pilot716 Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 So how far is to far to travel to see a Mooney? NY to Oregon? is that crazy? I may have found the perfect plane but its way over there... Quote
DaV8or Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 I guess it depends on how long you want to keep this Mooney, how soon you want a Mooney and how perfectly it matches your criteria. If you're thinking that you're going to keep the plane a good while, it meets everything you wanted nicely and you don't really want to wait until a similar nice one comes up nearer you, then go get it. The trip back will be a trip of a life time. Quote
piperpainter Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 I flew all the way to College Station, TX ( near houston) from Tacoma, WA. Have a pre buy done and then if everything goes well. Get everything set up so that if you go out there and the plane looks good you can buy and fly it home, or have someone ferry it home for you I guess. Its worth the ticket, if that is what your asking...even if it turns out to be a lemon. Better you spent the money and your happy than to just buy and see what you get when you do buy a ticket/ferry the plane. Quote
jax88 Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 Ditto, I went from to South Carolina to pick up my Mooney, then flew her to North Carolina before bringing her home to San Antonio. The trip back was great, and it afforded me plenty of time to get a feel for my new toy. Your potential trip from Oregon to New York would be an amazing adventure. However, if you've never flown in the mountains I would caution you against flying the aircraft back to NY from Oregon until you have some training/experience with mountain flying. Quote
Parker_Woodruff Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 Have a contract in force pending you viewing the aircraft just so you feel it was as advertised (P&I). Purchase Price You pay flat rate labor on prebuy/annual at shop of your choice. Seller pays airworthiness squawks. Prebuy complete. You fly home. Seller backs out? Responsible for your transportation and flat rate costs on prebuy/annual. Got mine in Ohio. Quote
Bob Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 A few years ago, I DROVE (Yes, in a car) 550 miles, each way, to see a Mooney that I thought was the best option available for my mission at the time. I decided to pass. The Mooney I purchased required travel from Chicago to DFW Texas. One round trip commercial flight for initial inspection, then 1, one way to take delivery a couple weeks later. I went and talked to Mooney owners and view planes for condition locally. This educated me properly to make a trip anywhere. After seeing 6-8 local planes, it only took 2 distant trips. I placed no limit on traveling. I think any location within the US is not too far. Quote
roundout Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 It's cheaper to spend a couple grand weeding out the dregs than buying a piece of junk and trying to bring it up to par. Quote
FullyArticulate Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 Where in Oregon? My wife and I flew to Kentucky to look at a plane just last month, bought it, and flew it all the way back here (to Hillsboro, OR). For an earlier purchase, I flew to South Carolina and saw a Mooney in possibly worse shape than I thought possible. Me: "Is there any corrosion?" Dealer: "No, absolutely none!" When we pulled into the parking lot, you could see the rust all the way across the ramp. Quote
eldeano Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 We bought our plane in the Boston area and brought it back to Seattle WA. 2200 miles. Quote
clh Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 Mine was about 75 ft. I had been eyeing it for a couple of years. The P.O had the plane for 30 years and decided that he was just getting too old to fly. He now flies right seat with me. I got a plane and a good friend in the deal. Quote
DaV8or Posted January 13, 2011 Report Posted January 13, 2011 A good idea might be to cajole a fellow Mooniac on this forum, or others, that lives in the area to go and give your prospective bride a once over. A quick, objective look could save a lot of $$$. Quote
pilot716 Posted January 13, 2011 Author Report Posted January 13, 2011 thats the general consensus of what I expected....I am not sure where in Oregon, I emailed for some extra pics through controller.com but didn't make contact yet. you can get dizzy just looking through all the ads... Quote
pilot716 Posted January 13, 2011 Author Report Posted January 13, 2011 the plane is in Pineville OR, here is listing, any thoughts? is anyone nearby to take a peak? i do believe it is hangered. http://www.trade-a-plane.com/detail/1170881.html Quote
carusoam Posted January 13, 2011 Report Posted January 13, 2011 Mark, I like this question because I buy and sell machinery professionally. I have been as far as Holland to help broker a machine. The customer travelled from Mexico and agreed to buy a used machine after it ran for about 15 minutes. He was very familiar with the machinery he was buying. The machinery was well represented/described. Everything worked as advertised. He bought it for about $200,000. It took 4 days to travel that far and back. Similar story for mooneys... [1] Travel with intent to purchase. Unless this is an excuse to travel, it is expensive otherwise. [2] Be prepared to walk away. This becomes incredibly difficult when far away from home and bleading cash to stay longer to get the job done right. [3] Be prepared. 30 photos of a plane will help you be prepared. 3 photos doesn't do it justice. [4] Read the logs before commit to spending money on airfare. Most airframe, engine and prop weirdness is documented in the logs. It will also give you a feeling for how well kept the machine is and where it has been. [5] Machines in top condition are easy to understand what is being represented. Any flaws are easily described by their owners. Machines that are given ratings in the middle of a scale from 1 - 10 can lead to dissapointment from 20 feet away. [6] Machines being sold by a dealer are more reliable to schedule. Private owners have work schedules and may be unable to allow to fly from the left seat. Some private owners can be outright flakey when it comes time to sell their beloved machines. [7] I bought my first Mooney at my home drome. My second was from TX. [8] Many phone calls and emails should be exchanged prior to going to visit. You may want to at least negotiate a first right of refusal. It would be a bummer to spend vacation money to go visit a plane and have it sold to someone else before you could finish your decisions. [9] Expect a second visit. First visit is to identify if the machine is everything you expected. The second visit is to test fly / accept and purchase the plane. A healthy PPI belongs in between. [10] Each of the two visits may take days to travel back and forth and a full day in between. Expect travel delays, even when you have hired experience professional help. It took me four days for the second trip. The last delay was caused by a field closure after unexpected runway over-run by an RJ while I stopped for fuel. [11] The Pineville mooney has many of the right aspects that make it worth visiting. It seems to be kept in top physical condition. The owner should be able to support that condition and describe anything that is not quite up to par. I will be out in Bend OR in the next couple of weeks. Let me know if Pineville is anywhere near Bend. I should stop in at PreciseFlight and EI while I'm out there... Best regards, -a- Quote
pilot716 Posted January 13, 2011 Author Report Posted January 13, 2011 A, Advice well given, they have sent me more pics, and specs. Prineville is very close to Bend OR btw..getting out there is what I am giving a lot of thought too, I am in no rush and will walk away if needed, I am not the impulsive type. So far this has what I want with in my budget but until the tires are kicked, who know... does anyone have recommendations for a MSC near Bend OR (nearest airport), I will find out who did his annual and maint. and use someone else of course..I am awaiting a return call from owner. Quote
DaV8or Posted January 13, 2011 Report Posted January 13, 2011 Quote: pilot716 the plane is in Pineville OR, here is listing, any thoughts? is anyone nearby to take a peak? i do believe it is hangered. http://www.trade-a-plane.com/detail/1170881.html Quote
pilot716 Posted January 14, 2011 Author Report Posted January 14, 2011 this is what he sent me so far, I will hopefully get to speak with him today and talk about maintenance and logs... Avionics list is S-Tec Autopilot, King HSI, Sigmatek Attitude Indicator, King VOR, Sigtronics Intercom SPA 400 TSO, King KN 64 DME, King KT 76 A Transponder, King 155 TSO Com/Nav Radio, Electronics Internat EGT, Garmin GNS 430. 4 attachments — Download all attachments View all images sue and bev 051.jpg100K View Download sue and bev 049.jpg106K View Download sue and bev 048.jpg107K View Download sue and bev 047.jpg117K View Download Quote
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