I'm 6'1 and leg room as not been an issue. They are a lot of fun to fly, I really wish I had access to a taildragger.

my two bits, while tail dragger is fun to fly etc get a tricycle gear like the 150 or 172 or a piper. they will be much easier to insure and are very simple.

I recently rediscovered the Tri-Pacer. I bought a 160HP one at auction and was really impressed flying it home. Four seats, aft door and 900 lb useful. It jumps off the ground and will outrun a 172. It is pretty fun to fly especially steep descents and spot landings. It is a great short field performer. It already has drooped square tips and wheel pants. Looking into vortex generators and STCed wing extensions. I now have two more fixer uppers and a parts one.

Is the 140 a good airplane? Yes, no question. Is one right for you? That's a bit harder to answer.

If a C140 would be a good fit is dependent on a lot of things, mainly about the pilot. They didn't move from the C140 to the tricycle C150 for no reason, taildraggers simply got wrecked too often. Especially in the hands of a novice pilot. Your flying background and age being top of the list of things to consider. Young pilot with quick reflexes, no problem. Old person with little to no flying experience and the little taildragger will be more exasperation than exhilaration.

Closing in on a half century of flying these little planes one thing I know for sure, I would hate to try and do the things with a plane today I did when I was a kid. The reflexes, memory, and energy simply are no longer there.

Jeff

C-140 is a gateway drug. It'll lead you one way, into Super Cubs and Huskies, or another, into Skywagons and Maules.

Be careful!

Get a C170. Worth the extra cost, IMO.

My first 480 hours:


To be fair, that had the 180 HP CS prop conversion, so a premium 170. The stock Continental C145 engine is decent, though.

C140s can be had with wheel extensions that move the wheels further forward.


My brother's C140 had them. They put more weight on the tail and reduce the tendency for a nose over. The downsides are bouncier landings and can set up wiggle modes on the gear, plus makes it hard on the tailwheel.

My brother took them off and the plane flew better without them. if you nose a C140 over, you really had to do things wrong, extenders or not.

Mike C.

Purchase cost is not the major factor I would consider if I was tight on money. many times the more expensive well maintained aircraft will be cheaper over the long run. secondly buy an aircraft that is very common and has easy parts support. maintenance many times is more expensive than the initial cost. good local maintenance also helps control costs.

Agree on it being a gateway drug. I have a 170 and love it. I started longing for something higher, faster, farther, bigger. But then realized that no matter what I'd get next, there is always going to be the desire for more. So I'm going the other way. Something cheap and small that will fit into the hangar alongside the 170. For those days I just want to get away and in touch with the sky. Gateway drug indeed.

Purchase cost is not the major factor I would consider if I was tight on money. many times the more expensive well maintained aircraft will be cheaper over the long run. secondly buy an aircraft that is very common and has easy parts support. maintenance many times is more expensive than the initial cost. good local maintenance also helps control costs.

My 170 (the 140's bigger brother) is the least expensive aircraft I've ever owned. Its O300 engine was installed in the 1950s and has some 3500 hours on it and is still going strong. Annual inspections are quick. There just isn't that much to look at. My A&P loves it since everything is very easy to get at without much bending around. It uses hardly any oil and runs about 9 gallons per hour if I push it. I have the auto gas STC, but still run 100LL through it.

Parts are pretty easy to find until they aren't. My starter has begun leaking oil and we're trying to find the right size gasket and bearing to seal it up. It's Delco and tracking down the part numbers after so many generations of ownership is a challenge. But that's the only thing I've had an issue with in five years of ownership. Oh, and the pilot's door handle spring broke. Very easy fix.

The International Cessna 170 Association is an outstanding resource. There's an owners group for the 120 / 140 and I'd encourage you to join. Oshkosh, of course, is a great way to find a lot of owners who are glad to talk to you about their planes.

They are prone to corrosion, cracks in the tail structure, water in the fuel system, and the engines can lose oil pump prime due to worn accessory cases.

The cabin is tiny, the climb rate is abysmal, they are exceedingly slow in cruise.

Other than that, they're fine.

Agree on it being a gateway drug. I have a 170 and love it. I started longing for something higher, faster, farther, bigger. But then realized that no matter what I'd get next, there is always going to be the desire for more. So I'm going the other way. Something cheap and small that will fit into the hangar alongside the 170. For those days I just want to get away and in touch with the sky. Gateway drug indeed.

I had a 170B with the Avcon 180hp/constant speed conversion. It was almost the perfect airplane, and if you told me I could only own one airplane for the rest of my life it would be a strong contender.

However, as others have mentioned 170 prices have gone through the roof! A good 140 can likely be had for half of a 170.

All these airplanes are approaching 75 years old. Corrosion, cracks, etc.... There are no cream puffs anymore. However fundamentally they are simple, strong planes so if you find one that has been kept up and doesn't have any show stopper cracks or corrosion they aren't any harder to keep up than a 70's ere 150 or 172.

I have a 1946 140. Fabric wings, O-200, Cruise prop. One fine machine. I have it for fun local flying. It compliments my S35 (travel) and S2B (aerobatics). I figured out a long time ago there is no perfect airplane.

Buy one set up the way you want it - eg recent fabric, C150 seats, decent radio(s) (meaning functional and reg-compliant).

That stuff brings pennies on the dollar at resale, but costs a ton to do yourself.