JC has him beat at 15235

If the price was right, sure.

Tim

Not at any price, I would buy a Mustang or Phenom 100 before.

Altough if im burning all that fuel, I would want a min of 8 seats.

Marc






If the price was right, sure.

Tim

Marc,

Here is the difference. I cannot afford any of them longer term. So if I can get in super cheap, scratch the jet itch and get out. why not?

Tim

[quote="Marc Bourdon"]Not at any price, I would buy a Mustang or Phenom 100 before.

Altough if im burning all that fuel, I would want a min of 8 seats.

Marc


+1

An aircraft that has allways impressed me is a piaggio. What Is the catch with it?

The plane was designed for speed, not maintenance. The other issue is it really is version 1.0 so they still need to make changes based on actual operational experience not theory.

There was a charter company which had a lot of them, a few former pilots posted on a couple of forums (I think BT was one of them) that about 1/3 of the fleet was down for MX at a time, combination of difficult chasing of issues and lack of stocked parts.
This is all hearsay, so do your own investigation.

Tim

Parts and service availability. I have beaten that horse to death as I agree, It's the best of all worlds. They just don't have a way to fix and work on them.

I am!!!

I think it's the perfect jet for my step up mission. The only impediment I see is SWMBO's reaction when I tell her that we have to sign over all our assets to Eclipse.

JC has him beat at 15235

Forgive me for being late to the party but I just joined BT at the suggestion of TW. As a 3yr Eclipse owner I'd like to offer my opinion of this great thread....right or wrong.

First, let me state that I consider both Theo and Ken my friends.

1. Theo was not sacked from the Eclipse forum for criticizing EAI. He was removed because he was cautioned that he was out of line with a "lifetime member" in a response. I never saw the post that was removed and caused his warning but I felt he would not have been out of line to shoot back at the reply that was made to his post. i probably would have waited and hammered the prick at the fly in. My personal opinion is that this member is a typical example of the lemmings that permeate E5C. There are so many guys that write the big check and drink every bit of the Kool Aid they get with their jet. They feel compelled to defend their purchase with a fervor when anyone questions the antics of EAI. All Ted did originally was challenge the price of an upgrade. Shame where it went. I also feel fairly alienated due to my posts critical of EAI. Theo's swan song was a downright poetic yet nuclear response to the board upon receiving his "warning". I know because I saw it. He NEVER posted the suggestion that the site be called something slightly profane on the forum. That was only in his response to the board.....not public by any means.

2. I absolutely LOVE the jet and would buy it again in a heartbeat as nothing comes close for the price i paid. I have a 1.7 which I feel is the best and most stable, trouble free platform. To get one of these for around $1.2M (I think that's where they are now) is a STEAL. I have never been AOG. The employees to EAI have never been anything other than outstanding and extremely helpful to me.
3. I agree that the policies of the EAI management are monopolistic and boorish. I have made my opinion clear to them both in posts and directly. However it is their prerogative. They bought the company and they can do what they want. For the most part they have been very transparent about their policies, whether we like them or not. Anyone who buys an original Eclipse 1.0 or 1.3 is buying a paperweight. If any buyers do even a reasonable amount of due diligence they would know exactly what was possible and is not and any time over the last few years. I always felt the upgrades were ridiculously overpriced and as Ken once so eloquently put it, "got off the hamster wheel". Can you imagine that the Auto Throttles they are peddling kick off when you drop the gear? To me that's when you need them most, from a couple miles outside the FAF in hard IFR until you break out. That's just me I guess.
4. Parts are in fact outrageous and it is true that you cannot contact the suppliers directly. You can however buy tires outside EAI but they just have to have the correct part number. You can't buy brakes though but my understanding is EAI "only" tacks on $1000. This could have changed though. When I wanted to replace my Airworthiness Certificate holder I was told the cost was over $300. It's $8 from Sporty's and that includes gift wrap. When I complained about this on the forum Mason responded this wasn't right and he would get it fixed. However no further response...ever. I've heard plenty of horror stories from owners regarding windshields ($30K each) and lost logbooks at EAI service centers. I spent almost nothing on MX the first 7 months I had the jet, $40K (24/48 inspection) the second and $20K the third. It's an expensive sandbox to play in and I "get it".
5. To get the lifetime extension you do in fact have to have a 24 or 48 month inspection done at an authorized service center. I understand the opposition to this but I also understand EAI's concern that every jet should get to a center at some point as they have found some pretty shoddy (and dangerous) work done out in the field. You do have a couple options if you don't want to go to one of the two EAI owned service centers. There are a few others that are authorized but the prices are artificially high (in my opinion) due to the lack of competition.

I hope this sheds another perspective. Again, I love, love, love the jet, can't stand the company and am growing weary of the attitudes of the many Stepford wives on E5C. Don't get me wrong, there are some great guys with some real cajones but they are becoming few and far between. I would never discourage anyone from buying one (at the right price) if it fits their mission. I'd also like to offer to buy the beers for Ken and Theo. Two great guys who just got a little sideways. It happens but I hope they patch it up. Ken is a gentleman who is extremely generous with his knowledge and history of the jet. Theo is just a badass who I can't wait to meet in person someday. My best and safe flying to you all. Thanks for letting me join your site.

Welcome Jamie, glad to have you here!

Jamie,

Welcome to BT, great first post. Very educational, detailed and best of all, no name calling and insults!

Tim

There will be name calling if you don't post some airplane pictures..

here you go Marcus

Welcome Jamie, nice post.