Learning from an owner annual

1) The number of things I found that were not done that I'd paid to
have done at previous annuals.

Unfortunately, that's about par for the course - especially with regard
to inspections. I've looked at a lot of airplanes where there was a
logbook signature indicating something (usually some inspection) was
recently done, and the condition of the surrounding area made it
obvious that nobody had been there in years. My favorite was an AD
compliance note that claimed a fuel line replacement - and the fuel
line had a tag that predated the entry by years, and was the line that
had to be replaced.

2) The number of things done wrong (like no cotter key in the wheel).

Also very common. The last time I took a plane to a shop, it was to
replace a cracked trunion. I felt it was a job that I might screw up,
so best leave it to a specialty shop. Well, it came back with the snap
ring for the oleo strut improperly seated. First less-than-perfect
landing blew it out, and I had to rebuild it. From then on, I decided
to just do everything myself. It's not like I never make a mistake,
but I find that I make them less often than a high end shop (and I'm an
amateur) and between taking the plane to the shop, getting it back, and
then fixing what the shop screwed up, it's just about as fast to do it
myself and a lot cheaper.

3) The amount of work an annual really requires. It took me 6 hours
just to remove all the inspection panels (including drilling out
several dozen screws). Lubing the 150 lube points wont go too quick
either.

You gotta ask yourself - if you had to dril so many of them out, what
are the odds ALL of them were actually removed last annual (like they
were suposed to be)? Not too high. That tells you what kind of annual
you've been getting - and you've been paying top dollar. What do you
think the $1000 annuals are like?

But why? Well, because doing an annual on a complex airplane decades
old is a 50+ hour proposition, and that's if nothing major is wrong.
My basic Twin Comanche annual is about 60 hours. Now granted I have an
extra engine, but the Mooney is so tightly cowled and everything is ho
hard to get to that the time requirement is almost a wash.

We used to have a shop locally where a basic annual with nothing major
wrong cost $5000 for a Bonanza. An airline president started it so he
could have a place to have his personal planes maintained correctly.
When he died, he left it to the head mechanic, free and clear. The
head mechanic can't make a go of it. Nobody will pay it - but that's
really what it costs if you want it done right.


Michael