Looking for this 170

[jwpalmer]

Hi:

Please help me get brownie points with the wife! I am looking for a 1955 C170B with a Lycoming engine, according to the cowling. I have a partial N number of N29-- visible in a photo that has my wife as a baby in it. I can't load the photos since I am not a member of this organization. This plane was once owned by Beverly Steel Corp./Stanley F. Jannes (Chicago, IL) and may have been based at one time at the former Howell Airport on Chicago's South Side. The plane was sold around 1967 when grandpa Stan lost his medical. I have thoroughly searched the FAA database but have not found any likely candidates,(but do have a list of every 170 registered, de-registered, wrecked, or exported) I believe that the plane I'm looking for may be registered as having the O-300 in it. There were also a few serial numbers for which no records were found, so I don't know if one of them was this plane.

If you have or know of someone that has a N29 series N-numbered C170B with a Lycoming engine, Please email me at John@richmondoxygen.com.

Thanks!

PS Although I currently fly a nose-dragger 150K, I spent many summers flying with my folks in N4580C back in the late 60's when we owned her. Gotta love a tail-wheeled airplane!

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

Very rarely will the FAA database reflect the engine change to a Lycoming or any other engine so that avenue to narrow it down really does not exist. Send me the pictures to my email below my name and I'l post them for you.

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

C170B N29__D.jpg

John sent this picture and will send more but he says the N# really isn't shown on those more than this. He thinks, and I tend to agree the third digit is a 4. It is definitely a '55 but they were all licensed starting in N29.

So if the third digit is a 4 there are 5 of the possible 10 still on the FAA database. 3 are owned by members. Of those one, Roesbery of AK, checks in here at the forum pretty regularly. And his 170 has a 180 Lycoming. Maybe we found the needle in the haystack.

So perhaps Roesbery could check his aircraft records and see it he can tell if his airplane was ever owned by the owner John has in his post above.

[blueldr]

The constant speed prop on the above picture would indicate a high probability of a Lycoming engine inasmuch as Continental IO-360 and Franklin 220 conversions are so rare in comparison.

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

Please help me get brownie points with the wife! I am looking for a 1955 C170B with a Lycoming engine, according to the cowling.

Fine detective work BL. I think your right.

Rereading your post John I realized you may not know the 170 models never came with a Lycoming and all them have been installed under STC or one time approval. This is why the FAA won't or will rarely have the engine change documented.

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

I was going to suggest this after we eliminate 3 of the 5 still on the registry. The CDs cost $10 a piece.

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

Well this is kind of fun. I just heard back from two of the three members who's '55 registration starts with N294. It's not their plane as they both still have an 0-300. I'll bet it's Roesbery's.

[jwpalmer]

Everybody:

Thanks so much for the responses. I wasn't sure if Cessna had offered the Lycoming as a factory upgrade or not and was actually planning on calling them to check it out. I had just noticed the C/S prop last night so was going to suggest that engine might be a 180HP. The records CD was the plan once I narrowed it down to a few planes (assuming no-one said "hey, that"s MY plane he's looking for!). Used the CD idea to find the former owners of my M4. I am sending Bruce another two pictures. In one the N29 is clearly visible. The other color shot might help also. BTW: The white bundle in that one is my wife.

John
150K N6272G
172N N5347J
M4-210C N9843M

[jwpalmer]

I also wanted to add the if it is NOT Roesbery's airplane, two others in AK were recently dropped from the roster, 2947D, sn26890 and 2948D sn26891. 2943D, sn26886 was exported by Cessna and only 2941D, sn26884 and 2945D, sn26888 are truly missing. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

John

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

John I've done my share of searching the FAA register. I've actually downloaded the entire thing to my computer at one time. How are you finding aircraft that have recently been dropped?

BTW the nose bowl and the prop are the dead giveaways to most 170 folks that it has a Lycoming.

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

C170B N29__D.3.jpg

C170B N29__D.2.jpg

Huh it has the exhaust coming out the bottom of the cowl like the Bartone system. Unusual for a Lycoming installation I think.

[jwpalmer]

Bruce:

Downloaded the entire FAA database and imported into Excel. Took five worksheets at 65,000 records each to get the whole thing. Then I sorted my spreadsheets by plane and serial number to put it in order. Pulled out the 170's ( 2072306) and copied that to another file. I made entries for the missing serial numbers (just the N29 aircraft) and then hand-searched the FAA database by serial number to find the exported, de-registered and expired registration planes. Many planes have the same serial number,i.e. Boeing so there are multiple entries. Searched NTSB records for missing N-numbers to find the wrecked ones that weren't repaired. Some came up as Pipers. Go figure.

Thanks for helping me with this.

John

[DaveF]

Huh it has the exhaust coming out the bottom of the cowl like the Bartone system. Unusual for a Lycoming installation I think.

Could be a Franklin -- its exhausts go out the back, but I'm guessing it's an O-320 from an early Apache. The spinner is wrong for any Lycoming conversion I've seen, but it sure looks like an Apache. The Apache exhaust goes aft, too.

The O-360 was awarded its TC in 1956, so this would be an early one and a field approval only, since none of the O-360 STCs was around in 1960.

640px-Piper_PA-23_Apache_SI.jpg

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

John I use a relational database program called Filemaker so I didn't have the Excel limitation. I'd never tried searching for aircraft by serial so I never realized I could find the exported, de-registered and expired registration planes. Always learning new things.

[Watkinsnv]

Looks like a lyc O-340 STC