Club Homepage Forums Classified Ads Buy & Sell - Everything But Airplanes An introduction and a question on N46CA

My name is Corey Fisher and I'm a new member. If your curious I'm currently living in Ardmore, OK (between OKC and Dallas/Fort Worth) and will be based out of (1F0).

I don't have my PPL yet, and can't start until I find a plane. Yes I could rent one, but I want my own. Besides my choices around here are extremely limited and don't fit my training schedule.

Now knowing I'm not a pilot you'd be correct in assuming I've never bought a plane before either. I don't have a clue and must confess I'm a little concerned about the process. I've bought books, I've joined clubs etc. With all that, I'm more confused than ever. So I'm hoping I could call on your experience when I have questions.

Now I don't want to waste anyone's time, so does some remember previous posts detailing the buying process. I'm sure its been discuss time and time again, but a quick search with the keyword "buying" really doesn't pull up much history. Maybe someone can come up with better keywords.



Now for some plane questions. Trade A Plane [trade-a-plane.com] has this aircraft listed. Does anyone know anything about his aircraft? Does anyone know anything about the seller? I don't think his is a memeber of this club. FAA lookups don't show any red flags. No, I haven't contacted the seller. I'm just looking for any comments before doing so.


Thank you,
-corey

Oh and I'm driving up to Clinton. Maybe I'll get to meet some of you in person.

Oh and your Cross Country Pictures and progress reports are great! I can't wait too do some of that myself. Thanks for posting them.

Corey,

Welcome to the club. To find better hits on posts about buying a plane, search on "prebuy" (without the quotes) and in the Date Range set the "Newer than" to blank and blank (two boxes), and "Newer than" to "1 day(s)".

Thanks Hung!

' Prebuy ' and the ranges work great. Hours of reading!

-corey

Corey,

There are pros and cons about buying a plane before starting your flight training. You might want to consider them.

PROS:
- The plane is available whenever your schedule allows for a lesson.
- You don't "waste" money on a rental.
- You have a better understanding of the systems of a plane when you are the owner.

CONS:
- If you don't complete your flight training due to loss of interest, medical, or other reasons, you'll have an expensive boat anchor and most likely will sell at a loss to get rid of it.
- The plane might need unexpected expensive repairs that will drain your training budget.
- You can't do routine maintenance on your plane until your have your pilot license.
- If for some reasone your flight training is stretched out over a long period, you still have fixed expenses (insurance, hangar, loan payments, taxes) on the plane that you have to make.

Just some food for thought.

Corey, welcome to the club! Researching here and asking questions is one of the best things you can do before buying a 150/152. This is a unique group of some of the nicest people around. You can count on some very informed answers to your questions mixed in with some answers that will make you laugh so hard that you might choke on your beer. You are already ahead of the game by joining this club first.

I was more than half way through flight training when I bought my 150 and it set me back a little because it is completely different than the Katana I had been training in. That being said, I reccommend to anyone who is thinking of getting a pilot's license that they should take a few lessons and study some of the reading material first. Then if you are sure that it is what you want to do, then by all means buy your trainer. If you buy a good plane, it shouldn't cost any more than renting. The convenience of having your own plane and not having to worry about the schedule once you are signed of to solo is a huge advantage. Of course there is the fun of owning your own airplane I'm honestly not sure if I'd have finished training if I hadn't bought the plane. There also was more than one scary experience with rentals that most likely wouldn't have happend if it were privately owned.

One last thing. DO NOT buy a plane without a pre-buy inspection from an uninterested mechanic. I nearly did this and would have had to spend thousands of dollars after the purchase. That particular plane had been flying around in an un-airworthy condition. I honestly believe that the owner had no idea that the problems were there.

Cory,
Welcome to the best club ever!!
Don't wory about asking LOTS of questions or wasting anyone's time.
This group loves to share thier opinions!!!

Hope to meet you in Clinton.

I hear you. It's been suggested that after a pre-inspection and purchase, I basically get the thing anualed. I've watched from a distance, friends go through this process, and every one (2) has had a few surprises. These are old planes, and you never know.



I'm thinking of getting some time in a Katana. When you say it set you back, could you expand on that a little. Was it the glide ratio? Or just being a low wing?

Corey,

Welcome to the club. Another thing to check is how long it has been since the last overhaul.

I second the inspection by a disinterested mechanic. He can save your butt! Since you don't have a relationship with one already, find a pilot who knows some reputable mechanics and ask for some recommendations.

TTAF 3312, SMOH 1146

The Cessna is a completely different airplane with a different feel. It handles quite differently for the manouvers, especially stalls. The glide ratio is certainly different as are the numbers and procedures that you need to memorize for your checkride. Of course, it didn't help that there was a few months of not flying in-between.