Sportstar Owners - A place to hang out!

[jfleming]

Hey all,

So just joined the forum from good old Down Under Aussie Land and purchased a 2006 Sportstar last year, and loving it, So... I thought I would create this thread for other Sportstar owners to come and chat, exchange info etc etc.

Looking forward to meeting you all in here - In the meantime, show us your bird. Here is a pic of mine.

[drseti]

Reposted from another thread:

Nice to have you with us, John. Where in Oz are you, and where do you base your plane? I tried to rent a Cherokee just outside of Sidney about 20 summers ago, but got hammered by PM t-storms before I even got airborne!

I'm on my second SportStar now. First was a 2006 Plus; I upgraded it to a Max and ran it to 1800 hours before selling it to one of my graduates. Replaced it with a 2010 Max which is now approaching 800 hours and going strong. They're great airplanes, and make fine, stable trainers.

By all means, feel free to start a SportStar thread under the Light Sport Aircraft topic, and post whatever questions you have.

Obviously you can ignore that last bit, since you've already created this thread.

[jfleming]

All good!

[Warmi]

I don't own an Evektor but if someone around Chicago area is interested in trying it out ( or learning how to fly in one ) , you can do so at http://sportpilotchicago.weebly.com/the-aircraft.html - they have two nice Evektors and offer lessons as well as demo flights.

When I was looking for plane for myself, I went there for a demo flight ... as you can see, back then I had no idea how to properly (and gracefully - assuming that is even possible ) get into one ....

[drseti]

Getting in and out is included in my first ground lesson!

[jfleming]

I managed to bet my bird up for a fly yesterday and have a play with the in flight adjustable prop! WOW!! She can really move along in the cruise when you get that combo worked out!

I had to back away at about 115 as it was too lumpy to be going that fast!

Anyways... more playing (flying) to be done.

[akroguy]

My Sporty.

sportywebpic.jpg (71.34 KiB) Viewed 9336 times

[jfleming]

Nice looking beasty!!

[akroguy]

It has an interesting history. Originally bought new by a former Navy Corsair Pilot. He intended to fly it mostly for Young Eagles, but age and dual hip surgeries made it impossible for him to get in/out of the airplane. So, he sold it to friend who vowed to use it for the intended mission...flying young kids...and he did just that. He then lost his C180 due to an engine out on short final. I had a 180 for sale and he liked it. I wanted to get back to cheaper sport flying with less emphasis on load hauling ability. So, we made a swap and here I am, with a low time Sporty that burns a lot less gas, is significantly easier to move around the hangar and Momma likes it too. She never enjoyed the Cessna...too closed-in feeling for her. Oh, the tail number was requested by the original owner...same as the aircraft number of the Corsair he flew in the Navy. Cool.

[akroguy]

I managed to bet my bird up for a fly yesterday and have a play with the in flight adjustable prop! WOW!! She can really move along in the cruise when you get that combo worked out!

I had to back away at about 115 as it was too lumpy to be going that fast!

Anyways... more playing (flying) to be done.

Man, an adjustable prop would be GREAT where I live (high density altitude). I adjusted the prop back one inch to get rpm up on takeoff here but, of course, that slowed me down in cruise. I can get about 110mph or so at 5500 rpm at 8,000'.

But, as an old aviator once told me about slower airplanes...."Son, you like to fly, right? So, what's your hurry?".

[TimTaylor]

But, as an old aviator once told me about slower airplanes...."Son, you like to fly, right? So, what's your hurry?".

That is actually a great point. I guess some of us fly because we need to get from point A to point B quickly. However, I bet most of us fly because we love being up in the air trying to make a perfect flight from point A to point B with no mistakes and having fun while doing it. As soon as we land, we're ready to go again.

[jfleming]

It has an interesting history. Originally bought new by a former Navy Corsair Pilot. He intended to fly it mostly for Young Eagles, but age and dual hip surgeries made it impossible for him to get in/out of the airplane. So, he sold it to friend who vowed to use it for the intended mission...flying young kids...and he did just that. He then lost his C180 due to an engine out on short final. I had a 180 for sale and he liked it. I wanted to get back to cheaper sport flying with less emphasis on load hauling ability. So, we made a swap and here I am, with a low time Sporty that burns a lot less gas, is significantly easier to move around the hangar and Momma likes it too. She never enjoyed the Cessna...too closed-in feeling for her. Oh, the tail number was requested by the original owner...same as the aircraft number of the Corsair he flew in the Navy. Cool.

That's cool!!

Mine is low hours too, and similarly I got lucky. The guy who bought in originally, sadly passed away in a bush fire before he got a chance to fly it much. It sat around in the estate for a while until it was eventually sold off to another guy who had a strip on his own land. Sadly for him after only a couple of years of flying her, he became medically unfit to fly. He held on to her and ran her up every few weeks hoping to get back in the cockpit, but sadly never did, and so last year I bought her with only 167 hours. Not bad for a 2006 model!

I am very pleased with her. She is a great machine to fly.

[jfleming]

I managed to bet my bird up for a fly yesterday and have a play with the in flight adjustable prop! WOW!! She can really move along in the cruise when you get that combo worked out!

I had to back away at about 115 as it was too lumpy to be going that fast!

Anyways... more playing (flying) to be done.

Man, an adjustable prop would be GREAT where I live (high density altitude). I adjusted the prop back one inch to get rpm up on takeoff here but, of course, that slowed me down in cruise. I can get about 110mph or so at 5500 rpm at 8,000'.

But, as an old aviator once told me about slower airplanes...."Son, you like to fly, right? So, what's your hurry?".

I was surprised at how well she performed. This particular trip I just needed to get from point A to Point B, and so getting there a bit faster was needed. Normally when I am plodding along the coastline I cruise around a lot slower to see the sites.

I will need to do some experimenting now as I have moved the plane to a higher elevation - some 2000ft higher. So I will have similar issues to you. Need to watch the DA when I fly.

[drseti]

last year I bought her with only 167 hours. Not bad for a 2006 model!

Actually, I have to respectfully disagree. 167 hours on a 12 year old plane (that is, an average of just 14 hours a year) is very bad for the engine. Engines live longest when they're flown frequently. Those that sit idle most of their lives seldom reach TBO, because they are prone to internal corrosion. This is actually discussed this month in Mike Busch's AOPA blog.

Which is not to say that you didn't get a great buy. Just be sure to do a borescope inspection inside the cylinders. And, to keep the engine and yourself healthy, fly it often.

[jfleming]

@dsreti,

I understand your concern. The plane was run up regularly so it didn't sit for super long periods of time idle. Maintenance was performed every year etc etc.

The LAME who looked over it gave it a perfect bill of health, and some 200 hours later, she is performing nicely.

Cheers
John