Mind Changed on Maules, NOT on Green!
Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2014 6:54 pm
So I haven't flown much lately, in fact, I've only flown once since my solo back in <redacted to protect the guilty>. Life has, once again, found a way to get in the way.
My CFI is a good friend, and seems to enjoy flying with me. He owns a 1998 Maule MX7-180C that I started to fly when I was thinking I was going to be able to finish my ticket prior to moving to Illinois. I more or less hated the airplane at the time, but I think I was just bitter that I was 170-less. I guess Harold has been wanting to fly with me some more, and in order to incentivize me getting out and flying some, he's made me a deal I can't refuse. So, last night, we did some hood work and a cross country to KDLC to help fill some checkboxes, and to re familiarize myself with simulated instrument flight and tracking VORs and such. Part of the reason I think Harold wants me to fly his airplane is because his is much better equipped than anything else I'd have access to, even our 170, so navigation is a lot easier, and everything works in his airplane. The benefit for me is that it's an affordable, pretty new taildragger that is well-maintained. Harold gets to fly his airplane, and I get to fly him around in it. Win-win.
The 170 had some tailwheel work performed recently. The wheel, tube, and tire were changed because the wheel was damaged during a flat tire with a student, and the main spring was re-bent. The owner and the airport owner/IA opted to re-bend the spring rather than replace it, so we'll see how that holds up. The main CFI for the airplane and the IA went to lunch late last week to test out the tailwheel as the airplane had not flown since the work was performed. Ron (airport owner/IA) is a very close friend as well, and while we were looking for the bottom of a 12-pack of Miller Lite one evening (after flying was done, of course), he remarked that he didn't realize how fast the 170 was...about 120mph indicated at 3500 feet. He's been a very big advocate for me getting the 170 and has been a tremendous help answering my endless list of dumb questions about aircraft ownership.
Back to the story about the Maule. So Harold and I fire up and venture skyward yesterday evening. As indicated by the title, my thoughts on the Maule have changed a lot since I last flew it. I genuinely like the airplane now; it's got great control harmony, has great ground handling, and is a very stable airplane for hood work. It's no 170, but I genuinely enjoyed flying it yesterday and felt very connected. The one thing I couldn't help but notice while we were burning nearly 40% more fuel is that we were going nearly 10mph SLOWER than the 170. 110mph in cruise is about all we were doing. Granted, we were kind of loafing, but we were still burning about 12gph. The only thing I can think of that would cause this is the airplane being green.
I ain't no scientician or nothin', but we were burning more hydrocarbons and weren't pedaling very fast. I can't think that there is much difference in drag between the two airplanes, though the Maule is heavier. The Maule has a constant-speed propeller, the 170 doesn't. Neither airplane has wheelpants. One is red, the other is green. I hate to think of how slow we would have been flying in the green airplane if we were flying with equivalent power as the red one.
In the Maule's defense, it does have red upholstery, but that clearly doesn't help its cause.
Stay smart out there, guys. If your airplane is due for paint, make the right choice. If your late B model left the factory with green paint, alter or destroy the finish information data plate, or invest in some snake oil treatments, or an engine conversion. It just isn't worth being outrun by a 150 in the name of making a fashion statement.
My CFI is a good friend, and seems to enjoy flying with me. He owns a 1998 Maule MX7-180C that I started to fly when I was thinking I was going to be able to finish my ticket prior to moving to Illinois. I more or less hated the airplane at the time, but I think I was just bitter that I was 170-less. I guess Harold has been wanting to fly with me some more, and in order to incentivize me getting out and flying some, he's made me a deal I can't refuse. So, last night, we did some hood work and a cross country to KDLC to help fill some checkboxes, and to re familiarize myself with simulated instrument flight and tracking VORs and such. Part of the reason I think Harold wants me to fly his airplane is because his is much better equipped than anything else I'd have access to, even our 170, so navigation is a lot easier, and everything works in his airplane. The benefit for me is that it's an affordable, pretty new taildragger that is well-maintained. Harold gets to fly his airplane, and I get to fly him around in it. Win-win.
The 170 had some tailwheel work performed recently. The wheel, tube, and tire were changed because the wheel was damaged during a flat tire with a student, and the main spring was re-bent. The owner and the airport owner/IA opted to re-bend the spring rather than replace it, so we'll see how that holds up. The main CFI for the airplane and the IA went to lunch late last week to test out the tailwheel as the airplane had not flown since the work was performed. Ron (airport owner/IA) is a very close friend as well, and while we were looking for the bottom of a 12-pack of Miller Lite one evening (after flying was done, of course), he remarked that he didn't realize how fast the 170 was...about 120mph indicated at 3500 feet. He's been a very big advocate for me getting the 170 and has been a tremendous help answering my endless list of dumb questions about aircraft ownership.
Back to the story about the Maule. So Harold and I fire up and venture skyward yesterday evening. As indicated by the title, my thoughts on the Maule have changed a lot since I last flew it. I genuinely like the airplane now; it's got great control harmony, has great ground handling, and is a very stable airplane for hood work. It's no 170, but I genuinely enjoyed flying it yesterday and felt very connected. The one thing I couldn't help but notice while we were burning nearly 40% more fuel is that we were going nearly 10mph SLOWER than the 170. 110mph in cruise is about all we were doing. Granted, we were kind of loafing, but we were still burning about 12gph. The only thing I can think of that would cause this is the airplane being green.
I ain't no scientician or nothin', but we were burning more hydrocarbons and weren't pedaling very fast. I can't think that there is much difference in drag between the two airplanes, though the Maule is heavier. The Maule has a constant-speed propeller, the 170 doesn't. Neither airplane has wheelpants. One is red, the other is green. I hate to think of how slow we would have been flying in the green airplane if we were flying with equivalent power as the red one.
In the Maule's defense, it does have red upholstery, but that clearly doesn't help its cause.
Stay smart out there, guys. If your airplane is due for paint, make the right choice. If your late B model left the factory with green paint, alter or destroy the finish information data plate, or invest in some snake oil treatments, or an engine conversion. It just isn't worth being outrun by a 150 in the name of making a fashion statement.