By Lisa Turner, EAA Lifetime 509911
This piece originally ran in Lisa’s Airworthy column in the January 2025 issue of EAA Sport Aviation magazine.
“Here’s my credit card.”
“Thanks. That will be helpful for parts. I’ll save your receipts.”
Frank took the credit card and put it in the printer for a front and back copy. He looked back at Sam.
“I’ll take the deposit up front and then charge as we go.” He handed the card back.
“What are we looking at time-wise?” Sam asked.
“Four to six months. When I disassemble the airplane prior to the re-cover, we may find problems.”
“Okay. Keep me informed.”
“Will do.”
Sam left the shop feeling a little uneasy. He wasn’t sure why.
Four months passed. Sam didn’t want to bother Frank, but he did want an update. He hadn’t heard a thing and was missing his pride and joy. He gave Frank a call.
“We’re running into some problems, Sam. Probably be another 10 or 12 weeks.”
Sam was seeing large bills on his credit card. He decided to show up at the shop unannounced, even though it was a two-hour drive. When he got there, the fuselage and the wings had been stripped of old fabric, but that was it.
Frank came out of the office. “Sam, this is a surprise. That’s quite a drive.”
“I just wanted to see how things are coming.”
“Well, you can see we haven’t gotten very far. Pretty busy here.”
“Frank, what is a prop overhaul doing on my credit card? You don’t need to overhaul the prop.”
Frank’s face turned indecipherable. “I think that is a mistake. I’ll check it and reimburse you.”
Sam swallowed hard. “I’d like to come back tomorrow with a trailer to collect everything. I’ll pay you for what I owe so far. I’m uncomfortable with the pace.”
“No, Sam, we started the job. Please, give me another couple of months.”
This story ended with Sam collecting his airplane in pieces and finding another shop. He canceled his credit card and then was chastised by his friend, an attorney.
“What did you expect?” his friend said. “No research on the business, no contract for services, no due date, and paying up front. All to save a few bucks. All no-no’s.”
Sam followed his friend’s advice and was flying again within three months. While only a tiny percentage of shops operate this way, they do exist. You don’t want to be on the wrong end of the arrangement.
* * *
Here in our wonderful world of aviation, we may wrongly assume that everyone wants to do their own maintenance. You may want to build your own airplane, inspect your own airplane, and maintain your own airplane. But not all of us are mechanically minded. If you’re in this group, and you know it, congratulations for being honest and self-aware. Too many of us believe we are naturals at maintenance and repair and suffer from unintended consequences because of it. Experimentation is one thing, but not being sure about what to do on an aircraft and not enjoying it can be foolhardy.
Paying someone else to perform maintenance, restoration, or repair work on your aircraft also may not be as expensive as trying to do it yourself. Some of us (me included) have learned this the hard way.
However, as we saw in the story, things can go wrong if we give our beloved aircraft to the nearest self-proclaimed mechanic. Here are the things to pay attention to as you choose and interact with a maintenance and repair shop or an independent contractor.
Use the following checklist for restorations and repairs. For your annual or condition inspection, use the article, “A Beginner’s Guide to Yearly Inspections” in the February 2024 edition of EAA Sport Aviation.
Location
As much as you want convenience, a good shop is worth the trip. Start your research close to home and move outward. You may have to travel farther than you anticipated. Weigh this with what you are paying and the level of quality the shop produces. If the shop is known for good customer relations, you will be able to trust it and not check up as much on the progress.
Impressions
Visit the shops you’re interested in. Time consuming? Yes. Worth it? Yes. Spend enough time to see the personnel interact with one another. You’ll get a sense of the level of quality the shop is turning out.
The shop manager or owner will also want to get an impression of you. Are you easy to communicate with? Do you understand the complexity of the work? Will they get paid on time? The trust and respect must be mutual for the best relationship.
Money
Does the shop need a deposit up front? Why? If they have your airplane, they have collateral. Every shop is different; you must be comfortable with the terms. Ideally, they will give you an organized schedule of work along with a payment schedule — approximately how much you will owe, when, and for what. When you get an invoice, what are the terms? How long do you have to pay the shop?
Is your airplane insured when it’s in the shop? Are you responsible for the insurance, or are they? Don’t wait for a theft or a fire to find out. What about liability insurance? Included?
If you’re commissioning a full restoration, it will always take longer and cost more than you thought it would. You need to be psychologically and financially prepared. The shop manager should be able to help you with this analysis.
Philosophy
Ask how the shop does business. What is its philosophy around delivery versus quality? Is it willing to take the time to do research or double-check things, even when it’s behind schedule?
Customers
Before you take your airplane anywhere or have someone come to you, ask for names of customers you can talk to. Businesses will give you the names of people who are happy, but you can still get information on schedule, delivery, and quality.
Expertise
How many of this type of aircraft has the shop worked on? If you’re having a restoration done, has it restored other airplanes similar to yours? Some shops may specialize in specific aircraft, such as Stearman, Waco, or Cub. Full restorations of antique aircraft will likely have you traveling a long way from your home airport. As long as the communication is good, this shouldn’t be a problem. I’d rather travel to a good specialty shop and get the best level work.
Legal
Make sure the contract protects you. Most shops are clearly out to protect themselves. There should be a contingency to benefit you if something goes wrong or you’re not happy. Take the contract to your attorney for review and modify it if you need to.
The flip side of the legal requirement is to make sure the shop complies with service bulletins and letters, airworthiness directives (ADs), 337s, STCs, and any other applicable legal requirements. Make sure it neatly completes the paperwork for the logbooks. If the shop wants to keep your logs while it works, I recommend you have a backup of some sort, even if you have to copy them. A virtual copy is ideal.
Make sure the company is legally able to work on your aircraft. Are mechanics fully licensed?
Timing
Most shops will not be able to tell you exactly when you’ll get your airplane back, but they should be able to ballpark it if it’s not a full restoration. If it’s a full restoration, the shop will probably tell you it can’t commit to a delivery date. This may be upsetting, but there are so many variables in restorations that you’ll have to rely on a shop’s honesty and ethics for scheduling.
Full restorations by their nature contain surprises. A good shop will tell you what it finds and make a recommendation for action. This is also where talking to other customers will be helpful. You do want the shop to find the surprises. Damage, cracks, and corrosion should all be fully taken care of before the airplane is reassembled.
Engines
Many shops that do restorations do not overhaul the engine. This is fine if you know this up front and can have them send the engine to the overhaul shop of your choice. You’ll want to do this as soon as you know, since most of the engine overhaul shops are full of work with waiting lists.
Communication
How the shop communicates with you is critical. Does it return your calls quickly? Is it able to explain delays in a way you can understand? You want the shop to continue taking your calls and questions even when things are not going well.
Test Flights and Checklists
When the airplane is finished, ask the shop how it ensures that everything is reassembled and working correctly. Does it taxi test and/or test fly the airplane? You should be able to specify the pilot, or the shop can recommend a test pilot. All the fine-tuning is done at the end.
Safety
The shop you choose should have two types of safety. The first is its own. When you visit the shop, watch how the mechanics use their safety equipment and move things around. Are hazards well marked? A bunch of airplanes in a workspace present opportunities for head injuries and falls. Are mechanics working by the book? A short inspection may not reveal much, but you’ll get a sense of how attentive they are.
The second area of safety is compliance with AD notes, service bulletins, and other information that pertain to your specific aircraft. The shop should have inspected the aircraft at the beginning of the work, particularly if it is a full restoration or re-covering. An airplane can go through several cycles of repairs without anyone checking for compliance with service bulletins, ADs, etc. And cracks and corrosion sometimes get missed.
Homebuilts
What about your homebuilt aircraft? Use the same standards. The caveat is that some shops may not want to work on something they are not familiar with. This makes it a little tougher for you because you may end up crossing shops off your list that you really like. You may be able to talk an independent A&P mechanic into working on your homebuilt. You should also ask members of your owners group about where they get maintenance and repairs, even if it’s not nearby.
Most repair and restoration shops that have been in business for a while are excellent. If you’ve decided to outsource the work, invest the time to find the best shop you can. If you’re having a full restoration done, it’s even more important to find the right fit with a shop. Watch for red flags, listen to your sixth sense, and don’t skimp on research. When you’ve found a match, both you and your shop will be happy.
Lisa Turner, EAA Lifetime 509911, is a manufacturing engineer, A&P mechanic, EAA technical counselor and flight advisor, and former designated airworthiness representative. She built a Pulsar XP, a Kolb Mark III, and half of a RotorWay Exec helicopter. Her book, Dream Take Flight, details her Pulsar flying adventures. Lisa loves hearing from readers. Write her at Lisa@DreamTakeFlight.com.