Ummm, you apparently haven’t read the whole thread…
Not to mention that crashing a 50 year old plane through a fence and then getting it airworthy again in no way compares to a horse losing a shoe.
Nice try though.
Good lord. We’re nowhere near those numbers (thank gawd), but I think your plane is a good bit bigger than my husbands…?
(Googling…)
Yep. I think that’s probably one of the rentals that he flies, I seem to recall references to “the 172”. I suspect that may be in our future, he tends to collect things he’s interested in… sigh…
They’re of about the same size and performance, and they both have four seats. The Skyhawk has a longer wingspan by about six feet, though.
Sadly, it’s not my plane. Used to be dad’s.
Hunh, I thought his Tri Pacer was only a 2-seater. Oh wait, maybe that’s one of the rentals he flies. I dunno, they all look pretty much the same to me! 
The Colt looks a lot like the Tri-Pacer but has only 2 seats. Maybe that’s it?
Here is a picture where you can see front seats and back seats. And another one from a different airplane and angle. Here’s a shot of the back seat.
It’s not unusual for rear seats to be removed. Someone might want more floor space for cargo; or a given airplane might not have an excess of power, so the seats might be removed to save weight since more than one passenger isn’t going to be carried anyway. Or maybe they just don’t want rear seats. So your airplane may very well be a two-seater; but the PA-20 Tri-Pacer is usually four-place.
I can’t tell you how envious I am. I know I said the Tri-Pacer looks like a flying milk stool, but I certainly wouldn’t turn one down. I’d get lots of attention in it, too.
The rear seat in low-power planes (all rag and tube Pipers, the Cessna 170/172/177) are there because Marketing finds it MUCH easier to sell a “4 Place Plane!”.
It has nothing to do with the actual capacity.
Don’t know if the rule is the same, but everything built until 1996 in the US used 170 pounds as the weight of a human.
Even if you have 4 skinny people, (4 * 170) for people and (6 * gallon for fuel) and you get over max weight real easy.
Remember the 7 yr old “flying” across the country? That was a Cessna 177. 2 large males, one child and over a 100# of gear, taking off into a squall.
The widow: “How could it be over-loaded? That was a 4-person plane, and there were only 3 people”.
The maximum useful load for a 1978 172N Skyhawk is 907 pounds. It carries 40 gallons of usable fuel, so there’s 240 pounds with full tanks. That’s almost four 170 pound adults. Realistically, I’d guess the Standard American Male is around 200 pounds, and a woman might be… Let’s say 120 pounds. Two of each would be under the weight limit with full fuel. (Of course, a Skyhawk II carries less, and differing equipment will yield differing useful loads. Also, I’ve made no accommodation for baggage.) IMO a 150 hp four seater is intended for a ‘young family’. That is, a couple of average adults – one male, one female – and a couple of kids in their teens or younger. Based on the old business plan, the young family would buy a 150 hp four-seater and then move up to a 180 hp to 235 hp plane as they made more money and the kids grew. Personally, I think a Skyhawk makes a swell three-seater.
Piper Colt, 2 place, note lack of extra window that the Tri-Pacer has. 108 Lycomings in the ones I was around
The OP says Tri-Pacer.
(In your quote, I said PA-20 [Pacer]. I meant PA-22.)
I misread some how & thought you were implying that there were no deliberately built 2 place planes of that style that you knew of. Wasn’t looking to contradict you. 
If it had flaps it was a Tri-Pacer. Of course it’s about useless so you may have flown in it and it was never used. The paint scheme of the Colt creates the allusion of a rear window. The only difference in the nose is an extra outlet on the Tri-Pacer for the oil cooler and a longer spinner.
I was just reminded of Tri-Pacers.
Any update? How’s the flying? 
Oh hey! Forgot about this 
When he can get the thing in the air he’s in 7th Heaven. Getting it truly airworthy and getting the FAA to sign off on it was a giant PITA, but he got it done, and now it’s just been tweaks here and there. Something about the propeller needing to be re-angled? I think? And then the nose strut kept losing pressure so that had to be fixed. And a few minor engine maintenance type things. But in between he’s loving it, when the weather and work cooperate of course. And I think now that the weather’s cooling off and it won’t be 110 in the hangar he’ll be back to hanging out there breathing fumes and just puttering, even if the weather’s not flyable.
It still scares me to death, but I’m really happy he’s so happy
Have you gone up with him?
Nope. I get the heebie jeebies just sitting in it in the ground, it’s too small. I also get motion sick really easily (like I can get queasy driving myself if the road is twisty enough), so while I’m happy he’s enjoying it so and I’ll listen to endless tales that I mostly don’t understand, I have no desire to go up in it. I’ll just sit here on the ground and wave up at him
I’ll ditto this, and let’s be practical - tell hubby your concerns about the big pile of bills and have him get some more insurance. Actually, scratch the “some”.
A person who is not at all interested in flight and subject to motion sickness is not going to make a good safety pilot (which is the idea behind the ‘Pinch Hitter’ training).
If she is never going to up, she will never be in a position to land the thing when hubby has a massive heart attack and dies at the stick/yoke.
Note how often a ‘pinch hitter’ actually performs the envisioned role.
A huge sack of dead meat leaning against the stick is going to make flying rather difficult - by the time you get it out of the way, the ground has found you.
I really, really want non-pilots to experience the joy of flight. I’ll encourage people who are fearful of flying to go up and see what it’s like, to help them get over their fear. But once someone makes it clear that they have zero interest (whether through fear, or that they just don’t give a hoot), there’s no point in cajoling. [If I had a plane] the offer is always there, should they change their minds.