I finally found a good 182 about an hour away and my mechanic has plenty of 182 time. We flew up, looked at it, put down a rather small deposit, got insurance, and flew it back home. My mechanic is about done with a full annual on it. Except for what I have decided is a minor paperwork issue, it is a no-brainer that I want to keep it. My wife says to keep it, so who am I to argue?
My mechanic has a V tail Bo, but I need to haul lots of stuff more than I need to go fast. Being able to do both just costs too much.
My mechanic is not a CFI, but I have a friend who is and who has a ton of time in the CAP's 182 as a pilot and as an instructor.
So far so good!