Buying LS3a or ASW20a? ~$25k cross country glider. Which one and why?

At 15:01 05 April 2019, Tango Eight wrote:
On Friday, April 5, 2019 at 10:31:48 AM UTC-4,
wrote:
On Thursday, April 4, 2019 at 8:07:42 PM UTC-4,
son_of_flubber wrote:
On Thursday, April 4, 2019 at 11:46:26 AM UTC-4, Papa3
wrote:
=20
Here's the math for an ASW-20:=20
=20
- Moderately crazed ASW-20 in otherwise fair shape.
$25K
- Full refinish at retail north of $25K (being generous
here)
- Total cost $50K (forget about all the other stuff -
instruments,
t=
railer, etc.)
=20
Now, go look at the classifieds. Several nice to very nice
ASW-20s
f=
or mid $30K. =20
=20
So a fair price for a "Moderately crazed ASW-20 in
otherwise fair
shape=
" would be $8K. Invest $25-30K in repair and you'd get a good
glider for
=
$33-38K. Buyer deserves some compensation for the hassle,
risk and delay
o=
f refurbishment.
=20
People who're setting unreasonably high prices for their
poor
condition=
gliders are hurting themselves, and hurting the sport by
making it harder
=
for young people to get into the sport.
=20
I suggest that people who want to get into the sport start
offering a
r=
easonable price for trashed gliders $5-8K. Sellers (or the
executors of
the=
ir estates) will eventually come to their senses.
=20
Here is the reality from somebody who has been doing this
for more than
2=
decades.
It is almost impossible to buy a glider at a price the seller will
accept=
, refinish it commercially, and sell it at a favorable price. If it
was
tha=
t easy, everybody would be doing it, including the refinish
people.
My experience is that a refinish adds somewhere around half
the
commercia=
l cost to the salable value of the glider.
A recent example.
Club member buys a Cirrus 75 with older Komet trailer for
$12000.
Over 2 years he refinished it in my shop. It required almost
exactly 400
=
hours, mostly his labor. Materials(polyester finish) cost about
$1000.
He now has a very nice glider that may get $22K or so on the
market.
=20
Someone wanting to enter the market that does not have the
resources to
p=
ay for a "nice"(defined as not expecting to need a refinish
anytime soon)
g=
lider, is going to have to settle for an older glider needing clean
up and
=
care and fly it for a few years while saving up the dough for a
nicer
glide=
r.
=20
UH

The other part of the reality is the refinished 20 in question has
an
unusu=
al history and was sold very cheap (distress sale cheap) at one
point.
The=
seller can sell at an attractive price and do very well. Good for
him.
T=
his isn't a "market", it's a one off. =20

Would be buyers have little cause for whining at this time.
Great
selectio=
n of very flyable, decent performance stuff out there at very
reasonable
pr=
ices. If you want nice, one way or another you pony up. =20

T8


You do pay a premium for Flaps,it may be better to go for a std
15M ship LS4 would be good or a asw19.