The A-65 Overhaul/Buy question

[mhorowit]

Here and elsewhere I’ve been exploring the possibility of buying an a/c with an A-65 engine which has exceed TBO. We’ve learned the TBO figure isn’t gospel, but it probably isn’t a bad idea to be thinking about an overhaul. For the purpose of this discussion, let’s assume something has occurred and it’s time to open the case. Since the engine is old, and you’ve invested in opening the case, you have to think overhaul.

A look thru the trades show mid-time engines can be purchased for around $4,000 and recently O/H engines for $7,000.

It is possible after the engine is opened and inspected one will be faced with repair costs that exceed the cost of purchasing a recently O/H engine.

My questions are:
- How much do I have to invest to be able to make the overhaul or buy decision? (My experience is (in the DC area) opening a case, inspecting, closing it up will cost $3,000).
- How can I cut the investment?
- What decisions have to be “outsourced” to an engine shop, i.e. the decision is outside the ability or willingness of a small shop to make the decision and provide an estimate?

- Mike

[crispy critter]

Re: The A-65 Overhaul/Buy question

Mike,
To start out,how many hours is on the engine smoh & tt and how long ago was the major done(i.e. what year)?Now,IMHO $7000 is pricey for an A-65 even with a recent overhaul....0 since overhaul then that price ain't bad.If you watch the ads on Barnstormers and some of these other popular web sites I think you will find several A-65's mid to low time for the $2500-4000 range depending on type accessories.Of course this is just my opinion based on what I've been seeing in the ads.
I did a field overhaul on Smurf for about $2000 but my IA if very easy to work with and let me do 99.9% of the work.He looked over my shoulders a lot and said,"nice job" about a thousand times,the only thing he done was closely and carefully inspected every part as it came out and before it went back in and he assisted with the crankcase reassembly.Most of the parts we cleaned,measured,checked,magnifluxed,and insoected ourselves and saved a lot of time and money(remember that you have to have the tools for this before you can do it).I was also lucky enough to have an engine that was in pretty good shape inside and only had 1700 hours tt.
I'll keep my eyes open for a good engine at a good price Mike.