Matt,
That thing would probably get up and talk. I've flown the 180 HP conversion on a tailwheel 150 and towed gliders with it, but it wasn't a terribly pleasant airplane to fly in level flight. I'm trying to wrap my head around the Grumman conversion - I've flown all the two-seaters and would never consider any of them as short field airplanes. All have a flat climb angle, even though the rate is about the same as a 150, the climb speed is much faster.
I never thought the two-seaters had enough fuel - it was carried inside the cylindrical spars, so space was limited. They were efficient as heck, quite fast for the power. With that in mind, I'm thinking about the increased speed (probably only modest, going faster with power is a squared function) and radically increased fuel burn. Then again, if you want an airplane that handles like a fighter and also has a great rate of climb, that conversion may be it. After all, the Spitfire only had about 90 minutes of fuel initially, I think.
Warmest regards,
Rick
