Pete M

4 hours in years? RUN...or price in the overhaul you're gonna need in 200 hours.

Ok, so I toss out a mag, pay for all of my mag overhauls up front in surefly purchase. How much fuel do I save? How much faster am I when I climb to an altitude where it goes to max advance? In short, what are the measurable real world benifits? Suprisingly little data on thier web site. A lot of happy sounding marketing language though...

Was 64 so was narrower at the cowl, New motor, eci cam, new lyc cylinders, new prop, timed 25btdc, ailerons rigged at 0, flaps up a bit maybe, new paint with a sanding primer. It was really smooth. New, light radios, slick mags, skytec starter so cg may have been more rear than stock. It was quite a bit slower when i bought it. Had the challenger air filter. Old wiring and atennas removed. If I was to do it again today I'd have lycon work the cylinders and bolt on that exaust from either power flow or the other guy thats been mentioned here. Im sure I could get more out of it.

you're in the vicinity of an airport so minimum vectoring altitude would apply for the controller which is typically lower. He would have vectored you to the faf for the approach. He may or may not have directed you to climb, but so what, now you're legal.

Well, it gets a little grey there. Have to be able to land safely if power plant failure. Also, op states night.

Op states class D

none really...flap gap seals was all and I would have preferred not to have those.

I had a 64e that would do 162ktas at 10k...4 way gps runs. What i found odd was that I climbed t where I had 23"map, about 8500ft and did the 4 way. Got 162.75 ktas. Then I climbed to where I had 21"map, about 10,500, did the 4 way and got 162.75 ktas. All done at 2550rpm. Seems I should have been slower up high. I have a panel pic and gps pic of my e doing better than 160 ktas at 12K while showing a 200ft per min climb. Way faster than a $60,000 airplane has a right to be:) I'm really itching to restore another one:)My hottest cht was 305:)

Right, but he was in bound. You can get a clearance to a fix and loiter. We do it all the time for training.

Right, but that wasn't your situation, was it? You said you made a living with your ticket so I assumed, maybe uncorrectly, that you were qualified and current. You referenced the tower controller, right? Some class D's have no radar and depend on sight. I believe those locations are generally listed as no svfr. You were right to assume that you were in both legal and safety jeapordy as relates to busting cloud clearances. A pop up alleviates that. Is it the right answer all the time? Of course not but we're paid to use our judgement and find the safest solutions to aviations little dilemmas. Not saying you didnt choose the best option for your sit, I wasnt there, just reminding you of the option. As you stated, You're required to maitain a safe alt so as to land safely in case of power failure. The controller put you in legal jeapordy when she denied. They become masters at shifting liability. I deal with it all the time at stuart. That pop up is a get out of jail free card and has the added benifit of providing seperation. Our area has a shit ton of biz jet traffic. We dont bust cc around the local airports. The chance of ending up with the pointy end of a lear up our tail pipes is too graet.

Call aproach and get a pop up ifr clearance next time. They provide seperation, no cloud clearance legalities and you won't confuse the controllers

I'm i. Stuart, by west plam. Let me know if you need any help, ferry, or check it out for you. Are you local? Pete

saavyaviator.com has a pre buy service. They'll check the logs for free. Their fees are inconsequencial compared to repairs later.

i was worried about the autopilot thing. I figured it would break...dont they all? I'm not sure what the solution is there. Do all the servos need to be replaced or just the unit? Last time i had a kx155 repaired it was pretty reasonable. I'm not overly concerned about performance descents...not a big believer in shock cooling under normal operating temps. For training I'd be running pretty low power settings. Besides, I'm talking only about 5 hours a week or so. I'd never put one on the flight school line:)

I'd love a Rocket...or a 252...buuuuuttttt.....there's that big, fat check up front:) Plus the fuel flow would offend my CB sensibilities:)

Mostly, I want the turbo for the added speed. It'll shave about an hour off my trips to Fl and with the winds up high even more. The added range might even get me there in one hop depending on winds. Going back, well, gonna need a fuel stop and will take longer but even then will be a shorter trip than the E.

Thanks, will hit you up when I get there:)

I'm retired AF...bout half active, half guard...pilot next? You're teaching at UPT? Not sure what a casual LT is:) LT's are usually pretty uptight:) Guess your talking about your lt's waiting on a class date? Your avatar says irish pilot...that literal?...non u.s.? I had a 64 E for.bout 7 years...fast little sucker but I think I'm gonna need just a little more airplane this go around.

Oh, I forgot to ask, what's crit alt on a 231?

I'm at stuart ksua right now. I'm in Gainesville on weekends. I did some training in Ocala and was based at Williston for awhile. You're flying a 262? That 188 at fl 180 sounds interesting:)

Financially speaking, I couldn't justify the added cost of a 252. A merlyn and an intercooler makes sense. What's the fuel capacity? Are later 231's any faster than earlier ones? What changed on the model over the years? My understanding is that most or all flying 231's should have the LB engine at this point. I'm really interested in a basic 231. I don't need lots of glass and all that. A couple of good radios and a working auto pilot is all I'm really interested in. I'll probably throw a G5 or two into it if it doesn't have an hsi. I have to check the instrument pts to see if I need an ifr certified gps for check rides. I actually don't mind having to do paint and interior. I kind of like making the plane my own in that regard. Do the 231's use a newer tank sealant that lasts any longer than the short body's or should I insist on a complete tank reseal be in the logs?

Well, I'd like the option of flying the other way if I get the urge:) Nice tailwinds up high going east too.

So, it appears I'm headed to Colorado to teach at the air force's initial flight training center in Pueblo and as such I'm going to need another airplane. Given the altitudes involved and the fact that I'm going to be flying it between CO and FL once or twice a month I'm thinking 231. What kind of numbers are you guys seeing in your real world flying? The flight review on mapa cites 180KTAS at optimum altitudes but I imagine that's optimistic. I'd prefer not to replace cylinders every 500 hours. Late model or early model? I could go short body for half the cost but that extra 20 knots and possibly greater range is very appealing. I'm a cfi so I'm also planning to teach instrument and commercial in it a few hours a week to offset the costs. Anyone added brakes to the right side?

As long as you have the endorsement your good. Never seen a hhp time requirement for any job listing, just that you have it.

Bill Wheat was great to talk to. The guy knew everything. I'm assuming he's passed now?