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Hangar Flying / Total and other costs
« on: August 27, 2007, 06:28:53 AM »
I, too, sat on the sidelines, then pulled the trigger, and now I'm buried.
I bought a "flying" plane and it's just gone backwards the more I look into it. I had experts tell me it was a great deal. I've now spent 1500 hours and 40% beyond the purchase price to get it going, and I'm looking at another $10K. Meanwhile, knowledgeable local help and A&P's for things like condition inspections are getting harder to find. "Experimental" is becoming synonymous with "RV".
While I think these are amazing planes, I could have been flying a slower certified training for these few years. I have, some, and it's hard enough to find people to go up side-by-side in a certified plane.
I'm sure you have, but do please consider the actual run rate. Most people try to hangar. Gas went from $2.70 to $4.30 in the time I've owned the project. Insurance is 3X that for a certified fixed-gear. I've spent over $4K at the hardware store in $20 increments. If you get an RV, there are tons of suppliers and supporters and little variation; with these old planes, be prepared to muddle through debugging someone's one-off brake mounts. If you buy, you'll probably end up as knowledgeable as a builder about systems, but you'll still need a sympathetic A&P every year.
They say there's one thing that distinguishes new businesses that succeed: more cash and more time to succeed. Same here. If you can't spend double the time and money in a pinch, you're liable to get into a hole you can't get out of.
Fear aside, perhaps the best thing you could do would be to partner with someone, perhaps the builder who's looking at stepping back to light-sport for medical reasons. You could pick up all the labor so he can just fly and you can learn. You can even help build the next plane. He might feel better about handing his baby off to someone who he's vetted and trained. There are no deals; almost invariably the $40K solid flying plane will be a better deal that the $15K project because you need only keep it in good shape (that's enough money and time right there).
I don't mean to be a downer, but I think you won't succeed unless you can take a big bite of reality and still keep up your spirits.
(Thanks for your patience.)
I bought a "flying" plane and it's just gone backwards the more I look into it. I had experts tell me it was a great deal. I've now spent 1500 hours and 40% beyond the purchase price to get it going, and I'm looking at another $10K. Meanwhile, knowledgeable local help and A&P's for things like condition inspections are getting harder to find. "Experimental" is becoming synonymous with "RV".
While I think these are amazing planes, I could have been flying a slower certified training for these few years. I have, some, and it's hard enough to find people to go up side-by-side in a certified plane.
I'm sure you have, but do please consider the actual run rate. Most people try to hangar. Gas went from $2.70 to $4.30 in the time I've owned the project. Insurance is 3X that for a certified fixed-gear. I've spent over $4K at the hardware store in $20 increments. If you get an RV, there are tons of suppliers and supporters and little variation; with these old planes, be prepared to muddle through debugging someone's one-off brake mounts. If you buy, you'll probably end up as knowledgeable as a builder about systems, but you'll still need a sympathetic A&P every year.
They say there's one thing that distinguishes new businesses that succeed: more cash and more time to succeed. Same here. If you can't spend double the time and money in a pinch, you're liable to get into a hole you can't get out of.
Fear aside, perhaps the best thing you could do would be to partner with someone, perhaps the builder who's looking at stepping back to light-sport for medical reasons. You could pick up all the labor so he can just fly and you can learn. You can even help build the next plane. He might feel better about handing his baby off to someone who he's vetted and trained. There are no deals; almost invariably the $40K solid flying plane will be a better deal that the $15K project because you need only keep it in good shape (that's enough money and time right there).
I don't mean to be a downer, but I think you won't succeed unless you can take a big bite of reality and still keep up your spirits.
(Thanks for your patience.)