Q - American Bonanza Society

I'M A V-TAILKIND OF A GUYn the early 80s I owned a 1952 C35~in a pannership with three others. Inthe mid-80s I became the sale ownerof a 1957 H35 that I owned foralmost 13 years. In February of 1998I became the owner of my currentV-tail, a 1964 S35.N5813S was purchased new andspent most of her life with the first ownerin California until the mid-I 9905. Fromthere she moved to Kansas for a shanperiod and then on to Texas. At the time Ipurchased this Bonanza, she had just over1.600 hours total time with the originalengine still running strong.The S35 is reputed 10 be the fasteststock Bonanza of the fleet. It was thefirst model with the factory-installed10-520 and the airframe was still fairlyli ght. The basic empty weight ofN5813S is only 2,050, with a grossweight of 3.300. On my first flight,from Texas back to my home base ofKenosha, Wisconsin, I enjoyed one ofthe fastest trips to date in a Bonanza.With a nice tailwind, my averageground speed at 9,000 was 211 knots.Life is so good.~EEC~C~RFi OF THE M~~T~~5913S }J9' .Craig BaileyLindenhurst, IllinoisN5813S EQUIPMENT LIST: JPI 700 with fuel flow, KMA 24 audio panel. KLN89B GPSwith a KI 209A omni head. two 10(155 nov cams, KR87 ADF. KN64 DME. KT79Ctransponder. PM 1 00011 intercomwas to find a low-time damage-free airframeI cou ld restore. After gelting her.it wasn't long before the updates began.In early spring of 1998 I took theplane to Airtronics in Clintonville,Wisconsin , to have the instrument panelredone and a new suite of avionicsinstalled. The panel was a collage ofplacards and almost a historicaltimelineof the avionics industry. Every knownmanufacturer of GA avionics was represented,with equipment dating all theway back 10 1964. The panel wasstripped and painted and a new line ofKing radios was installed.In March of 1999, I dropped off theplane with Dick Pedersen of PedersenAircraft in Ladysmith, Wisconsin. Dickpulled the original engine and replaced itwith a factory-remanufactured 10-520BBwith new BDS baffling. All hoses werereplaced and all accessories and the propwere overhauled at that time.Since the major work has beencompleted I have continued to upgradethe plane over the years. Each year afew new projects are tackled. Perhapsthe largest noticeable upgrade 10N5813S was the installation of a speedslopedwindshield using Beechcraftparts. Once again Dick Pedersen, ABSconsultant, was asked to complete thismodification resulting in a factory-freshappearance.Thi s wonderful V-tail is usedapproximately 125 hours each year takingmy wife and me on wonderfuladventures across the United States,Canada and the Bahamas. Through theBonanza we have met so many wonderfulfolks , and the plane has allowed usto do and see so much that I can't imaginenOL owning a Bonanza. --@--