Club Homepage Forums Classified Ads Buy & Sell - Everything But Airplanes Things to Look For in Buying?

I'm very early in this journey to buy, and it'll not be this year. But I'm reading the Club's book, as well as all the forums here, and watching eBay, Trade a Plane, and more ... trying to educate myself as much as I can.

So take this plane for example on eBay:

1971 C-150 [cgi.ebay.com]

Only 3616 TT and 617 on engine. Not a trainer. Flip flop radio , GPS, transponder. Just going by the times and the photos, it really looks good to me.

BUT ... logs from the 1970s are missing. AND ... the dash panels are three different colors. Hmmmm. Possible wreck back in the '70s and then logs went missing? Or maybe someone just wanted new plastic dash pieces and got some used ones not caring about color?

But if its been flying fine for 30 years since ....

So am I seeing legitimate red flags? Would the missing logs make this worth less than the $23k being asked?

(ETA: Is this a club member?)


.

Edward
I spent two years looking for my plane, then I found the club and wish I had the help they can give . I am very happy with my little bird but I could have saved some time.
Look on ksl classified salt lake city Utah on line ther is a 150-150 that looks nice.
Kevin

Yes and no. The missing logs aren't enough to eliminate it from consideration but they indicate that it should warrant closer inspection. Check with the FAA for 337s filed for that airplane during your pre-buy process. The different color plastic is less of a concern than the log books.

These airplanes are old. There probably isn't going to be a plane out there without some discrepancies. If this plane is as represented, it sounds promising. I don't know about the price though.

Now, just my personal opinion. In today's economy one can purchase an airworthy Cessna 150 for lower teens. A really nice low to mid time 150 for mid to upper teens. For me to consider paying over $20,000 for a Cessna 150? It would have to be an exceptional airplane or special in some way. I do not see anything exceptional or special with this airplane............

Just my opinion...........

Oh! My personal favorite place to look for an airplane?

Barnstormers. [barnstormers.com]

Bill

buyer has to pay in cash (no checks)
Who's going to walk around with 23K in cash?

Does seem a little high for current market. Verify about the logs...says the 1970s logs are missing which I take to mean there are current logs. When do they start?

Another opinion: I haven't closely examined the 150 market for years and may be off base, but while $23K isn't really outrageous for the above average 150, it does seem a little on the high side for an "average" 150.

Some things I considered in the pricing but generally avoided when I bought my first 150 include:

A "fresh" engine overhaul. If the engine is going to fail due to something missed during overhaul, it's most likely to happen early on. I'd like to see at least a couple of hundred hours on it before I'd buy it. A mid-time engine is somewhat proven, doesn't command top dollar, and still has years of life in it. However, at mid-time or sometimes less, it may be ready for a new set of cylinders. If they were changed within the last 100 hours or so, make sure they are "broken-in" with good compression numbers and normal oil consumption.

"Fresh" paint. Good paint jobs are expensive, and that will drive up the price. Less expensive "scratch and squirt" paint jobs can often look as good as factory, but can also hide corrosion problems that will be evident within a year or two. If the paint is at least a couple of years old and still looks good with no evidence at all of underlying corrosion, it was probably properly prepared for painting.

Primered interior skins! Same reason as above, only more so. Very few 150's were primered inside at the factory, and those were very likely done during assembly (150G's on floats come to mind, and I "think" Aerobats, too). It is almost impossible to properly prepare all of the interior surfaces of an airplane for painting once assembled. I don't like it for the simple reason that I can't see what's hidden and growing under it.

Corrosion treatments (Corrosion X, ACF-50, etc.). I got a good price on my first 150 because the paint was old, faded, worn and chalky. The airplane needed paint badly, but was otherwise a very solid airplane (the most important thing). I planned on painting the bird, but if it had been corrosion treated within the last 2 or 3 years, I wouldn't have bought it. Corrosion treatments "weep" through skin overlaps and openings for years and make it impossible for new paint to stick properly. Again, corrosion treatments can hide previous corrosion, similar to primers and paint, and are not good for control cables and pulleys, etc., in that they attract and hold dirt and grit.

Broken or worn plastic components, including interior. While somewhat expensive for what you get, all interior and exterior plastic on a 150/152 can be replaced without a second mortgage. Much of it can be repaired and repainted, and some exterior pieces are available in much more durable fiberglass. The most important interior piece is the panel cover that the engine controls mount through. It is difficult and expensive to replace in both materials and labor, as all of the engine controls must first be removed.

Know what you're buying! I got lucky! Something that I should have done but didn't is pay for an annual inspection (much better than a pre-buy at near the same price). Work this out with the seller. You pay for ONLY the inspection.... NO repairs should be done during the inspection, but a list of discrepancies (if any) is generated for you and the seller to examine. The seller generally pays for any airworthiness repairs needed (it's still his/her airplane), but any and all repairs needed can be a haggling point to be considered in the selling price, and if you buy the plane the annual is good for another full year! Remember, only airworthiness gripes ground the plane! None of the cosmetics or non-airworthiness related discrepancies have to be repaired for an annual sign-off, and can be disregarded at your discretion!



This is not a comprehensive list (I'd have to write a book) and some will disagree with me on some items.

Just some further thought and returning to the issue of lost logbooks. Lost airframe logbooks poses little problem. For a thorough inspection before purchase can find any major discrepancies.

The engine may be a different matter. Without the engine's history, there is no way, without dissection, to truly know it's current condition.

In this situation, an earlier or interim logbook being lost may also be no problem. As long as there is a continuation logbook which faithfully picked up where the lost one had left off.

Bill

And yet another thought. When looking for our latest aircraft, I had placed an ad in Barnstormers describing the aircraft we were seeking. Something like "minimum two place. STOL. Useful load of 600 pounds+. Tricycle gear. Larger baggage area, Under $25,000......" I didn't even stipulate make and model. Leaving that option open just in case somebody came up with a "better" idea. I was eying two Tripacers at the time.)Then it was the buyer that came to us. Our current airplane was never advertised.

Like I said, just a thought.........

Bill

I always check to see if the glove box is stuffed with hundred dollar bills. It'll be tough to do that with an E-bay plane.