On the evening before the accident, the pilot made a precautionary landing in a paddock due to problems with the aircraft's communication and navigation equipment and the approaching onset of last light. On the morning of the accident, he paced the paddock and determined it was approximately 395 metres (1,296 ft) long and level. The elevation was about 800 ft, the temperature 20 degrees, aircraft weight was about 2,200 lb and there was no wind. The pilot said that the grass was about 30 cm long and there was no slope. He got the property owner to run over the proposed take-off path in his four-wheel drive to flatten the grass.
In the prevailing conditions, the take-off "P chart" for the aircraft indicated that a field length of 1,000 ft was required for take-off to 50 ft. The manufacturer's performance data indicated 950 ft was required for take-off to 50 ft at an aircraft weight of 2,400 lb. The "P chart" distances are factored whereas the manufacturer's data is not.
The pilot said that he did an engine runup and then commenced the take-off using the recommended short field take-off technique. The aircraft did not accelerate as expected and did not become airborne in the available field length. It ran through the fence at the end of the paddock and came to a stop in the next paddock, substantially damaged.
A pilot/aircraft engineer who later assessed the aircraft for recovery purposes reported that the grass was about 60 cm long. The pilot later advised that when he applied full power for take-off, the manifold pressure gauge was indicating 26 inches and tachometer was indicating 2,600 RPM.