Spare parts

[Mtns2Skies]

What spare parts do you keep on hand for your planes?

I recently bought a prop that was too good of a deal to pass up as well as some landing gear components. I also usually have a couple cases of oil, air and oil filters on hand.

What do you keep around? Only consumables, or do you have spare wings, fuselages and engines hanging in the hangar?

 

[Timbeck2]

If I had the money to have a spare engine hanging around, I'd have a better airplane.

 

[GRG55]

I always keep a stock of consumables - spark plugs, filters, oil, hydraulic fluid, Prist for the windows, de-ice boot cleaner and treatment liquid, safety wire, the required variety of AeroShell greases, Varsol, rags, shop towels, labelled containers for all the fasteners (and there's lots of sets of those on a Piper twin) and that sort of stuff.

For parts I have an entire spare Aztec of the same model as mine, 2000 hours less time than mine, sans engines and props (airframe salvaged after a gear up...conveniently they did it at my home airport). Has come in quite handy. Most recently we removed the RH flap, painted and installed it on my plane. The actuating rod bracket had some hairline cracking and the labor to take apart the flap to remove the bracket, weld repair and reinstall it was going to be quite a bit more than repainting the one off the wreck to match my plane, and installing it. I've also used parts from this plane to keep my autopilot functioning, to replace some structural landing gear components, and some 24v electrical items.

My Aztec is 40 years old this year. Although it is in very good condition, these old planes show their age with cracks and just plain old wear & tear as the years pile up.

 

[Stewartb]

I keep a spare airplane. It's come in handy more than once!

 

[MauleSkinner]

I carried a spare tail wheel tire & tube. It got replaced every few years because I told my mechanic that if someone was in need, he could grab mine and just order me a new one.

It wasn't cost effective for him to stock them anymore, so it worked well for both of us.

 

[Let'sgoflying!]

The best part of carrying spare parts, for me, has been the Kharma Effect (it's a distant cousin of Murphy's Law I believe) where those particular parts that you lug around the country NEVER fail!