All About Prebuys

[@mountainmarauder2575]

Overall a very informative piece on pre buys. There are a couple of points of clarification; If any part of the engine is removed, disassembled and replaced an A&P needs to sign off the appropriate log book for that work. Even pulling spark plugs for a cylinder borescope requires a sign off as well as a cylinder removal or lifter for a cam lobe inspection. The same applies to any removal of structural panels, inspection panels or cutting safety wire to access areas for evaluation.

[@darrylday30]

“Every seller thinks their plane is perfect and every buyer thinks the plane is grossly over priced. Some adult supervision is required.” This is funny because it’s true. Thanks for this excellent presentation, it will certainly save time and money for myself and customers on future prebuy “examinations”. I plan to work some of your ideas into the curriculum for my maintenance students.

[@jjohnston94]

If the initial offer is still negotiable after the prebuy, why take the extra step of making an offer before the prebuy? Why not do the prebuy, THEN do all the negotiating?

[@travelveteran]

Regarding prebuys, many times, the A&P that is a specialist in the type of aircraft being inspected is not at the same airport where the plane is parked. Is it normal to ask the seller to fly the plane to the field where the A&P's shop is to have them inspect it? Usually, A&Ps like to have the plane at their shop because thats where all their tools are located. It's sort of a hassle for the seller to do this because they have to find alternate transportation to/from the location where the A&P is at.

[@slaythoven]

Great Webinar! The biggest thing I'm running into in my search are low time engines (Lycoming 0-360's) that have been overhauled 15-20 plus years ago. Would you consider those to be high risk engines, regardless of the obvious disuse and possibility of corrosion, due to the fact that they are so far over TBO in years? In other words, how/why do you think age, not use, can effect an engines longevity?

[@savvyaviation]

In my view, calendar age alone should not be a factor. The issue is corrosion. An engine that has been relatively idle for 20 years is probably okay if it was sitting in Denver or Tucson, but would probably be complete trash if it was sitting in Tampa or Galveston. A borescope can quickly determine whether the cylinder barrels are corroded; if they are, you have to assume the rest of the engine is, too. In high-risk cases, it might be worth pulling a cylinder and inspecting the cam (although I hate pulling cylinders). For Continental engines, there's no need to pull a cylinder because you can easily pull lifters and inspect the cam, and we frequently do that during prebuys of Continental-powered airplanes.

[@slaythoven]

Thanks!