Proctor 3 G-AKEX

Hello Mike  I helped Keith with moving the Proctor from Lavenham and took the photos when we moved it into the workshop at Gt Oakley. Really great to see that it coming along so well.  

I do like a Procter, good to see its progressing well but as they say, ” Its finished when its finished”

Wow. Lovely work going on 

What a difference 13 years make !  Steady meticulous work has transformed the project, such that yesterday the engine could be offered up  .  Photo Mike Biddulph  . 

What price a project?

I have been involved with the restoration/rebuilding of the smaller end of the vintage aeroplane scene since 1976 when I purchased a tiger moth basket case. At that time Tigers and Austers were about the limit of what was thought as possible and viable projects.

Since then I have seen that limit increase to include far more complex aeroplanes.

What I now see as the limit is the available projects. Most vintage aeroplanes are hangared and well cared for and thus once restored/rebuilt are gone from the list of basket cases available.

Tiger Moth projects are very rare and if you want to undertake a project, then you often have to move into a more complex aeroplane. The rarety of the available projects drives the cost of purchasing a suitable project (if you can get one at all).

Call me fussy, but rebuilding a spam can such as a Cessna C172 doesn’t excite me even though they are a great aeroplane to fly.

If you are able to get a rebuild project, then often much is missing, and thus the availability of drawings and a network of other rebuilders with the required knowledge of the aeroplane can help make a project valuable.

As I said before there only was a finite number of old aeroplanes and there can be no more. If I could find another proctor rebuild project in Australia for the price reported as being paid G-AKEX, I would purchase it

£40,000 for a Gipsy Queen II

It’s ‘worth’ what someone is prepared to pay.

What they’d get, in my (unqualified) opinion is an identity, metal parts and a very expensive and challenging new-woodworking project, which will cost more, excluding purchase price, than it would be ‘worth’ after rebuild.

So if there’s someone that passionate about Proctors out there…

You are right on most of what you said except for one thing, wood and ply is relatively cheap, its labour that’s expensive. If you do the rebuild yourself then the costs not too bad. The big money is alwaysin engines and overhauls. Maybe someone can give an informed guestimate of the costs of overhauling a gipsy queen 2

But is it worth £7600? Haven’t heard an opinion yet!:D

It’s ‘worth’ what someone is prepared to pay.

What they’d get, in my (unqualified) opinion is an identity, metal parts and a very expensive and challenging new-woodworking project, which will cost more, excluding purchase price, than it would be ‘worth’ after rebuild.

So if there’s someone that passionate about Proctors out there…

Reducing bandwith.

Interesting aircraft, thanks.

But is it worth £7600? Haven’t heard an opinion yet!:D

I hope you don’t mind my photoshopping these using the histogram tool, no intention of offending original owners or copyright, but in the interest of clarity:

Interesting aircraft, thanks.

Your photos are not coming through SOG – BR

Addt. info.

This is proctor 3 G-AKEX on barnstormers.

http://www.barnstormers.com/cat.php?mode=search&PHPSESSID=d0133cabe9159c137870144201091fe1Asking 6k complete aircraft. Accident damage not known, viable for rebuild to flying condition.

I don’t dispute it is on Barnstormers but where, not Percival, restoration, salvage or rebuilder? It is difficult to see a value of 6k, that would be £££’s?

Edit, Found it after search, is reg. SE-BTR, I would say the price would be nearer £7600.

I flagged this up on the forum two months ago – but thanks for links to photos.
To see my original post:
http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=67168&highlight=G-AKEX

Tim