Hey guys, I'm new here however I've been through the website over the years several times. Thought I'd finally get an account. I'm out of Camarillo. I got my first "real" job going on two years ago now, and in the next year I'd like to spring for a small plane that is back country capable, and wanted to know your thoughts and opinions! If this has been asked often before, my apologies. So lets hear it!

Welcome aboard! Having said that, the very first question is: what is your budget?
Seriously, anything from an Avid/Kitfox type up to a new Husky/Cubcrafters/Scout can be considered. A decent low price plane can be a Champ/T-crate/J-3. Lots of choices.

From my observations, the limiting factor is usually not the aircraft.

Welcome. Get good with any low powered trainer at your local airport first. Blackwater here is the closest that teaches what is covered in the e-book; click below.

TomD wrote:From my observations, the limiting factor is usually not the aircraft.

Ditto!

Bang for the buck a 150 hp pacer/tripacer would be a good starter. Things that get you off the ground are power, wing, and prop. Pacer has a short wing so make sure you have power and a flat prop. Most low buck planes are underpowered when it comes to working short giving up 10-20 mph on the top will pay off when it comes to getting out of short places. Same go's for the Cessna 170 great plane for the money with big wing, just underpowered. Lots of good starter planes just don't fall in love with one until the IA approves of it.
DENNY

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Really depends on what sort of stick you are...how much flight time, and how much of that spent learning to fly the wing, not pass a FAA standardized test. Also depends on what you consider backcountry...designated airstrips or natural terrain.

I've seen folks take a Cessna 152 places 99% of 180 owners couldn't go. Of course those 180 owners who could go there could cary a lot more gear.

flew two tripacers all over Idaho Utah and Arizona into all kinds of strips and back country fishing holes... for the price they can't be beat... I second the flat prop statement... I had mine pitched to 53... climbed like it hated the ground... got off the ground quick and carried a decent load..another plus is you can plant the airplane where you want to... there's no float down the runway... pull power off and you are going down... a definite plus in the back country.... good luck...

Tri-pacer was the best mountain and backcountry airplane I owned. Three of them in 70s and 80s. $2500, $5600, and $6500 were the prices. The $6500 was slick enough most pilots here would have flown it.

The comment about it's the pilot not the airplane is very true.

None of these planes are worth more than maybe $25K a piece on a good day with a motivated buyer. Really these are all sub $20k planes right now.

Cessna 120, Cessna 172 (pre 1960), Alon Ercoupe, Cessna 150, Taylocraft BC-12...and many others will do great things if flown right and kept light.

And as another teaser...all these photos are within a few hours of KCMA and none of them are on "real" airports.

Thanks for the replies guys! It was more of a fun thought provoking question rather than me looking to buy the cheapest plane on earth that can land on dirt. I'm glad to see the 150 on a few people list. They get so much hate from the tail wheel communities I know of but I love them.

Tri Pacer is most bang for buck. But get a good pre buy on any plane.

Tim

I owned a C150/150TD for about 6 years and it was a kick-ass little airplane.
I prefer taildraggers but no reason why a nosedragger 150/150 wouldn't be just as good....
and just as much fun to fly!
I see them advertised for sale in the mid-twenties.

Lots of planes will work, like ppl have said above it's more the pilot. I also would recommend the Pacer to just about anyone. Will teach you a lot, plenty capable, and a ton of mods available. Tripacer works if you want a training wheel but I'd search for a converted PA-22/20 with an o-320 or o-360 (more $$ but still way cheaper than similar perf. a/c). If you can't find the right -20 or -22/20 the conversion from -22 is really not that bad, multiple STCs to choose from, most go with Univair unless you want -18 gear.

SoCalJesse wrote:T I'm glad to see the 150 on a few people list. They get so much hate from the tail wheel communities I know of but I love them.

It's not an insurmountable problem

@ SoCalJesse :

Thanks for starting a great thread.

Most comments here have been for certified AC. Are you open to experimental or even LSA ? WWhunter mentioned Kitfox/Avid in an earlier post.

If you are open to experimental, and if you can comfortably fit into them, some smaller EABs like the Zenith 701 all metal trike, or the RANS S6 might be affordable options to also consider. I am a bit over-nourished, so certain small cars, planes, etc. feel cramped. Don't forget useful load. YMMV

Zenith 701


RANS S6


Please be Seated

Tripacer hauls a good load and can operate in the backcountry realm if you are cognizant of the limitations. Older Cessna 172s also give a lot of capability. If you never need to haul a load, then go for a 150 type plane.

My Tripacer on a snowy lake last winter. The other guy had more options for where to land.

I've got to be real honest, I am a huge advocate of the Cessna 150 model. Soon after my private pilot's licence I started visiting short grass strips under 2000' that a few friends of mine had. This made me a very good Short field pilot. You can often land into fields you cant very easily get out of if not careful. I won 2 spot landing contests at local pancake fly ins and to the grimace of the owner..would practice landing at our home airport and stop short of the first taxiway turn off which was 175' from the approach end. Using the full 40 deg flaps and learning the power curve and wings attributes I could approach as slow as 40 MPH, as long as I was high and had plenty of altitude to forward slip and flare without a problem. All this in Sea level, although often hot and high density altitude conditions.

The Cessna 150/152 variety can be had very cheap and maintained pretty darn cheap. Especially using ethanol free MOGAS. To further my position and others, google search back country Cessna 150's and a few YouTube videos will pop up of a couple of stock Cessna 150's operating on gravel bar strips in Alaska. With a single pilot, you have the ability to carry quite a bit of bags on the co-pilot seat and 100 lbs in the rear.

Given today's ultra lite camping gear, you could visit a fly in and camp just as comfortable as those guys hauling the kitchen sink in the Cessna 180's. Given the proper planning.

With insurance at $375 year for hull and liability insurance and the fact you can tie down the plane at nearly any local airport quite cheap and the bullet proof Cont. O-200 engine I don't think you can go wrong with finding a used 150 with 500-700 hours on the engine and good paint and interior for 18,000-20,000 pretty common.