1958 PA-24-250

Huh? I thought that what prompted this was your desire to move up. Now your considering hanging it up?

Anyway back on message. Ed's comanche is awesome!

Mehh, I'm staring at enough cash to wipe out every piece of debt my wife and I have, which is not much, but it would be gone (Except the mortgage). our monthly bills would then equate to about $900/month, that's mortgage included EVERYTHING. No more hangar fee, no more insurance, no more biennials, no more submitting to a medical, no more regs to worry about, no more fighting for attention to get maintenance done, no more $600 fuel pumps and no more $6 per gallon avgas. We could realistically semi-retire in our mid-40s if we played our cards right. At the rate we've been working it, we would be debt free in 10 months anyway but maybe buying another plane is folding aces. Before you accuse me, my wife is insisting that I go get another, bigger, faster, meaner one. And I want it, but is it the smart thing to do?
 
Before you accuse me, my wife is insisting that I go get another, bigger, faster, meaner one. And I want it, but is it the smart thing to do?
Define "smart". If you semi-retire in your 40s but can't fly... why bother semi-retiring? If you keep working you could still pay everything off AND fly.

Guy I know has focused on paying off his mortgage as quickly as possible so he can quit his job. No vacations, no extracurriculars for the kids, no restaurants, no nothing. For years. Now, I'm as big of a tightwad as the next guy... but I'm not living like that. Just my $.02 worth.
 
Nothing smart about being a private pilot. Nothing smart at all. Then again, there's nothing smart about owning a boat, vacation house, or classic car. Nothing smart about going out to eat, or watching movies, or going to a bar, or to a concert.

I suppose if retiring to sit and watch the grass grow is important, go for it. Me, I'd rather live a little.

The thought of Ed hanging it all up makes me sick a little.
 
why? it wouldn't be the first time

Yeah. I've already told him he knows he's going to buy a Twinkie in a few years. Too bad he doesn't want to buy the Aztec - be a straight up trade cost wise.
 
Nothing smart about being a private pilot. Nothing smart at all. Then again, there's nothing smart about owning a boat, vacation house, or classic car. Nothing smart about going out to eat, or watching movies, or going to a bar, or to a concert.

I suppose if retiring to sit and watch the grass grow is important, go for it. Me, I'd rather live a little.

The thought of Ed hanging it all up makes me sick a little.

I hike all day to mountain lakes and streams to fly fish, backcountry ski, whitewater raft, occasional downhill mountain biker and throw a kayak in the ocean when I go that way. Ignoring that all the gear to do those things cost more than my plane, the cost to do them is virtually nothing in comparison. I'd say I do more than watch grass grow. I'd call hiking/climbing up a couloir in Glacier Park in june then skiing it out on a 60 degree pitch was "living a little". It's just not flying. Frankly, I've grown bored of the $100 hamburgers and pattern laps. I find my self doing more and more fishing and less flying on the weekends because I'd rather take a hike to a lake and camp than waste a day going to get a hamburger. I need some decent equipment to fly anywhere here in the winter and my mission is to go places. The care and feeding of a 50 year old plane with a Lycosauraus on it will buy A LOT of airline tickets.

Like I said, it's either all in or nothing. Not going to blow my wad on heading down to the airport a couple days a month to do touch-n-gos while burning liquid gold. I can rent a Cessna 150 for that.

I need to turn Dave Ramsey off. I don't know how my radio got stuck on talk radio to begin with.
 
I used to do all that. I'd still rather hang at the airport any day. Probably something wrong with me. Mrs. Steingar keeps saying as much.
 
I hike all day to mountain lakes and streams to fly fish, backcountry ski, whitewater raft, occasional downhill mountain biker and throw a kayak in the ocean when I go that way. Ignoring that all the gear to do those things cost more than my plane, the cost to do them is virtually nothing in comparison. I'd say I do more than watch grass grow. I'd call hiking/climbing up a couloir in Glacier Park in june then skiing it out on a 60 degree pitch was "living a little". It's just not flying. Frankly, I've grown bored of the $100 hamburgers and pattern laps. I find my self doing more and more fishing and less flying on the weekends because I'd rather take a hike to a lake and camp than waste a day going to get a hamburger. I need some decent equipment to fly anywhere here in the winter and my mission is to go places. The care and feeding of a 50 year old plane with a Lycosauraus on it will buy A LOT of airline tickets.

Like I said, it's either all in or nothing. Not going to blow my wad on heading down to the airport a couple days a month to do touch-n-gos while burning liquid gold. I can rent a Cessna 150 for that.

I need to turn Dave Ramsey off. I don't know how my radio got stuck on talk radio to begin with.

Think about combining all those things. What a PITA to bring outdoor equipment on an airliner. Get a bird suited for supporting your trips outdoors and go for it. My recent trip to Eleuthera was 100 times better flying myself. Two giant dive cases, 4 suitcases, cases of beer, steaks, whatever. I'm planning a trip all over AK with about 400 lbs of outdoor crap, wouldn't go if I didn't have a plane.
 
All that solo x/c flying and no a/p?

I still don't get all the enamore with Autopilots, might as well hop in an airliner and save a ton of money. In over 2500 I have less than a score using an AP, even the airline job in the Jetstream had no AP. I don't even notice that I don't have one.
 
If you're really struggling with this issue, just walk the line of transportation-use aircraft on any ramp and count the number with vs. without. Has anybody who has called about your 310 asked if was so equipped?

Lots of pilots, including me, don't want to sit there and steer for hours at a time, and/or appreciate the value of being able to review a plate or perform other chores that are much easier with George minding the store.


I still don't get all the enamore with Autopilots, might as well hop in an airliner and save a ton of money. In over 2500 I have less than a score using an AP, even the airline job in the Jetstream had no AP. I don't even notice that I don't have one.
 
If you don't want to sit and steer, isn't always you that says the only seat in the plane that makes sense is the one in First Class? I get no Internet or TV aloft, what the heck else am I supposed to do with my time?
 
Frankly, I've grown bored of the $100 hamburgers and pattern laps.

Even going places gets old when you're by yourself all the time. I spent 20 hours last month flying to and from Gastons with a friend, and another 40 hours flying solo across the western half of the country. I enjoy occasionally flying by myself, but I totally get where you and Ed are coming from. I want to share aviation with someone, or atleast have someone that appreciates it and will go places with me.
 
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Even going places gets old when you're by yourself all the time.

Yep, flying makes you into a hermit, get used to it, it doesn't change when you get a job flying except that instead of being alone and bored, you're stuck with someone annoying so you get to be annoyed and bored as well. Now add family into the equation and being away from them as much if not more than with them and the whole career sounds less and less appealing.
 
Yep, flying makes you into a hermit, get used to it, it doesn't change when you get a job flying except that instead of being alone and bored, you're stuck with someone annoying so you get to be annoyed and bored as well. Now add family into the equation and being away from them as much if not more than with them and the whole career sounds less and less appealing.

I already am a hermit.
 
david you just need to start flying sailplanes. unfortunately for Bart there aren't really any glider operations close to him.
 
If you don't want to sit and steer, isn't always you that says the only seat in the plane that makes sense is the one in First Class? I get no Internet or TV aloft, what the heck else am I supposed to do with my time?

Play with Foreflight, look out the window, monitor weather, answer email, chat with pax, have lunch, read the paper, catch up your log-book by copying the time logs in the GPS, re-read the instruction manuals for the Garmin, weather and traffic systems and POH, update and revise the checklist in the laptop, dig the crap out of the side pockets and seat-pockets, put new batteries in the headsets, review and mark up the documents in your bag, check all the survival equipment in the vest, adjust the ice-chest A/C hose obtain more cold air on your neck, talk to center, scan for traffic reported by the Zaon, monitor fuel and next stop . . . .

Other than that, not much.
 
I do all that while steering already... Steering the plane to me is as autonomous as steering a car. Most of the time I just make small corrections and adjust trim as I burn fuel.
 
Come to MT, I'll show you where he lived :) He used to catch the bus just a few blocks away from my house. I hear he just updated his profile for his Harvard reunion.

If Kazinski went to harvard, then I could never go full Kazinski (whatever that means) because I'm neither smart enough, nor well connected enough to ever get into Harvard.
 
I don't know who that is

unabomber.jpg
 
Back on message folks, This is Eds Comanche for sale post. Lets help him sell this awesome bird.
 
david you just need to start flying sailplanes. unfortunately for Bart there aren't really any glider operations close to him.

Somebody ought to tell the folks who fly the gliders around here that. :)
Dunno why, I have zero interest in flying a glider. My motivation for getting my PPL was to go places, buy a plane and open the hangar up and go any time I please. Seems that a glider accomplishes none of that. If I'm going to go flying for a thrill, I've been looking at Decathlons.
 
I don't know who that is

Really?!? So much for 'Home schooling', probably one of the most significant characters in social engineering and law enforcement of the later 20th century known for decades as "The Unibomber".
 
well you seem to think that its impossible to go places in a glider. last weekend i flew 144 miles around central kansas in my old antique. boredom is a word i've never even thought about associating with soaring flight.

is there a club in missoula? nothing on the SSA website, which is what i based my statement on.
 
Really?!? So much for 'Home schooling', probably one of the most significant characters in social engineering and law enforcement of the later 20th century known for decades as "The Unibomber".

I've heard of that guy, so going full kazinski is definitely a bad thing.
 
If Kazinski went to harvard, then I could never go full Kazinski (whatever that means) because I'm neither smart enough, nor well connected enough to ever get into Harvard.

You're a little late anyway, He started Harvard at age 16, his property in Lincoln was for sale a few months back, you outta look into it. I can help you get a lean to up and going and you can work on your manifesto. Unfortunately posting on PoA would probably be against your credo.
 
henning is product of public schools and can't spell. Unabomber and Kaczynski
 
You're a little late anyway, He started Harvard at age 16, his property in Lincoln was for sale a few months back, you outta look into it. I can help you get a lean to up and going and you can work on your manifesto. Unfortunately posting on PoA would probably be against your credo.

What?
 
Back on message folks, This is Eds Comanche for sale post. Lets help him sell this awesome bird.

Ok perhaps folks didn't hear me.

Back on message folks, This is Eds Comanche for sale post. Lets help him sell this awesome bird!
 
Ok perhaps folks didn't hear me.

Back on message folks, This is Eds Comanche for sale post. Lets help him sell this awesome bird!

When was that ever an outcome in a for sale post here lol?
 
What better way can you suggest to keep the thread alive? Are you thinking any members of this board don't already know about it? Or do you think that reading the ad over and over is necessary due to inability to read comprehensively? :wink2::D


Ok perhaps folks didn't hear me.

Back on message folks, This is Eds Comanche for sale post. Lets help him sell this awesome bird!
 
Ok perhaps folks didn't hear me.

Back on message folks, This is Eds Comanche for sale post. Lets help him sell this awesome bird!

Relax Adam. The best way we can help Ed sell his bird is bring interest to the thread. One of the best ways to do that is to keep posting in it. Posting over and over what a great airplane it is will get boring and will eventually appear disingenuous.
 
When was that ever an outcome in a for sale post here lol?

no joke. I'm considering looking into buying it, could ya'll please start by telling him how overpriced it is in today's market? That seems to be a popular thing to do in the Classifieds.
 
no joke. I'm considering looking into buying it, could ya'll please start by telling him how overpriced it is in today's market? That seems to be a popular thing to do in the Classifieds.

That was always against the rules not like it ever mattered and didn't lead to threads full of personal attacks.
 
The airplane fits a blimp and a 125 pound boxer dog and the PIC and still has room for camping gear and luggage. Also, the tip tanks look cool.
 
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