nworth
05-31-2007, 09:35 PM
I have read posts by several people on this forum who really like the idea of a 260se but who wonder about the wisdom of investing in a nearly 30 year old airframe.
I just got the report from the mechanic on the first full year annual on my 28 year old (1979 Q model) 260se Katmai and I thought I would share my results. If my experience is indicative, potential buyers have nothing to worry about.
My airframe was selected by Todd for low corrision, trueness and overall good repair, then refurbished by Todd and others (see the thread on building my 260se). The plane was flown about 320 hours this past year and I spent a lot of those hours "exploring the performance" of the machine and practicing landings. In other words, not the easiest duty for an aircraft.
However, during the past year, I have only experienced one significant mechanical issue. I had an in-flight alternator failure. Thankfully this occurred in VFR conditions near the home field and I landed without incident. (Then I put colored caps on the circuit breakers so next time I will know which ones to pull!)
Todd did the last (partial year) annual in May last year. My mechanic has just finished up this year's annual and has given me the following report:
- Compressions: all 72 or greater.
- Results of oil analysis: "lower wear than usual for reported hours"
- Observed corrosion in wings, engine compartment, fuselage, empennage and vertical stablizer: "like it came off the assembly line a week ago". (I did the Corrision-X treatment earlier this year to preserve this condition).
- Oil usage: about 1/2 quart per 35 Hobbs hours.
Repairs done during annual to bring aircraft into compliance:
- Replace main wheel bearings since the existing bearings (which were in fine condition) were non-complying bearings. Replaced with complying bearings.
- Replace positive pole battery connector. Mechanic "didn't like" the old one.
That was it!
Squawks (and upgrades) I requested to be fixed during the annual:
- Reglue foot pads on landing gear.
- Add a scat hose to blow cooling air on the (new) alternator. It gets really hot in Florida and I suspect heat as a cause in the premature failure of the last alternator. I am watching the new one very carefully and will go with an alternative manufacturer if I see any problems.
- Check elevator cables. The autopilot had a tendency to porpoise with an aft (but legal) CG and/or when near gross. We discovered one cable at low end of correct and the other way over tight. Per the recommendation of the avionics shop both were adjusted to the high side of recommended. I hope this fixes the problem.
- Added Whelen LED beacon. This eliminated a pulsing sound the original beacon made in the headphones, substantially reduces power draw and upgrades the visibility of the beacon substantially. Well worth the change but purely elective.
- The defrost handle wouldn't turn. I think Todd delivered the plane to me that way as an oversight and I just wanted to get it fixed. As a practical matter, it's probably irrelevant for a plane flown mainly in Florida and the Carribbean but I wanted to get it fixed.
- The backlight on the Avidyne EX500 "soft buttons" have started to blink on and off intermittently. As I have written elsewhere, I regret purchasing this unit and this minor irritation gives me one more reason to dislike it. I will get this fixed later in the year when I "upgrade" this $8000 unit to do what the Garmin 396 did out of the box a year ago (at 1/3 the price).
- The "typical" Cessna fuel imbalance problem developed after I had the plane painted. According to the Cessna Pilots Association, this can be fixed by repositioning the two fuel overflow tubes (which, no doubt, were messed with during painting and not reset properly). For the moment, I am doing the "switch to right tank" routine. The mechanic didn't have time to get to this during the annual so we will follow up on this later.
Anyway, point is, with 320 hours in this year, other than the alternator (and, technically, the wheel bearings and battery connector) I have had * zero * non-elective repairs. Meanwhile, I have seen buddies with brand new Cirrus, Cessna and Piper aircraft spend many, many, hours with the mechanics at the factory service centers. During the past year, with the exception of the alternator problem (which took 3 days to repair and was partially compensated for under warranty) I have never had a down day with the plane.
Not too bad for a "nearly 30 year old" airplane and, I think, complete validation for the decision to buy a carefully selected specimen of airplane built during the heyday of GA and to then have it refurbished by experts. In my mind, what I have ended up with is truly "better than new".
I couldn't be happier.
I just got the report from the mechanic on the first full year annual on my 28 year old (1979 Q model) 260se Katmai and I thought I would share my results. If my experience is indicative, potential buyers have nothing to worry about.
My airframe was selected by Todd for low corrision, trueness and overall good repair, then refurbished by Todd and others (see the thread on building my 260se). The plane was flown about 320 hours this past year and I spent a lot of those hours "exploring the performance" of the machine and practicing landings. In other words, not the easiest duty for an aircraft.
However, during the past year, I have only experienced one significant mechanical issue. I had an in-flight alternator failure. Thankfully this occurred in VFR conditions near the home field and I landed without incident. (Then I put colored caps on the circuit breakers so next time I will know which ones to pull!)
Todd did the last (partial year) annual in May last year. My mechanic has just finished up this year's annual and has given me the following report:
- Compressions: all 72 or greater.
- Results of oil analysis: "lower wear than usual for reported hours"
- Observed corrosion in wings, engine compartment, fuselage, empennage and vertical stablizer: "like it came off the assembly line a week ago". (I did the Corrision-X treatment earlier this year to preserve this condition).
- Oil usage: about 1/2 quart per 35 Hobbs hours.
Repairs done during annual to bring aircraft into compliance:
- Replace main wheel bearings since the existing bearings (which were in fine condition) were non-complying bearings. Replaced with complying bearings.
- Replace positive pole battery connector. Mechanic "didn't like" the old one.
That was it!
Squawks (and upgrades) I requested to be fixed during the annual:
- Reglue foot pads on landing gear.
- Add a scat hose to blow cooling air on the (new) alternator. It gets really hot in Florida and I suspect heat as a cause in the premature failure of the last alternator. I am watching the new one very carefully and will go with an alternative manufacturer if I see any problems.
- Check elevator cables. The autopilot had a tendency to porpoise with an aft (but legal) CG and/or when near gross. We discovered one cable at low end of correct and the other way over tight. Per the recommendation of the avionics shop both were adjusted to the high side of recommended. I hope this fixes the problem.
- Added Whelen LED beacon. This eliminated a pulsing sound the original beacon made in the headphones, substantially reduces power draw and upgrades the visibility of the beacon substantially. Well worth the change but purely elective.
- The defrost handle wouldn't turn. I think Todd delivered the plane to me that way as an oversight and I just wanted to get it fixed. As a practical matter, it's probably irrelevant for a plane flown mainly in Florida and the Carribbean but I wanted to get it fixed.
- The backlight on the Avidyne EX500 "soft buttons" have started to blink on and off intermittently. As I have written elsewhere, I regret purchasing this unit and this minor irritation gives me one more reason to dislike it. I will get this fixed later in the year when I "upgrade" this $8000 unit to do what the Garmin 396 did out of the box a year ago (at 1/3 the price).
- The "typical" Cessna fuel imbalance problem developed after I had the plane painted. According to the Cessna Pilots Association, this can be fixed by repositioning the two fuel overflow tubes (which, no doubt, were messed with during painting and not reset properly). For the moment, I am doing the "switch to right tank" routine. The mechanic didn't have time to get to this during the annual so we will follow up on this later.
Anyway, point is, with 320 hours in this year, other than the alternator (and, technically, the wheel bearings and battery connector) I have had * zero * non-elective repairs. Meanwhile, I have seen buddies with brand new Cirrus, Cessna and Piper aircraft spend many, many, hours with the mechanics at the factory service centers. During the past year, with the exception of the alternator problem (which took 3 days to repair and was partially compensated for under warranty) I have never had a down day with the plane.
Not too bad for a "nearly 30 year old" airplane and, I think, complete validation for the decision to buy a carefully selected specimen of airplane built during the heyday of GA and to then have it refurbished by experts. In my mind, what I have ended up with is truly "better than new".
I couldn't be happier.