Looking for aircraft recommendations

I have no dog in the Cirrus vs Bo fight, both seem to be great airplanes and have fanatical followings. Before you get too serious, I would find someone that owns one and go for a ride, make sure you like the seating and you are comfortable getting in and out. If you plan on flying long distances, you need to make sure it's comfortable including head and shoulder room. :)
 
Buster1 said:
I gotta say too...Bonanza! I am still impressed by the stability and rock-solid smooth flying characteristics of my Bo. See if you can get a ride sometime in one, or if you're near Vegas, look me up and I'll take you up.

The Bonanzas are really nice Cadillacs!
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May take u up on that busta looking for a fellow poa member in Vegas have to visit a friend
 
I have about 300 hours on an sr22t. It took me all over the country in all sorts of weather. It is a pretty capable platform. It does great on crosswinds, turbulence, etc. Most of the time I flew it between 10k and 12k ft and registered around 180 KTAS give or take depending on atmospheric conditions. Add a tailwind and it is not uncommon to see 200 kts GS. When in longer trips I went somewhat higher and saw 200-210 ktas (high teens lower fls). The perspective system is an awesome tool to have during longer cross countries, With proper flight planning and atc it makes weather flying safer. From my experience I have found that the cirrus optimal range is somewhere between 300-500 nm. Less than 300 nm i drive. finally, the payload is pretty decent for a 4 seater.
 
Did I miss the budget? A two person traveling machine screams EAB to me...
 
F33, Cessna 210, mooney are all good choices ,would also consider a velocity . The Comanche 260 would also make a good choice if you can find one that has been upgraded and kept in good shape.
 
rbridges said:
I love mooney's, obviously, but if you're "fluffy", it may be awkward getting in and out. I'm partial to 182's. I think they are a great all around plane. The RG is faster, but I'm not sold on their reliability, but there are people on here who swear by them.
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I am one of those people that swears by them, likely because I own one :D My airplane is what I call a "happy airplane". She is around 5 knots faster than book speeds on the original 31 year old engine and prop, purrs like a kitten and is a very "hands off" airplane to fly. For some people it's the perfect airplane for the mission.. With 6 hours of fuel PLUS IFR reserves its range is going to outlast most bladders. With a useful load of 1300 pounds, 775 useful full fuel you can literally put in anything that will fit in the airplane. I've done full gross takeoffs in DA's of 6500 feet, but that's about my limit on the non-turbo version (I've flown a turbo too, but that airplane isn't quite as loved as mine).

In a year and a half of ownership I've had 1 (ONE) gear-related issue and that was the lightblub came unscrewed too much after a night flight and on landing would make the gear horn chirp. We cleaned the squat switch and it didn't help when we finally though "hmm let's go mess with the gear light." DING! Other than that all my MX issues have been identical to a straight leg 182. Oh and the RG has the Lycoming which seems to run cooler, smoother and longer than the Continental. Remember how I said original 31 year old engine?

If you want 155kts, 1300 pounds useful load, 13GPH (being conservative, on a long trip it's more like 1.5) and over 900 miles before you need to fill up... the 182RG is for you.
 
Skylane81E said:
Did I miss the budget? A two person traveling machine screams EAB to me...
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This.

Van's RV-6 or RV-7 side-by-side.

Probably you'd want an RV-7 with 360 engine and CS prop if you really intend to use the full baggage capacity with two aboard.

A lot more fun to fly than a certificated spamcan too.

An RV can take you to places like this pretty quickly and economically...
IMG_7317.JPG
 
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asgcpa said:
Comanches while old should not be discounted. Especially the 260C.
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I think its funny how Comanches get discounted on these discussions.... Make sure you look at them b/c they fit this profile perfectly too. Yes the 260C is preferred but even the 250 would make this easily and the useful load is better than the typical Mooney not to mention you can actually put 2 adults in the back seat on a Comanche ;)

I am on the southside of Atlanta with a Comanche 250. Let me know when you are ready and I'll get you in a Comanche to feel out.

So that's a Bo test flight, a Comanche test flight, I think a Mooney flight there somewhere too. ;) gotta love the pilot community.

Also IF the small aircraft revitalization act is successful with some of the things they are trying to do, soon you could take a lesser equipped aircraft and upgrade the panel without killing your budget. Here's hoping but not holding my breath.
 
I'd strongly consider buying what your wife likes best. I'm a former bonanza owner so that's my preference for a traveling machine but don't under estimate the value of two doors and not having to get up on the wing.
 
Palamedes said:
That's another consideration I didn't mention.. I'm 6'2", 250lbs of "big'ol'boy"...........
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All of the suggestions so far are great airplanes ........ Mooney's, the Cessna 210, Bonanza, they all seem to be mentioned multiple times and all would be a reasonable fit for the mission you describe. But for big fella's, the Mooney's might be too cramped. And are you comfortable with the insurance costs associated with a retractable gear airplane for new, low time pilots?

Before you buy something, go sit in a Cherokee Six or (later) fixed gear Saratoga. They aren't as sexy as a Mooney or Bonanza, but you will be comfortable in that big wide cabin. You'll get 145 kts, so that 750 mile trip will take a bit over 5 hours (no wind), but you'll likely need a fuel stop, so you have to factor that in as well. (Realistically, you'd probably need a fuel stop most of the time in all the mentioned airplanes anyway.) And it is a fixed gear airplane, so you will have lower insurance and maintenance costs.

I bought a Piper Cherokee Six PA32-300 as my "first" airplane 21 years ago. Still have it. Kids are grown and gone (it is a great family haulin machine) but I can't get my wife out of that big comfy Cherokee Six cabin. I really want a Mooney Bravo, but when I let her sit in one, no way..... she says it is too cramped inside. Gotta keep the wife happy with the choice of aeronautical conveyance too!
 
I bought a 2006 Cirrus SR 20, loved it. My wife, 1st daughter and I would fly from NC to TX every other month to visit friends and family. My advice, get the fastest, most capable plane you can afford! I had three mechanics that knew my plane. 1 in NC, 1 in TX and 1 in CT ( where my other side of the family is from). Since we frequented the same airports, we had tie down or hangars available to use depending on weather. (Amazing how a bottle of crown can pay hanger fees around Christmas!). As for cars, we had 1 in each location, family would keep the extra car and drop it off the day we were flying in.
 
My flying friends that used multiple airports like that did something similar. But, they bought a cheap car at 1 airport for business needs.
 
Comanches with 90 gallons of fuel, i.e. 1961 and newer (option in '61 std in '62) can do that trip into a headwind. They are great traveling machines, comfortable, hellastrong, and thoroughly corrosion-proofed from the factory. And, they have very reliable Lycoming engines.

Kristin
 
Lake Renegade, get a house on a river. ;)

(disclaimer: seaplane fanboy, not a qualified opinion-giver)
 
Palamedes said:
So after I get done with all this pilot training I want to get my wife involved and hope that the bug bites her too. :fcross: (I'm pretty sure it will, but Its a slow and steady race..) Anyway, I will eventually want to get my own plane to suit my needs. I know it will be a bit before I do this, and I'll rent for a while until I make darn sure I want to go down this road.. but eventually a plane purchase will be in order.

My mission and needs are that I will be flying back and forth between North Georgia and Central Texas. Probably quite a bit for business, and extended family visits.

I want to do this in relative comfort and would love to be able to do it in under 4.5 hours. I don't know if that's reasonable or not, and in fact that might be a rather tall order as I think it's around 750nm between here and there. It's a 16 hour drive..

I also realize fully that it's not really economically feasible to own your own plane and that any cost savings you get by just buying fuel for your own transportation or the time you save by having a plane at your local airport versus an airline ticket is completely obliterated by the cost of aircraft ownership, but the "fun" factor and freedom has to count for something.

Lets be honest, money wise it will be way cheaper to just fly Delta or something, but that's no where near as fun and the last couple times I flew back and forth on a major carrier it took ALL DAY!

I think the last time I did it it was well over 12 hours starting from my home, to the pre-wheels up fondle by the TSA, to landing and getting in my car and finally getting to where I needed to go. Plus I couldn't believe how tired I was. And that was likely the "fast" time since Atlanta is a Delta hub.. if there had been any connections it would have taken longer.. Done.. Airlines are dead to me..

Simply put, my time is worth more to me than that and I am finally in a place where I can afford to do this.

So with that, I'm looking for suggestions aircraft wise.

At this point, I could easily swing a $1500 a month payment so that's the soft limit I have set during my research period. If it's gonna be more than that then I need to take that into consideration and adjust my plans.. I realize that it's not a vast amount all things considered, but let's use it as a soft cap to work with.

So, to recap;

$1500 a month
750~800nm trip in under 4.5 hours or so.
Room for myself, my wife and some light luggage.. (we have no kids and that wont ever be an issue)
My personal preference is a low wing aircraft.


Thoughts?
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Heck, you could do that with my 310 at econo-cruise where I fly it beating time and money budget.
 
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