Another Frustrated Student Pilot

Been there, done that, bought the tee shirt.

It comes down to a number of things ...

Some pilots like you and me are 'perfectionists' - we try to do things as
accurately as possible - when something goes wrong, we expect it to be
fixed - no more, no less. We have high standards, and get annoyed at others
who seem to have an attitude that's so laid back it's positively scary.

Most CFIs have quite a few hours - and they're comfortable (perhaps too
comfortable) to the point where they're more than happy to compensate for
(what they perceive to be 'minor shortcomings') - in many cases these
maintenance issues AREN'T a big deal in terms of risk to the CFI - but for a
student it raises the anxiety level a notch and (more importantly) limits
their options should something go wrong. Often, CFI's don't appreciate this
part.

Owners on the other hand often want to spend the least amount of $$$
possible - in many (most?) cases the aircraft are old - parts / labour is
expensive - and there is a constant stream of minor things always needing to
be fixed. They say that the way to get a little money out of aviation is to
start with a lot of money and watch it disappear - it might cost twice as
much to get rid of all the niggles as opposed to doing enough to make sure
it's basically safe, but not perfect - unfortunately, that's the real world.
If they spend more on maintenance they have to charge more (or they'll end
up subsidising your flying) - if they charge more they run the risk of
losing out to competitors who have planes that are less well maintained, but
also cost less. (When someone is considering renting a plane, the $$$ is
readily available to compare - the degree of maintenance isn't)

For us pilots, it's frustrating - I've had that many gripes with on-going
maintenance issues that many a time I'm temped to say 'stuff the lot of you'
and go 'invest' in my own aircraft (so that I can get it maintained to 100%
serviceability) - and yes, many many times the aircraft come out of
maintenance with issues they didn't have going in) (pitot hoses fouling
control columns / D doors attempting to sever brake hoses to name a couple)

My advice would be to examine your concerns as objectively as possible -
seeking advice from others who's judgement you respect as to whether or not
a particular issue is something that you're prepared to fly with. If it is,
then fly it - if it's not, flag it and walk away.

In your case ...

Nav lights So long as it's not being flown at night, I wouldn't consider
it to be a 'biggie' in this part of the world

Primer With throttle priming you run the risk of an induction system
fire if the aircraft back fires. Personally I'd use the throttle the start
the engine (carefully) to get me from a remote back to base, but I would
expect it to be fixed (at the latest) at the next scheduled servicing. It
would make an interesting insurance claim if the aircraft were destroyed by
an induction fire due to throttle priming with the primer inop.

Front tyre Hard to say (can't tell condition) - comes down to whether or
not it's safe.

Radio I understand your frustration - and agree with you. Bad radios
contribute so much to everyone's stress levels it's not funny. You need to
be sure it IS the radio (not audio panel or headset connector being dirty
etc) - but either way you need solid 2 way communications (although this
seldom ever seems to happen on a consistent basis) Consider purchasing your
own handheld (such as an Icom A23 as a backup - useful in other situations
as well).

Vacuum pump / Mags No question - needs to be fixed before flight.

Just my 10c worth

CC