Is This Better Than A Cessna? In Depth Review of the Beechcraft Musketeer - Part 1/2

[@flypeekin6618]

Best plane, I just did a North Atlantic winter crossing in my Beechcraft Sundowner. Plane is so stable, landed in 39 knots gusting 49 knots winds in Goose-Bay when three commercial planes aborted their landing and deviated. I think these planes are so underrated.

[@kalvinwinder]

Most I've done is 19 gusting 29. Compared to the 172, it was an absolute cakewalk. Crosswinds 10kts and under are almost unnoticeable in the musketeer. Just use ailerons to hold centerline, and rudder to keep the nose straight. I've heard many people say that they're finicky airplanes, but I've yet to find one bad habit. I couldn't be happier with it! Id love to do a long flying trip at some point, though, time and money are always a factor. Thanks for watching!

[@iflycentral]

Can confirm. I always tell people that my Sundowner laughs at wind. It just really doesn't care.

[@JimBronson]

North Atlantic winter crossing in a piston single?? Wow IMO that is nuts, but your plane, more power to you. I would not do it, just speaking solely for me.

[@jamesharkness1058]

The visibility flying the Musketeer is incredible. The wing is aft of the pilot seat. You can look straight down at the ground. The gear geometry is unique. Look at how wide the stance is. This makes for positive ground handling. Steerable nose gear, huge cabin, a nice baggage area, 58.8 gallons of useable fuel…..there is a reason you don’t see many of these airplanes for sale.

[@kalvinwinder]

It’s such a great airplane, tons of cabin volume and you can see everything. The wide gear also make crosswind landings a breeze. The one thing mine lacks is a baggage area because it’s an older model musketeer, however, with my home airport being at 5,500’ MSL, I wouldn’t want to fly with people in the backseat and luggage onboard. Everyone says they have strange flight characteristics but from what I’ve found, it doesn’t do anything that a well behaved airplane wouldn’t. Safe flying!

[@jamesharkness1058]

@@kalvinwinderMy favorite model is the 1963 Model 23. 160hp Lycoming, external baggage door, only two position flaps (15 and 30 degrees). It is so much bigger in the cabin compared to the PA28 family. Lots to like here. Congratulations on a great channel! There is not much content out there on the Beech Musketeer series. Hope you do well with it. Keep the videos coming

[@kalvinwinder]

@@jamesharkness1058 thank you sir! I’ve got quite a few videos in the works but they’re taking a little while since I’m pretty busy with school. I’ll post them once I get them finished!

[@machkhatib]

Great review! I love the detail and real-world testing vs. book performance. I wish you’d test other GA airplanes like Cessnas and Pipers. We need more pilot reviews like this instead of the click-bait “$30,000 airplane” videos that clutter KZbin.

[@tedd1091]

I owned a Beech Sport B-19. Bought it to build time on my way to an airline job. It was slow, under-performer but I flat loved that airplane. Lots of room, Two Doors, and did I mention lots of room. I put over 1000 hours in the airplane and sold it for what I paid for it. You can't go wrong with the Sport of Sundowner. Be aware that the earlier version of the planes - the Musketeers had only one door so I would stay away from them

[@kalvinwinder]

I own the earlier version that only has 1 door, and no baggage compartment. Hasn't been too much of drag as I don't frequently do long flights where I need luggage, plus my home airport elevation is so high that I wouldn't want to have anyone in the backseat if I were carrying luggage. So any luggage I do need to carry can easily fit in the backseat. It's such a great airplane, I just logged my 200th hour in it

[@AlpineWarren]

Vy also decreases with Density Altitude so keep that in mind. Nice review!

[@arnoldmutayoba6513]

are you a CFI by any chance? perfect review man! need more of these!

[@kalvinwinder]

@@arnoldmutayoba6513 Thank you! Unfortunately not, just a private pilot as of now. Might decide to go for cfi eventually, though it’s not high on the list of priorities at the moment. I appreciate you watching!

[@ericsd55]

Just found your videos. Great stuff about the Mighty Mice. I've owned and flown 19's, 23's, and 24's with the weirdo outward folding gear. 1000+ hours in the right seat hollerin at students before the days of intercoms and magenta lines lol. I really liked the Vg explanations. I might have missed it, but remember Vg that is published is for one specific weight and CG with new instruments and test pilots. As you said, YMMV, quite literally. Have you posted your channel on BAC? Keep up the good work!!

[@kalvinwinder]

Thank you! I've been loving this little airplane the past year and a half or so, it's a perfect time builder. My Vg tests were out of curiosity and I was pretty surprised by the results. The numbers will skew with different weights and cg as you mentioned, but the general trend of each flight configuration (airspeed/flaps settings) should carry through with different weight and cg. 80% of the time I fly solo with anywhere between 2/3 to full tanks, which is the configuration demonstrated in the video. I hadn't thought to put my channel on beech aero club, but I recently had to become a member so I could rent the correct tool used to swap the rubber disks in the gear. Since I'm a member now I may advertise just for giggles. Thanks for the support! Content is slow right now due to school, weather, and numerous other factors, but I'll do my best to get some new videos out soon!

[@sparkie951]

I have the the Bigger Brother to your Plane, the C24R version... The Baby Beeches will beat Cessna any day of the week! Very comfortable, lots of space! Carries Plenty of Fuel.

[@kalvinwinder]

I absolutely love mine, everything about it, you just feel so connected to the flying experience. Similar capabilities to the Cessna so it really comes down to personal preference. One of my favorite things is that I can go for a 4hr cross country, and land with over half tanks. Safe flying!

[@reyesben]

My favorite plane is the one I’m in. Great job on the video and the engineer math

[@kalvinwinder]

Thank you! I agree; rarely is it unenjoyable to be in the air. I appreciate the support!

[@gordonfeliciano4315]

I see you fly out of KCFO. Nice. We do Young Eagles flights out of there in our Grumman Tiger, which is based at KBJC. Tiger is a bit faster than the Musketeer as we have a Lycoming O-360 with 180 HP. 140 knots true at 8,500 MSL burning 7.0 GPH at 2600 RPM/50 ROP. Keep the blue side up! Fly safe and fly often!

[@kalvinwinder]

If you ever see me out there feel free to come say hi! Im sure I've seen you numerous times. The tiger looks like a whole lot of fun. Thanks for tuning in!

[@jamesh7876]

Without watching the whole video; can you trim the rudder? I fly a PA 28-181 Piper archer II and it seems similar to what you’re describing. Vr 59, climb out 76 Vx also best glide; VS1 at 60• bank is 78. VA max weight is around 112. Basically stay around 80-100 and you’re set doing whatever you want.

[@kalvinwinder]

The rudder doesn’t have a designated trim, but there is a little bendable trim tab. Those numbers are very similar to the musketeer. I think most everything I do in this plane is within that 80-100 TAS, though with a 5,500msl field elevation, you won’t indicate over 100 unless you’re in a pretty good descent

[@markbeeman9666]

Thank you for getting back to me on the iPad yoke mount! One more question - I have the original visors and they are too small and too floppy. Did yours come with the plane or did you install these? If you installed them where did you get them? Thanks again, Mark

[@kalvinwinder]

No problem! The visors were installed in the plane when I started flying it, I’m pretty sure they’re factory though. They don’t have a ton of range of motion but it’s enough to keep the sun out your face 90% of the time.

[@avstlbeatz]

I'm debating on buying a musketeer or Cherokee. I have flown both and enjoyed flying both airplanes. Musketeer seems to be more roomier though

[@kalvinwinder]

I’ve never flown the Cherokee, but from what I’ve heard from people who’ve flown both is that they’re very similar. The Cherokee is a little smaller and the controls are a bit heavier. Performance numbers are nearly identical though. I know some Cherokees have a wingspar AD which needs to be checked every so often, as well as the oleo struts which need to be serviced, while the musketeer has rubber disks which last forever. So those are a couple things to consider.

[@goneflying140]

I had a Musketeer. I have a Cherokee now. The Musketeer is a better plane, in my opinion, but it is much more expensive to maintain. Parts are very expensive compared to other GA aircraft in the same class. You won't find a better crosswind landing plane though. Also, they turn like a fighter plane. The Muskie handles like a dream!!

[@ShortFinal]

I loved my short time flying the sundowner. like all beechcraft airplanes they are built like tanks and fly like sportsters.

[@kalvinwinder]

I like that analogy, hopefully one day I’ll be able to verify it by flying some more Beechcraft aircraft. As for the Musketeer, it’s an absolute joy in the sky. Thanks for tuning in!

[@ShortFinal]

@kalvinwinder if you get a chance to fly the bonanza, it's just a bigger more powerful sundowner, like going from a 150 to a 182RG

[@markbeeman9666]

I have a Musketeer and can’t find a good yoke mount. What are you using? It looks to be the perfect size, height, etc. Thank you!

[@kalvinwinder]

I use the RAM ez-roll’r cradle for the IPad mini, and then the RAM yoke mount clamp base. It still gets in the way a little, but it covers the slightly less used switches and gauges; a quick peak over is all it takes to get a clear view. It’s far preferable to having an iPad sized portion of the windshield blocked. Thanks for tuning in!

[@n8inc924]

I’ve heard parts for these are scarce and repairs are more expensive than a lot of other trainers. Have you noticed this?

[@kalvinwinder]

For the few number of musketeers produced I’d say the parts are relatively easy to find, though it takes a lot more digging than say parts for a Cessna. Parts are a little more pricey but nothing too absurd.

[@twest344]

The only problem with the Musketeer/sundowner is that there are so few of them around.

[@kalvinwinder]

I couldn’t agree more. The only reason we don’t see many is because not many exist

[@danielsalvia6689]

Greetings from Buenos Aires - Argentina. Not better; not worse certainly. Just different: low wing vs high wing.

[@kalvinwinder]

Yes I agree. They are very similar in their capabilities so it really comes down to personal preference. Thanks for watching!

[@danielsalvia6689]

Hence, I understand you prefer low wing aircrafts, which by the way are faster than their counterpart; however (my opinion) a little less forgiven than high wing ones.

[@user-xz9hu4rd2v]

I owned a Sundowner for a few years and still regret selling it.

[@markbeeman9666]

Way better than those in my 1969

[@Fkujoeb123]

Hey, why don’t you do us a favor and actually show us the checklist and the start up and the process to get the plane in the air?

[@MonkeyEngineerPHD]

If its not a cessna, its better than a cessna.

[@jdub7771]

How would you compare this aircraft to a piper Cherokee/Warrior?

[@kalvinwinder]

I’ve never flown a Cherokee so I wouldn’t be able to say for sure. From others that have flown both, I’ve heard they’re very similar, but the beech is a little lighter on the controls and a bit more responsive. Also the beech has a little larger of a cabin, but as a result, has a slower cruise speed.

[@tedd1091]

It under performs the Cherokee 140

[@kalvinwinder]

@@tedd1091 what I've heard from people who've flown with me in the mouse, and have also flown a cherokee, is that at my 5,500msl field elevation the piper performs about the same, maybe just a little better. I have the earlier model musketeer with no baggage area or left side door, so I'm wondering if the lack of those things brings the weight of the airframe down. Plus, the musketeer is standard with 150hp, but mine had the 160hp conversion a few decades back. Not sure how much of a difference these things make, but I wonder If that's why I don't notice the lack of performance like most do. On 2/3 tanks, and just me onboard I get 6-700fpm at 5,500msl when outside temps are below 10 C. Cruises at almost exactly 100kts TAS.

[@RR-pw5nb]

Beechcraft built them good and beefy, but they horribly underpowered.

[@kalvinwinder]

It’s definitely not known for outstanding performance, but it’s more than plenty for the things I do with it

[@wagnergitirana]

Information Papá? 🤣

[@kalvinwinder]

PuhPAW, yeah, I don't know why I said it like that lol