Alarus for training?

On Oct 30, 8:41 am, "Gig 601XL Builder" wrDOTgiaconaATsuddenlink.net
wrote:
Scott wrote:
What do we think of an Alarus CH2000 as a primary trainer and as a
weekend flyer? I've run into a possible opportunity to buy a used
CH2000 for possibly well under market value (at auction, so it really
depends on where the bidding goes). I also have a couple of guys who
might be interested in partnering on it (one a returning student, the
other a retired bizjet pilot).

I'm a zero-hour student, currently working through ground school.
I've been thinking about maybe buying a PA-28-140 next year to train
in and for general flying later, but if the Alarus is a decent plane
and I can get a deal on it...? Can anyone give me more reasons to
think yea or nay?

-Scott

Great plane. I have a couple of hours in one.

Just make sure that it isn't this one.

N652AM, S/N 20-1022

It was recently reported stolen.

Who on earth would steal an Alarus?

I've got about 200 hours in a CH2000. The flight school I work at has
about10 of them we use for instrument and primary instruction. People
always talk poorly of them, but honestly, we put probably 6000 hours
on all our planes annually, and in the 3 years we have operated them,
not a single serious incident has ever occurred. We've had alternator
belts snap, and things like that, but nothing major.

There are a bunch of little things about the plane that make it very
uncomfortable. Some of them (actually all of them to an extent)
vibrate very badly in flight. I think it's because of how the engine
is mounted onto the frame. If you bring power back, the vibration
stops, but in cruise flight, it can be very annoying. When I do long
flights in it, I sometimes have to rest my feet onto the rudder pedals
instead of the floor because the pedals give a little vibration
dampening, but not much.

It has a hard time starting. While you crank it, it makes all kinds of
weird burping sounds. Some people have more trouble with it than
others. I've actually only had one not start on me once. We cranked
and primed, and pumped the throttle until the battery died. I think
it's much more of a problem in the winter than when it's warmer.

They suck for winter flying too. There is a Canadian AD (or at least
that what I've heard) that orders the heater to be disconnected
because of a carbon monoxide problem. That is sort of a bad thing in
the summer because the heater tends to leak big time into the cabin.
Now that it's getting colder, it would be nice to have some heat, but
they are all still disconnected.

The seats are very hard. After an hour or so, your butt will hurt.
Theres an examiner who does checkrides around here who always brings
with her a seat cushion. In the morning when the plane is cold, I
swear you can knock on the cushioning on the seat and it'll be like
knocking on wood.

The doors are really crappy. They are made of a plastic it seems. All
thats holding them onto the plane is a little hinge, which has a
tendency to snap off if stressed. (Search the NTSB records for
N285AM). As a result, you can't have the door open while the engine is
running, or it will put stress on that hinge and you'll risk having
the door blow off in flight. In the summertime, you REALLY REALLY
don't want to have to taxi one of these with the door closed either.
All you have for air circulation is a little tine air scoop vent in
the window, and two little vents between the seats. In 90F+ heat,
thats not enough. You'll sweat like crazy.

Also, one more thing about the doors. Because of the tiny hinge at the
top, the doors don't fit very well onto the plane. When you close the
door, there is always a big gap along the side of the door which
allows a draft to come in. Nice in the summer, but terrible in the
winter.

Now for the good: The instruments are very nice. The vacuum system
could be a little beefier, but the rest are pretty nice. All our
planes have GNS430's, which are pretty nice. Short field performance
is nice too. When you put full flaps in, that plane drops like a rock.
You'll never have to do a go-around due to being too high on final
ever again. If you put in full flaps and idle the power, you'll drop
at about 2500 fpm at around 60 knots, I kid you not. you can be
3000AGL on a 2 mile final, and still land on a 1000 foot runway. The
brakes are really good too. You can stand on them, and they won't lock
up and skid like a Cessna.

Don't expect to go any higher than 9000 feet, because it won't climb
any higher. on a IFR flight a while ago, ATC cleared me up to 9000
feet and it took me about 30 minutes to get up that high. Once we got
there, it was difficult to keep the altitude as well. My student would
let it go down to 8700, then we full throttled it at Vy, and it was
showing 100 fpm.

Would I buy one? Eh, I'd consider it. If the price was right, I would.
But I'd get a 152 instead, even if it cost a bit more. But I already
have all my ratings. If you're wanting it just to do training, go for
it, it'll be a deal. After you get all your training done, you're
probably going to want to get rid of it though, since it's not very
enjoyable to ride in.