My First Airplane :)

CC268

CC268

Final Approach
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Nov 4, 2015
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CC268
My dad and I bought a 1965 Cherokee 140! I am really hoping to do my Instrument Rating in it, but most importantly build some solid VFR hours.

We really wanted a Cherokee 180, but this was a really nice airplane all around. If we fly enough we will probably end up with a Mooney or a Vans RV9-A in a few years, but I think this will be a good plane for now. I just got my PPL in June and only have 59 hours so this should be a great plane to just build some time in. It will be hangared at Deer Valley.

Flew 1.5 hours in it today (never flown a Cherokee before this just a 172). I thought it would be really awkward having the manual flaps and the trim wheel on the ceiling, but it was second nature once I used it a few times. Also got to see a bunch of Apache helicopters and a Chinook fly in to Goodyear (before we flew it to Deer Valley)!

I forgot to take interior photos, but it is a very nice tan leather - looks great! Anyways, hope you guys enjoy the pictures!

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Sweet!!! I really like the "handbrake" manual flaps...fantastic for touch-n-go's. Window winder, not so much, but you do get used to it.

Have a blast and fly safe! :D:D
 
Congrats! Great looking plane! Welcome to the insanity. Should be a great IR training platform. IR will help with insurance rates, especially when you go to a faster, more complex plane.
 
Pilawt said:
Very nice indeed! Will you be based at DVT or GYR?
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KDVT! KGYR is where is was located by that is a long drive considering I live in Cave Creek.
 
ActiveAir said:
Congrats! Great looking plane! Welcome to the insanity. Should be a great IR training platform. IR will help with insurance rates, especially when you go to a faster, more complex plane.
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Thanks! I am looking forward to getting the IR.
 
Great looking airplane! Congrats!
 
Thanks everyone! Think I might go do some touch and goes tomorrow morning...I have to at least go visit it :p
 
CC268 said:
Thanks everyone! Think I might go do some touch and goes tomorrow morning...I have to at least go visit it :p
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Great thing about plane ownership is that you can go and do "pointless" flights at very small cost. A few days ago, I went to buy some groceries in the evening. I then realized that to get to the store, I had to drive past the airport. So I went up and did 3 night landings for night currency, and fun.
Then again, the other day, during my lunch break I went and flew it to a nearby field just to refuel. Went back to work happy, but still hungry :) (and at $3.85 per gallon, I wasn't complaining about missing lunch!)
 
That's probably the best looking Cherokee 140 I've ever seen. My first plane was a 1964 140. With the bowtie yokes and the push-pull throttle, I'd say that you've got an early model (yep, just looked it up, you've got a '65). I forget what year they went to the throttle quadrant. At least you've got toe-brakes on one side. I didn't have toe-brakes on either side! Also, someone has done a great job replacing the entire instrument panel. The original 140's did not have a standard six-pack arrangement. Heck, I still had the old AN-style gyros, too. But your panel is well laid out and looks GOOD. As far as the overhead trim crank... I loved it. I don't know why, but I just loved reaching up there and cranking in some trim. Took me a few times to know which way to turn it, but it will come naturally after a few hours.

My 140 was based in Houston, and I flew it to Los Angeles, Leadville, Colorado; The Bahamas, and all over Texas, of course. It will get you just about anywhere you want to go!!

Go fly that thing until the paint wears off the leading edges!!
 
pburger said:
That's probably the best looking Cherokee 140 I've ever seen. My first plane was a 1964 140. With the bowtie yokes and the push-pull throttle, I'd say that you've got an early model (yep, just looked it up, you've got a '65). I forget what year they went to the throttle quadrant. At least you've got toe-brakes on one side. I didn't have toe-brakes on either side! Also, someone has done a great job replacing the entire instrument panel. The original 140's did not have a standard six-pack arrangement. Heck, I still had the old AN-style gyros, too. But your panel is well laid out and looks GOOD. As far as the overhead trim crank... I loved it. I don't know why, but I just loved reaching up there and cranking in some trim. Took me a few times to know which way to turn it, but it will come naturally after a few hours.

My 140 was based in Houston, and I flew it to Los Angeles, Leadville, Colorado; The Bahamas, and all over Texas, of course. It will get you just about anywhere you want to go!!

Go fly that thing until the paint wears off the leading edges!!
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Thanks! My dad did all the research and looking around...he took his time and spent the past 8 months or so looking for something. It really is the best Cherokee 140 I have personally seen (not that their aren't others out there that are better!). The previous owner put 1000 hours on this airplane (he bought it with a new engine in it) in less than 2 years. He built up all his ATP hours in it.

The throttle is a little awkward since you have to push that button to push it forward - I am used to the 172 friction lock, but it's not a big deal. The toe brakes are nice for sure. The instrument panel was a big deal for us as I wanted something with a standard 6 pack (especially for IR training). The panel is laid out very well.

How was flying the Cherokee 140 to Leadville!?!? I would love to fly to Flagstaff, AZ (7000 ft elevation), but I am not sure I ever will. Density altitude is often times over 8000ft and there are pine trees on each end of the runway (8800 foot runway length). I noticed the Performance Charts in the Piper Owners Manual don't even go above 7000ft. LOL. So idk...I would love to go to Flagstaff, but maybe I am better off playing it safe and waiting to get a higher performance aircraft? Or go with an instructor or something.
 
Congrats! You'll love the freedom of no longer being tied to an FBO's rental schedule and you can leave stuff in the cockpit and it'll still be there when you get back... :)

Cheers,
Brian
 
CONGRATS!!!! Great looking plane.
My first plane was a Cherokee 140. Good time builder.
 
flight2000 said:
Congrats! You'll love the freedom of no longer being tied to an FBO's rental schedule and you can leave stuff in the cockpit and it'll still be there when you get back... :)

Cheers,
Brian
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Really looking forward to that aspect...renting was a real PITA around here.
 
For IR training, I'd probably replace one of the KX's with a TKM MX170. Direct slide in replacement, you can R+R it yourself in 2 minutes, and digital flip/flop makes life a lot easier.
 
Great looking plane! My son lives in Cave Creek, fly down to KRYN sometime, great on-field restaurant, biscuits and gravy to die for, :)
 
jsterner said:
Great looking plane! My son lives in Cave Creek, fly down to KRYN sometime, great on-field restaurant, biscuits and gravy to die for, :)
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Have they reopened the restaurant? I bought my plane from KRYN a few weeks ago and the restaurant was closed, they were doing some renovations somewhere it seems.
 
Congrats. It's really a nice looking plane. :)

Our first own plane was a Cessna 172 and we just recently upgraded to a Mooney. We are glad that we had the Cessna as we had the time to think about our real mission. Interesting enough we had the RVs on our list too and finally couldn't say no to our Mooney... :D:)

You definitely have a solid basis for your IFR training and maybe beyond.
 
Lovely looking plane. Absolutely one of the best choices for a plane you can actually use (go places, carry stuff) to gain experience and not break the bank. Enjoy!!

I still use the manual overhead trim in my Aztec most of the time, even though I have an electric trim on the yoke. Old habits die hard :D
 
Nice!
I bought my first Cherokee in April. I've owned Cessnas in the past but I'm finding that for me, the piper is a little easier to fly...it does better in turbulence and crosswinds are super easy.
I was also considering a 180 but settled on a140 and I'm glad I did: I don't need to haul 4 people and I can throttle down so my bird just sips gas. Mine came with lots of mods (gap seals, wing tips, power flow, fairings, etc) so it does quite well for what it is.
 
tawood said:
Nice!
I bought my first Cherokee in April. I've owned Cessnas in the past but I'm finding that for me, the piper is a little easier to fly...it does better in turbulence and crosswinds are super easy.
I was also considering a 180 but settled on a140 and I'm glad I did: I don't need to haul 4 people and I can throttle down so my bird just sips gas. Mine came with lots of mods (gap seals, wing tips, power flow, fairings, etc) so it does quite well for what it is.
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Just curious...do you lean for taxi and during your run up? When I was doing my training in the 172 we always leaned for taxi and we leaned at runup at full power. The POH on this guy is fairly "brief" and doesn't mention much. The previous owner kept it full rich except for leaning at cruise. I have to admit when we pulled the plugs for the prebuy inspection they looked great...so I am inclined to keep doing what he was doing? However, I would think on hot days that doing a full power runup and leaning would be a good idea?
 
CC268 said:
How was flying the Cherokee 140 to Leadville!?!?
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With a field elevation of 9934', it was interesting to say the least. And I did it in July! I got a certificate for landing at the highest airport in North America. A tough old lady working there named Ursula refused to sell me fuel. She cussed me 9 ways to Sunday for landing there. I was visiting a friend in Breckenridge and stayed a week. I left very early in the morning while the temperatures were still low -- had to scrape frost off of the wings. Ursula told me more than once before I left, "remember, when you take off, just stay in ground effect - don't try to climb, don't try to climb!". The airport is on a plateau, and the ground just falls away to the north. I departed, remained in ground effect, and let the ground fall away as she recommended. I then gently turned west and then to the south over a river valley below. I followed that valley down to Buena Vista airport (elev 7950') and topped off my tanks for the trip home.

In retrospect, I'd be very wary about doing that again in a 140. Beware of high elevations and hot days. Always consider density altitude, and lean for max rpm prior to takeoff if necessary. And pay attention to that stall warning light. I saw that light more times than I'd like to admit when departing on hot summer days.

Good luck with the new bird and above all have fun with it!!
 
Did my first solo in it today at Deer Valley! I had to taxi from the south ramp to the north ramp to get to self service fuel. That was a learning experience. So many more taxiways than I am used to. My training airport KSDL had two main taxiways - Alpha and Bravo; any one runway. Great learning experience with the taxi instructions and self fueling my airplane. I was super nervous at first, but once I was at pattern altitude I felt good. My landing was great. I felt like a total idiot after I landed though. I jumbled the taxi instructions going back to the south ramp and had to ask for clarification.
 
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