Hangar Find: 1961 Cessna 172B
This 1961 Cessna 172B has a healthy record of recent maintenance and seemingly is ready to fly, with the seller listing several big-ticket jobs in the recent past. The plane has been hangar-stored for 30 years, and while white on brown isn’t the most attractive paint code, when buying a plane, vanity should take a back seat to a long history of proactive maintenance. The Cessna benefits from a fresh annual and new tires and is listed here on eBay with a suggested opening bid of $58,000 and no action yet.
All across America, you’ll find hidden gems of regional airports tucked away with planes like these spread across the landscape. Regional airports are among my favorite places to visit, especially those with a little cafe attached to the runway. The flying life is one I haven’t personally experienced yet, but the thought of being able to fly to a vacation destination like Cape Cod or Palm Beach for breakfast and then back home again before noon seems like a pretty great life. The Cessna presents as a well-maintained example, with clean, up-to-date instrumentation, but the seller notes there is no ADSB on board, which amounts to a flight tracking device.
The interior was restored in 2015, and it looks to still be in excellent condition. Plane owners seem to place an emphasis on interior condition, as we see a fair amount of aircraft like these presented with freshened-up cockpits. The cockpits of older aircraft like these are incredibly simple affairs, which reminds you that flying one of these machines requires a certain appetite for period-correct aviation. You’re not going to find much in the way of luxuries, and you’re also likely to experience turbulence in a very profound way should it occur during your inaugural flight.
When it comes to buying an older aircraft (or any aircraft, really), detailed flight logs are essential to feeling confident that your investment is a good one. Even so, the FAA has fairly stringent requirements regarding annual maintenance, and even the smallest gaps can reveal thousands of dollars of work that must occur before the first flight is attempted. This Cessna seems to come with all of the major boxes checked, as this page of the log book shows a recent cylinder removal due to low compression and an ensuring ring job with no cracks detected. Knowing nothing about vintage aircraft prices, I turn to you and ask does a $58,000 opening bid seem like a reasonable place to start?
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Comments
No thank you, except for commercial airline flights I’ll keep my feet planted firmly on the ground.
Commercial flights are like greyhound bus trips anymore. All the fighting and lunatics onboard. If I could learn to fly….that would be the ticket ! Plus you don’t have to be physically inspected by the TSA tards as you’re herded aboard. Not to mention having to be at the terminal 3 hours before the flight.
Commercial flying today…..is absolutely the pits.
@Emel – As a licensed pilot for more than 40 years, I can tell you that you should be so lucky as to get away with arriving 3 hours early for a private flight.
The subject of this offering was hangared for most of its life. Excellent.
But, you still have to get to your hangar, park, and do a proper flight plan.
Then, preflight the plane, load the aircraft (there’s nobody to put your bags on board, but you – and don’t skip the weight and balance calcs). Then open the hangar, and move the plane to the taxi area, and move your car into the hangar. Secure the hangar and board the plane (everyone).
Depending on number of souls on board, there will be buckling, headsetting and general settling in. Don’t forget to use the bathroom, there ain’t one on these planes.
There is the ramp startup, checking for everything in the green during warmup and (depending on the sophistication of the airport) at least listening to the ATIS, and writing the information, contacting tower (or clearance delivery), and getting in line to taxi.
If your preflight indicated a need for fuel, your destination is not the departure end of the runway yet, but the FBO for a bit of go juice (pushmoline). Make sure it is the correct grade for your engine, or you will experience real trouble.
Now, you can taxi for takeoff. When your turn in line comes up… off you go. Now wasn’t that easy?
When you arrive at your destination, after deplaning, the aircraft must be secured, prior to experiencing your ham sandwich in the airport cafe.
The return trip is pretty much the reverse of that process. Don’t forget the visit to the FBO for any needed fuel and a current weather briefing.
Make sure to keep your logs current, there and back.
Heaven help you if a piece of “go, no-go” equipment fails and must be attended to prior to your return flight. (I have had a complete electrical failure in flight, and became one of the last pilots to receive light signals from Phoenix Sky Harbor tower. I have had electrical flap failure on final, and one day, I came out for a short pleasure hop only to find a huge bulge on the side of my front tire.)
You will feel nostalgic about the days of only losing 3 hours for a commercial flight. The only thing you won’t feel nostalgic about is stripping and getting felt up by a minimum-wager.
Even after all of this, it is still SOOO worth it. But never think in terms of time savings.
Hmm, too bad RD, I think small airplanes are the only way to go. It’s my biggest regret in my 67 years, I never learned to fly. Kind of funny, anytime these types of planes are featured, they are mostly from a long time ago. Most of us, used to “land ” vehicles, would never think of taking a 1961 ANYTHING in the air. ( I’ll never forget the character the late Brian Dennehy played as a bush pilot in “Never Cry Wolf”) Top wings, like this, are much preferred, as a bottom wing restricts visibility considerable, I mean, it’s the allure of a small plane, to see all those abandoned junkyards,,if any. They can be set down just about anywhere. A commercial jet, not so much. To be clear, most small airports are now unmanned, and the radio is all that’s needed to land or takeoff, at least in N.Wis. With just me and my brother left in the family, it’s getting less and less likely a rich uncle will leave us his millions, but if he did, this is the 1st thing I’d buy.
67 is not too old to take a few lessons, maybe go for a Sport Pilot license? Planes tend to stay in better condition than cars, I think because of the required annual inspection and being hangared? BTW, if thats where the plane was kept, not really a hangar?
At 67, the only flying he should be doing is “Hanger Flying”!
@Lee – Back in the 1980’s I read an article in Flying Magazine about a 93 year old pilot who landed his King Air long in a blinding snowstorm, ran off the end and bent the nose gear. I thought right then and there; “Gosh, I hope I can say I landed my King Air long in a blinding snow storm when I’m 93”. BTW – That’ll be 23 more years of flying for me. Let the naysayers consider their prejudices.
I took a quick hour long introductory flight at a local airport just to get a sense of what it takes to fly a small plane. It didn’t seem that hard to master the basics, but all the radio talk was hard to understand. Things were going great until we hit a patch of weird air and the plane suddenly dipped down a foot or two. That’s when my stomach said “if we don’t get on solid ground in the next 10 minutes, lunch will be projectiled all over this instrument panel”.
@Mike – I have a queasy stomach, too. A few flights within a week or two, and it is no longer a factor. The key is to fly regularly. When I was getting my private ticket, my best subject was recovery from unusual attitudes. Just stay with it. You should be fine.
As a FAA certified A&P I feel comfortable in saying, WTF? Prices on these old aircraft have gone through tbe roof just like old cars.
What is more dangerous? An old fart passing out on a public road or one passing out from a mile high? Just asking.
I agree! I’m and A&P with pilot and glider ratings. No bargain owning a 150 or 172 these days. I never see light aircraft flying around anymore. Aviation has always been cyclic for jobs too. When I got my Private at Otis AFB a wet plane with CFI was under $25.00/ hr.
This sure brings back some memories. I was a partner in one of these back in the early 80s. Most of my hours were logged in a 172 although I’ve got some time in a 150 and a 182, a Cherokee Archer II, and some multi-engine time in a Cessna 310. Lots of fun to fly but the costs ate us alive. The first year after we go ours we had to upgrade our radio equipment and that alone cost us $12K. I finally had to make a choice: either give up EVERYTHING else I love to do and fly occaissionally, or give up flying and do the other things I loved. The choice was simply really.
I’m sure this one would be powered by a Continental boxer six. Ours had the newer Avco-Lycoming four. The Avco was reliable enough but there were some problems with camshaft lobes rounding themselves off…
I’m with you geomechs. I’ve been licensed since 1972. I got my ticket for about $600 then. Today you couldn’t touch it for probably less than 8 grand. And the avfuel has gotten prohibitive. I am not flying too much these days and I miss it, but the costs have destroyed the recreational aspect of being a private pilot.
Looks like fun to me.
A friend took flying lessons a few years ago. He got his license and flys rented planes from time to time. He asked the instructor how to determine where he was while flying. The instructor had a long list of ways he could use to find his exact location. He then followed that up with, “What I usally do is fly close to a city water tower to see what name is on it. It’s faster”.
I got my private pilot license back in ’91. I did a fair amount of flying but haven’t flown in about 20 years. I miss it. It can’t hurt to take an introductory lesson if you are so inclined. Who knows, you might get hooked. There is a lot to learn and it’s challenging, but ultimately, as my first instructor told me, tongue in cheek, it boils down to “pull the wheel back, the houses get smaller; push the wheel forward, the houses get bigger …”
“Keep pulling the wheel back and the houses get smaller, then bigger in a hurry!”
My instructor noted that, “The only time you can have too much fuel is when you’re on fire.” He was a B-17 A&P during WWII. ‘Went West’ about ten years ago.
Flying a powered plane is fun. You want a challenge try Glider flying.
I soloed at 16 years of age, then finally settled down and got my private single engine and seaplane license at 35. I’m near 70 now and had to quit flying because of medical reasons. To say I miss flying floats and skis would be an understatement. We have a plane in our lives for many years. That said, this plane is a good trainer, and airport to airport plane. Not worth a hoot for bush flying. Also, the compression on #3 reads pretty low. I suspect it will need to be pulled real soon. Anytime a plane sits, and isn’t started and warmed up for a long period of time things get gummed up. Looking at the hours on the engine it may be time for a complete rebuild. 57k is a lot of money to put into a plane that may well need a redo in a short period of time.
I flew in one of these once. I was totally claustrophobic within ten minutes. These things are so tiny inside. Also, check out aviation safety network site. One or more of these things crashes in this country (and others) every day. Mostly due to engine failure.
Hi Phil, I can understand that, being a truck driver, I was used to confined places. I feel a lot more helpless in a jet, like riding on the back of a motorcycle, at the mercy of the pilot, or some mishuga passenger, they have to duct tape to the seat. While rare today( I think there’s like 10,000 flights around the world at any given time), when they go down, it’s never pretty. I read, there are like FIVE small airplane crashes a day, many minor, and a fatality, every 5.5 days. It’s the speed of the crash. A jet at 400 mph, versus, maybe 100, big difference. It’s kind of misleading, as that includes all small aircraft, like helicopters, and such. Also, most crashes are pilot error, or weather related, mechanical issues are way down on the list. Like motorcycles, we only hear of the deaths, not the millions of safe miles. I’ve done just about every kind of travel on the ground, and the skies are last frontier. Too bad, like classic cars, it’s out of reach for many today.
I was 60 when I got my private license, so it’s probably not too late. Just remember that the purchase price of a plane simply gets you in the gate. Ownership costs for aircraft are almost prohibitive unless you have a commercial use for the aircraft or flying is your main thing. For occasional pleasure outings or to stay current, just rent.
At 60 you are lucky to pass your medical exam. Any heart issues and you are grounded!
Will need an ADSB to be legal, at a cost in the neighborhood of $4,000. Otherwise, the price is “right” based on what’s happening in the market today.
As mentioned, the age isn’t all that relevant with airplanes due to the requirement of annual inspections. And, most crashes are NOT due to engine failure but to “pilot error”. ie: pilot ignorance. ie: carelessness. My personal crash was caused by a careless mechanic which did, in fact, result in engine failure. Didn’t sue the mechanic ’cause he had absolutely nothing beyond his tools. And an aircraft owner/friend who used him to rebuild the engine just before I bought the plane.
Never been in a little plane, are they like boats just suck your money to keep them working
late Brian Dennehy played as a bush pilot in “Never Cry Wolf”)
Good call !!!
Back in the early 90’s, I took many lessons on my way to get my license. The 150 was my trainer. As the student, I was the one that was out standing on a step ladder scraping the frost off the wings while my teacher was inside with a hot cup of coffee watching. He wasn’t a good instructor and we never really clicked which is important when building trust. At some point you’ll need to trust the other person in the cabin with you. I loved the flying. I liked hanging out at the airport and small shop. My instructor was always sarcastic and somewhat arrogant so between that, being in the middle of a divorce and the rising cost of lessons, something had to give. I do miss flying and would consider this plane if I was in the position of doing it all again.
I got my private p l in 1980 at 40 years old and flew over 400 hours with Piper Aircraft in Lakeland Florida. After piper closed I kept current and in 2010 bought a single place Rans s4 light sport. When I reached 80, I could not do the required dual instruction in my plane so could not get insurance and gave up flying except it friends planes in the club. Have been trying to sell the Rans ever since.
I thought it would be a challenge to get a pilot’s license and the romance of hopping in a plane and going places seemed like fun. After enduring the Ohio winters and stormy summers, I got my license. It was the early 70’s and I was 21 years old. Cost around $3600 for the license. A Cessna 150 was $20/hour with instructor. Probably 3-4 times that now.
Well, romance turned into reality when I bought a 1948 Luscombe taildragger for $3600. Buying a plane in the 70’s was the cheapest part; then there was the insurance, tie-down/hanger rent, annual inspections, fuel, etc, etc, etc.
Sure there were restaurants at small airports for Sunday trips, but you can’t load up a small plane with luggage like an SUV for a longer trip. And once you arrive at a small airport, good luck on local transportation.
Then the product liability insurance issues hit the small plane industry and the price of a small plane was comparable to buying a house.
So my advice… if you really want to go flying, find someone that owns a plane and buy the fuel for them; or just rent a small plane with an instructor until you get it out of your system.
BTW: Luscombe taildraggers were notorious for being hard to land and prone to “ground looping” due to their narrow landing gear. I know from experience.
And the poor guy that ended up with my plane totaled it!
According to the certificated flight instructor (CFI), he and the student pilot flew earlier in the day in preparation for the student pilot’s first solo flight. The CFI reported that the student “was doing very well at landing the airplane” and was having no problems maintaining directional control. During the student pilot’s first solo flight, he remained in the traffic
pattern. On his first landing attempt, he flared late and bounced “high.” The student pilot attempted a go-around, but lost control of the airplane and collided with several aircraft hangars approximately 15 feet above ground level. The CFI reported that the airplane had no mechanical malfunctions prior to the accident.
Probable Cause: The student pilot’s failure to maintain control of the airplane during a go-around after a bounced landing.
And there’s a big difference in landing a plane with tricycle landing gear and a taildragger.
When flying a tail dragger, it’s not if you ground loop, it’s WHEN you ground loop.
My first plane was a 1961 Cessna 175 Powermatic. Planes are not like cars and require yearly inspections as well keeping up with all ADR’s. Engines have a life based on hours. Safe for sure.
This is the twin to the one that I flew several times in high school. A buddies parents had the plane and he had his license, so we would go up and I got the chance to actually fly, land, touch and goes, the whole thing. It was great fun and I would fly in a small plane anytime as the glide pattern is much better than a commercial job in case of engine failure. About accidents: My wife’s brother had planes for many years, a Cessna 162? was his first one. My wife remembered the number so we got the report from the FAA. In it’s life it had 6 crashes, all but one at the airport. 4 were clashes with other planes while moving on the ground, 1 was a little too rough landing, and the last was not good! The “New” pilot/owner (a doctor) did not open the petcock on the fuel tank to check for water and took off and got as far as the field (and power lines) across the street from the airport before the the engine quit. He and the passengers were injured and it took a year before it was decided that the plane was a total. His last plane was a Beech Bonanza which he called “The Forked Tailed Money Eater”.
Wayne, that was one name for them. They were also dubbed “The doctor killer.”
You have to love this plane to afford it. Instrumentation and mechanicals could be a nightmare on this, or not. I haven’t flown a Cessna since 1967 and it was a ’64 Skyhawk of my dad’s.
Flying is a whole other hobby that is a bandit.
There are many ultra lights now that are fun and cheap to keep and use.
I totally agree with Jeff the B/F author and all the comments. they are true and factual. Any one, who had their turn flying , will tell a simular story. After returning from Viet Nam (1969) I wanted to fly. My Uncle Sam and the GI bill allowed me to do it. But when the money ran out, even with commercial and insrument ratings ,I could not get a job. I just wastn’t willing to risk my family and go in debt, with no guarentee. I would ever get a job. My friends that did get jobs, sacrificed allot to do it
It ended with no bids, but has been relisted with no bids.
New auction number is 334472485243 .
Why aren’t the captain’s panel and the first officer’s panel mirror images of each other as they are on commercial aircraft? Or are these terms describing the pilots even correct on a small plane? Can either pilot take off and land this plane while facing such different gauges and instruments?
It’s a single pilot airplane.
You can put your non-pilot mom in the right seat (though you’d brief her to keep her hands and feet off the controls).
You can fly this airplane from either seat, it has dual controls. Myself, I prefer flying from the right seat. It’s is easy to scan the instrument panel from either seat.
Thank you!
Here’s a cheap 172 on Trade A Plane: https://www.trade-a-plane.com/search?category_level1=Single+Engine+Piston&make=CESSNA&model=172&listing_id=2390981&s-type=aircraft
I’ve been lucky enough to take a couple small-plane flights in my life… much more fun than 747’s in my opinion. Apples and oranges of course.
One of my possible goals is to get into ultralight flying… there’s just the matter of my pesky fear of heights to deal with but if I could fly in a 1958 Aeronca Champ, maybe I can handle an ultralight.
I always thought of ultralights as the “mopeds of the sky” because you don’t even need a sport pilot’s license to fly them.
I’ve been a pilot for almost 50 years, virtually all the comments here are on point. Maintaining a plane is eyewateringly expensive. The AD’s that come out of the blue will ground your plane until you spent the thousands to comply. But when you do the value of your plane still stays the same. It is too complex to go into here in a comment, but you get the idea form the many responses here.
I still fly, but decided to go the Wright Brothers route and bought and rebuilt a Quicksilver MX. 40HP or so, fabric wings, hanging it all out. I watched enough carnage/deaths in the 70’s to be vary wary of flying it, but found that IF YOU HAVE A PILOTS LICENSE they are much maligned and very docile. It is crazy to think that someone would attempt to fly without training as the sink rate increases very quickly as you slow, just what a beginner does. At least get training to where you can solo a certified plane before you try flying an ultralight. 254 lbs is a difficult target and you don’t get much plane for that and there is no crashworthiness built in. A “learning experience” in a ultralight might be your last. Light Sport is a better option, but brings inspection requirements.I fly a GT-400 now and absolutely love it. It is a “real” 3 axis plane that I’m not afraid to leave a airport traffic area.in. But still in the breeze and with a 2 stroke Rotax. I am an A/P and even with that said, the cost of even the most basic certified airplane as far out of reach for me considering the 20-50 hours I fly a year. There is really no place to go anymore, few small airports have restaurants, or rental cars. Weather is always a problem, and no one want to fly with you as most get sick. Where I live, the small airports are littered with Cessnas with peeling paint and flat tires where the owners couldn’t afford the hangar cost or maintenance. Bringing them back to flight status is prohibitive so they rot. I saw this all over the country when I was flying fires. It is sad.
There are so many factors as to whether this plane is a good buy or goodbye that I cant really comment. My suspicion is that it is listed to high with the information given here, but without a thorough inspection of the plane and its maintenance I can’t comment.
Thank you, Jay E, for the really great insightful comments that taught me a lot. I hope you continue to fly for a long time.
I got my private license in 1986 and found an old Cessna 150 sitting in the grass behind an FBO. I spent $1800 to bring it back to life. The day I took possession, all the staff came out and lined up to watch me take off. I thought, gee that’s nice they care. It wasn’t until sometime later that it occurred to me that all wanted to see if it made it off the runway without crashing. Don’t buy an old plane that has been sitting. And 58k is a ridiculous price for something that old. I am now 65 with a private and instrument rating. I have owned the C150, a Piper Commanche 250, Cessna 182, two different Cirrus SR22’s. I stopped flying a couple of years ago and sold my plane. If you don’t fly often, you are dangerous. Miss it though.
Of all of the comments, this one by Bill is gold, it’s the one to remember: ” If you don’t fly often, you are dangerous.” If you are pondering learning to fly, repeat that to yourself every day!! Put those words on your flight log book in big bold letters!!
And… “There are old pilots and bold pilots; but very few old, bold pilots”.
A few days ago somebody wrote on Barn Finds that there is no such thing as a cheap Rolls-Royce. The same is probably true of old airplanes.
Addressing some comments: Heart issues don’t have to keep you from flying. I got my medical back after a triple by-pass. At age 84 to boot.
Bonanza’s were called Dr. killers not so much because they are a high-performance airplane and thus expensive – so Drs can afford them – but because some Drs are too busy to stay current in their flying skills and get into trouble as a result. And it is indeed unfortunate that flying small planes has become so expensive, as well as buying one. But blame the lawyers for much of that. They shut down small plane manufacturing for almost 12 years by bringing lawsuits on the manufacturers from families whose loved ones died by being careless while flying, but the planes were to blame in the eyes of the juries. Juries are supposed to be made up of peers, but sure wasn’t true with the aircraft trials.
Fifty years ago, our pastor had a four-seater and invited my wife-to-be and me on a short flight. Me? My appetite was definitely whetted! My wife? She was happy to disembark – commenting it was just a VW with wings! A few years later as I was in USAF Officer Training in San Antonio, a buddy hoisted me in the air. Seeing – several miles straight ahead – the nose and props of a C-130 appearing larger and larger, I suggested we bank just as my buddy began doing so. My appetite whetted even more! I truly wish I had listened to my yearnings and gotten a license.
With any aircraft purchase the things to look at are TBO, where is it now! Avionics, what’s there? Radios old new digital? What does the buyer require from an airplane. In reality this is a pleasure craft only it’s to slow to get you any good distance in a day and the payload with full fuel is not going to great. With a plane like this it would never pay to put to much stuff into it there are just to many limitations with performance.
I was a pilot for almost 20 years and after 2 different planes my 3rd was a Mooney beautiful plane would true out at 180 mph burning 12 gph at altitude. I could be anywhere in the nation with 1 full day of flying!
I love this post ! It keeps on going with some real smart cats offering their experience, for those that are not aware, check out Barnstormers.com for comparable aircraft available, Jay really made a point on current state of affairs with PA, I have seen exactly what he is talking about here in Ohio at some small strip FBO’s, times change.
Long time off ob BF, Busy, etc…
Wanted to came and read a thread which would inform and entertain,
THIS one Fills the bill!
Thanks, everyone!
I flew once in a glider. Winch takeoff.
We did a loop. That was enough to convince my stomach that I’d never be a pilot.