Club Homepage Forums Classified Ads Buy & Sell - Everything But Airplanes In search of a plane

I have started looking for a new plane. I am a low time pilot who has trained on a 152. I have decided on either a 150 or 152.

I have a line on a 1966 150 that I am going to check this weekend.

Any suggestions?

Pat

Patrick-

Where are you located?
There is a 150F model for sale at my airport, K39.
2600TT, 600SMOH, ICOM "flip-flop" radio and mode C Xpndr. A clean plane.

I think the owner's asking 18,000

Minnisnowta

I'll keep your seggestion in mind.

A book could be written on what has been discussed on this forum, on the subject of buying a plane. Literally volumes of good advice and information is archived here.

#1. Use the "Search" button at the top of the page, and look for anything you have questions on! Read, read some more, then read still more!

#2. Don't be in a hurry! There are a lot of good planes out there for sale, and a lot of not so good. You MUST learn to tell the difference before money changes hands. That takes research, and experience you will gain simply by looking at prospects.

#3. Do ask questions! This forum is a very good place to start. Your research above will raise as many questions as it answers. There is always somebody here ready to answer any question, because you've stumbled onto the best type club on the Internet!

OK, we need a volunteer from Minnesota to take Patrick under his/her wing and help him find a great 150/152. And good advice from Carl to take your time ~ flying season is a couple months away yet!

My partner and I started looking for a plane in May and by the end of June were desperate to buy a bird so as we didn't lose an entire season of flying. That was a mistake because we ended up with a bird that, while it is much closer to being the "perfect" plane now, cost us a whole lot more than we expected, a whole lot sooner than expected.

Good luck, welcome to the club!

Thanks.

I've already had some experience with the things to look for. Fortunately I have a good FBO to do the pre-buy. I'll keeep you guys in mmind as ai start looking at other planes.

By the way, in Minnisota, flying season is like fishing season. They only stop when the ice is too thin.

Pat

Patrick.
May I suggest you be prepared to spend a considerable amount of time reviewing the logbooks on any prospective bird. In addition, the owner should have quite a collection of Form 337's, STC's, and a host of add on equipment manuals and such. If the paperwork is not complete, including old work orders and such, I would tend to shy away. Also, no damage history is just that. Not all things that happen to airplanes end up in the log book. A local mechanic once ran me through some of the more creative log book entries he has seen that appeared to be small inconsequential repairs that obscured a major repair. You will most likely find a bird that has been well cared for by good owners, but once in awhile you have to be careful of land mines.

Watch out for three or four log books that have date entries that sequentially jump from log to log back and forth. I ran into a machine last year that three logs books that required an accountant to figure out. In the end, the engine that the owner said had 877 hours since rebuild actually had 1977 hours on it since rebuild. He also stuck new parts into the engine and called it a rebuild but nowhere in the logs did it say "rebuild" or "overhauled". No where could I see where there was a statment of what was done to the engine or even if the case was opened. There was not one 337 to be found anywhere. This was a '73. There should have been an entire book of them along with AD's. Good records tell a story and the people you want to associate with keep every reciept and vollenteer everything. Bad people think that skimpy records somehow gives them the benefit of the doubt and you have to play twenty questions to get information. Walk away.
Bob Martilla

A very simple suggestion . Be absolutely sure on your pre-buy inspection to have the inspector check the engine data plate and compare that SN to all logs making sure if it is different from the first log SN that there is an entry somewhere in one of the other logs how and when this got changed . This may not be an indication that the plane is not a good plane nor an indication of poor maintence nor should it be a show stopper by any stretch of the imagination .Its not that uncommon for such things to happen in 35 years or so BUT a very simple inspection that can be overlooked and might save you from a little anxiety .

Kent N150EW

Be patient and get a thorough pre-buy. I found plane shopping to be a frustrating experience. There was quite a few "nice" airplanes within driving distance that had problems that even I could detect....a couple are still for sale. I'm a decent auto/motorcycle mechanic and considered doing the inspection on one plane myself that I liked...that would have been a big mistake...the A&P saved me thousands of dollars and headaches. They also put me in touch with the owners of what is now my plane. It can't hurt to ask the local mechanics with a good reputation if they have clients who are selling. If they're confident, they'll suggest that you take the plane to someone else for a pre-buy. Good luck!!!!