Beech Skipper

My first 25 hours or so was in a BE77. As I recall, it was fairly comfortable for 2 normal size people. Beechcraft built quality.. Nice and solid, good control feel. Good visibility. Stalls were pretty straightforward with no bad habits. Better than the other trainers on the line. Cruised at somewhere around 100kts.
 
Sweet airplane, have over 100 hours in them, not fast by any standard, but dependable and fun to fly.
 
Comfortable for a small two place trainer. That being said.... With two FAA sized adults, we had fuel at tabs and barely made the weight limit. Oh, and don't take off at 7000ft density altitude. Haha
 
The skipper is slow compared to the competition in its class. But overall I think the Skipper is a decent handling, comfortable airplane to fly.

I would not place construction quality on the same level as the Bonanza and Baron but it is not bad either.
 
Looks like a great choice for that. Clean, decent panel for VFR. Would you need ADSB around Puget Sound?.
 
jsstevens said:
Looks like a great choice for that. Clean, decent panel for VFR. Would you need ADSB around Puget Sound?.
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YES , there are a lot of airports within the sea class B
 
I ferried a Skipper from the factory to California once and also flew a Tomahawk along a similar route.

I can say the only thing better about the Tomahawk is that it holds more fuel. In every other way, the Skipper is superior...
 
I’m envious. I’ve been looking at them and many seem to be asking $30+

Seems like a fun plane. Everyone talks about the quality.

Good luck! If I had your skills, a whole swath of planes becomes much more interesting.
 
I flew one from California to a Texas with a buddy. Like I said it’s a fun little plane, but it taught us a lot about limitations.
 
I think it would be a nice unique plane for your mission.
 
A question on the radios in the Skipper. The pictures show a KX-170? with a VOR nav head, plus an NDB, really how useful are these?
In todays navigation environment
 
Tom-D said:
A question on the radios in the Skipper. The pictures show a KX-170? with a VOR nav head, plus an NDB, really how useful are these?
In todays navigation environment
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The KX155 is great as long as the digital displays keep working. The #2 in there is a KX175B. I still have one of those in my 172, and it works great. My other KX175B quit last year (after only 40 years), and I replaced it with a new TKM MX170C slide-in replacement for just under $3K.

Two good legacy King navcoms, plus Foreflight (or one of its competitors) on an iPhone or iPad should be fine to get you around VFR. It is for me.

The NDB might not have much use, other than listening to the ballgame or homing in on a strong AM broadcast station.

The weak link in there is the orphaned Narco transponder. You'll need ADS-B within the Mode C veil next year anyway, so I'd plan an upgrade soon.
 
Tom-D said:
A question on the radios in the Skipper. The pictures show a KX-170? with a VOR nav head, plus an NDB, really how useful are these?
In todays navigation environment
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After the apocalypse the NDB may be the only way to navigate other than by visual ref.
 
Slow and comfortable, well built, nice handling. Only question that would bother me is the missing logs.
 
Pilawt said:
I'd plan an upgrade soon.
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When that happens, it will all go away.
and a simple Val-Com 2000. 2 place intercom, ADSB compliant transponder, 406 ELT, and a iPad Dock.
Maybe two instrument hole radio/transponder by Trig, to replace the VOR head and glide slope.
 
Missing logs ,usually make me suspect, not that I wouldn’t buy an aircraft with missing logs, after a successful pre purchase inspection.
 
frfly172 said:
Missing logs ,usually make me suspect, not that I wouldn’t buy an aircraft with missing logs, after a successful pre purchase inspection.
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Buying off e-bay, isn't going to happen. old log books are old info the means nothing, It is in annual and ready to fly.
 
Seems to me that missing logs (assuming the plane can be verified to be in good shape otherwise) is mainly a resale concern. Not sure I’d lose a bunch of sleep over that on a $20,000 airplane.
 
kayoh190 said:
Seems to me that missing logs (assuming the plane can be verified to be in good shape otherwise) is mainly a resale concern. Not sure I’d lose a bunch of sleep over that on a $20,000 airplane.
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Me either. I'll get it here and rent it. renters will fly anything.
We here at OKH have no aircraft to rent, this will make a great PPL trainer, and do any thing I need to do.
 
Tom-D said:
A question on the radios in the Skipper. The pictures show a KX-170? with a VOR nav head, plus an NDB, really how useful are these?
In todays navigation environment
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Nothing wrong with that set up for what you want to do,as long as it all works. The ADF will get you home (while catching the Seahawks game) when all else fails. If it was mine I'd change out the transponder for ADS-B Out compliance and leave the rest alone.
 
Tom-D said:
Me either. I'll get it here and rent it. renters will fly anything.
We here at OKH have no aircraft to rent, this will make a great PPL trainer, and do any thing I need to do.
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Wasn't the breakwater/dam we used to land on near Oak harbor or Whidby Island?

They closed it 25 years ago or so...

I can't find it on any map.
 
IK04 said:
Wasn't the breakwater/dam we used to land on near Oak harbor or Whidby Island?

They closed it 25 years ago or so...

I can't find it on any map.
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I'm not familiar with any thing like that.
 
Tom-D said:
renters will fly anything.
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That's a fact.

For the most part.

My old man wouldn't let my sister fly in the airplane owned by his buddy who ran a one man, one airplane flight school. But, it seemed he was never short of students. (He lost two aircraft that I am aware of.)

But, I don't understand why you put a bid on it already. Early bids just run up the price and encourages others to bid more. The earliest one should bid is one minute before it ends.
 
Tom-D said:
AS a bounce around Puget Sound aircraft for 2, What's the consensus of opinion?
yes I know the engine is high time.. But I'd never see TBO in it.
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There is one for sale right in your back yard that is on barnstomers, thought the owner is asking a stratospheric price for it... but as we all know, asking and actual prices are always different.

Solid good little airplanes... think Tomahawk with Beechcraft quality... I have about 20 hours in one with no complaints.
 
What was the final bid?

The Skippers I saw on Barnstorners and Controller seem way high, but I never hear what people really pay.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
But, I don't understand why you put a bid on it already. Early bids just run up the price and encourages others to bid more. The earliest one should bid is one minute before it ends.
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Mostly untrue when everyone acts sane. It's when you get an emotional someone that gets caught up in the frenzy that you want to snipe, and they are usually in the minority. Plus, an argument can be made that you want to avoid that situation anyway. Most of the time auctions close at or near fair market value no matter when you bid.
 
Ventucky Red said:
There is one for sale right in your back yard that is on barnstomers,
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I see that one now, Jeff (L) is a friend, I didn't know he had one for sale.
the offset of the trip home with a pig in a poke, is probably worth the 29k he is asking. because when the sniping is done the price on this one will not be $18,8k.
Plus I wouldn't pay much over $20 for it.
 
Tom-D said:
I see that one now, Jeff (L) is a friend, I didn't know he had one for sale.
the offset of the trip home with a pig in a poke, is probably worth the 29k he is asking. because when the sniping is done the price on this one will not be $18,8k.
Plus I wouldn't pay much over $20 for it.
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There was one that had 1800 air-frame and engine time that was listed for $39K a very nice example of a Skipper... I don't see it listed anymore as maybe the owner didn't get any offers or an overseas flight school jumped on it and it is in crate on its way to China or Africa

Had a friend sell his Tomahawk a few years back.. the buyer paid full price with no BS and just about everything was done via email and the phone. They only asked for him to fly it to Oakland, CA for them. At first he thought it was a scam, but to go from Paso Robles to Oakland was not a stretch... and when he got there, there were a few other Tomahawks and a couple of 152s being broken down for shipping containers. Once they gave the plane a look over they drove over to the local Wells Fargo back and got him his money... Told him his plane was on its way to Argentina.

Anyway, the Skipper should be a fun plane for you.
 
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