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Hello From TN. New owner

mcgrathm

mcgrathm

New member
Savannah, TN
Aircraft Type
112/A
Greetings all. Just became a member and I am the new owner of N1436J as of 12/13/14. It is still in Front Royal VA. and hope to get it home after Christmas. First I need to get signed in complex.

I have about 500 hrs in PA-28-180 which I loved. Flew it from Duluth MN to Central FL. and the Outer banks of NC to Oregon, but needed a bit more room. I went from more local flying to cross country as you can tell. I lost a bit of useful load, but gained more comfort and speed and duration if needed.

Will be working on my IFR in this plane and hope to have a lot of fun.

Thanks,
Mike
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Welcome to the group, you'll love your Commander! Excellent platform for IFR, and will really increase it's utility.
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

I too recently moved from a tight fit Dakota and am extremely pleased with the extra cabin and solid feel of the commander. We fly from Michigan to Florida every year and looking forward to flying in comfort this winter.
Welcome Aboard!!
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Congratulations Michael. You will absolutely love the plane and there are a good bunch of folks in this group that provide tremendous help (and the odd comedy routines!).

All the best,

Pete
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Welcome to the COG, Mike. I hope you enjoy your Commander as much as we all love ours. There is a wealth of information and expertise here that is unparalleled.

What part of Tennessee are you from? I used to call Knoxville home when I atended UT, but our family actually lived in Townsend, on the "quiet side" of the Smokie Mountain National Park. Now live in Farmersville, TX (NE of Dallas).

We look forward to getting to know you.
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Welcome Mike...I'm fairly new here too. I can testify, this group is awesome and has already helped me out a ton!! You will love your Commander. Also, some of my friends have started calling me 'Commander'. I know they are just buttering me up for a ride, but kinda cool still!
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Hi Michael; glad to hear you now own N1436J. ..that is one of few 112s that has never been under my radar since '93. altho I hv info on over 180 112s, nothing on S/N 436. :rolleyes: ...hope it checked out ok for you.

Judi
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Thanks everyone. Look forward to flying her. Just got a call from the previous owner and he is going to fly it close to me to Murfreesburo TN. On the 26th of Dec. not to far away. Now I just need a check ride and get it home......
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Congratulations Michael - easy transition from a 180. Enjoy!
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

mcgrathm said:
Thanks everyone. Look forward to flying her. Just got a call from the previous owner and he is going to fly it close to me to Murfreesburo TN. On the 26th of Dec. not to far away. Now I just need a check ride and get it home......
Click to expand...

You should check with your Insurance Co. as you will probably need 10 hrs. of dual in make/model before you can solo.
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Welcome to the elite owners of the best non turbine single engine across Country ship in the world Mike! More room, comfort, strength and stability are some of our best qualities! She fly's like a dream especially on across the Country flights. Like my IFR instructor said holly cow this is the most stable platform I have ever flown in!

I was told when I bought 377SB in March 2013 the old story of the Rockwell company picnic. As far as I can remember being new myself went something like this. The aero engineers who had been producing fighters for the US Navy carrier fleet for years in the 1970s said over beer and steak at the Company picnic.

"Ya know....I bet we could build one hell of a general aviation aircraft! I think your on to something there Walter. We could make her big, fuel efficient, strong, and lets put gear on her so beefy you could land on a carrier! Lets not cut corners trying to squeeze ever once of weight out of her for useful load said Leo as he sips from a cold one.. Lets make her skin thicker, safer, and more stable to handle the worst extreme turbulent. And most of all piped in Norman, lets make her as good looking and as sexy as a P51! That's it! a ship that draws a crowd every time you pull her out of the hangar! We will call her something that means strength, authority, and power! Lets call her the Commander!"

And so it goes.... the seeds to build the Rockwell Commander were planted.
 
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Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Welcome Mike to the group and congrats on ownership. Youll love the Commander.

Tim
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Glad to have you on board as a Commander owner! You are simply going to love it! Any questions you have can be found here. First note: when parked, put the fuel selector in the "off" position" or you will find fuel on the ground.
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Joe Tagliareni said:
You should check with your Insurance Co. as you will probably need 10 hrs. of dual in make/model before you can solo.
Click to expand...
Again thanks all. The insurance company I have just requires a sign off from a CFI with the Commander. The same company required me to have about 10 hrs with a CFI when I was looking at a 177RG. Guess the transition from 180 to Commander is taken into account. :)
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Hello Mike...you got a well cared for plane...flown by a very good pilot. Judy...this plane was under the same ownership for more than 30years
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

Brian are u drinking again??? Just ready your post that's funny and pretty cool.
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

airallen said:
Hello Mike...you got a well cared for plane...flown by a very good pilot. Judy...this plane was under the same ownership for more than 30years
Click to expand...

Hello Allen, Pat and I talked about you when doing the pre-buy. I was hoping to see your plane before we left, but ran out of time.

Pat seems very genuine, another positive for buying the plane.

When we (wife and I) got there they had all the panels off ready for me to inspect with the mechanic. They stepped me through everything and showed me what to watch out for specific for the Commander. After that I went through a visual again on my own while they took a break. All I found was one wire bundle just touching a vacuum hose clamp behind the instrument panel which the mechanic adjusted to prevent any chafing.

They even had the plane already on jacks to go through emergency gear retraction steps with me.

I am very happy...

Now it looks like Pat may fly the plane down to middle TN to meet with relatives right after Christmas. That would sure help both of us...
 
Re: Hello From TN. New owner

mjanou said:
I too recently moved from a tight fit Dakota and am extremely pleased with the extra cabin and solid feel of the commander. We fly from Michigan to Florida every year and looking forward to flying in comfort this winter.
Welcome Aboard!!
Click to expand...

Came from a Dakota to a 114TC myself.

The 114TC is a bargain in that you never have to buy those black-dot co2 detectors. With the turbo running red hot your feet are warm and toasty year round, whether you have the cabin heat pulled or not.

Keep flying your TC for a few years and you'll save tens of dollars!
 
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