A64Pilot

Almost certain that your going to ship, so I’d not worry about engine shop location. ‘This is who did my engine and they are well respected on this side of the world and I believe things are less expensive over here. I believe all of his overhauls are to new tolerances and balanced to very low levels. If your engine hasn’t been run to nothing, your looking at a little more than 25K? https://www.gannaviation.com/engine-overhauls Looking at the bright side, if you had a (D) engine, that’s over 2K more. I hope you like red powder coat On edit, ship ALL of your old hoses too and they will make new ones for less than anywhere else most likely.

It’s a max pulse light controller, however I’ve never seen such a nice placard on the panel, the Maxpulse comes with a cheesey black card that goes under the switch. AC Spruce shows the cheesy card well, I’d like to know how the placard was done on your airplane. does anyone know? https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/elpages/1105737_stc.php

A way to tell what your electrical consumption is, is pretty simple, without starting the engine, turn everything on and read the amp meter, that’s your consumption. It will decrease some with the engine running as the voltage will be higher. There is about zero chance that your alternator isn’t big enough, if your not holding 14V plus or minus .2V at flight RPM, you have another issue, dirty contacts on the alternator side of the master switch is apparently not uncommon, voltage regulator or as has already been said dirty contacts is very likely in our older aircraft. Going to a 70 amp alternator is just going to waste money. ‘I’d have to see avionics pull 25 amps to believe it, modern avionics just don’t pull that much power. 100 amp alternators can’t supply 100 amps continuously, they will burn up from heat if they do, and even if they could, you can’t pull 100 amps from a single belt unless it’s a serpentine belt. Max amps a single belt can hold is roughly 70 to 90 amps, after that it slips, creates dust and of course breaks after awhile. 100 amps at 14V is 1400W, and that’s a shed load of power, a metric shed load. Alternators are not DC generators, they generate AC power that’s rectified to pulsating DC via a diode bank, and diodes create a whole lot of heat, to get 100 amps continuously out of a small frame alternator, one way to do that is to remote mount the diode bank, and I don’t think any aircraft alternators do that?

I’d expect compressions to tell more than a scope, how have they been running? 95% of asking is strong, unless it’s a real cherry and very reasonably priced, I’d expect him to fix anything found, maybe split cylinders if the engine is running good though. As a seller I’d balk at buying new cylinders if compressions are good, but gut says he’s a good guy or else he wouldn’t have shown you the oil analysis.

Not having a price offered and accepted before inspection is odd, normally the price may change some or not based on inspection findings, but I’d suspect by not having a price the seller may be counting on the buyer going in for sunk costs. ‘Look up sunk cost fallacy if not already well versed. ‘I maintained a fleet of Army helicopters all over the world for about 15 years. As the Army pretty much invented UOA or SOAP as they call it, everything was of course sampled, except for the engines. Army began oil analysis for its aircraft in 1961 I believe, so 60 years ago? ‘In those 15 years it’s likely we went though a hundred gearboxes and APU’s, but not one single time was a component pulled based off of oil analysis, it was always due to other indicators, most often chip lights and glitter in the oil that showed up between samples, sample interval was 25 hours plus or minus 3 hours allowable tolerance. We didn’t sample the GE-T701 engines because according to GE the filter was so fine that after a few passes. it was cleaner than it came out of the can, but I did have to change a few engines based on chip detector lights and metal in the sump screens. Since I’m the that I am, and the fact that the oil lab was across the street I sampled a couple of engines and had the samples ran, and guess what? GE was right, there wasn’t much of anything in the oil. We changed engine oil at phase, which is a 250 hour interval, Phase inspection is very much like an Annual except it’s tripped by flight hours and not calendar time. ‘No component ever actually failed, we found them all prior to failure. So what does the above sample say? I believe not much. ‘Of course I don’t believe the seller thinks anything bad with them either or he wouldn’t have presented them would he? What I love is all the advice given to boat people of “Make sure you have an oil analysis done so you know the engines are good” Most slap worn out motors with compression so low that they are hard to start will rerun a low metals oil analysis

Except maybe for some kind of exotic there are no actual oil sensors in automobiles. GM developed the concept that has been copied by many decades ago, it’s called GMOLS or GM Oil Life System. It’s pretty simple actually, you start with a number say 1000, each cold start decrements it x numbers. each hour operation at full temp x numbers, each below temp x numbers etc. etc until the number reaches something close to zero, then the change oil light comes on. Oil analysis is outstanding for determining exactly what’s going on with the oil, not so much of an engine analysis though and that’s what it’s marketed as, but if you want to know about the oil, you can’t beat analysis. ‘Anyway oil analysis is the best way to determine TAN (total acid number) and TBN or (total base number) 50 hours is nothing, we change our oil because it’s full of contaminants, not because it’s worn out, or it times out, over time the contaminants will degrade the oil I would be astonished if either is even close to being bad in 50 hours of operation, but analysis will tell you. ‘If you are even remotely concerned, shorten your oil change interval, you cannot change your oil too frequently, save the money spent on gadgets, laboratories etc and spend it on oil instead.

Usually consumables are not included in the basic weight, as they are consumed in flight, fuel for instance. Oil is included even though some may be consumed, it’s not much. By including the line item of what it weighs full they are of course giving you that information

It’s my understanding that Fl if you have had the asset for 6 months prior to bringing it into Fl, Fl doesn’t tax you, but for whatever reason you have to have had it for six months. Does Idaho do that? How long does it have to be in Idaho before use tax kicks in?

Truer words were never spoken, the actual leak can be several feet from where it appears, it can and will run under the sealant to pop out somewhere else. There are products made ro lay over the B2 to seal it. one we called Monkey Blood because it was red. ‘I’d advise avoiding these products, sometimes they work, but often they don’t work for long

You will find things soldered on your aircraft, usually it’s supplied components that come that way. Many want to believe that a soldered and heat shrunk joint is the best, but they woud be incorrect, it’s vibration thst causes the wire to break right at the end of the solder as the solder has no give, a crimped joint will hold up better. ‘I’m not aware of Aviation specific butt splices, at the factory I worked at they had used for years regular just crimp splices, I had then change to Ancor brand butt splices and terminals as they use hot glue lined shrink wrap. so you crimp the terminal just like normal. but then hit it with a heat gun, this both shrinks the plastic tight, but also melts the hot glue which forms an airtight seal, but also adds an adhesive bond thst helps keep the crimp from being pulled on. ‘In my opinion they are vastly superior, but be careful as there are a lot of Chinese knock offs that are much lower quality, be sure to only get Ancor brand, Amazon, Home a depot, Lowe’s and also most Marine stores as it’s primary target is boats as it’s a waterproof and therefore a corrosion proof connection. ‘If you do much wiring, you want good ratcheting crimpers and a good one may be the second most expensive tool in your box, depending on what you have in there

Probably good advice

Why would you lease it? I know several people who own aircraft and very expensive motor homes ,or actually they own a Montana LLC that owns the aircraft or motor home and do not lease it. But gut says that if you do, that the lease payment ought to be realistic or if not it sounds too much like IRS bait. Guy I bought my Mooney from had it in an LLC, he bought the LLC from someone else, and offered to sell me the LLC for the sales price of the airplane of course but it was a Ga LLC, and I didn’t want a Ga LLC. I don’t know maybe someday the Montana LLC will be shut down, but until then it seems to be the way to go to me. ‘Many yeas ago my Father’s practice owned the C-210, and he had to rent the aircraft and pay x number of dollars per hour for personal use, the dollar rate was high because he didn’t want anyone renting it, but that was 50 years ago. I see owning a Montana LLC that has assets as no different than owning a Yacht that’s flagged in another Country. The big ones will have helicopters with N numbers, but I’m certain that they are registered either with or as a part of the boat, meaning no US tax is paid. https://www.cayman-yacht-registration.com https://www.newsweek.com/betsy-devos-cayman-islands-taxes-yacht-flag-foreign-donald-trump-america-1061960

The 720 is heavier, more expensive and in some installations had cooling problems. ‘At some point a turbine makes more sense, and a 720 is pushing that point, too bad there wasn’t a turboprop cruise missile or maybe we would have had an excellent little turbo prop. ‘Piper’s Brave used a 720, and the turbine conversion for the Brave really makes it a good airplane, wakes up a lot of potential. Just about every 520 airplane there is has an STC to install a 550.

I for one will never get over the fact that the flag wasn’t flown at half mast when Neil Armstrong died, not sure what it takes to be an American Hero if he didn’t make the cut

You can live off of interest, but you had better have a large sum to do so, or be very frugal, probably both. ‘However it’s not really all that hard to live off of investments, and if structured properly and your conservative enough, you can even survive a 1929 type of depression. You just have to learn to live below your means, most can’t or won’t as their income increases so does their standard of living, and they stay perpetually in debt

I have, and have always had a different read on the old pilot thing. ‘For some reason it’s a big deal for an old man to fly a 1000 lb airplane in the country over farm fields at 70 MPH, but no thought at all to him driving to the airport in a 5000 lb vehicle just feet away from other vehicles full of families and children with a combined speed of 140 MPH? There have been for decades a not so small group of pilots in the country in small town airports who only fly on Sunday, they drag out their old 172’s and Cubs, Champs etc and just fly around the country side. They fly on Sunday secure in the knowledge that no one from the FSDO works on Sunday, once in a blue moon one of them will do something stupid and maybe ruin a small amount of corn or maybe cotton when they crash, but it’s very rare, probably honestly about the same rate as new pilots crash, and no one cares. Who are they hurting? I have no idea who this Lady is, honestly never heard of her, but it really seems that her biggest and possibly only crime is being anti-social, which more and more in today’s society, is in fact a crime. ‘I guess that takes me to 1984, the book,not the year. On edit, I bet she isn’t doing anything that she hasn’t always done, but now for whatever reason she has enemies in the FSDO, very likely all her old friends, the ones that used to protect her are gone, Retired and their replacements have it out for her, so they are watching, and pat people on the back for reporting anything she does. I’ve seen that happen, a very good friend of mine who has had his doctorate in Aeronautical Engineering for over 40 years and has held pretty much every designation for test flights and flight analyst etc has been for a long time very critical of the FAA. He didn’t last long after the head of the Atl ACO and their Chief Test Pilot retired, pretty quickly they pulled all of his designations except Test Pilot. By leaving him as a Test Pilot they in my opinion sent the message that his age or medical status wasn’t the issue. ‘He literally wrote the book on small aircraft test flying.

I’m not abdicating doing anything against regs, but if you know for sure it’s elevator, meaning 61 kts stall is the limit, just add 5 kts to an approach speed and learn when to lower the nose on touchdown. fly it like it was a lancair or something That may be better than overgrossing the airplane or exceeding structural limits from excess lead in the tail or even lead weights in the baggage as they may be tough to secure. ‘Or the lightweight prop is the “best” answer but it’s $20K. ‘Sometimes you have to pick the lesser of the evils.

Bose isn’t golden either, they orphan products too. ‘My Maule came with the original Bose noise cancelling headset with a panel mounted connector. One ear quit working so I called them to have it fixed and was told we don’t support that model anymore, you’ll have to buy a new one, so I asked if I could get a trade in discount, No. Then I asked if the new one would connect to the panel connector I had, again no, well is there an adapter, NO, OK, well is the new connector at least the same size so it will fit in the hole I have in my panel? No. I inherited a Bose though and stored it and my Zulu for three years while we were out sailing, every bit of the rubbery parts of the Zulu deteriorated into a goo, and the wiring insulation fell apart, but Zulu did fix everything for $150. The Bose needed a new set of ear cushions, nothing else deteriorated, they were stored in the same box.

Years ago Boeing tried the self inspection thing, I forgot the name, but it was a miserable failure. Two sets of eyes are better than one, Army went to two pilots in every aircraft based in that, the likely hood of both pilots making a mistake is much less than one. On edit, I think the Boeing program may have been called total quality management or something similar?

If a cotter pin falls out, it’s almost certainly one that has been reused, and bending it back and forth of course causes a fatigue crack, so later it breaks and falls out. A cotter pin should really never be under much of any shear forces, it’s like safety wire, it prevents the beginning of movement so strength isn’t really called for, but saying that stainless steel isn’t as strong as carbon steel, if it were then surely crankshafts and connecting rods would be stainless. Although stainless is a generic term like plastic and encompasses many materials the majority of aircraft corrosion resistant fasteners are either 304 or 316, 304 is also called 18/8, monel is sometimes also mistakenly called stainless, it’s much more expensive though. https://monroeengineering.com/blog/whats-the-difference-stainless-steel-vs-carbon-steel/ US Military also requires everything to be inspected, coming into the FAA world that took me a long time to get over as in the Army anyway, you could not inspect your own work. On edit, strength is also another word that can mean many different things, SS is usually very ductile and ductility is very much desired in things like cotter pins, so it’s a very good cotter pin material, assuming of course it’s soft SS.

Interesting why would you think aluminum framed would be bad? Aluminum bed is a joke for a work truck, but very few new luxury trucks are ever worked, they are just passenger vehicles, but toss bricks into an aluminum bed and it will be damaged, maybe even holed. ‘Many years ago club car golf carts went with an aluminum frame and many consider to be far superior to steel as golf courses are often fertilized and that rusts out steel. but has little effect on aluminum. ‘Aluminum framed bicycles are known to give a “harsh” ride, but are relatively lightweight.

What were the “ground incidents”?

So, in my teen age years, dementia was just around the corner? Impulsive behavior can be a result of many things, to include deciding I’ve had a good life, been a good person for a long time, now it’s time to have some fun. ‘I’ve seen people come back from war and that made them impulsive for awhile. and others who lost a family member, some were diagnosed with an incurable disease, lots of triggers, but I suppose impending dementia is in the list too.

I’ve honestly thought that for 20 years now, but with all this talk of spending trillions here and there, you may be right. I expect a whole slew of new taxes like a carbon tax for example will precede a large jump in inflation, not sure if it will be hyper, but I expect a return to the late 70’s and early 80’s.

Sometimes the fwd CG limit is due to elevator effectiveness, which often results in a higher stall speed, some aircraft the fwd CG limit equates to 61 kts stall speed due to the elevator, but just as often it’s a nose gear structural limit. I’m sure it would fly just fine forward of the CG limit within reason, likely be a better instrument platform, but I’d be careful especially if the limit is a structural one. I woud not put heavier batteries in, not unless the mount has been structurally analyzed for the heavier weight, be a bummer to have batteries flying forward in a crash.