DBI wrote:We have all done those mental gymnastics in the past. Like others have said you have one of the best platforms to work from already in your hangar. I own a 1959 C-182B that I have modified to fit my mission of a combination backcountry and useable x-country airplane; PPponk, bigger tires and nose fork, Atlee Dodge rear jump seats etc., etc. I pay $550/year for insurance and really have no worries except flying.

This week I flew into the Frank Church Wilderness to do a little late season fishing on the middle fork of the salmon river. The photo below was taken on Tuesday while I was waiting for my coffee pot to finish making me a hot cup!

My suggestions are as follows w/ your $25k budget;

1,) Send me the money and I will tell you, you had a good time.
2.) Make some appropriate mods to your bird and spend the balance on avgas and enjoy.

Thanks -

Pierre_R wrote:I'll throw in my sixty-something old man thoughts.

I have a 182-G that is mostly on amphib floats but a few years ago I built up a great wheel gear setup with both 29" ABW's and 8.50's mounted on their own rims so I could swap easily, and both an 8.50 and a 7.00 nose gear to go with them. Cleveland double puck brakes, and Airglas fork. Great setup. I could land anywhere I was willing to, including in front of my house. Even competed a bit at STOL-Drag and beat all the four-place taildraggers. Had a lot of fun. Has the Sportsman STOL, Wing-X extensions, and Micro Aero VGs. Great backcountry rig.

Then I decided to get a folding-wing plane to tow behind my pickup camper. I got a very nice Aerotrek A220 and I've been having a blast with it, just returning from a trip through northern NV, UT, CO, and southern UT. 182 is staying on the amphib floats again this winter, but one of these autumns I'm gonna put it back on the wheels and play with it again.

Previously had a 1959 taildragger 150 (Lowe conversion). So, having run the 182 and a couple of planes in the category you're thinking about, I have the following thoughts.

While I enjoy my little A220 a lot, it's not as robust or capable as that 182. No sub-700 pound plane can be. The small luggage box is limited to 50 lbs and much of it is taken up with flat repair supplies: patches, wrenches, jack, compressor, bicycle type pump.

I've had a flat tire from a small thorn, the type that flats mountain bike tires. That thorn would likely not have penetrated the ABW's or even 8.50's with good tubes. When I tried running the little 12V compressor from the lighter plug, it tripped the breaker before I could get 8 psi in, so I now also carry a bike pump. Just noting that because it seems everything on the smaller planes is a bit lighter duty.

I also put a good-sized rock through the fabric of the horizontal. The 182 has the thick abrasion boots on the leading edge of the horizontal and if the rock missed that, it likely would have just dented the aluminum. I also am more cautious of the little carbon fiber-wrapped LSA composite prop than I would be with the nickel-leading-edge MT on the 182.

The light plane with low wing loading is like a kite compared to the heavier 182. I really watch for forecast winds around the mountains. I can comfortably fly and land that 182 in a fair amount of wind.

From a practical standpoint, as the others have written, and I'm agreeing, the 182 is an excellent BC platform. I own three planes and even being mostly retired, it's a lot of work to look after multiple planes.

Pierre