I looked very closely at buying a Chipmunk once. They are nice to fly but my impression after a period of study was that there was for decades a small staff of people paid to justify their own existence by studying the design and mandating seemingly hundred of (effectively) ADs... some of which were unnecessary, and some of which were later reversed in chaotic fashion. It's a maze of nonsense that I think would have killed any civil design in a few years. That plus an engine with 1920s level design weaknesses, impractical maintenance issues and unsolvable oil leaks made me go in a different direction. Nice to fly but painful to own was my conclusion.
I think the Chipmnk has pretty lines spoiled by some slighty frumpy details like the RAF canopy and unfaired landing gear. The RV with its constant chord wing is arguably less elegant in concept... but I think the detail design of the RV is generally cleaner. Just my opinion. Obviously either the RV4 or RV8 have tremendously better performance on 150 HP.
