surfaces are welded 4130 steel tube structures covered in fabric, and the wings are sheeted 2024-T3 aluminum, supported by a single extruded aluminum strut. Flaps and ailerons are aluminum structures covered with fabric. The aircraft was designed by Bob Barrows of Fincastle, VA in the early 1990s. Builders purchase plans from Barrows and can either build the airplane from scratch by purchasing raw materials, or by ordering pre-made sub-assemblies from Bearhawk Aircraft in Austin, TX. Bearhawk Aircraft also offers a quick-build kit that complies with the 51% rule but saves considerable build time.

Barrows designed the airplane to meet his personal transportation needs and replace a Cessna 170 that he owned at the time. The cabin size of the Bearhawk is comparable to a Cessna 180. Empty weight will range from 1,100 pounds and up depending on the builder, with common weights in the 1300-pound range for a 4-cylinder Bearhawk and 1,500 pounds for a 6-cylinder Bearhawk. Standard fuel capacity is 50 gallons total in two 25 gallon wing tanks. Optional 11-gallon auxiliary tanks in the outer wing bays allow for an additional 22 gallons of fuel in most configurations.

Cockpit

The Bearhawk is extremely roomy inside, with a sizeable cargo area, holding true to its design mission of hauling aircraft engines. It has two side-doors for the front seats and a double-door on the right size of the fuselage for loading of rear seat passengers or cargo.

Seating is 2 individual adjustable-track seats in front, and a full width bench for the rear per the plans, though some may opt to design and utilize a lightweight single jump seat for the rear for a third passenger and greater cargo volume.

As the aircraft is a steel tube and fabric contruction, many builders incorporate an acrylic skylight, or "greenhouse" instead of full headliner to increase overhead visibility and cockpit illumination.

The windshield is intensively modified from a standard Cessna 170 windshield, though LP Aeroplastics does stock a windshield that requires less modification. Seat upholstery is entirely up to the builder, as is cabin interior, avionics configuration, and lighting.

The big-shoed 4-place Bearhawk of Dave Lenart.

Engine

Engine choices vary by builder preference. The smallest known installation is with a Lycoming O-320, though Barrows designed the initial prototype to use a Lycoming O-360 with angle-valve cylinders. In a subsequent prototype, Barrows installed a Lycoming O-540 with parallel valve cylinders. Builders have installed engines with as much as 300 horsepower, though the most common choices are the Lycoming O-360 variants, the Lycoming O-540 variants, and the Continental O-470. Larger engines produce a shorter takeoff roll, higher climb rate, and somewhat higher cruise speed, but they also add weight and expense. Most builders use constant-speed props ranging from 76" diameter up to 86" diameter, though some Bearhawks have flown with fixed-pitch props as well. Few have flown with converted automobile engines, with the Subaru being the most successful of those.

Fuel systems are generally gravity-fed, though some systems with higher flow demands or fuel injection incorporate pumps.

Controls

Flight controls include a conventional stick and rudder pedals, with a manual flap lever on the floor between the front two seats. All controls are pull-pull cable-operated except for the flaps, which are held up by springs and airflow and deflected down by cable tension. Flaps and elevator trim are driven by local torque tubes that are connected to the cockpit by cables.

Landing gear

Landing gear is a conventional/taildragger arrangement with main gear legs that pivot at the top attachment. A center-mounted oil/spring shock strut dampens the travel of the main gear, which is configured to accommodate tire sizes from 600x6.0 and up. The tailwheel is generally mounted to a leaf spring, though some builders have configured a tapered "stinger" rod arangement.

The New Zealand-based IO-540-powered NJB was completed in 2013 and is used for backcountry hunting trips and exploration of the south island's many river bars and mountain landing zones.

Building the Bearhawk

The construction experience will vary greatly with builder experience and choices. A scratch-built Bearhawk will require on the order of 2000-5000 hours of construction time. A quick-build kit Bearhawk will require on the order of 1000-2000 hours of build time. Deviations from the original plans almost always increase build time significantly. The plans are hand-drawn on approximately 32 pages of paper. Unlike a Vans RV, there is not a specific, step-by-step instruction manual. Builders are to compile information from several sources, including a manual of techniques that ships with the plans, to establish and execute a construction plan.

Quick build kits generally arrive to the builder with all steel parts welded and painted, and with the wing nearly complete. The outer wing skin is already riveted in place from the bottom trailing edge to the top of the front (main) spar, ensuring wing alignment in the factory jigs. The remainder of the top skin is attached, but not yet riveted in place, to make it easier for the builder to complete plumbing, wiring, and flight control installation. Kit pricing excludes hardware pieces that are not unique to the airplane. For example, nuts, bolts, control cables, fuel line and fittings, wheels, brakes, and fabric are not included. Bearhawk-specific parts like brake pedals, control sticks, landing gear legs, and major components are included. Generally the quick-build kit will come at a price premium of approximately $10 per hour of labor that the builder saves. This number will fluctuate dramatically on a case-by-case basis, but for a builder who values his time and is not on a mission to build every piece of the airplane just for the sake of doing so, the kit will almost always present a significant cost savings in spite of the seemingly high purchase price. Kits are built in a factory in Mexico, where the labor force is highly-skilled and turnover is very low. Production oversight includes visits from aircraft designer Bob Barrows, though he is technically a separate entity from the provider of the kits.

Zane Jacobson's quickbuild kit in his 20 x 20' double-car garage, 9 months after taking delivery.

Other Bearhawk models

There are two other similar aircraft types in the Bearhawk lineup, and both have two-place tandem seating. The Bearhawk Patrol is, to over-simplify, a modern replacement for an aircraft like the Super Cub. It features a Riblett airfoil and other modern technology to provide the slow-speed performance that Super Cub-type pilots will expect, but far outperforms those types in higher-speed performance. The Bearhawk Patrol operates best with engines ranging from the Lycoming O-320 variants to the Lycoming O-360 variants, with 150-210 HP.

The Bearhawk LSA, again to over-simplify, is a modern replacement for the light airplanes like the Champ and Cub. This is the third design in the chronology of the Bearhawk lineup and represents the largest number of improvements that Barrows collected over the years. The airframe is very similarly proportioned to the Bearhawk Patrol, but it is designed from the ground up to be much lighter and slower so that it can comply with the LSA requirements and still be a viable airplane. The LSA does not have flaps, the wing skins and ribs are thinner, and the steel tubes specified for the fuselage are thinner and spaced differently to accommodate the lower structural needs. Viable engine choices are in the 65-100 horsepower range, and include the Continental 65 through O-200, and possibly the Corvair.