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PF Flyer
01-23-2012, 09:28 PM
I have been told that owning a T28 is a maintenance nightmare. Does anyone have any experience they would share? Thanks....

JimRice85
01-23-2012, 10:40 PM
Just feeding it is a nightmare these days. 50gph at $6/gal gets expensive fast.

I flew one back in the 80s and don't recall it requiring an excessive amount of maintenance compared to any other big engine radial. We did have some mag problems which were hard to track down. It seemed like carb problems and we pulled it twice trying to determine the problem...not fun. IIRC, it was $1500 to overhaul the carb back in 1986-87.

Mike M
01-23-2012, 11:27 PM
I have been told that owning a T28 is a maintenance nightmare. Does anyone have any experience they would share? Thanks....

i was maintenance officer in VT27 from '80 to '83, so i have a little bit of experience. our Bravos consumed 1/3 the maintenance manhours per flight hour the Charlies did. the big time-eaters were obsolete avionics so dump that stuff! 14 hours MTBF on VORs? 9 hours MTBF on tacans? ridiculous. as to the stuff that really keeps you off the dirt? fill it with fuel, oil and -8806, expect it to leak, and fly it. as often as you can. three, four, five times a day. they work better that way. wish i could afford it.

p.s. it gets down to 37 gph at 17.5k, low blower, full decrease on the prop, full throttle, and turns out 155kts indicated. or you can blow 175 gallons out the tailpipes in 45 minutes on the deck. i've done both. your choice.

scandanaviation
01-26-2012, 08:32 PM
T-28's are baby-dolls once you know them! I've worked on A,B C, & D models since the '80's. Easy to work on, but I'd hate to get the bills I've given. Great airplane! I could have flown one out of DM in 1986 for $20,000. Those days are gone @ 50 GAL/HR. I worked for Al Redick back then, he taught me a lot.

PF Flyer
01-27-2012, 04:15 PM
Thanks for responding-

snj5
05-04-2012, 05:39 AM
I have had an A model for 5 years - many parts are cheaper than many Beechcraft or other spammies. Fuel burn for an A is about 36 gph at 180 kts, so that adds up pretty fast, but 5 nautical miles per gallon is like an old station wagon we had once... :)