Another "what should I buy" thread...

3 in the green

3 in the green

Line Up and Wait
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c170b
Getting all of my ducks in a row and looking to pull the trigger at some point in the next few months...

Mission is maybe 60% local flights around Socal, 20% trips within 150-200nm, and 20% flights up to BC/WA (~900 nm) and even farther into BC - family is there and we share a cabin there as well. IFR rating will be had this year, I currently don't have but am about halfway there.

Payload requirements are me (180), and two growing boys (11 and 8) - while younger and lighter now, that will change rapidly in the next few years especially with my oldest.

Acquisition budget is around 50K, maybe 60k depending, can support maintenance to a certain degree but nothing too crazy. Not a hard and fast requirement as I'd be willing to do some panel upgrades over time, but I'd love it were IFR-capable.

Suggestions?

Been looking at:
172 (incl. 180 hp conversions)
177
170 (love me some tailwheel)
182 (harder to find in this budget range; straight tail worth it?)
early Bo (scared of the maintenance)
Mooney M20 series
Comanche (dream...but the maintenance?)
Tiger?

Not a requirement for my machine, but nice to have: family cabin area has a 2k' long narrow dirt/grass strip, relatively level, at 3k' MSL in central BC. Family has an O-300 172D and I've used that there and get in and out without problems so long as you watch DA and weight as with anything. Alternatively there's a full service published public airport within a 45 min drive.
 
Grumman Cheetah or Tiger.

Cessna and Piper prices are climbing, but the equivalent Grumman can be had for your budget.

And it checks many of your boxes.

@Mitch817 can provide additional details on the airframe.
 
Agree that a Grumman would be at the top of the list. However, perhaps I'm being over-optimistic but I think a 182 could be had in your range. Might be harder to swing, but with a bit of leg work you could probably get the inside track on a reasonably priced one that isn't too old/outdated.
 
If your budget is truly 50K to 60K plus you seem to want some decent performance & maybe IFR? If I were in your shoes I'd do one of two things.

Partner or flying club.

As you know, airplane prices have taken an uptick & your budget just won't buy much these days. At least with the criteria that you've outlined.
 
Hands down, Sierra, with a coupled IFR GPS and crazy paint. I know a guy.
 
saddletramp said:
If your budget is truly 50K to 60K plus you seem to want some decent performance & maybe IFR? If I were in your shoes I'd do one of two things.

Partner or flying club.

As you know, airplane prices have taken an uptick & your budget just won't buy much these days. At least with the criteria that you've outlined.
Click to expand...

No flying clubs around and been in that before elsewhere. Not opposed to a partner though. Part of the hobby for me is tinkering and caring for a machine, upgrading it over time as time/budget allows.
 
Cherokee 180.
 
3 in the green said:
Been looking at:
172 (incl. 180 hp conversions)
177
170 (love me some tailwheel)
182 (harder to find in this budget range; straight tail worth it?)
early Bo (scared of the maintenance)
Mooney M20 series
Comanche (dream...but the maintenance?)
Tiger?
Click to expand...
You may be hard pressed to find a Card in your budget range unless its a 68' with the O-320. Just having an O-360 seems to add 20-30k to the asking price. They are comfortable cruisers for the longer flights you want to do but I can tell you that I would not be excited about flying in the mountains or taking off from that BC strip in a 150 hp machine.

As others have suggested look hard at Cherokees, Archers, Warriors etc. Since you like tailwheel possibly a Stinson, similar performance to a 170 at half the price.
 
182, for sure, and yes there are some of us who think the straight-tails are the best ones. You’d have to look around a bit, but there are some great straight-tails out there that fit your budget.

In my opinion, the only real downside with a 182 in this list is the slightly higher fuel burn. That can be offset by running mogas. At this price point you can only go materially faster by going to a Mooney, and, again, at this price point, you can probably only get 15 knots additional speed because you’d be talking older Mooneys, but you lose a lot of other capability.

You’ll love being able to go into that grass strip and never have to worry about fuel / weight trade-offs given your load. The Tiger might be slightly faster, but once your boys are bigger it’ll be a real pig with full tanks and a traveling load (I owned one, see my username), and you won’t want to take it off grass. The 172/170s aren’t realistic for the load you want to carry (and won’t really be all that much less expensive) and the Bos are going to be quite a bit more to maintain and insure.
 
Might want to consider a Cherokee 235, I just bought one and flew it from Sacramento to Texas and was comfortable and awesome performance (Especially climb).

Pros:
Relatively easy maintance
Lots of power and load (Mine has 1390Lbs Usefull)
84 Gal Of fuel (At ROP cruise at 120KTS Indicated was burning 11GPH, even if you push it it burns 14GPH so that's conservatively 5:30 airtime)
Mo gas STC capable
Climb performance. Even at 6000 ft elevation was getting 800fpm with 2 guys baggage and full fuel, at near MSL with just me and full fuel can get about 1300fpm
Cheap insurance
Service ceiling of 16,000

Cons:
Thirstier than most 4 Cylinders
A bit nose heavy
Increased MX (Overhaul) costs as it is a 6 cylinder
Rear seats are tight

Speed wise when pulled back to 10GPH burn i get 120KTS indicated if I push that to 13GPH I can get 130, if you really want to burn gas you can get about 135 @ 15GPH.
 
Cherokee 6. Long flights with two growing boys? Need more room.
 
Prices are high right now, I'd wait and re-attack in the Fall. Otherwise you can probably pick up a Cherokee Six 260 with spartan avionics, and upgrade as money permits. That's what I would do after owning two PA-28 (warrior then arrow) and with the benefit of hindsight. I'm not a fan of partnerships, I'm more of a do without than own part of an airplane. Good luck to ya.
 
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