Thanks for pointing out the other G reg. I have inspected this aircraft and it is a project. Happy to share specific details if anyone is interested but maybe it’s not fair to write negative stuff about other people’s planes? What’s the right etiquette?
Max budget probably around 200-225k gbp all in for a plane with 0 hassle and all requirements. I mean budget isn’t a huge issue I’m single so no one to answer to haha – what I don’t want however is to buy it way above the fair price and end up -50/75k straight away. It’s tricky in a soft market to know what the dealing rates are. Maybe I decide I want a twin in a year or two. Wouldn’t be nice to lose loads just because I overpaid up front.
Rami1988 wrote:
it is a project
Interesting. Not a single word in the ad that hints towards this being as project. And this is not just any seller, but one of the biggest UK brokers, it seems.
Anyway, not entirely unusual to see ads not telling the full truth.
In general, it seems you are going about it the right way, i.e. with the right amount of determination, but still with some amount of caution.
If I would be single and had no kids to put on the back seats, I would think twice before buying a 4 place aircraft. After all, it like a family sedan. How about something like this
Guys im single doesnt mean i have no friends….. haha
A 2 seater is not good for “travel” due to lack of space for stuff. In my TB20, the RH back seat is life raft, emergency bag, oxygen cylinder. It is nowadays never used for a passenger, due to the disruption of moving all that stuff. And on any 2-up (or even 3-up) trip the rest of the plane will be full.
200-225k GBP is a very reasonable budget. You should find a good GT for that, even with TKS. But remember I did everything here up to 2018 without full TKS (with just a TKS propeller which is highly effective). And full TKS is often dud (actually gone, although possibly recoverable with various extreme measures like disconnecting the pipes and putting high pressure into each one) with the owner not having used it for many years.
And full TKS, with a full tank of fluid, takes about 50kg so your plane is often a 2-seater only.
not entirely unusual to see ads not telling the full truth.
Haha what an understatement. As I have often posted, I am constantly amazed how somebody can put a 200k item up for sale with a basically illiterate advert. To me that does not compute at all. Why is the AP type missing? Did the seller never use it? If so, there is a damned big clue!!! The general rule is: if something smells fishy, it is probably a fish. Of course there are exceptions, facilitated by a certain % of aircraft dealers being thick (that always amazes me too) and by a surprising % of people with money being unable to write.
The avionics part of a prebuy is possibly the hardest because somebody with a clue (not the mechanic) needs to do a flight.
there are very few IFR-certified touring two-seaters out there.
Sure but it depends on what you mean by “touring”. Any American plane is IFR certified by default. One hugely [in]famous UK GA personality was telling everybody how his C150 with a GNS430 was perfect for IFR all over Europe…
Why is the AP type missing?
The AP is distinctly odd. I thought I knew all the APs out there, but I’ve never seen this one before.
just a TKS propeller which is highly effective
I’d be interested to know more about this, since I have one. How much icing would you risk with just a TKS prop?
johnh wrote:
The AP is distinctly odd. I thought I knew all the APs out there, but I’ve never seen this one before.
Well, it is clearly a Bendix-King Aerocruze. Just not sure if it’s the 230 or 330 flavour.
To be honest re the TKS – i dont plan to use it except for emergency purposes. At this stage of my flying ‘career’ ill try to avoid icy conditions, and build up my risk tolerance with time. So, its not a MUST unless it is for resell value.. again the issue is buying things at the right price. Its a very illiquid market so you could end up losing loads not doing it right.
Im really very lucky to have been introduced to a top engineer in Shoreham that knows about everything really and i have insisted when making offers that a flight test with the engineer to test the avionics is a requirement.
There is a specific way to use TKS, and it is not when you are in deep sh*it.
My A&P/IA at Shoreham does prebuys and obviously knows the type.
The prop TKS is the same for the prop as the full system, plus it effectively protects the front window. It possibly sprays over the elevator too. It is a very good system, considering the almost nil weight and using only a few litres of fluid per year (the container is 2 litres). But it has to be used for easy situations where you just want to maintain full available power to get through a layer, etc.
I would advise against trying to install it yourself (retrofit) because only Hartzell sell the parts (the special spinner etc) and with the fluid container only from Socata, the parts are very hard to put together (I know from people who have tried). One guy, in desperation, fabricated the fluid container, obviously off the books but an easy job (and needs the filler hole in the upper cowling) 
Bendix-King Aerocruze
I now see why the type is not mentioned: to avoid google coming up with owner reports… example
Rami1988 wrote:
So, its not a MUST unless it is for resell value.. again the issue is buying things at the right price. Its a very illiquid market so you could end up losing loads not doing it right.
Yes, but then again, if you do a good prebuy, then fly it for a couple of years, and take good care of it, there is very little risk that you will lose a lot of money on something like a TB20. It is even OK fur UL91, so even in the (unlikely) event of 100 octane fuel no longer being available in Europe, this aircraft can still fly.
Sure, it might take some time to find a buyer that is acutally willing to buy, and at the right price, but this risk will exist with any aircraft.
