58P first impressions

Dave Siciliano

Final Approach
Joined
Feb 27, 2005
Messages
6,434
Location
Dallas, Texas
Display Name

Display name:
Dave Siciliano
Flew the P Baron for the first time in the left seat yesterday.



This plane is really smooth and quiet!!



Idles at 800 rpm if need be, smooth as can be. Lots of power (I guess 650 qualifies as lots of power—don’t it)?



Took off yesterday with full fuel and two of us up front; climbed over 1,000 fpm at 140 knots with all CHTs under 400.



Air conditioning makes a real difference when it’s nearly 100 out.



Very solid feel. In the afternoon bumps that develop here low, the plane just tracked right on course with minor movements. In the A-36, I would have been bumping around pretty good.



Flying IMC, the plane stays right where you put it. In the B-55, I was dropping a wing pretty quickly if not paying attention or when fiddling with other equipment. This plane stays pretty close to where it was last aimed with hands off the controls for more than a second or two.



Lots of systems to learn: the Sandel interface with the Garmin 530/430.



Traffic info from the 330 is a little annoying when out of a TIS area when you get the audio—no traffic available.



KFS auto pilot is really smooth in here. Smooth, clean turns.



It’s gonna be a lot of fun to get used to this thing (until I have to fill it up again!!).



Best,



Dave
 
Dave,

Its unbelievable how stable twins are. I flew a Seneca once and it seemed to just want to stay put, even in IMC. Can't imagine what a P Barron would be like. Congrats, what a great airplane.
 
Yes, Anthony. The P Baron is more stable than the B-55 I had been flyin.

Looks like you're having a lot of fun Dave!! Couldn't keep up with you!!

Best,

Dave
Baron 322KS
 
Ryan:

We put in 150 gallons yeaterday!! Gainesville Texas was charging 2.64 for self serve. It was $1.79 'bout a year ago. From what I'm reading about supply and international demand, prices may be getting even higher soon.

One good thing about this plane is I ran it lean of peak yesterday. It was just at 5,000 feet with 30" of manifold pressure, but 15 gph per engine was nice. Was trueing out at 174. I would imagine higher up it will do much better.

Best,

Dave
 
Dave Siciliano said:
It was $1.79 'bout a year ago. From what I'm reading about supply and international demand, prices may be getting even higher soon.

Best,

Dave

I know that gas is a small portion of total ownership cost but it is really going to hurt if gas prices increase by 50% or so in the next few years. For us at 14 gal per hour that would be an extra $4200 a year to run the plane ($1.5x14x200)...not the end of the world but it's still going to really hurt if it happens.
 
Yes, Chris. Sigh.
Just don't see much in the way of flying becoming more affordable. Insurance costs, hangers, airport access, fuel, maintenance, etc. don't see any of them getting more reasonable.
On the one hand, fuel adjusted for inflation was low. Now, it seems it's catching up and more.
Pressurized plane choices are few also. Look at the cost of a new Malibu (or even a used one) and the P Baron and C-340 haven't been made in years. For the Adam 500 (which is a much larger frame than the P Baron--meaning bigger hanger), it's over $1,000.000.

When stepping up from the A-36, there just weren't many affordable choices. A late 80s single Malibu was about the same price, but I'm just not happy with the engineering and design of that plane--just doesn't suit me--not knocking the plane. Wasn't happy with a single over water for over 3 hours this summer, over mountains, at night or with low IMC enroute. I could be comfortable with a single turbine, but choices just weren't there for under $1/2 million.

Best,

Dave
Baron 322KS
 
Dave Siciliano said:
We put in 150 gallons yeaterday!! Gainesville Texas was charging 2.64 for self serve.

Be glad you didn't get self serve at CLS (Chehalis, WA) with me last week - $3.15 / gallon. Fortunately, I was just topping off an Arrow.
 
It is also a very easy plane to land too. But I am sure that you know that anyway.
 
Actually, I was having a little trouble with landings; It's easy to come in a little low on power and have it drop when low on the approach.
Got that straightened out today and got signed off by the school I was attending. Need six more hours of dual before covered for insurance to fly alone. It's easy to come in a little low on power and have it drop when low on the approach.

You have to lead the P-Baron more than the B-55. It just has a lot of momentum. If you get a little behind it, you can drop it in pretty hard. Takes a lot of back pressure low to keep the nose wheel off the gound while landing on the mains. That being said, if set up correctly, it squeeks onto the runway. Pretty stable in cross winds also. POH says up to 30 knot cross winds--that's pretty stiff!!

Four years ago, I set a goal of purchasing a pressurized twin. This is a great plane!! I'm very happy with it.

Thanks for the good wishes. Wish I could bring it to Gaston's next week, but that's not in the cards.

Best,

Dave
 
Dave,

Enjoy the P-Baron. I've said many times that our 58P was the safest airplane we ever owned. It was, however, lots of fun to fly.
 
Dave

Have a lot of fun with the 58P. A real nice machine for your flight mission needs. Good luck and enjoy.

John J
 
Back
Top