Would Cessna 150 wings fit on a 120 or 140? Are 150 flaps bigger than the 140 flaps? Are they basically the same wing or are the 150 wings bigger? I'm talking experimental here.

I have no Idea if it would work but I've thought of the possibility. Those big fowler flaps would be fun on my Dad's O-290 powered 120. 150 flaps are a lot bigger than the flaps on a 140, they have smaller hinged flaps. It would be like comparing a rag wing 170 to a 170B. If 150 wings won't work on a 140 maybe they will on a 140A? It would be interesting to see for sure.

you can go to this website: http://www.micro-tools.net/pdf/Cessna/index.html
there you can download the parts manuals for 120, 140, and early 150's and spend some time comparing the part no's of the fusalages to see if they are identical. if all the part no's are the same in the cabin area where the wings attatch, the wings should match up. looking at the parts manuals will also give you a good idea if the controls cables etc. are simmilar or a completely different setup. or you can go to the airport with a tape measure and measure a couple of planes and see how close they are. I have seen a 140 with 150 wing struts on it.

Interesting concept. Aside from the flaps, what is it about the 150 wing that would be an improvement over the 140 wing?

I have read the the early 150's were basically a 140 with a nose wheel so I wondered if it would fit.

I got a ride in a 150/150 the other day and that little thing hauled butt! We had to be right at gross and we were going 125 Kts in the pattern with 8:00 mains. The guy bought my 150 to put in a Supercharged 230hp Ram Subaru conversion in it. I always thought that putting a bigger engine in a 150 was a waste of time but after riding in one I might have changed my mind.

I was thinking a 140 might be a better starting place for a little Cessna Hotrod. If the 150 wings had a little more sq/ft that might be nice to carry the extra weight and they did make long range tanks (32 gal useable) too. Plus you already have a tailwheel so no cost to convert a 150. Just thinking

A guy had one at Oshkosh a couple years ago. A 140A with 150 wings.
Not sure how it was licensed.
Dave

Jaerl

Believe the closest you could come would be a C-140-A.
The 140-A came with the newer wing and larger flaps as I recall.
Used to envy a couple at Palo Alto back when I had my first Champ.

Chris

The 140A did not have the large fowler flaps like a 150, it had smaller flaps.

robw56 wrote:The 140A did not have the large fowler flaps like a 150, it had smaller flaps.

Yep.

A better bet would be to convert a first year (or any early straighttail w/o rear window) 150 to a tailwheel configuration. Big flaps, modern Cessna wing, fun little two-seater taildragger.

Zane, your probably right but there is just something about the 120'140's that I like. Probably that rounded tail. Just looks classic. There's an old 120 basket case on ebay that got me wondering.

Jaerl wrote:Would Cessna 150 wings fit on a 120 or 140? Are 150 flaps bigger than the 140 flaps? Are they basically the same wing or are the 150 wings bigger? I'm talking experimental here.

Jerry :
The wings have different mounting and struts. Last 140's had early 150 wings and could work.

Remember the 140/150 has less wing area and a lower aspect ratio than the 172/175 and up... so it will not be as capable of an airplane from the wing area/lift/slow speed point of view. Also, many 150/150's have a very low useful load after all the upgrades are done.

You may find an ugly or low-grade avionic old early 172 for the same money as a 150/150 (that's what I did). Using the brilliant, inexpensive and very useful "Snap-OFF" STC (using a Snap-ON wrench to take the rear seat OFF), you will have a two seat Cessna with 145 HP and more wing area and a LOT more cargo room, more fuel, and a big useful load. You can also lighten it up a LOT by removing cosmetic and un-necessary stuff, making it into a hot rod (a "rat rod" actually, which is really cool!) . Even twisting the prop to make it a 120 MPH airplane still leaves you some climb performance with two seats. As mentioned elsewhere, I now have the STC for making it into a tailwheel airplane, which you can start scouring and collecting parts for a little at a time and then do the conversion as time permits.

The 172 is larger so it will of course have more drag, and so a 150/150 will always go a little faster than a 172/150 all factors equal.

Just another option to think about.

Thanks for the info guys. I was just thinking that if I have to start over in flying I am going the experimental route. You can pick up these 120, 140's and 150 projects pretty cheap and I could do a repower with whatever I wanted to.

I was thinking a Chevy aluminum V6 would work. A diesel would be better if I could find something light enough. Franklin made a 125 hp engine too that used the 150 motor mounts if you could find one of them. They were 8K brand new but I don't know if anyone is importing them any more.

Bill B., what does your STC run and does it cover a 175?

The STC will be only $500, but it is paper only at this point. I WILL be exploring PMA parts in the future.

But it does not cover the 175... yet

A C-150 with a V6 engine? Do a mock-up weight and balance first. Take a standard 150's useful load, then subtract the weight of the O-200 and add the weight of the V6, gearbox and FWF accessories. Then add the radiator, water, hoses, etc.

You're going to be flying it using a Futaba transmitter.

When you contact the FAA, the first thing they will say is that you will not get any credit for the parts you did not build. So the Cessna wings, Cessna tail, and Cessna fuselage you are thinking about combining into a hot rod... will not be considered a homebuilt.

What a great way to spend ten or fifteen grand and never get off the ground.

Sorry to be an asshole here and burst your bubble, but there are a WHOLE LOT of other better choices. Wanna go fast with an experimental? A used flying Vari-EZE czan be bought for $12-15K and get you 160-190 MPH on under 6 gallons an hour. Wanna do super STOL in an EXP? Get a derelict Tri-Pacer fuselage and build a Bushmaster which will equal Super Cub performance. Lots and lots and lots of choices better than the "cobble an airplane out of Cessna parts" method.

Yea, your probably right, I just like Cessnas and having metal around me. I know you can go experimental using certified parts. The first Republic Seabees with V8's were experimental. I read that they had to word the paperwork to the FAA as "building an experimental plane based on Republic Parts". They could have a STC by now.

The 4.3 Aluminum block is 87 lbs so I think you could make it very close to the weight of a Continental O-200.

I own a C150/150TD. It's a 1964 D model- the first one with 1600# gross weight & the "omnivision" rear window but like the 65 E still with manual flaps & square tail. The earlier straighttails look better but the gross wt is 100# less at 1500. Also, the 150-horse STC that mine uses bumps the gross up to 1760 for the D & later -- it stays at 1500 for the 150-150C, & believe me you need the extra gross with the O-320 esp if you have LR tanks. AD 86-15-07 for the early models with the Lycoming conversion requires placarding for single-occupant-only op's if the empty weight is 1142 or more.
The 140A wing is similar to the 150 wing with tapered chord & larger ailerons than the 120/140, but it still has the small hinged flaps, not the 150's barndoors.
I owned a ragwing 170 for about 11 years and flew it alot in freighter mode (no rear seat)- it would haul more than my 150/150 but was not nearly as sporty to fly as the smaller plane. Kind of like comparing a station wagon to a sports car.

Just a suggestion, if you are looking to go experimental. IIRC, C-172 or C-175 wings will bolt right up to the same hard points on the fuselage, and already have that extra wing area you are looking for . (I seem to recall a banner towing C-150 set up like that at one time, they were trying to get it approved..)Not sure about the struts though..... just an idea, for what its worth.......

Matt

True; 172 wings bolt up to a 150/152. Jimmy Butler did it for his banner outfit and developed the STC. It makes lots of lift, but lots of drag.

nkh

Friend of mine in Montana needed a winter project and decide to try and build a Stol aircraft for $5000.00 The whole idea was to scrounge, scrounge and scrounge. In the end he was $300 over budget because of the 3 blade composit prop. The plane was a straight tail straight back cessna 150, converted to a tail dragger with 170 style tail wheel system and 180 style main gear- you know of coarse that any spring shop can straighten a bent spring with no problem what so ever, they do it every day for trucks and other equipment. The wings were upgraded to 172 wings, one with a standard tank and one with a LR tank. He then went about mounting a cast iron 350 chevy in the front with his own cog belt redrive( 330hp). It took 22lbs in the tail to get the balance right, a 185 with aerocet floats takes a VERY LARGE ball of lead attached to the stinger to get it right. Now i have to say this plane is one of the UGLIEST planes i have ever seen, as just about every piece of this plane came from different planes and all the parts still carry their original colors, he says it adds to the character of the plane. This plane kicks butt for him to play around the ranch. This years winter project was to put big tires and wheels on the plane- ala dirt sprint car dirt stuff- very light very strong and very affordable(cheap used is ok)
I think a 140 with 150 wings and a little 200 hp chevy aluminum 4 banger up front would make a great little plane, probably use mini sprint wheels and tires to keep the proportions right.
Ken
cessna 175 with a chevy LS3 underway

Ken, I think I would like your friend