Advice for low time pilot considering Bellanca/Citabria, etc

P

Phil

New member
I am a low time pilot with taildragger experience considering purchase of a Bellanca/Citabria etc and would like comments and advice concerning where to buy, which model(s) to consider and why, cost, parts availability, fuel burn, etc etc etc. Appreciate and will consider any and all comments and suggestions. I am located in Bradenton, Florida, (about 40 miles south of Tampa). Thanks, Phil Stewart

PS would really like to fly with someone in their plane if possible before I buy.
 
There are so many variables to consider that with the limited amount of information you provided no recommendation can be made. Tha absolute cheapest way to go is with the 7ECA. It is the basic Citabria and has 115 hp in its newer versions (late 60's to present). It also has the highest useful load of all the models. If you want more power, the rest have 150 hp. The 7GCAA just a 7ECA with the bigger motor. The 7GCBC has flaps and the 7KCAB has an inverted system for the guy who wants to fly upsuide down. So what it really boils down to is what do you want to spend and what do you want to do with the airplane.
 
Eric: More info: I have no interest in inverted flying. I fly from mostly grass strips and some of them 1800'. I don't plan on going too far at least until I get comfortable with plane. Plan on having transition instructor for as much time as necessary. I did fly a J4 Piper taildragger and got fairly comfortable with it. Since then have flown experimental taildraggers with Rotax engines. Probably the 7ECA would be good for me. Do they have flaps ? What about short fields ? I weigh 220 and most of my friends about same, some a little more. Do you see a problem with 450 lbs pilot and passenger on short grass strip in Florida summer?
Thanks for your info. Phil Stewart
 
Phil-

No flaps on the ECA or GCAA, my first choice would be the GCAA due to greatly improved climb performance, but unless you have obstacles the ECA will do just fine in 1800' AFTER you get a good checkout. I regularly operate my GCAA into 1500' at gross in the summer and never use more then 50% of the runway.

Discussion of flaps will get a debate started but a case can be made that good stick and rudder skills and practice will have a far greater effect on the TO and Ldg distance requirements then flaps.

Tom-
 
Tom

I too am just beginning to educate myself as to the different makes & models. I'm a private pilot who hasn't flown in about ten years (had a J35 Bonanza but sold it) and now I'm getting back into it. Just got my bi-annual out of the way and am currently renting a 172.

I wnat to purchase a taildragger to fly in & out of our ranch here in Montana. Elevation is about a mile high. I want enough power to get good STOL performance.

Tell me more about using stick & rudder effectively to achieve STOLs versus the use of flaps. My experience has always been flaps will pop you off the ground a lot quicker.


Doug
Big Sky Country
 
Tom:

I'm in your area, and I know of 2 aircraft you might be interested in.

There is a Citabria for sale in Lakeland. It's listed on E-bay right now. I looked at it, and it's a fairly nice plane, not totally cherry but in good condition. It's the O-235 version, not the O-320 version, with no inverted systems but it does have an IFR panel. The seller is a nice guy and would probably be willing to take you up for a ride if you were interested in buying it.

Also, there's a Decathlon in St Pete (Alfred Whitted) available for dual. The CFI is a super nice guy, and the rental fee is only $89. I'm in the process of buying a 1/4 share in this aircraft, and we're probably going to look for another partner or two. Let me know if you want to contact the CFI to schedule a flight.
 
Correction: the previous post was directed to Phil, not Tom. Sorry.

Also Phil, after reading your comments, that Citabria might be right up your alley. It's got lots of good XC gadgets like IFR gyros, Nav/com, color moving map GPS, and an electronic fuel management system slaved to the GPS. It's the smaller engine, but it's nice and light so it would be good for short and soft fields like you describe. Here are some links:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=26428&item=2437585377

http://www.aviatorsale.com/aircrafts/1153/

Also, before you say that you are not interested in inverted flight, you might want to try it! :wink:
 
I recently purchased an Aeronca Champ 7AC. Got a good buy on a very nice plane. Have had instructor fly with me and now have tailwheel endorsement. Really enjoying this plane ! Thanks for the advice and comments. Phil Stewart
 
Tom,

The word is "than", not "then". i.e..."50% more than....

"than" is for comparison......"then" is for a passage of time
 
Congrats. I got my tailwheel endorsement in a 7AC, and loved it so much I tried to buy it. Alas, couldn't negotiate the price difference.

But all's well that ends well. I just closed the deal on a share of that Decathlon, and did my first owner loop on Saturday. :p
 
Max weight for a 7ECA is about 1650 and the airplane will probably weigh 1150 or less. I have a 7KCAB that I fly cross country in the summer from California to the upper penninsula of Michigan and back. I have a grass field in Michigan, surrounded by the requisite 50 foot obstacles. We call them trees. I have no problem with the Citabria. It climbs much better than Cessna 172's and clears the trees with plenty of room. My strip is 2000 feet long and I am well above the trees before I reach the end of the runway. I use half or less to land. I do not have flaps. In Silver city New Mexico, I was loaded to the max with a co-pilot and luggage. I believe the field was at 6200' elevation. My Citabria climbed beautifully. I learned in a 7ECA and was able to learn basic aerobatics in it with a fairly large instructor. It can't make as short a landing as a Cub, but a Citabria will make a short enough landing for all normal purposes. One suggestion on turf, take the wheel pants off, they just gunk up with grass, but you probably already know that.
Good luck shopping,
Colette
 
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