Oh yea! During my instrument instruction he used to pull the plugs on my headset during an approach, "Ok now what?"

(no hijack intended, Dave)
But today is the one year anniversary of passing my check-ride. Best investment I have ever made per unit of fun, challenge, etc...
Have fun up there!

Tim,

You are totally correct. Flying what you and I fly for fun out of a nice airport in the countryside I do not even turn the radio on most of the time. After all, we have been flying for a few years.

Dave is learning how to fly out of Van Nuys, in the LA basin, one of the most highly congested areas in our entire country. I go there often and am pretty good at it but even so there are times that I just cannot pick up all of the radio calls. Silly me, was thinking that any help a new student pilot could get that it would make him safer and progress faster.

Sorry to have brought this up. I am totally wrong. Turn the radio down or even off, do not worry about being able to hear what the controllers are saying and enjoy the flight. Let the instructor handle the comm and just enjoy! :)

Come on Joe.

I appreciate the info, I know the diff between the two headsets. I'm still not paying a grand for a headset now. I have a set, they work, I can hear just fine. As I progress, then I can look into a diff set.

Maybe you are going deaf Joe.... (all those years of flying in your younger days) Volume and clarity are fine for me with even my old Flightcom headsets. The David Clarks are a bit more comfy, but I have yet to fly in an enclosed cockpit "certified" airplane that I could not hear radio transmissions clear/loud enough with any old brand of headsets. I have had problems in "open" cockpit aircraft, where ANR type headsets may have been nice.

I do not doubt for a second that good headsets reduce fatigue when flying all day long, but I stick to my opinion that expensive headsets will not make make a difference in Dave's flight training. I guess we will just have to disagree on this particular issue.

I certainly agree with Tim, N/C is a waste for someone flying 50 hours per year. With regular David Clark's you can hear the subtle changes in RPM and get accustomed to these changes and can respond w/o looking at the tach, very much like driving the pcar.

If you fly 500 hours per year then it does make a difference most likely in the long term impact of the engine drone on your hearing and how it can be detrimental over the long haul.

Bose would be nice, but they are NOT essential. Save your money.

I stopped by my parents after a long, but very fun day at the monthly autocross. The dinner discussion was..... Headsets.... If I can find an adapter/batt pack for the Bose, dad will lend me a pair. His Angel Flight's don't need it, as they sit in back. The one friend he visits via the plane, will use the Peltor. The pilot/copilot still have the normal jacks as well.

I am sticking with the passive Peltor's for now. I like the fit/feel/comfort and I can hear and talk just fine.

My "passenger" headset is a David Clark. Also a great headset but not noise-attenuating. That said, if the Bose was inop, then I'd definitely prefer the Clark - the Bose is not that great without the electronics functioning.

You can pick up a DC for pretty cheap and it'll be adequate. I still think the Bose is absolutely one of the best investments out there if you fly regularly - especially in SoCal (as Joe mentioned). It can get downright nutty there and if you miss a call, it can be a very real safety issue (on top of irritating the controllers, who are not at all shy about "letting you have it" if you do...). ;)

I picked up the 172 this weekend, fresh out of the paint shop.
I still need to put the wheel fairings on and install new gear-strut cuffs.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281362668.jpg

What is the going rate in your neck of the woods? Did they strip it bare first? New glass?

Just curious as I occasionally am approached by folks wanting aircraft paint work done and I always scare them off with a high quotation. ;) I have painted a couple airplanes in the past and the amount of labor to do it right is just crazy.

One arm, both legs, and the right nut.

Here is a rundown:

Paint, single color.......................... $8,800
Environmental Fee......................... $500
Labor to replace windows.............. $1200
Body work...................................... $900
New upper & lower strut fairings.... $209 parts + $240 labor
New aft cable fairing (to rudder)..... $42 + $60
New left fresh-air vent..................... $54 + $180
New dorsal fairing........................... $77 + $60
New flap bearings .......................... $339 + $60
New baggage door seal ................. $55 + $90
New glare shield and brow (dash).. $185 + $240

The new windows are green-tint, and the door windows are *bubble-type*.
Purchased from Great Lakes Aero Products
Cost was ~ $1025

I still need to order brackets to mount the wheel fairings... ~ $150 / set

Thanks for the price breakdown. I had been telling people 10 grand just to strip and paint Anything else they wanted repaired/replaced would be time and material. I think many folks assume a paint job should be under 5k, but the work required to pull wings/strip/prep is just ridiculous. I stupidly agreed to paint an Alon about 8 years ago for 5 grand (pull wings/strip/etch&alodine/epoxy prime/Imron paint two colors). It was a huge PITA (basically consumed a whole winter of evening/weekends) and I vowed to never paint a metal airplane again unless I charged double.

With a $500 waste fee, you probably figured it out - but I forgot to specify that this was a FULL strip to bare metal, alodine, prime, and repaint.

Before:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281388079.jpg

During:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281388309.jpg


There were a few items I was displeased with, but I expect high standards when money is being spent.

geez, put some stripes back on that thing....

and your numbers on the tail look illegal.... (size wise )

Numbers are 2" tall, in accordance with FAR 45.29(a)(1)(i).
We went with the small number option because stripes will come later, and this way we don't have to strip numbers from the fuselage prior to painting the stripes.

Dave:

Congrats on not giving up on the dream! Here's my "company" plane and P Car

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1281421443.jpg

Cashflyer, your plane looks good! I like the rough look.... Maybe you should have had it polished. :)

Marco: Thanks! Nice 182S!

Well, after a few days away, I was back in the air. I felt today was a little rough. Not only because of the days that have lapsed since the second flight, but I just couldn't quite get it today. Anyway, I did a few stalls, both on power and off and some slow flight. Such an interesting feeling. Still a bit nervous right after the stall. I did two landings at VNY as well. One on 16L and the other on 16R. They were unassisted and the first was apparently quite good. The second was rough, but since I'm here typing, it was successful as well. :)

I fly again tomorrow afternoon, with more stalls to look forward to. Weeee. :/

As for the noise and headset. It's really not that bad in the Cessna. A lot quieter than the Bonanza and it has dynamat installed.

(1) Fixed-wing aircraft, must be at least 12 inches high, except that:

(i) An aircraft displaying marks at least 2 inches high before November 1, 1981 and an aircraft manufactured after November 2, 1981, but before January 1, 1983, may display those marks until the aircraft is repainted or the marks are repainted, restored, or changed;


Looks like they need to be at least 12" to me...

I wouldnt risk a ramp check for that. The reason I brought this up is because I know someone who got busted for it.