1943 Taylorcraft L 2M DCO 65. Ex USAAF 43 25985 History: USAAF until 1945. Sold as surplus. by Civil.
Item specifics 1943 Taylorcraft L-2M / DCO-65. Ex-USAAF 43-25985 History: USAAF until 1945. Sold as surplus. Used by Civil Air Patrol in midwest for a few years (1950s). In storage at Forest Barber"s facility until 1997. Rebuilt by EAA-1056 in 1997/98.
Last Annual: August, 2015
TTAF: unknown (less than 700 hours when it left CAP; about 250 hours since EAA rebuild)
A-65-8 engine -- TSMOH (2006): ~50 hours. Compressions 76/80, 70/80, 74/80, 76/80
Prop: ~50 hours (new 2006) 7443
New fabric and paint in 2005 (Polyfiber and Polytone).
Seats are black vinyl over the original tube-framing and wood. Pilot seat adjusts fore-aft via a crank on the left front. Observer seat is the original, swivel seat.
Over the last several years, replaced tires and tubes, exhaust (Dawley), wheel bearings, and bungees.
Maule pneumatic/steerable tailwheel. Bushing replaced in 2013.
A very nice flying, old-school stick-and-rudder airplane. Cruise 90mph @ 2200rpm. 4-5 gph. ADS-B exempt (no electrical system)
Fuel capacity: 14 gallons. There are 2 six-gallon wing tanks (one on each side) which feed a two-gallon header tank which is located forward of the instrument panel.
Solar panel on observer desk provides power for intercom, handheld radio, and a GPS via a small, rechargeable battery behind observer seat. External antenna for a handheld radio is mounted to the gap-filler for the left wing. Markings: the wing/fuselage roundels and the fin flashes are all painted on using Polytone paint. The N-numbers are decals
Basic panel -- oil temp, altimeter, airspeed, tach, inclinometer, and oil pressure.
Brakes are the original heel brakes.
4-point belts/harness for both seats.
Bruce"s custom canopy cover.
Pilots manual, parts manual, and structural repair manual.Original equipment: the brackets/mount points for the original military equipment (radios, trailing antenna, etc) all appear to be present. I do not have any of the original radios, etc.Spoilers: There are no spoilers installed. When the L-2s were put into postwar, civil use as DCO-65s, the spoilers were required to be deactivated.Lift Strut AD: The Taylorcraft lift-strut AD does not apply to the L-2, L-2A, L-2B, or L-2M. It is specific to the B-series T-crafts.
Are you positive about the lift strut AD? Yes. It does not apply to the L-2, L-2A, L-2B, and L-2M or the civilian D-series tandems.There were a handful B-series Taylorcrafts (BC-12, BF-12, BL-12) pressed into military service which were given L-2 designations (L-2G, L-2H, L-2J, L-2K, and L-2L). Because they fall into the B-series of aircraft, the strut AD does apply to these models only.Aerobatics: The airplane can perform light aerobatics (no tail slides). The pilots manual lists approved manuevers and speeds.Advertised elsewhere: the airplane is not listed/advertised elsewhere. It is for sale locally via word-of-mouth.Post-sale pickup/storage: I have no immediate need for my hangar so the plane can stay inside at no cost until pickup can be arranged (within reason -- eg up to a few months).Required training: I"m not a CFI. The L-2 is a pretty easy airplane to fly. I did my tailwheel training in a BC-12 and had no issues transitioning to the L-2.
Aircraft is hangared at KIZG (Fryeburg, ME)Can I talk to the IA who does the annuals? Absolutely. The same IA has maintained this plane the entire time I"ve owned it. I will provide contact information via e-mail.How old are the wings? The entire wing was rebuilt in 1997/98. All the wooden components were new -- i.e. none of the original WW2 wood was reused. Metal components were cleaned, inspected, and installed.Control cables: new cables were installed during the 1997/98 rebuild.Fuselage: the frame was blasted, dye-checked, and repainted during the 1997/98 rebuildFuel tanks: the right tank was rebuilt in 2005. The left tank has no issues.
ELT: AK-450 installed in the panel Current date: 2015-08-31
