As other have posted. Two words of advice: "Run" and "Away". Seriously.
The plane you describe in the condition you describe is likely junk.
Salvage. Please keep looking and find a decent airplane. Spend the $80k
to get one "ready to go". Better yet, spend $100k and get a newer one in
better condition.

Airplane economics are unlike anything else on the planet (except maybe
US government defense spending). You can easily spend way more to get
this plane operational than it is worth. 1200 SMOH on the engines?
Figure replacing both of them immediately. Why? A plane that has been
deteriorated as you describe is not going to miraculously have decent
engines. They are no doubt in the same shape as the rest of the plane.
Beat up, cheaped out, worn out. If they were recent factory overhauls
with warranties, MAYBE. One cracked cylinder... so far.

Good airplanes are not sold with this kind of laundry list. The
seller(s) KNOWS it will cost more to bring the thing up to snuff than
they could possibly fetch. Otherwise, why would they not get the work
done and MAKE MORE MONEY?????

My rule of thumb is: consider a plane with no more than ONE weak area
(engine(s)/prop(s), airframe paint, interior, avionics). This plane
needs all 4. Game over.

Your avionics guy is an excellent choice to check out the plane...
AVIONICS. Nothing more. You need a type-familiar IA to do a $500-$1000
pre-buy inspection on this beast. Others will scream at that price
(remember gang, 2 engines, 2 props, landing gear, 30+ year old plane),
but pre-buys are just like insurance - pay a little, get a lot.. of
risk! Don't worry, you will most likely never finish the pre-buy
inspection. I would put money on the inspection stopping very early on
when several other major problems are "discovered".

The market is depressed and planes are moving slowly. You should be able
to leverage a pretty good deal on a decent plane if you keep looking.

Good Luck,
Mike

david wrote:
I have a chance to buy a 63 aztec in rough condition. It would be my
first plane. Engines have 1200 smoh but one has a cracked cylinder.
(estimated repair, $5000?) Paint is poor. ($5000 estimate?) Interior is
poor ($5000 estimate?). Brand new props. Only 1 nav/com. older avionics.
Auto pilot broken. It was used as a survey aircraft and has a certified
hole cut. I could potentially use it for aerial work as my company subs
about $50,000 in photography per year (5 jobs). I have a good pilot to
split costs with. He has the commercial rating and would fly while
working. Insurance would be $10,000 for the commercial type. I am a bit
concerned about the
$80/ hour fuel burn and the potential for gremlins on an older not so
well maintained airplane. The price seems very reasonable which is the
main motivation for buying. 25,000+5000+5000+5000= $40,000 for a aztec
with new props, survey hole, new paint and interior. Am I missing
something? Is this a good deal? Most of the similar year planes I have
seen are about $80,000. My buddy is an avionics repaiman and would
thoroughly check the plane prior to the purchase. Could it be resold at
a profit if I needed to? Please give any advice as I don't want to make
a big mistake. Thanks in advance.
David

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