EridanMan wrote:
: I'm a mechanically inclined type, and this is _exactly_ my plan.

If your mechanic is OK with you doing a lot of work like that, you should be
able to pull it off.

: I'm looking for a solid, corrosion free 'base' to start building up a
: plane... Think of it as 'experimental aviation light'- I don't want to
: wait 3000 hours to start flying, but I don't mind a plane that's going
: to take some elbow-grease along with the purchase price.

Same boat here... I just wanted something that was in flyable condition while
I worked on it. Two weeks after I brought it home and a week after my PP checkride, I
flew mine to Ohio (approx 200nm) to see my sister. Nothing but my new handheld
NAV/COM and a borrowed handheld GPS.... and I debated as to whether or not I needed
the latter.

: The low time airframe and complete lack of corrosion are two huge
: pluses. It also seems like there is quite a cult following for the old
: Hershey-wing Pipers, aerodynamic modifications are plentiful and
: inexpensive (how useful they are remains to be seen of course), but I
: still like the idea.

Some of the mods are worth it, some less so. You didn't say the year of the
bird (standard T-layout makes it '69 or newer like mine... older had shotgun-blast
panel)

: The ship is going to need an IFR stack (currently VFR only, and
: eventually I want my IFR ticket), but as you said, King IFR stacks are
: amazingly cheap right now (I guess everyone is dumping them in the rush
: to glass, a trend that will only accellerate IMHO).

Old-school IFR (in my case, DME, VOR-DME RNAV, ILS, and VFR-GPS/COM) is a good
bargain... especially the RNAV.

Of course I just found out yesterday that my transponder and extra slide-in
transponder are both TU.

: I got a chance to get my elbows dirty yesterday in the plane (before
: hand I was dealing with world of mouth from a friend, the plane is
: being sold by an aquaintance of sed friend).

: The wings and sheetmetal was pristine (original stenciling still
: clearly visible, you could probably eat of the wing spar metal, etc).
: interior was a mixed bag, plastics are all flawless, but the panel is
: in sorry shape and the plane doesn't even have an intercom (previous
: owner used speaker+handheld). Seats Rails were flawless (and all seat
: adjustments), but the seats themselves need re-upulstering (and the
: arm-rests were all cracking and showing their internal foam).

Check for corrosion on the trailing edges of the wings under the flaps. Also
way up behind the panel and under the carpet by the door. Lots of leaks in PA-28's.

: The only real 'ugly' I came across was the Fuel tanks... red goo in
: both. I'm already pricing salvage replacement tanks and fuel system.

Technically speaking, tanks cannot be replaced except with new. The holes are
drilled individually for every plane. The fuel tank is of course a structural part of
the wing, so they're kinda important.

: I'm amazed how simple the plane is... the entire fuel system looks well
: within my mechanical abilities (and the parts don't seem to be too
: bad). I did confirm that the fuel tank, while ugly inside, did not
: leak within the wing (one of my concerns).

: I'd also probably do the interior work myself (within legality in
: regards to the panel, of course).

: I'm having a mechanic go over her tomorrow to find anything I missed in
: my rather thorough inspection... assuming there aren't any
: showstoppers, I'm ready to put down a deposit.

: My final determination came down to one simple equasion... Purchase
: price + Engine Overhaul Value of comparible planes on barnstormers...

: What else can I say?

Of course pull the prop through and feel the compression. Borescope wouldn't
be a bad idea if you're so equipped. Engine-wise, you could also pull off the valve
covers and put a dial indicator on the pushrods to measure the cam lift. If it hasn't
flown at all in the long time however, it might take a few hours of flying before
rusting/pitting of a corroded cam would show up as spalling and loss of lift.

-Cory

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* Cory Papenfuss, Ph.D., PPSEL-IA *
* Electrical Engineering *
* Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University *
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