Shop in Iowa

[Matt Bogard]

We've recently moved to south-central Iowa and I'm looking for a new shop to handle my Annual Inspections. I want to find a place who knows Comanches well and ideally can handle the altimeter/pitot and transponder checks as well.

I'm a client of Savvy Aircraft Maintenance who will oversee service work, but they don't have established relationships with any shops in the area.
I've considered going to Heritage Aero in Rockford, IL (if they will work with Savvy) but it's 200nm away.

Any recommendations from our ICS Iowa delegation?

Thanks!

[N3322G]

FYI. I fly a hour south to Clifton solely for their expertise in Comanches so IMHO flying to Rockford would be worth it.

[Ray B]

I fly an hour and a half north to Webco for Comanche specific work like gear and rigging checks. I think it's the best insurance against sitting on he R/W gear up. Ray B

[Kristin Winter]

You are the first Comanche owner that I have heard of to use Mike's service. I think it a good option for a lot of owners, particularly of Cirrus or Cessna aircraft. To my knowledge, Mike does not know jack about Comanches, which might hinder the communications between shop and Mike. I am not thinking he and Bob Webber would hit it off, but I could be jumping to conclusions here. It still tickles me to think about it.

[MULEFLY]

@Matt
regarding pitot/altimeter checks... Avionics Place is also at RFD and works very closely with Cliff... many times they will do the check at Cliff's hanger... they feature each others' services on their respective web sites.

Jim

[Matt Bogard]

It's sounding more and more like Heritage Aero is worth the flight over. Not a big deal to get it there, but getting me home without the plane is tough.

I signed up with Savvy prior to a 3-week flight out around the west coast. We spent most of September going to Reno, Tahoe, San Fran, Portland, LA, Havasu, Albequerque, and Sedona visiting friends and family. Had a blast! I wanted Savvy on board in case I had an AOG incident anywhere and needed help troubleshooting. I did have a DG fail and I'm not sure that Savvy was of any benefit as I basically handled it all myself.

My other thought in signing up for Savvy was my year of coverage also got me through my first annual with a new shop. Of course, the shop has to be willing to work with Mike and let them manage the annual rather than my old shop's philosophy of "drop it off and we'll call you when it's done, with the final bill." My first annual was $8k and second was $5k...

[MULEFLY]

Call Cliff... "they have ways..." to get you home.

[Kristin Winter]

Matt,

I think that there is merit to having a service that can push back on the maintenance shops a bit. I absolutely agree with Mike that too much maintenance is done on principle. It is fine if the owner is onboard with that and knows the ramifications, but the shop often presents these things as requirements. That principle varies little from airplane to airplane, though it is a better service if they really know the aircraft.

If you don't mind my asking and it isn't too nosey, how much do they charge? If you would rather answer in email, I am at kristin_winter at comcast dot net. If you don't want to answer at all, that is fine too.

[MULEFLY]

Matt & K --

That is where the great shops differ from the slop shops. I'll tout Cliff a bit here. He never does anything outside of normal annual work without my being notified... we were in France this year during the annual... I had the EI scheduled to be installed, he was emailing me photos about every other day and asking for input on appropriate decisions. I too have been the victim... but the best work I feel is done by someone that "almost" over communicates -- there has never been a surprise with Cliff... can't say that I've always felt that way with work done by other shops.

K as you alluded to earlier. Mike knows Cessnas... but there are probably 3 or shops around the US that really know Comanches and are consistent with their quality. Tim at Clifton, Cliff at Heritage... the fellow in FL (Bill?) ... I'll throw you in that esteemed pile too. But then it gets pretty quickly into the "Others".

All the best!
Jim

[Kristin Winter]

Jim,

I agree with you on the communication. I actually prefer to work with the owner. I have never had my judgment second guessed when I point the issue and explain my rationale and recommendation.

Thank you for the kind words. I have been working with the local Piper service center. As my hangar backs up to there's, I have been working under their auspices, but doing it in my hangar, mostly with the owner. I prefer that to quick production work as I like to teach owners about their aircraft.

[Matt Bogard]

$750 a year for Savvy. Yes, the represent most of the Cirrus' out there and a lot of Cessnas, I may be the only Comanche for all I know. But, systems are systems and they're all pretty similar from one type to another.

I've talked with Clif a bit and it sounds like his approach is pretty similar to what I expect and how savvy wants things done. My previous annuals did not involve much communication and decisions were made without my input. Things were not necessarily done wrong, but I would have had them done differently. For instance, several hours were spent cleaning and lubricating my mixture, throttle, and propeller control cables without asking me. Had I had been asked, I would have opted to just install new ones which I ended up doing a few months later when it got cold in the started binding again. Communication is key!

My other thought is that multiple heads are better than one. If the shop as a problem and recommends an expensive fix, perhaps the multiple A&Ps at savvy will have an idea for additional troubleshooting or repairs or etc...

[Pat Donovan]

Hi Matt,

You might also want to check the Pathfinder for ICS members in your area and see who they use and why. A phone or email to them might give some other suggestions. I generally do my own work, but have used Heritage Aero for the occasional set of different eyes to see what I've been missing; Cliff's gang is pretty good and I would recommend them without question. The same with Webco.

Assuming nothing significant is planned/found, I just plan to spend one night in a hotel as they have a loaner vehicle and it saves the spuse from driving. (I live just NW of St. Louis.) I provide the grunt work in one area while they do the "serious" work in another.

PatD

[Clarence Beintema]

Hi Pat,

Just curious, it sounds like your "annual" is done in two days? How many techs/ hours get spent on the annual, is it done using the Piper inspection sheets or some other inspection form?

Clarence

[MULEFLY]

I'm not an IA... I'm not an AP... I didn't sleep in a Holiday Inn Express last night... but if you get an annual on a twinco with less than about 32 to 40 hours... you have received a pencil job -- not an annual inspection. Now can 5 guys do one in a day...? yepper... but the current practices says don't expect one in 1 to 2 days... only if no problems.

JMHO
Jim

[IO720]

My FBO's mechanic has performed my annuals for the last few years, and he's done a credible job. He had found some very slight play in my stabilizer bearings last spring. Due to a conflict in his scheduling, I brought the airplane to Cliff of Heritage Aero in Rockford, Illinois for the bearing replacement. I have no second thoughts about my mechanic's capability to do the annual again in May. However, he left the FBO to take a job at Rockwell Collins a few miles north in Cedar Rapids. I'm going to ask Cliff to do the annual this year. It's really not that far. If we can time it right, maybe we can give each other a ride home. I live in Iowa City, and since Iowa is not so big, you can't be TOO far from me!

Rick Mascari
N64400