WWhunter wrote:

cessnaford wrote:I am (would) looking for a RANS S7 or (S7S). Cheap fuel burn with reportedly a decent performance.

Byebill

I think you would be pretty hard pressed to find a decent S7 in the price range the OP is looking at. Granted, I did see one on BS a while back for close to that price but it didn't have a Rotax in it. If I remember correctly it had a Jabiru.

Not to get OT but what does it cost to import a plane into Canada from the US. I know of guys that have bought planes in Canada and imported them back here but haven't really spoken to anyone that has bought one here and brought up to Canada. Is it a major headache or fairly straight forward?
I'm asking since I have had a couple of responses from our brothers 'up nort' in regards to my Champ that is for sale. They seem hesitant to import. I think most of it is due to being scared or inundated with the process of doing so.
Simple or Difficult?

I just imported a 7GCBC last November. I found it was fairly easy. The biggest things are modifications. If all the paperwork is in line, then its easy. The other things are engines. They have to ha e been overhauled by a certified shop. And fixed pitched props require a overhaul every 10 years, regardless of time. The actual import cost me $2500. That was ha king a fed sign off on all the papers and go through the plane. I did have my AME go through it first and make sure it was in tip top shape, And I do recommend this step.

David

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If you like flying the 150 just buy one while your looking for your next plane. They are cheap to buy, maintain and every part you will ever need is on ebay for pennies of what a new part costs. Mogas works fine too. There is always a market for them and you can usually get what you paid for them when you sell. Just don't restore one because you'll never get that money back. Just fly and have fun.

I may of found a 150 close to home. I know it's not a back country plane. But it does have a STOL kit installed. We identified a few snags on the pre-purchase. The biggest one being since the aircraft has been parked for something like 5 yrs. It requires a internal corrosion inspection. There may also be a stuck valve on one of the cylinders. For those of you familiar with the O-200. What sort of gremlins can be expected on an engine that has been sitting outdoors? I know the lycoming O-235 and O-320's can have some serious corrosion problems from sitting around. I haven't heard much on the O-200.

If it's flying and your not in a hurry, you should run it hard for a few hours and then pull an oil sample. When you send it in, tell them the situation. It will probably have high sulpher from sitting but that will wash out. Ask them to check for rust and metal.

There is a Guy who sells reconditioned cylinders on ebay. His name is Randy Thompson and he is the President of the 120/140 Club. You might want to call him. I think his company is "Thompson Air" in California. He only does O-200/O-300 cylinders and he does a great job. I have replaced two and both had excellent compression. If your cylinder can be exchanged, it should be around $500-600 installed. The valves will stick if the engine has run rich because they tend to get carboned up. Always lean it even on the ground. Mogas helps too if you can find it without ethanol. If it is from carbon buildup you can probably clean it up and have it work. Check with your mechanic but compression on these can go way lower than you would want and still be legal. Flying it hard with some MMO might clean it up.

Sounds like the plane should be pretty cheap. A beautiful one just sold on ebay for $10,500 but who knows the real condition. Don't be afraid to walk away. There is always another "deal" right around the corner. Good luck!

I think 150's offers a very good bang for the buck for a guy with little money and just getting starting. They some times come up very cheap, as low as 14k or lower. There not a traditional back country plane but look at what that piperpainter dude does with his Mooney, he's hav'in fun. Granted the 150 is 50% stol. Great at getting in short, not so great getting out, but...the important thing is getting into a cockpit and expedite your flying experience. and lots of education ,fun and experience. Just stick to smooth hard beaches or long clear stretches on grass lands, at least you'll be doing some flying and not dreaming. You can spent 45k or more on a Rans s7 of a clapped out citabria But at 15k vrs 40-6ok there is alot of extra cash for gas that goes a long way. Life is damned fleeting, you gotta make use of it asap.

Metalized Stinson 108 -2 or 3 , If you have to leave it outside.Fabric can and does stay good for years so don't completely discount that. Cessna 170 is a good choice but may be just slightly over the 25K.There's a 165 hp 170A in hanger behind me for 30 k.

Well the deal on the Cessna 150 fell through. The dumb A$$ owner decided after accepting my offer. He would stall and try to squeeze a few more thousand out of another guy. So he can take a hike! My search continues. I've been tied down with a real job all summer. Which has afforded me no free time. I am hoping to wrap up work soon. Then I can resume full time searching of hangars, basements and barns across Canada during the winter months.
If it's still for sale in a few weeks. I may go look at a pa-20. I'm thinking it would make a great camping and skiplane with vortex gens and big tires.

If you decide to keep looking for a 150/152, but you want some back country performance capabilities, look for one with an upgraded more powerful engine. Even a 125 hp makes a big difference, but a 150 hp makes it into quite a performer, even at much higher elevations. You still have limited weight carrying capacity, but you'll be able to get in and out of most back country strips as long as they aren't too rough.

Cary

There area *lot* of Tri Pacers out there for 25k and under....and nice ones, frankly. You'll get decent enough back country performance with the rugged gear, and the savings on insurance you will get for the nose wheel should subsidize a hangar eventually. Good prop clearance, fun to fly, bullet proof nose strut. The Pacer is even better, but even with my more than 200 hours in type, the insurance would be literally 3x what the 182 costs me, even considering the 2x difference in hull value. All because of that nose wheel.

The Tri Pacer and Pacer offend a lot of folks' aesthetic instincts, but you can laugh all the way to the bank with the value you get from one, and you can spend the operational savings on some epic XC's. Short wingers are fun to fly.

The 150 makes a nice 1 person plane to get in and out of all but the obvious handful or two of higher or notorious strips in Idaho with nothing more than good judgment and a big smile.

lesuther wrote:There area *lot* of Tri Pacers out there for 25k and under....<snip>.

I notice that the Tri-Pacer is going through some sort of a renaissance lately. I suspect that there are more and more of them that have gone through recent rebuild. In the '90s I think a 160 hp '58 or '59 model would be well under $20K in less than perfect condition. Not so much any more.

EB

I've always liked pacer design. But insurance will be an issue. For me directly it's not so bad. I'd need 10hrs training on type and it's a $1000.00 yr (full coverage). The problem is there are major restrictions on who else would be able to fly the plane. An accompaning pilot is restricted to minimum 500hrs commercial license having 20 on type. Which stinks as my flying buddies and myself usually like to split up the flying and make a day of it. Most of them would not meet the insurance requirement.
I am finding there is always a hitch with any plane one is considering. The perfect plane does not exist.