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Dennis Kirby
Joined: 05 Dec 2013
Posts: 35
Location: Albuquerque, NM
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 Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 10:13 am Post subject: Mark-3 for Sale |
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Kolb Friends -
On a recent visit to lonely airport in southern New Mexico this past weekend, the airport manager had lots of questions about my Mark-3, which I had just flown in. He told me there was one like it parked in a hangar there, which the owner wanted to sell. I told him I'd be happy to take a look at it.
He rolled open the hangar door, and there sat a sad, dusty, early-model Mark-3 with two flat tires. The airport guy told me the owner was old and ailing, and it had not flown it in six years. I inspected it closely, and discovered that it was in fact a well-built airplane.
It appeared very straight, and had no evidence of damage. The fabric was pristine, even if covered in a thick layer of dust. I looked closely at the areas typically prone to wear and damage, like the landing gear legs, the gear leg sockets, and the steel tail post structure. All looked good. The tailwheel was not the stock pizza-cutter type that comes from Kolb, but rather the upgraded full-swiveling unit with the inch-wide wheel. It looked hardly used at all. From all I could see, this aircraft has been well-preserved from all its years being stored in the dry, desert environment of southern New Mexico - no corrosion.
The interior was quite spartan, with bare aluminum floor pans and simple fabric sling seats with minimal padding. Instruments were basic analog types, and looked old. It had the single center-mounted control stick. Engine was a 582. The whole aircraft was painted an ugly shade of red, including the nose cone, wing struts, tail-bracing wires, and boom tube. Kinda like the guy built the airplane, then painted every inch of the exterior.
Here's the kicker - it's not N-numbered. We all know this category of aircraft in now in the "lawn ornament" category, or else it could have value for salvage parts. So the owner should not expect offers of great sums of money for his Kolb. He indicated that he was hoping to get about $5000 for it, but in light of the current situation with registration, will likely not be offered that much. That said ...
I see a potential opportunity here for somebody getting a good Mark-3 for cheap, if you're willing to do a bit of restoration work. If it were me, I would disassemble it, strip off all the fabric, remove the engine and all the old instruments and wiring, and start over from there. Take some pictures of the airplane parts in its bare-bones state, and approach the FAA as if it were a newly-constructed kit. Get it registered in the Experimental/Amateur-Built category. It would be WAY cheaper - and faster - than starting from ground zero from a kit. Several kit builders have done it this way since the FAA's grace period to register fat ultralights has passed, in 2008.
If anyone is interested, let me know. I am happy to provide the contact info for the airport manager.
Dennis Kirby
Mark-3/912
Sandia Park, NM
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wrk2win4u
Joined: 12 Nov 2011
Posts: 30
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| Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 10:42 am Post subject: Mark-3 for Sale |
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Hi Dennis,
I am seeking a Kolb Mark III. I would like to talk to you about it ASAP.
Please call me or give me a number to call you.
Thanks,
Kurt Imig
Sandy, Utah
801-502-7016
[quote] From: dennis.kirby.3(at)us.af.mil
To: kolb-list(at)matronics.com
Subject: Mark-3 for Sale
Date: Tue, 18 Feb 2014 18:13:37 +0000
--> Kolb-List message posted by: "KIRBY, DENNIS T GS-13 USAF AFMC AFNWC/ENS" <dennis.kirby.3(at)us.af.mil>
Kolb Friends -
On a recent visit to lonely airport in southern New Mexico this past weekend, the airport manager had lots of questions about my Mark-3, which I had just flown in. He told me there was one like it parked in a hangar there, which the owner wanted to sell. I told him I'd be happy to take a look at it.
He rolled open the hangar door, and there sat a sad, dusty, early-model Mark-3 with two flat tires. The airport guy told me the owner was old and ailing, and it had not flown it in six years. I inspected it closely, and discovered that it was in fact a well-built airplane.
It appeared very straight, and had no evidence of damage. The fabric was pristine, even if covered in a thick layer of dust. I looked closely at the areas typically prone to wear and damage, like the landing gear legs, the gear leg sockets, and the steel tail post structure. All looked good. The tailwheel was not the stock pizza-cutter type that comes from Kolb, but rather the upgraded full-swiveling unit with the inch-wide wheel. It looked hardly used at all. From all I could see, this aircraft has been well-preserved from all its years being stored in the dry, desert environment of southern New Mexico - no corrosion.
The interior was quite spartan, with bare aluminum floor pans and simple fabric sling seats with minimal padding. Instruments were basic analog types, and looked old. It had the single center-mounted control stick. Engine was a 582. The whole aircraft was painted an ugly shade of red, including the nose cone, wing struts, tail-bracing wires, and boom tube. Kinda like the guy built the airplane, then painted every inch of the exterior.
Here's the kicker - it's not N-numbered. We all know this category of aircraft in now in the "lawn ornament" category, or else it could have value for salvage parts. So the owner should not expect offers of great sums of money for his Kolb. He indicated that he was hoping to get about $5000 for it, but in light of the current situation with registration, will likely not be offered that much. That said ...
I see a potential opportunity here for somebody getting a good Mark-3 for cheap, if you're willing to do a bit of restoration work. If it were me, I would disassemble it, strip off all the fabric, remove the engine and all the old instruments and wiring, and start over from there. Take some pictures of the airplane parts in its bare-bones state, and approach the FAA as if it were a newly-constructed kit. Get it registered in the Experimental/Amateur-Built category. It would be WAY cheaper - and faster - than starting from ground zero from a kit. Several kit builders have done it this way since the FAA's grace period to register fat ultralights has passed, in 2008.
If anyone is interested, let me know. I am happy to provide the contact info for the airport manager.
Dennis Kirby
Mark-3/912
Sandia Park, NM
| | - The Matronics Kolb-List Email Forum - | | | Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:
http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Kolb-List |
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