Scudrunners

After reading this, I feel like I went back in time this year. I started flying a plane with no attitude indicator.

There is a tachometer, airspeed indicator in MPH, altimeter, turn and bank coordinator and a compass.

I don't notice, but I might be looking outside more. There is not much inside to look at. It has a G-meter, that's new to me, I think I was busy when it moved.

and all I want is a cub with no electrics, well maybe just electrons so I didn't need to hand bomb and a 4 mile/inch map -- damn

What I learned: even with a fancy pants panel, you can still fly the plane by looking outside.

I still like having a radio and transponder so I can fly in and out of the airports in class C airspace. When I fly I tend to be a city boy.

If I could afford it, I might fly from YYC again. I'm very close to it. Maybe I worded that wrong but last I heard it costs $80 just to land there. I need to buy a plane because there are no rentals. It snows too much so a hangar is a good idea...

I suppose if I really had wealth I might buy some sort of airstrip with a house, hangar and car shop. Preferably walking distance to trout. Probably a few hours flying south of here.

I might switch back to those fancy tricycle planes with some extra panel stuff and two more seats. Then I'll probably want to fly the citabria again.

When I taught PPL’s I used to cover the AI and DG for the presolo lessons to force them to look outside. The last PPL I did was in the students own plane. It had dual Dynon screens. Glass was way better than the old steam gauges.......instead of the hassle of covering them up I just turned them off

Nark

Canada has seen the light and there has been a huge increase in LPV approaches in the last few years. It is actually hard to find a straight LNAV approach to train on near the West Coast lower mainland. Best part of the deal is most of the NDB approaches are gone.....and good riddance

I have flown both the 650 and 750. Personally I did not like the 650 as I think the screen is too small for a touch screen. The 750 is awesome however. I never found turbulence to be an issue with the touchscreen if you used the side thumb hold ridge.

BPF

I agree with you the 750 v 650. Might as well spend the extra $5k on the 750. The larger display is pretty beneficial.

My cheap ass can't quite see the advantage of having a 750 + 650 combo. I think the redundant layout is ludicrous, for the $12k a 650 costs.

Quick math: 750 + 650 combo is about $30k. 750 + 225 (nav/com) is about $22k. Saving yourself about $8k (a chunk of the labor install cost). The 650 is a redundant ADSB in and xpndr. Unless you plan on taking your 185 in to RVSM, why have 2 xpndrs and traffic display's?

Panel upgrades can go overboard real quick...

As for going back to the basics: I very much agree a J3 or citabria has a roll to play. No electrics or vacuum. I think folks who put GPS in them are retarded. However (because I've done it) I think there is a huge benefit to upgrading a bigger 4 place TW.
If Canada ever gets their ass in gear and drops the rona restrictions, I'll be flying the wife to Kelowna this summer to the sis's cabin for a few days. Having an autopilot and GPS will make that task stupid easy and efficient.

I like the left side throttle and a stick as much as I thought I would, it is way more intuitive than a steering wheel.

It would be nice if it was easier to get in and out of the citabria and I want more power and seats. Some capacity to bring extra socks and under wear on a trip also could be bonus. I don't want to go places by myself.

Hard wired GPS? I'm too cheap to buy a new tablet but that would seem like a great way to add that feature to a little limited panel plane. Grab one of those little GPS things that have a Bluetooth connection, under $800 Canadian, sounds perfect.

Nark:

If you do come to Kelowna, don't forget that Vernon is 10 minutes away. It would be great to buy you a coffee and have a natter.

Let me know if your Kelowna trip comes to fruition...

John