Piper Aztec - Purchase Advice

I've now had the pre-purchase and apart from a few minor things the main
issue seems to be that the right gear leg is slightly higher than the left.
The engineer thinks the oil has leaked around the seal and its frozen in
place, but isn't a killer on the deal. I'll get the current owner to rectify
this with new seals before sale.

The compressions are reasonable with the left engine having a couple of
cylinders in the mid to high 60's, but I expected this with the engine
having 2100 hours on.

Regards,

Dean
"Bongo" wrote in message
...
I'm looking at purchasing an early (1960) Piper Aztec. I would like to
know what should be checked and what the real gotchas are on this age of
aircraft.

Thanks,

Dean

Good luck! I see that the owner of an older local Aztec has his price down
to "Best offer over $22,000
Jim

"Bongo" wrote in message
...
I've now had the pre-purchase and apart from a few minor things the main
issue seems to be that the right gear leg is slightly higher than the
left.
The engineer thinks the oil has leaked around the seal and its frozen in
place, but isn't a killer on the deal. I'll get the current owner to
rectify
this with new seals before sale.

The compressions are reasonable with the left engine having a couple of
cylinders in the mid to high 60's, but I expected this with the engine
having 2100 hours on.

Regards,

Dean
"Bongo" wrote in message
...
I'm looking at purchasing an early (1960) Piper Aztec. I would like to
know what should be checked and what the real gotchas are on this age of
aircraft.

Thanks,

Dean

Jim,

Prices on older Aztecs seem to very "realistic" at present. Here in the
UK where fuel is getting over 7USD/gallon its must be starting to hurt
some people. For me it gives me the chance to get into a twin, without
paying big bucks. I dont mind and expect to pay higher maintenance and
running costs.

I also had the problem that there are literally no twins to rent within
100 miles of where I live. The only one I could find a Seneca IIT is
about 400USD/hour (and thats reasonable over here!).

Lets hope the pre-purchase was accurate!

Dean

Jim Burns wrote:
Good luck! I see that the owner of an older local Aztec has his price down
to "Best offer over $22,000
Jim

Jim Burns wrote:
: Good luck! I see that the owner of an older local Aztec has his price down
: to "Best offer over $22,000
: Jim

With the hull value of light twins going to **** like this, I've often thought
it would be worthwhile to relicense them experimental. The general rule for that is
you lose a lot of the value by doing so, but if it doesn't have any to begin with
you're not losing much.

I've not looked into what the gets you, but it may allow for some cost savings
on maintenance and operating costs if you're handy swinging a wrench. If you're not,
you probably don't want to get such and old bird, IMO.

-Cory


--

************************************************** ***********************
* Cory Papenfuss *
* Electrical Engineering candidate Ph.D. graduate student *
* Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University *
************************************************** ***********************

wrote in message
...
Jim Burns wrote:
: Good luck! I see that the owner of an older local Aztec has his price
down
: to "Best offer over $22,000
: Jim

With the hull value of light twins going to **** like this, I've often
thought
it would be worthwhile to relicense them experimental. The general rule
for that is
you lose a lot of the value by doing so, but if it doesn't have any to
begin with
you're not losing much.

I've not looked into what the gets you, but it may allow for some cost
savings
on maintenance and operating costs if you're handy swinging a wrench. If
you're not,
you probably don't want to get such and old bird, IMO.

-Cory

From what I've heard it's very hard if not impossible to get them
recertified as EXP-Homebuilt. And any of the other classes of EXP would put
such restrants on its use that it wouldn't be worth it.

Gig 601XL Builder wrote:

From what I've heard it's very hard if not impossible to get them
recertified as EXP-Homebuilt.

That would be impossible. You have to have built at least 51% of the aircraft
yourself. That's *built*, not modified.

George Patterson
Why do men's hearts beat faster, knees get weak, throats become dry,
and they think irrationally when a woman wears leather clothing?
Because she smells like a new truck.

This question is often asked and explored by Super Cub owners. I've read a
bit about it in the SC forums. Hardest part of the decision is that it is
like virginity.... once you've done it, you've done it and there isn't much
hope of going back.

Another idea about some of the cheap twins is that they are approaching
their salvage value. Many have pretty good radios, and if you have
relatively sound, even run out engines, you may be getting the airframe,
accessories, and interior for pennies on the dollar. On the other hand, you
also have to deal with pretty old systems. Old hoses, bladders, electrical,
and hydraulics take big bucks to recondition.
Jim

wrote:
Jim Burns wrote:
: Good luck! I see that the owner of an older local Aztec has his price down
: to "Best offer over $22,000

A buddy of mine just bought an Aztec from a guy in Wisconsin for $22K.
Just brought it back less than a week ago. The guy said he had over
$100K invested. My friend will polish on it a little and it will be up
for sale in the next week or two.