Is ownership worth it?

dutch_flyer wrote:

dutch_flyer07-Jun-21 17:12170
Mooney_Driver wrote:
what, a normal 530 with a 530W? That needs an antenna upgrade and that should be it. Or did you install it from scratch?
I upgraded from two original KX175’s to a 530W that I bought from a used avionics dealer. I also had a GPS100 removed as well as a small extra panel that had been added on top of the copilot panel (I have the short version of the copilot panel in my TB-10). There was a Becker radio that got moved from that extra panel to the main panel. Also the autopilot nav coupling had to be rewired. In my naïvité I imagined this to take just a few hours.

Hi @dutch_flyer

I just came across this topic.
How are things going with the airplane now – as general overall? I hope the best.

Cheers,
Claus

I hope it all resolved. My aircraft is now 2 months into its annual with no end in sight.

Last year’s annual was about three months, the year before about three months. However, having owned 5 aircraft over the years, I still take the pain in exchange for the freedom.

Mark_B wrote:

Mark_B30-Jul-23 20:13172
I hope it all resolved. My aircraft is now 2 months into its annual with no end in sight.

Last year’s annual was about three months, the year before about three months. However, having owned 5 aircraft over the years, I still take the pain in exchange for the freedom.

What´s wrong with it?

Mark_B wrote:

I hope it all resolved. My aircraft is now 2 months into its annual with no end in sight.

Last year’s annual was about three months, the year before about three months. However, having owned 5 aircraft over the years, I still take the pain in exchange for the freedom.

Wow – I take about 3 days to do mine, and I’m slow. I share a hanger with several other aircraft, and one is a certified Socata Rallye. The owner uses a mobile mechanic with a helper and they do his in a few days tops.

This kind of thing is not caused by anything to do with the aircraft but everything to do with airfield politics e.g. the maint. co. has way too much power, is doing work for customers who screm on the phone louder, and those who don’t scream (which could be because the said co. owns the hangarage) just have to wait. I’ve been in that situation many years ago and after 2-3 months took charge of it and got it done elsewhere.

I recall that the only hangarage available at EGKB was tied to a maintenance agreement, which is a wonderful way to get yourself totally shafted.

dutch_flyer wrote:

Sorry missed the message. Now 2.5 years in it’s pretty much just flying with scheduled inspections. Like many I dealt with a lot of stuff the first two years, but after my last annual (and lots of expensive upgrade/restoration projects) it seems like the issues have been worked out and I have a very comfortable and reliable airplane. It’s been about 9 months since I’ve had any unexpected maintenance issues. I did have a pricey annual due to a mag overhaul, but it should be reasonable moving forward.

Glad to hear that things flattened out over time. To be comfortable and feeling assured that ones airplane is reliable are important factors to the enjoyment of flying aero planes for most pilots, so well done in reaching that point, I´m sure it has had a bit of a cost, but that´s life eh.

Out of curiosity. What would you have done differently – in hindsight?

After a decade of dreaming of owning a plane, I got an SR22 in January.

I paid a known maintenance company over £3,000 for a pre-buy. This task was crucial for me as I am still very new/naive to aviation.

Nothing significant was found, and I got the plane. During a pre-flight check in June, I noticed a lot of erosion on the fin. I was shocked. I had never seen it before, and I knew that my flying couldn’t have caused it (I’m not just a VFR pilot only, but also what I call a fair weather-only pilot).

Over the phone, I was told by the same maintenance company that it looked like the I had hit something. I knew that wasn’t the case. As you do with doctors, I asked for a second opinion, this time from a renowned Cirrus maintenance company.

The result of the investigation was – “natural erosion damage caused from new, onwards”. The plane is 15 years old.

This type of erosion is a known issue and, if not taken care of, will expose the glass fibre. The erosion was so bad that a fix had to be designed by Cirrus in the US.

My plane has now been grounded for nearly three months. Together with the annual, we spent over £25,000.

So when I read about your experiences, I hope my situation was bad luck. Because so far, I’ve experienced all the cons but seen little of the benefits.

“Over the phone, I was told by the same maintenance company that it looked like the I had hit something. I knew that wasn’t the case. As you do with doctors, I asked for a second opinion, this time from a renowned Cirrus maintenance company.”

So, sorry for happened to you. What a shameful performance by that company you used for the pre-buy. Not only did they do a piss poor job at the pre-buy, but they went on to in fact lie about the root cause of the found corrosion – easy to see why they turned to lying. Did the 3.000GBP cover travel expenses etc. as well was that their charge for the “inspection” (or smoking pot) that they claim to have carried out?

@yeager, regarding the pre-buy, I can’t discuss many of the details at this stage because this matter is with my lawyer, but I will update you once there’s an outcome. The plane was already at their facility when I purchased it, so there were no travel costs associated.