All,
Been lurking here for a while, soaking up all the info I can and only relatively recently got into "real" off-airport bush flying. Done plenty of outback flying (I am an Aussie) but all was into bush strips or roads.

Anyway for the past month or so I cross hired a 185 and had a ball, getting my first taste of off airport ops under the tutelage of some experienced bush flyers here in Oz, lead by Tim Howes, I know some of you guys know him.

Anyway I have recently got a line on a C182A model, converted to taildragger. It has a sportsman STOL cuff kit and a bunch of other things (tail pull handles, bush wheels, extended baggage, Cessna SIDS - requirement in Australia etc), basically as I understand it, turning it into a very decent back country machine.

I have not been able to find much info at all on this sort of conversion so I thought I would ask for anyone with experience on taildragger converted 182's and also 182's with the Sportsman kits.

There is one problem with my ability to check the aircraft out fully, the aircraft hasn't flown for 8 months and its MR (annual) has run out. It is cosmetically an ugly duckling and who knows, it might be rotten inside or the engine, but this post forms part of my info gathering process to inform whether I might be interested in seriously looking at it or passing and looking more closely at 180's and 185's. I am aware of what one should do with respect to thorough pre-purchase inspections etc and in this case it would be very thorough, but I would like as much info on the conversion/capabilities first.

My mission is two people plus camping gear or 2 adults and 2 kids (teenage girls) and some gear into back country strips, of as short as possible (600-800ft for playing and probably 1000ft whilst heavier). (Obviously with few if any approach/departure obstructions at the shorter length).

Any info very much appreciated.

Cheers
Dave

I have looked at this conversion closely.
A airframe that hasn’t been ground looped or used up like a lot of old 180’s seems like the ideal airframe. Just need to check the quality of the work.
Dave

Ive got a 182B model that's been converted to tailwheel, the reality is that it is far superior to any of my friends 180B's hahaha [emoji23][emoji1598]

Seriously though, as long as the conversion was done right, there is very little (if any) difference.

Got a Sportsman and it is worth every penny IMO, excellent mod!

WestTex,
Thanks for the reassurance. I know you were only baiting about it being superior in every way, but just wondering if you can expand on this a bit please. Does it take off/land quicker, cruise quicker, handle nicer etc etc?

Cheers
Dave

Its the exact same as a 180, only difference with the 59 182B, and the 59 180B, is the cowling. The 182B has the same cowl as the 60 C-180.

So, no difference in performance. That said, mine was rebuilt in a jig and is faster than a bunch of my buddies 180s. That is just due to being "straight" we assume. A friend has one of the last 180K's Cessna made, that is low time and never wrecked, and we're pretty close in speed with the same engine. No difference in STOL ops at all, the early model 182's are the same fuselage as the 180, just with the gear in the wrong place [emoji16]

With an A model 182, you will not have cowl flaps, if it is stock. That is a difference between those and the 180's of that era.

The only two conversions Ive seen in person are the Baers STC, and the Ronson STC. Mine is a Baers, which has a partial seaplane kit, and 185 gear. If you wanna see it, Zane made a video called "waterfall session" on youtube. Had the Horton and a different engine/prop etc. back then. Tapatalk keeps logging me in under this account, but my username here is Skalywag.

Hope that helps, good luck!

Used to own a tailwheel converted 182A with Horton cuff and Gar-Aero 8.50x10s. As Skalywag says most couldn't tell it wasn't a 180 but if you knew what you were looking at you could see the main gear patches and lack of cowl flaps. I think it was comparable to same age 180; maybe a touch more cooling drag but fewer dents and dings. We saw much lower insurance cost than typical for a 180 because on paper it was still a 182.

Are the wing struts the same on the early 180 & 182's?
I helped a friend remove the struts from his later-model 182,
and was surprised to discover that the lower end attach was different than mine.

Is this the jump plane that is white yellow and blue with an O-550? If so, I skydived out of it a few times back in 2008 at Skydive OZ in Moruya. It was a beast, absolutely the fastest climbing Cessna I have ever jumped from in my 40 years in the sport.

A local friend here (@Terry) has a converted 182 and he loves it as far as I can tell.

I can't think of any logic against a converted 182, other than the potential for paperwork issues with STCs that are applicable only to the 180 model. Might want to do some research on how CASA treats that.

If you plan on insuring it, you might be pleasantly surprised when you get a quote for "a 182". Be sure & tell them its a taildragger. Then when you get a quote, verify they know its a taildragger. Then verify they know (again). I went through this with my C150TD. The low price is tempting but i wouldnt wanna find out the hard way that your policy is void because "tbey didnt know its a taildragger".

What Hotrod said! Just cause some insurance salesman says it doesn't matter cause its a 182 by serial number, does not mean they are correct. Make 100% that the policy has tailwheel written under the make/model info. The "cheap" quotes will vanish, at least thats been my experience.

Bill White Insurance specializes in 180s/185s/182TWs

Usually, the insurer asks for a list of STCs installed on the plane. I would make double-darn sure the TD conversion STC was listed, as well as calling it out as a TD... I hate surprises!

JP256 wrote:Usually, the insurer asks for a list of STCs installed on the plane. I would make double-darn sure the TD conversion STC was listed, as well as calling it out as a TD... I hate surprises!

Never heard of that but always use AVEMCO.

gbflyer wrote:

JP256 wrote:Usually, the insurer asks for a list of STCs installed on the plane. I would make double-darn sure the TD conversion STC was listed, as well as calling it out as a TD... I hate surprises!

Never heard of that but always use AVEMCO.

Never heard of that either, and I don't use Avemco. I wonder if it's something they do when they determine the hull coverage far exceeds the valuation.

After 4 airplanes in 23 years and a number of different insurance outfits,
I've never had the insurer or broker ask about STC's or mods.

Thank you all for the information. Going to go and have a close look at it in the next couple of weeks. Should be fun.

And I have definitely learnt something, especially about the "its no different to the C180" of the same year.

Will post some piccies when I get back.

Cliff,
Definitely doesn't have a 550 in it. 470.

Cheers
Dave