Well, I did it. I bought my first airplane.

I've looked at several (6, I think?) 172's this year. I walked away from each one feeling "I'm not really sure this is the right airplane for me."
But then I looked at one down in Klamath Falls. I didn't know the owner, but he and I had several mutual friends so I was able to get some background on him. I called the A&P that did the last annual on the airplane, and talked to him about its condition. Last Wednesday, I flew down there in a borrowed Cherokee 140 and took it up for a test flight. Everything looked great and I walked away from that airplane thinking, "THIS is the one that I want." We had a handshake deal, pending a good annual and pre-purchase inspection.
I had a local A&P do an inspection and, with an "all-OK" had him complete a full annual.
It is a 1975 C-172M. It is equipped with the long range fuel tanks and has a 160HP ram upgrade.
Yesterday morning I drove from my house on the coast, parked my car in my hangar at KHIO, rented a car, and drove down to Klamath Falls. I spent the night at a friend's house, and met the seller at KLMT in the morning. We went over details on the airplane, did a detailed preflight, and then went up for a few practice laps in the pattern so I could get a feel for the particulars of that airplane.
Once that was done, I loaded up my gear, fueled up the 172, and set off! I left as early as I could to try to avoid the gusty winds that were forecast for the valley in the afternoon. It was a great flight; got a good view of the fire at crater lake (yes, I stayed clear of the TFR) and the rest of the state between the two airports. Yes, I know that it isn't all that far. But, it was my longest solo flight to date. And it was a lot of fun to fly "my" airplane home.

I remember my first plane purchase.... Fond memories;)
Congratulations on what looks like a nice ride. I gave my current plane e a nick name, Trustyspamcan, yours got a nick name yet?

Congrats! I remember my first plane as well. On my third now. They've all had names. Annabelle, Elvira, and now Hank. Enjoy the heck out of ownership!

Congratulations. Can't think of many things that feel like the first ride in your own airplane:)

Congrats! It looks great!

Congratulations. Good looking plane. Mid 70's 172's are such sweet-flying machines. Light on the ailerons and a great rudder. 160 HP is great as well. Good luck and see you out there soon!

Bill

Congratulations. After 10,000 hours in that type airplane, I can say they are good airplanes. They are reliable and have good parts support.

There's absolutely nothing like that first flight in your own airplane, knowing that you don't have to return it so someone else can stink it up. Ownership is such a rewarding part of being a pilot.

Congrats. Every pilot should at least one airplane, once. Repeat as necessary.

Bet you slept in the hangar next to the new plane last night, didn't you? It's ok, it's safe to admit it here!
Congratulations, BTW

Congrats!!

Congrats, The 172 is an excellent first airplane. I had a 68 I model. I put the powerflow exhaust on it and it really improved take off and climb performance. That was my wife's favorite plane. You have many great adventures ahead of you. ENJOY!

Congrats! Picked my plane up at KLMT as well, that flight home was one of the most memorable I've ever had... nervous, excited, and thrilled to be flying something I owned all at the same time.

Congratulations !!! You have purchased the Golden Retriever of airplanes, easy to live with, loyal, kind, a great family friend that demands little but gives back a lot.

There are a whole lot of more experienced mechanics on this forum than me, but I can tell you that your first step as a new aircraft owner is to start spending a LOT of time in all the corners of the airframe and inside the engine compartment just looking, familiarizing, cleaning, inspecting, etc.

Your most important job is to pull up a chair, stare at things for long periods of time, clean off debris and wipe away all dirt, look at how everything has been tied down and safetied, and make it your life's mission to find where little things have been chafing against each other. You want to find the rivets that have been working a little (black circles around the rivet heads), the places where safety wire has been torn or gotten loose, all the little places where some mechanic or owner has made a small error (nylon locknuts near any heat source, etc), missing chunks of rubber baffle seal, etc.

Make it a point to remove all of the dozens of inspection covers inside the airplane and out, look into the far reaches with a strong light, mirrors, one of those neat little USB probe cameras, etc. Look for the control cables that have been sliding against frozen pulleys, or the control arm/bellcranks that squeak or groan a little when you move them.

At this initial stage, please force yourself to put two hours of time inspecting and cleaning up the airframe and engine compartment for every one hour you spend cleaning up the avionics, radios, instruments, etc. An old instructor gave me a great piece of advice... the airframe is what takes you up into the air high enough that you don't want to fall from, and it is the airframe that brings you back home safely to your family. Electronics are all well and good, and the magazines are filled with opportunities to buy electronic accessories, but rivets and metal are far far far more critical to safe and successful flight.

Congratulations again.

The "M" is the best/better C172. Great find!

Come on down to KONP for free Hambugers and Hotdogs every Saturday, 12:00 PST. Weather forecasts vary in accuracy around the area however.

8GCBC wrote:The "M" is the best/better C172. Great find!

Come on down to KONP for free Hambugers and Hotdogs every Saturday, 12:00 PST. Weather forecasts vary in accuracy around the area however.

I will do that!
Rafting on the Deschutes through this weekend, but next few weekends are free. If that marine layer doesn't push in too far, I'll be sure to fly out there.

Congratulations! I found that once I owned a plane, I flew a lot more often and paid a lot more attention to the plane than when I was renting. Flying more and being more focused helped me become a better pilot. I hope you find that to be true for yourself as well. Surmounting a hurdle that I had long believed was too high for me made me rethink other limitations I had placed on myself. Buying and flying my own plane added to my confidence in other areas and has improved my life in more ways than I ever imagined. Enjoy the journey!

Good Job! I'm on my second 172 (the plane that doesn't do any one thing really well, but does a whole lot a things pretty darn good). Nothing like that first one. The one I currently have is a much improved version over my first one, but there is still a major soft spot for my first one.

If I recall, the 1975 172 is the last model with the 0320 E2D. The E2D is considered one of the most reliable 0320's and is the reason I bought my first 172 with that motor.

My wife and I go fly camping in our 59 172 (engine upgrade) all the time. I hope you get as much enjoyment out of owning a plane as we do. It changes everything.

Congrats! I remember my first plane (a cessna 140...in 1973...).

Agree with the advice to get to know her well. She looks great.


May you have as much fun with planes as I’ve had...

Congrats! Enjoy..
John