Those are good questions, Geoff. I'm really a lot like you were with budget and engine considerations. I would like to spend around $26,000, 1966 or newer, but would spend a little more for something really solid. (Newer GPS, a digital transponder, full overhaul, etc) I really want to stack the deck in my favor regarding engine longevity, even though that's always a roll of the dice. Something with 500-750 hours on a properly overhauled engine. I need 500lbs useful load. I plan to tool around the pattern, shoot holes in the sky for an hour or two here and there, with the occasional xc flight. My wife is tiny, and the two of us could fly with full fuel and still have a fair amount of room to spare. I love wrenching on stuff, so maintenance doesn't scare me at all, at least not the stuff we're allowed to do as pilots. Anything I could do under the watchful eye of an A&P would be fun. 100 hp is fine. 125 is better. 150 would be freakin awesome! Except for that loss in useful load, range, increased gph, and on and on. A taildragger would be really cool, too, but I'd have to insist on a Lowe conversion, or at least one that used 140 gear. The stock 150 gear is too short and they sit too flat with no room under the prop even sitting still, let alone during takeoff. Dreams? A factory new engine in a fully refurbed airframe with a brand new interior, new plexi, shiny paint, GNS, ADS-B in/out, intercom, dual G5s, comfy seats, 510 lb UL, for sale only 30 miles away, for 25 grand. Why not?
