GauzeGuy

Thanks for the feedback on that 1961 Mooney. I spoke to the owner today, apparently there are two partners on the plane. One lost his medical, the other lost his job so it hasn't flown for a couple years and is well out of annual. He said the logbooks were ripped off when his truck was broken into, though they were able to find some records, primarily for the engine. I chatted with an IA on the field about the cost to get it back in annual. He is going to give all the documentation a once over to see what the cost would be. I also just ordered the FAA records (337's, etc). From talking to the owner, it seems it was taken care of pretty well up until the point they stopped flying. Fuel bladders were replaced, etc. After that, aside from some occasional taxiing around it has sat in a hanger. Before making any real decisions, I'm going to see what the estimated cost is to get it back in annual, and have the IA give it a once over to see if there are major issues. Depending on what is found, this may either be a bad situation to run away from, or a good plane that I can get into for pretty reasonable cost.

All logs are missing, theft from vehicle is the stated reason. I was worried about the engine side of things. Appears to have a mid time engine, but if it can't be verified all is well... That was another big concern I had. Last annual was a couple years ago, can't afford to fly... So it's been sitting around, collecting dust for a little while.

LOL. I could fly out of Boulder, it would fit right in. Yes, new paint would be a priority.

Thanks for all the information! I found a M20B for $21k. The last annual was done in 2010, and the log books disappeared about a year and a half ago. My first instinct is run away. Hard to tell history, AD compliance, etc, without those log books. Is there any way to make that type of purchase worthwhile, or is this just a money pit waiting to be bought into? http://www.lasar.com/w/id/177/new-plane-details.asp

Hey all, new guy here. I'm flying out of KAPA/KBJC with 250 hours and an instrument rating. Mostly a Cessna driver but I have some time in an Archer and Arrow also. I'm looking into buying an aircraft. At first, I was thinking that I'd be getting a typical C172 or a Cherokee 140/150/160. Flying out of the Denver area, it would be good to get into a 180hp aircraft and I'm thinking a Mooney would be a better way to go at a similar cost ($30k or so). I've heard loud and clear that buying a plane is the "cheap" part. So, I'm looking for a realistic accounting as to maintenance costs. I imagine with a constant speed prop and retractable gear there would be more cost inherent to the M20C. How significant of a difference should I plan on? Will the manual gear help to keep costs to a minimum, versus electric?