Hi Dane,

I'm proud to say I keep Rocky at Jerome County Airport, one of the friendliest and cheapest full service airports in Idaho!

your friend,

The Flying Squirrel

Strata,

Long time listener, first time caller (or something like that).

My advice: Keep the plane. Pickle it if you have to but keep it. Store it at the cheapest old WWII field you can find in an old dilapidated group hanger. It will be impossible to get your money out of it, it will be a pain to replace, and you like it.

I've got to admit that my old ratty 206 doesn't kill our cash flow too much; however, I understand the pain. The said, the best experiences we have enjoyed as a family have been because of the plane. For instance, last September there was a weekend in late September that was freakily warm in Yellowstone so we shot over and had the BEST time. We stayed an extra day because the park was empty and the weather was 60+ degrees. Could not have planned that and it would not have been possible w/o wings.

Once it's gone, it's gone. Just my 2 cents.

Chris

Dane, I see you live in Kimberly. I've heard that the proprietor of Lands Inn is a bit of a Stinson 108 guru-- is that you?

Eric

You've got yer Kimberlys mixed up, Eric.

Oops, not the first time I've been confused! Glad he didn't invite me over for a visit-- I'da flown to the Oregon Kimberly, then been pissed off for getting stood up!

Eric

Strata Rocketeer wrote:Thank you all for your ideas...I'm going to hang onto my hangar a little...Doug

So, I have an old spam can and tie her outside. Hanger costs seem prohibitive to me. And having a fancy plane that I can't afford to fly wouldn't make sense either. The old '59 C-172 fits all my gear - I can even sleep in it, and save the motel bill! My cars are all ancient, but everything is paid for, and like my cabin they're old & funky. But expenses eliminated can make room for lots of opportunity to fly.
Just thinking out loud, Berk

(She's old and weathered, but she flies, and she's mine; '59, C-172)

Hi Eric,

No not me, I'm not much of a guru on much of anything. However, I will not stand you up.

Kimberly Id is 5 miles from twin falls.

If you get this way give a holler.

Dane

Rocky,

Jerome is a great strip, that is where I fuel if I cant get into Buhl for some reason.

I keep my plane at twin as I was able to get a very cheap hangar there. If I could not be at twin it would Jerome for sure.

Dane

Berk wrote:

Strata Rocketeer wrote:Thank you all for your ideas...I'm going to hang onto my hangar a little...Doug

So, I have an old spam can and tie her outside. Hanger costs seem prohibitive to me. And having a fancy plane that I can't afford to fly wouldn't make sense either. The old '59 C-172 fits all my gear - I can even sleep in it, and save the motel bill! My cars are all ancient, but everything is paid for, and like my cabin they're old & funky. But expenses eliminated can make room for lots of opportunity to fly.
Just thinking out loud, Berk

(She's old and weathered, but she flies, and she's mine; '59, C-172)

Berk,

Getting a hangar in Phoenix, Az usually takes a three to five year wait. Tying a tube and rag plane out in the open in Phoenix is not a very good idea. It's probably more harsh on the plane than Alaska in some respects because of the extremely high temps we sometimes get (not to mention the very bad hail and T-storms with very high winds). That's why I'm keeping the hangar a bit. Replacing the plane would be easier than replacing the hangar. I guess a covered tiedown would get the job done, but only marginally because the tail feathers would still be exposed to the AZ sun and they are the most vulnerable part of the plane.

Am I rationalizing things here? Probably; but like a lot of folks my hangar has also become a storage room and a workshop, and I'd just have to get another storage room to put all that stuff in anyway. Keeping the hangar is also a powerful incentive to keep me from just completely giving up on this. I'm seriously thinking about putting a Schweizer 1-26 in it so I can keep it a while. As long as there's something with an 'N' number in it I can keep it. The 1-26 is a very inexpensive glider that would be a big challenge getting my soaring diamonds in - something that I've wanted to do for a long time.

As far as expenses go, we've always been 'pay as you go' people. If we can't pay the bill in full at the end of the month we don't do it, whatever 'it' is. Our expenses and debt load are shockingly low compared to most Americans and our credit is still very good - I intend to keep it that way. It helps that my wife is a CPA...BTW, does anybody around here need some tax work done?

Did you ever consider building a plane or buying an experimental already made?

A lot of experimental come as "quick build" kits that go together pretty quickly and have a firewall forward package that you just plug in. These still fall into the 51% rule. They come in all shaped, sizes, and capabilities. Some will beat the performance of the new Husky.

At one point I was looking at a C-170 or Stinson, but like you, I didn't want to be strapped to the feeding and upkeep of a certified plane that drank 10-12 gallons of 100LL per hour.

I bought my Kitfox last year and have decided that it was the third best decision I have ever made (#1wife, #2son). So far I've spent:
- $26,000 for the plane/tailwheel signoff/BFR/and 10 hours of dual
- $1,500 / year for insurance (but that's zero-time tailwheel)
- $20 / month tiedown (I wish I had a hangar).
- $13 / hour of gas maximum (91 octane mogas)
- $10 / hour for overhaul reserve (conservative estimate)
- $80 for a new sealed battery
- $60 for a pair of tundra tires including the mounting
- $0 labor...I do it all myself
- $20 for various nuts and bolts from Aircraft Spruce
- $250 to get the transponder recertified

I will need to fork out a few hundred dollars for the annual in June. This can be done by the builder that holds the repairman's certificate or any A&P. It doesn't need to be an IA.

Hope this helps.

Dave,

I have considered building several times. My wife doesn't think I'd have the patience to finish it, and she's probably right.

Buying a glider is attractive to me at the moment because it would also be very inexpensive ($5-7K) and it doesn't have the huge headache and expense that goes along with having that noise maker on the front. To fly it all I need is my pickup truck and about 1500 ft of polypropylene rope. Of course, I'll need someone to launch me and chase me down with the trailer sometimes, and my wife has never been very excited about that. That's one of the downsides to this scenario, that, and the fact that she won't get to fly with me. I've been very blessed that flying is something that Alyce has always enjoyed doing with me. She doesn't, however, enjoy chasing me around with a glider trailer.

If you love to fly, as you say you do, I hope you can work things out. I know that I have walked a few miles in your shoes. I am a retired school teacher on SS, my wife also retired, worked for a nursing home and she had no retirement benefits. I can't afford to have a 182 Cessna all of my own and afford to fly it 100 hours a year, but I make it happen. I love to fly, I got the bug when I was first out of college the kids were little and I was so poor I couldn't pay attention. That was in 1959, in 1980 I started my PPL. I had purchased a 170 with a partner that was a CFI. So I haven't got this flying itch scratched as of yet. How do I do it? I am the airport manager of our little airport S49 So I don't have to dig in my back pocket for hanger rent. I fly for the local Sheriff on search an rescues. I have a few ranchers that ask me to help them out looking for cattle. And so it all works out. I quit trying to keep up with the Jones, each time I would get close they would get refinanced. Ha! Ha!
I haven't had the pleasure of meeting you but I can tell by the warmth felt here on this board that you are an OK kind of a guy. I hope I have the honor of doing that some day down the road. Good luck to you.

Strata Rocketeer wrote: That's why I'm keeping the hangar a bit. Replacing the plane would be easier than replacing the hangar.

Truer words were never spoken. When my parents got divorced, my dad bought his hangar thinking he might be needing a really big storage unit before long. Turned out to be the greatest investment ever, as I get to keep the 170 there, and he uses it...for a lot of stuff. I don't think he could replace that hangar for over twice the price he paid, if there were even any available.

Strata ol buddy....haven't been on this site for several months, decided to log on to see what was up and I see this.

I was talked into trying new things, thinking maybe I should be somewhere else, "expanding my horizons in life", real estate deals, traveling etc. Stayed out of the air for the longest stretch I've done during the last 15 years. No matter where I was or what I was doing, whenever a plane flew over, my heart ached.

Made a sincere effort to leave flying behind and open a new chapter in my life without it. There were times I would wake up in the middle of the night and drive out to my hangar to visit my Super Cub. Strange, maybe but who cares.

I've learned flying is not only in your blood or an addiction that is overcome with will power, it is in your soul. For whatever reason in Gods master plan I know I was meant to fly, the urge has always been there for as long as I can remember.

I am back in the air now doing what I was meant to do and the feeling is beyond description.

The process of searching for the right aircraft, buying and setting it up for your personal preference is a labor of love. The hardest time for any pilot has to be when he sells knowing it will be the last he'll ever own.

If you do find yourself without wings, come visit and fly my Cub.

Your Friend
SC

Hi strata, Just reading all the latest posts and got caught up on your dilemma. I think we met las summer at JC. I was in a Tripacer at the time that I owned for the pas 10 years. Well after seeing all those beautiful maules I went out and found one in Minnesota and bought the damn thing before I could sell the PA 22. I've had it about a year now and it's about the same cost of ownership and operation as the Tripacer. Only thing is I can't use car gas now. It's a M4 210c and I love it. I'm pretty sure we met last summer. I hope you can work things out and stay with the Maule or at least stay flying. I finally sold the PA 22 to some new pilot here at my home field which is lousy cause I have to look at the old friend every now and then. I went just about everywhere in Idaho with it. Hope you hang in and make it there next summer. I'll be there late June Early July. Hang in there old friend. Iceman

SC,

Glad we were able to drag you back onto the forum, sorry this is what it took to do it. Thanks for the offer to fly your Cub but I haven't flown one since June of 1995 so I'm a little reluctant to take you up on the offer without a little refresher. I've been thinking about renting Chandler Air Services Supercub and Husky a bit this spring. Maybe after I work the kinks out and reacquaint myself with flying stick and throttle again to sort out working the two with opposite hands I'll take you up on that offer.

You're correct about flying being something that works it's way into our very soul. I've had that desire to fly since I knew what an airplane was, and it was reinforced by flying with my father when I was quite young. It's impossible to ignore.

MauleWaco,

You are definitely right about the M-4-220 being a hotrod, and the 220 Franklin does have a sound that reinforces that impression. Many of my friends have commented about the hotrod car sound the engine makes because of the aggressive cam profile it has. It has that muscle car lope when the engine is turning low RPM's. I'm gonna miss that sound.

Iceman,

Yea, that was my wife and I that you met up with at Johnson Creek, but we also met up and talked at Johnson Creek in 2004 and 2005. You and I, Jay Pratt, Richard Davis and a couple of other guys flew over to Sulphur Creek for breakfast in 2005, and we met at the Maule fly-in in 2004. Small world, eh?

Yeah that was a good day at Sulphur creek with good new friends. Haven't figured out how to get a pix of my new baby on here yet. my wife is the puter wiz. I hope you can tough it out and keep the Maule. I can't immagine life without that freedom of flying. I feel lost when my plane is just down for annual and I can't fly. Even though I probably wouldn't fly that much just the thought that I can get in it and go somewhere is comforting. When it's down I feel sort of lost. Iceman

Strata Rocketeer wrote:I think my luck has run out. At age 48 I'm thinkin' about throwing my pilot wings in the river. Just sick and damned tired of not being able to afford to do anything else I love to do...

To quote Bill Clinton, let me just say, "I feel your pain."

Gump air, I know of what you speekl. I got my PA 22 on my own way back. A friend of mine and I restored a basket case PA 22 and I flew it a while and we sold it for a profit. I took my 10 000 and found another for sale on tradea plane for 10,500 and it was the buy of the year. Flying and a fair amount of time left on the engine. It became my BC plane and taught me a lot over the years. My wife hated it cause I bought it without telling her till it was here. Over the years we had some hard times and came close to selling it but I was always able to make it through by pretending it wasn't there as a resource. Then the roof fell in. On Dec 20 2000 my number two son Jeff was travelling to work and was killed by a 17 year old girl passing over a double line. I didn't want to do anything any more. I figured I would never fly again. At 25 he was gone. We were devastated. My work suffered, i"m a contractor, and a dark cloud decended over us for a long time. Well my wife Jean dealt with it much better than I did. She happens to be director of Hospice here at Sharp in San Diego so she deals with death daily. Not that the death of your son is any easier it's just she knew what we were going through and how our grief would progress, for lack of a better word. One day she came home and announced that she thought we should get a Harley. I about fell off the couch. She wanted to learn to ride as we had one long ago when we met. I started looking and found a barely used one, a Dyna wide Glide and it was done. I taught her to ride at the airport and informed her I wouldn't ride on the back behind her so she said then look for another one. Amazing woman I have here. We now have that one and a Dyna low Rider and enjoy riding when the weather is good here which is about all the time. If times get tough for us the Bikes will go but the Maule will be the last thing to go. Besides then we'd have to vacate our hangar and store all the junk in there in a storage place. Sorry I got all wordy here but my point is, somehow it all seems to work out. Maybe not right away, but in time we all seem to recover if we work at it. I know Strata will get back in the air. It truly does get in your blood. I know his wife flew with him cause I met them at JC a couple of times and we flew to Breakfast together. Half the battle is having a wife that will fly with you on occasion. Mine white knuckles it when she does but bless her heart she does it cause she knows I enjoy taking her. She's afraid I'll have a heart attack in the air and be helpless. I've offered to teach her to land it but she won't. Remember, we're not on this old rock for very long and as I've found out we never know when our time will end here so live life to the fullest and enjoy it while your here. I'd hate to go not having done all I wanted and I've always wanted to fly. Blue skies to you. Iceman

I do feel for all of the people that are thinking of throwing in the towel because of the cost of owning an airplane. I have worked on them for 15 years before I found a need to own one. In fact I couldn't own one if I wasn't an A&P / IA.

I would like to add an upbeat note to this dicussion with a question on what you think is the cheapest aircraft to own that is going to be used on backcountry strips. The only rule is it is going to be tied outside (with covers for winter ops).

-Todd Giencke