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New Member - buying help

K

kheilbr1

New member
Knoxville, TN
Hi, New member. Trying to answer the questions needed to make a purchase. three that come to mind right away..

1. Any suggestions on pre-buy inspection (a person who does them).
2. How is parts availability for the 112A/114 models?
3. I also should probably ask if there are any good shops near Eastern TN for service once bought.

Anything else I should know?

Thanks!

Kurt
 
Kurt

Welcome to the forum. I am sure you will get plenty of answer/responses soon. A good contact for you to make is Judi Anderson (Suncoast Aviation). She has a file on almost all the Commanders around - and that is not a joke. She also has many contacts that can be of assistance.

1) Pre-buy -- There are several people across the nation that are familiar with a Commander and can do a thorough pre-buy - it just depends on where the plane is.
2) Parts -- I haven't run into any parts issues - other than an aileron weight - which took 5 phone calls and 2 days to find - so I don't really consider that an issue. There are resources available to help keep our birds in the air. Others (who needed different parts) may have a different perspective than mine.
3) Eastern TN shops -- I can't speak for Eastern TN - but - KSNH - Savanah TN has a really good shop that did a great job for me on avionics and did some mechanical work (TT Aerotech).

Good luck

Dean
 
Codeeno said:
Welcome to the forum. I am sure you will get plenty of answer/responses soon. A good contact for you to make is Judi Anderson (Suncoast Aviation). She has a file on almost all the Commanders around - and that is not a joke. She also has many contacts that can be of assistance.
Click to expand...

Kurt, I can't strongly enough endorse in written words what Dean has said! In 3 years of owning my 112, I've not had any problem obtaining any part needed. I do owe a debt of gratitude to other members of this Forum in providing invaluable assistance in that regard, tho! Can't help with your 3rd question, but I'll bet Judi could - and there are other members on this Forum who will probably chime in with great suggestions.

About your "anything else" question - 2 things - 1) see what Dean said about Judi; 2) don't have any hesitation about going with a Commander - regardless of whatever single engine you've flown, you won't be disappointed!

Good luck!
 
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Thank you Gentlemen for the quick reply! I will give Judi a call! I am 6'4" tall and have wide enough shoulders that the Commander seems to be the answer!
 
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This is what it looked like this morning in my Commander 114B @ 9,000' somewhere over West Texas as the sun was coming up. Things just look better in a Commander!

And everyone on this forum will help you find the right Commander and then enjoy it to the fullest. This is a heck of a group and a great airplane.

1585531433015090890.jpg
 
kheilbr1 said:
Hi, New member. Trying to answer the questions needed to make a purchase. three that come to mind right away..

1. Any suggestions on pre-buy inspection (a person who does them).
2. How is parts availability for the 112A/114 models?
3. I also should probably ask if there are any good shops near Eastern TN for service once bought.

Anything else I should know?

Thanks!

Kurt
Click to expand...

Kurt - these are good comments from the board.


#1 - as indicated above - start with Judi Anderson. She'll tell you the ownership/ history of your potential bird.
#2 :
The thing i would highlight : If u're expecting to throw keys to an A&P and tell him to just order parts - you're in for a rough ride.

The airplane requires the owner to be active on the board. The parts aren't hard to get to but it isnt as simple as your mechanic calling the Parts hotline.

You will need to be somewhat involved. You dont have to be socially involved on the board. But there is a lot of knowledge in here both in pre-existing threads as well as the members experience.
Additionally - your mechanic and yourself will have to get a common understanding of some of the troubleshooting. Its isn't an overly complex airplane but the A&P of your choice local to you is used to working on 172, he is in for a ride.

So know these things up front. If you're someone who fits the in the model i described for commander ownership - it is very rewarding.
If you fall in the other model , YMMV.

This board is invaluable. Most parts are easily available. Some do require some legwork.
We don't have a single aircraft on this board that is AOG due to parts.


#3 : Please get a thorough pre-buy. These are older birds and some of them may have neglect depending on their ownership lineage.
 
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Thanks again for the helpful info. Always liked the plane and hope to have one soon. Meanwhile, off to dive deeper into this site and learn :)
 
kheilbr1 said:
Thank you Gentlemen for the quick reply! I will give Judi a call! I am 6'4" tall and have wide enough shoulders that the Commander seems to be the answer!
Click to expand...
welcome to the forum. I’m an ex owner of a112A, 6’6” and 295lbs. Very comfortable plane and would buy another if I decide to get back into the game.
My home base was Savannah TN. and TT Aerotech did my avionics. I was one of their first customers when they opened shop. Very trustworthy. I help out once in a while if there are any commander questions. I did owner assist maintenance and annuals on my plane and enjoyed working on her. You won’t go wrong with a Commander.
 
Kurt Welcome to the COG. First, get it out of the way, If you can draft up a basic signature block. At least include your location. We may be neighbors with an open invite to get some actual left seat time . . . Pre-Buy, necessary evil. This is my first shot at ownership and didn't really know what to expect. Coming from an extensive military interface with aviation there were a few differences. Pre-buy will be that, an INSPECTION. I thought they'd tweak faults as they found them (simple one's anyway) but no - if you want that loose screw tightened you'll have to get that worked off the gig list. Judi Anderson is our COG Godmother with connections none of us will ever match. Comfort, can't be beat. Dual doors and roomy cabin big plus. Parts - I've tested these waters and yet to be disappointed. Aircraft Spruce will have most of the common hardware / consumable parts. (sight challenge with cross-ref'ing from our dated parts manual) And our Parts Dept at the fledgling factory is up on a limited basis and they are very responsive. Models vs budget. In my option, if you can swing a good 114 B model that is what I would do after 10 + yrs of owning a 'Solid' 78 114. Just nicer layout and for what ever reason, the B's and TCs (Turbo's) have a MUCH more forgiving weight and bal that the earlier models. But and good early 112 / 114 are excellent candidates. Welcome again and keep the questions coming. John
 
Kurt, looks like we're neighbors, just pm you. David Price
 
I'm in the process of purchasing a 1973 112 (production number 90). Data shows that the first 123 aircraft were built with fiberglass doors, but they leaked, and were replaced by aluminum doors. Does anyone own a 112 from that initial production lot? Have you had any issues?
 
None, in service, hv the old fiberglass doors, Mark. It should show in the 337s if changed out.

Judi
 
Forgot to say, you wouldn't hv had composite doors, anyway. That was only the few beginning early '72 model.
 
Thank you so much for the reply!!!
 
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