You guys have some great looking planes! Been checking out the gallery feature.
Thanks again for all the input-ton's more info than I thought I would get on a topic that I know you have been over before.
MTV, your synopsis of the Maule is the most concise summary of what makes a Maule a bit different from other taildraggers that I've seen. Seems everyone around here that I've talked to(instructors, owners etc.) offers that the Maule handles a bit different from other TD's,but no one has quite laid it out like you did----and it makes sense.
Hope to get to join this group of pilots soon!(after the insurance company's through with me......).

scoot,
you have not said what you are going to use the plane for after you get it. except you said you would be fling for fun. the maule is a very versitale airplane. you keep it lite and it will do almost what a supercub will do and you can load it up kinda like a c-180. the plane is easy to work on and i love the double back doors for cargo. i have flown an m4 here in alaska since 79 and now i am flying an m6. i work my plane hard with most flying done on floats and at gross weight loaded with moose or caribou meat and camping gear. the plane is great and does a good job for me.
rog pfeifer

Rog-I guess like the rest of you guys, I have a true love of aviation and flying--and I've been out of it now for awhile and am itching to get back into it. But the thought of droning around in a rented 150 or 172 just leaves me cold. The prospect of mastering a tailwheel plane(over time) is very exciting, and the idea of exploring some of the tamer backcountry is also very appealing.
My interest in the Maule is that it is a conventional gear, bit more of a performance AC than a 172 or such. Initially, I expect to stay fairly close to home and I have access to a beautiful 2500' grass strip. Also ton's of not too far away destinations around where I live to keep me busy while gaining experience. Another attraction to the Maule and esp the 235 is that eventually I want a plane that is somewhat cross country capable. Getting into some of the backcountry strips is a dream that I hope to live out after getting real comfortable with any new plane and esp the Maule.
Thanks for asking; and I should have made it a part of my original question.

If I was just flyin' for fun and speed wasn't a consideration I'd get a Supercub. If your passenger insists on sitting beside you a Maule or C-170 would be good moderately priced alternates.

Let me stick my oar in the water here. I agree 100% about the Maule being a bit different. I soloed in a Champ 20 years ago and owned a Luscombe 8A for a couple years before going to a Maule M5 180C.

Man, the difference was incredible! And I am not just talking about the power. The Luscombe did not have any flaps and 35' wings so landing approaches tended to be flat and it was easy to float. The Maule is the exact opposite. When you pull on those flaps with shorter wings, you go down like an express elevator.

It took awhile to learn the timing of the flair and you gotta be straight when those wheels hit pavement! Even after hundreds of landings you better be wide awake for the next landing.

The other day we had a twitchy 8 mph wind that was mostly 90 degrees to the runway. Well, it switched around behind me on short final and it was a handful keeping the Maule from dragging me left off the runway.

Whenever I can, I land on grass which is much more forgiving and isn't so quick to humble me. I am sure in another 20 years or so I won't have to pay such close attention to the landings!

i consistently have the most fun flying a friend's PA-11. its just plain fun.

but i wouldn't trade my maule for anything (except maybe a turbine maule ) the other guys are right about its ability to 'flop' onto the runway. just takes a tiny bit of power right before flare, or a steeper decent to keep your speed. the maule glides MUCH better than the old tri-pacer i used to fly. everything is relative.

also- keep in mind- when you are getting your initial maule instruction... you don't need 235 hp for every take off. and you certainly dont need it to get around the pattern. i like to use it for high-ego take offs, but for a typical takeoff with 3 aboard on a long paved runway i use less power. the maule is fairly light and is able to operate with very reduced power settings- which equates to less fuel burned. if i'm just putting around with some "looky-loo's" on board i can burn as little as 8 gal/hr. and when its time to get somewhere i can push it up to 150 mph and deal with the 14 gph drinking problem.

Skystrider, after reading your report of the twitchy crosswind, I started looking at nose gear planes again! I think it was the handful and dragging that got me!
Seriously still collecting my thoughts on everything, but you guys sure have given me some good input to work with.
Called an ins broker on Wed(that I had already spoken to once) to get a real quote on a M7-235, but still haven't heard back yet---didn't realize it would take this long.
Got "Taildragger Tactics" by Sparky Imeson in the mail the other day and have been reading and enjoying it.
The prospect of Spring being just around the corner is really gettin' me

Stick with a taildragger, they're way more fun. I would never have a nosedragger as my only airplane.

Eric

Hey Scoot: I went through what you are going through now. I wanted a Maule TD but was nervous about insurance, ground loops, crosswind, etc. When my offer on the M7 235C I bought was accepted I had butterflies in my stomach like you can’t believe. When I got it home in October the weather kept me grounded for a week. I thought the butterflies would kill me. Keep in mind I only had 105 hours all in low HP nose draggers. Remember that in the good old days EVERYBODY flew TD and it was fine. Bottom line. If I can do it, you can do it. I do have a knack for operating machines. Do you? Can you parallel park while chewing gum? If so you will be ok.
Check this form out. It is the sister to this board but it is for Maules only. http://maulepilots.org/forums/index.php there is a great guy there named Jeremy. He owns Maules AK Worldwide http://www.maules.com/ He is a wealth of knowledge and helped me by my Maule. He told me to do 200 landings with my instructor and I totally agree. He insists no wrecks, bad for business and insurance. If your instructor doesn’t have insurance and a lot don’t you might have to get it for them. I did. $300.00 for 3 months. Rip-off. That’s another story. Scoot, you in Oregon or Texas? Cheers…Rob

I really liked the maule m7-180, but the m7-260 is a LOT of plane. As pointed out, the difference in short final performance between the two is night and day. I found the 180hp much better balanced - the 260 you better keep your hand on the throttle to arrest the descent. The flaps are wonderful btw.

And on takeoff the 260 gets you up in the air before you can make any mistakes. wow.

But I felt much more comfortable with the 180hp.

But either with another 50 hours would feel normal.

There was a guy around here that did get specialized maule instruction, ignored the request to get more, and promptly groundlooped his 235 within a month of getting it.

that spread aluminum gear seems to be the best, btw.

RobBurson wrote:He told me to do 200 landings with my instructor and I totally agree. He insists no wrecks, bad for business and insurance. If your instructor doesn’t have insurance and a lot don’t you might have to get it for them. I did. $300.00 for 3 months. Rip-off. That’s another story. Scoot, you in Oregon or Texas? Cheers…Rob

Be sure to find a high time Maule instructor as well or you will be defeating the purpose. The less accidents that occur in a particular model aircraft, the cheaper the insurance on that model will become. Once my article on tailwheels and insurance has gone thorough all the editing process, I will post it for yall to read. It may answer some of your questions.

There is no reason to buy insurance for your instructor unless he insist on you doing so. The policyholder is always covered provided the instructor meets the open pilot requirements. Some instructors choose not to insure themselves to save $600 per year and require that the owner of the aircraft do so. The CFI only needs to be listed as a named pilot on most policies in which case he would be considered a "named insured" and have the same coverage as the aircraft owner. In the event that your policy wording does not consider the named pilots as named insureds you would just need to add the instructor as an additional insured with a waiver of subrogation with regards to providing instruction to the policyholder. Most underwriters will do this at no charge, or for a $100 fee since dual instruction is either required or requested by them in the first place.

scoot wrote:Called an ins broker on Wed(that I had already spoken to once) to get a real quote on a M7-235, but still haven't heard back yet---didn't realize it would take this long.

It usually takes at least a full week to get all the quotes in for a particular risk. In the case of a hard to place risk it may take longer. I try to give my clients a call or email every other day to update them on the options thus far, if you do not hear back by Monday you should give him a call. Since you have flight experience, but no tailwheel or Maule experience your agent will probably be able to get quotes from 2 or 3 companies; London Aviation Underwriters, Aerospace Aviation Underwriters, or W Brown. Global may be a player if you have a strong transition plan and a high time Maule CFI. You will have to try Avemco on your own since they are a direct writer. A lot of times they are the only market available for new TW pilots, but I would suggest using them until you get your TW time built up and the other markets become availalbe and then move to one of the other companies.

You should expect a total premium in the neighborhood of $4,000 - $4,500 dollars for the first year and that should drop to around $2,500 after you get around 100 hours in the Maule.


-Low

You will never loose with a SuperCub. They are a great investment and a truly fun airplane to fly. If you want speed, buy a Bonanza. I admit that I am biased , I get paid to fly the B777, but I always look foreword to flying my SuperCub!

Idaho SuperCub

Hey Rob, I'm in Texas, but would love the opportunity to get up to Oregon. Just noticed your question in a review of the thread.