Long time lurker lands in Hangar

[Rally Classics]

Hey all, been lurking here for a few years now. After leasing shop space for about 6 years I finally closed on something to call my own.

When I signed my lease I vowed to make it the last time and I'd be vacating this coming December. I've been searching for a good year and a half at both vacant land and structures in place. Dozens of properties seen, handful of deals fallen thru, and finally found one very close to ideal.

I went to look at a vacant lot in a small ghost town community outside Vegas called Goodsprings. Great lot but would have been cost prohibitive on my budget for all the grading work on the granite rock. There's a town about another 15 minutes further out so I took a random drive since I was nearly there. The town is called Sandy Valley and within Sandy Valley is an airport community. Just so happens there are several lots and a couple homes / hangars for sale by owner. My current neighbor owns a few lots down there as they are airplane folks but they had not been able to build yet.

The widow that owned it was reluctant to sell to someone outside the airplane community as she was still sentimental of what she and her husband had built. It took a couple visits and some charm - and a pre-approval on the mortgage, but suddenly, she was ready to go. She was planning a move closer to her son in ABQ.

This site has given so much inspiration over the years, now is the tough part. I need to find that balance between boutique garage space and highly functional shop. I'll have one storage lift and one 2-post, I restore and maintain my 'fleet' of vintage European cars. I'm a huge fan World Rally and I own a few road going versions of cars that have competed in WRC since the 70's. Audi quattro, Lancia Delta Integrale, Lancia Montecarlo, etc...

...pics or it didn't happen

Was hoping for better pics but the seller was still moving out and had plenty of junk in the hangar.

 

[kai1980]

this looks awesome!
i'll be honest though.... i'm mainly here to see pics of the cars! haha

 

[JDMjunkies.ch]

this seems like a brilliant idea. having a Hangar for storing cars. great

 

[billspit]

Congratulations, but you should at least buy a project aircraft to stick in there.

 

[Rally Classics]

Congratulations, but you should at least buy a project aircraft to stick in there.

Maybe someday. My evil plan is to acquire the lot behind me as well. The county allows for the property line and the setbacks to be abolished when you own two adjoining lots. Thats when I'd build a completely new structure

Here's a couple pics of the cars what I'll be shuttling down there.

Lancia Delta Integrale EVO1

Lancia Beta Coupe

Lancia Scorpion / Montecarlo being reassembled

And the Audi quattro

 

[Mpower5266]

Wow, awesome shop and cars. I will be following this one for sure.

 

[JCarp90]

Oh my God. That Integrale

 

[930dreamer]

Love the Quattro.

 

[Homebody]

Great place!
Is the "airplane community" ok with a 4 wheel friend and all his cars? Is it like an HOA with rules and regulations?

 

[Rally Classics]

Great place!
Is the "airplane community" ok with a 4 wheel friend and all his cars? Is it like an HOA with rules and regulations?

So there is an association in the community, pretty reasonable considering it pays for our water and maintaining the streets (taxiways). Initially (decades ago) they set out to have a community of 100% airplane folks in there but they got in a legal battle with the developer who wanted to encroach on some easements around the runway to add roughly another dozen lots to sell. This deviated from the approved master plan. After ~9 years of litigation the community won the lawsuit against the developer. Unfortunately over the years of it being ******* in the courts, sales completely stalled and people backed out. As things were recovering after that, the crash of 2008 crippled it again.

Some people have been down there since the early 80's and now they are aging out. So many nice folks but they are getting beyond the age they should be flying.

Needless to say, at this point they are just genuinely happy with having some new interest regardless of their passion. My neighbor to the east is a car guy, he has one of the nicest looking properties in there. After creeping around the whole area I've seen that just about everyone that has a hangar door open has some sort of enthusiast car in there with their plane. There is one other car guy that I haven't met yet but took a peek into his hangar while driving by. His place is another one of the nicer places down there too.

They have several lots available on both sides of the runway, NW side is zoned for stick built homes and the SE side is zoned for manufactured so you have a broad range of what you can build there. The county prefers you build the house first, the community prefers you build the hangar first - in order to keep out the people that just want to build a house without the intention of ever adding a hangar.

I was very fortunate to have found my place, the owner was willing to sell, and she was asking a reasonable price which was supported in the appraisal. In NV you flat out can't get a mortgage on a hangar, it doesn't matter how much it's 'worth' they just don't do it. Even for my purchase - ZERO value from the hangar was considered for the loan or within the appraisal.

So in a nutshell, I think there will always be airplane guys down there, but I can't help dreaming that it would someday transition into a community heavy on car culture.

 

[kai1980]

the lancia delta and audi quattro are two of the finest cars to come from that era! and yours look to be in great condition!

looking forward to seeing what you do with the place, and the cars.

 

[jay70]

Lots of potential in this place, the car collection is top notch as well. Keen to see what you do with it

 

[Growlertdi]

Drool worthy collection you have there. thanks for sharing

 

[red94chev]

Cool cars and pretty interesting neighborhood concept too. I work inside an airport so I'd be interested in how they run the roads/taxiways.

 

[Rally Classics]

Thanks for the kind words guys. The cars are my passion but I truly have my work cut out for me to be on par with the garage builds here.

I closed on the property and headed straight out of town for a work trip so Im anxious to get home and start cleaning up and making a plan.

Cool cars and pretty interesting neighborhood concept too. I work inside an airport so I'd be interested in how they run the roads/taxiways.

I don't know all those details - yet - but I know there are dozens of similar communities throughout the US. There is only one taxiway where vehicles can cross the runway (far south end) but each one allows access for planes. They do not have a staffed tower per se but there is someone monitoring the radio at all times.

Believe it or not when I was a child in the midwest my dad and I actually visited one of his friends that owned property in one. It was just a dream back then, and I had just assumed that I'd end up with something more traditional, but here I am.

 

[Rally Classics]

Back from my trip for a couple days so I got out to the new place. I found they left more 'stuff' than I had hoped to deal with but Im just happy to have this place in general.

Structurally, the hangar is great, the floor is in excellent condition. They did relief cuts in 10' squares and there is not one single crack that has formed. At some point they used a grey epoxy on the floor and it has held up really well, a couple of good scuffs, but no lifting or signs of moisture coming up form below. (I mean it IS the desert) There are some leftover buckets of epoxy in the corner so I'll verify the brand next time out there. I'll do a good mopping and see where that leaves me.

I have to keep telling myself these are the 'before' pics and it will get better. Much better I hope, cuz it's almost a lil embarrassing as is. You guys have shared some pretty impressive spaces.

There are a couple nice features in the hangar, the owners had built a utility room with its own septic system. Im not sure if I will put a washer / dryer out there again which leaves me scratching my head about what to do with a 9'x8' room with utility sink and plumbing in the wall. Visions of putting a nicer sink and urinal in there but its kind of a big space for that. The nice part is they built a rather sturdy mezzanine above the utility room which extends to close to 20'x8' which I'll make good use of.

As I empty it out and start my projects I'll be asking for some advice, thanks for looking.

 

[15til3]

Definitely subscribing to this thread. Love the Deltas

Got to hang out with this one at the Classic car club in Manhattan
https://scontent-dfw5-1.**.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22448535_976391398698_2748913458638555442_n.jpg?_nc_cat=0&_nc_eui2=v1%3AAeFct6ql2wMBbSN0yo1ZWA_OsxNTDKOxeTThm4OGAurHYjxPbaJ-1AUM5maZBH22YPwNwRr-FEpPb5ryGqOb8k5HiFp3NXKcm--I-2P-5gF10g&oh=dc2c9cd5716ddcbc35e753b7cf686c10&oe=5B6F2878

 

[wout]

Very nice cars and place!

gr
Wout

 

[jblnut]

I'd love to see some pics of the rest of the hanger/office structure. I've always found them to be interesting, especially the privately owned ones. Seems like a great place to have stumbled upon !!

PLUS it's in NV where I'm guessing you won't see a lot of the snow/cold BS we see here in Central MN.

 

[Rally Classics]

Definitely subscribing to this thread. Love the Deltas

Got to hang out with this one at the Classic car club in Manhattan
https://scontent-dfw5-1.**.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22448535_976391398698_2748913458638555442_n.jpg?_nc_cat=0&_nc_eui2=v1%3AAeFct6ql2wMBbSN0yo1ZWA_OsxNTDKOxeTThm4OGAurHYjxPbaJ-1AUM5maZBH22YPwNwRr-FEpPb5ryGqOb8k5HiFp3NXKcm--I-2P-5gF10g&oh=dc2c9cd5716ddcbc35e753b7cf686c10&oe=5B6F2878

Very nice, is that one of their club cars? I met Zac several years ago while he still had his 91 Integrale 16v. I test drove it prior to buying my first one. I don't remember why I decided against his but I ended up with another one very similar.

 

[4xdog]

Great cars and a super place to store them -- love the idea of a hangar in hot and dry country.

 

[bczygan]

Hey all, been lurking here for a few years now. After leasing shop space for about 6 years I finally closed on something to call my own.

When I signed my lease I vowed to make it the last time and I'd be vacating this coming December. I've been searching for a good year and a half at both vacant land and structures in place. Dozens of properties seen, handful of deals fallen thru, and finally found one very close to ideal.

I went to look at a vacant lot in a small ghost town community outside Vegas called Goodsprings. Great lot but would have been cost prohibitive on my budget for all the grading work on the granite rock. There's a town about another 15 minutes further out so I took a random drive since I was nearly there. The town is called Sandy Valley and within Sandy Valley is an airport community. Just so happens there are several lots and a couple homes / hangars for sale by owner. My current neighbor owns a few lots down there as they are airplane folks but they had not been able to build yet.

The widow that owned it was reluctant to sell to someone outside the airplane community as she was still sentimental of what she and her husband had built. It took a couple visits and some charm - and a pre-approval on the mortgage, but suddenly, she was ready to go. She was planning a move closer to her son in ABQ.

This site has given so much inspiration over the years, now is the tough part. I need to find that balance between boutique garage space and highly functional shop. I'll have one storage lift and one 2-post, I restore and maintain my 'fleet' of vintage European cars. I'm a huge fan World Rally and I own a few road going versions of cars that have competed in WRC since the 70's. Audi quattro, Lancia Delta Integrale, Lancia Montecarlo, etc...

...pics or it didn't happen

Was hoping for better pics but the seller was still moving out and had plenty of junk in the hangar.

Time to get your pilots certificate and a plane!

Bill

 

[15til3]

Very nice, is that one of their club cars? I met Zac several years ago while he still had his 91 Integrale 16v. I test drove it prior to buying my first one. I don't remember why I decided against his but I ended up with another one very similar.

Yep its one of the club cars you can rent out. The also had a GT40 there at the time

 

[rubberrodder]

I see you got the all important dart board up.

 

[Rally Classics]

I see you got the all important dart board up.

I did!

I only inherited one dart though so it makes for an awfully long game

 

[Rally Classics]

Progress in the hangar has been slow but steady with my travels. Still hauling out plenty of **** left by the previous owner. I finally met the neighbor to the east of me, he is the 'other car guy' on the street. He was generous enough to offer the use of his dumpster rather than hauling stuff back to town to put in my own garbage bins.

I received my first new lift last week and hauled it down and unpackaged. Quite a chore, about 1700 pounds divided up among 7-8 pieces, a little more than a 2-man job but nobody got hurt.

So of course the 'professionals' loaded the package on the truck with the heavy end in. The forklift I have access to thankfully has extended length forks or this would have been a nightmare.

It came off the trailer in pieces, that was our only option at the hangar.

And this is about as far as I could get by myself. Not the smartest to work alone on something of that scale but all's well that ends well. It'll take a few guys or mechanical means to the the ramps in position. Time not critical since I need to get the space for the lift prepped. Once assembled it will be moved into permanent position.

A word to the wise, if the conversation ever goes something like this:

Well ok honey, you can build a hangar (garage) (shed) (whatever) as long as I can help paint it. RUN! Never agree to those terms, it's not worth it.

It's only funny that I realize those colors she picked were appropriate because I closed on the property the Friday of Easter weekend.

Even after pulling down the peg board, it was still painted behind it. She painted before the pegboard, before the conduit, before everything. And then went back to paint the pegboard, conduit etc. Everything will be going back to white, but not before a coat of primer. Hours wasted on un-coloring these few walls.

Im looking at options and maybe some opinions on what materials to use for finishing the interior walls. Im going for a nice clean look but also want to protect the exposed insulation, its super fragile. There have been items leaned up against it and poked holes and some tears in it. Even though its 'free' space in between the beams I'd rather have the ability to hang things on the walls.

 

[930dreamer]

If I come out to Vegas will you take me for a ride in the Quattro?

 

[Rally Classics]

If I come out to Vegas will you take me for a ride in the Quattro?

Catch me while Im in town and Im sure we can work it out. I never need too much reason to go out for a little blast.

Here's some more info on the car, this is the most recent magazine the car was featured in. Sorry if its a little hard to read I had to extract it from digital format.

It's got about a 600WHP tune on it running E85, weighs about 2800lbs *grin*

 

[C_F]

Man, I love the hangar & the cool cars! I'm definitely checking back in on this thread for updates.

 

[M-technik-3]

Cool list of cars but not a single photo besides another member's from NY was in thread. Buddy of mine owns an UrQ.

 

[JMLangford]

Why can't I see any of our pictures????

 

[Rally Classics]

Why can't I see any of our pictures????

Hosting site is currently down, submitted a service ticket.

 

[brainypencil]

Now that looks AWESOME!

 

[Rally Classics]

Cool list of cars but not a single photo besides another member's from NY was in thread. Buddy of mine owns an UrQ.

Its a very tightly knit underground community, I would not be surprised if I knew him from one of the pages / forums.

 

[PugetDude]

Nice! I used to own a summer home in a fly-in community. Car guys were welcome, once in a while we even got to close the 6500' long runway and use it for a few timed runs... one of the members had a Factory 5 Cobra with a Roush engine...

 

[M-technik-3]

Goes by his call sign of Dutch....or Eric

 

[Rally Classics]

So on the advice of a couple others here I ordered the 10-pack of LED shop lights from Sam's Club while they were on sale, got them in time for the weekend.

I also picked up a half dozen sheets of white slat wall via Facebook Marketplace. I took the best 6 of the 10 he had, that should hold me over for what I have envisioned.

I decided on 15/32" OSB for my wall(s) so I grabbed 8 sheets for starters to see how it goes. I'd really like to find out that it will be rigid enough that I don't have to add more framework to the walls, the beams are 42" on center. For 2/3 of this wall I will not he able to hang anything due to the sliding doors of the hangar so I really just want a nice finished look. The remaining 1/3 of the wall will get a combo of OSB and the slat wall where the tool boxes and work benches will be.

 

[RNN14Wolfe]

I lived in Vegas for a few years. I can't imagine how ungodly hot it gets in a steel building during the summer. You'll definitely need cooling of some sort. I worked in Henderson rebuilding Fire Trucks and that building had swamp cooling, and it was still terribly hot most days.

 

[Ismaelo]

That's pretty cool stuff you got going there

 

[Rally Classics]

I lived in Vegas for a few years. I can't imagine how ungodly hot it gets in a steel building during the summer. You'll definitely need cooling of some sort. I worked in Henderson rebuilding Fire Trucks and that building had swamp cooling, and it was still terribly hot most days.

I'm pretty content with the heat. Just about anywhere I've ever lived, including Colorado had 3 months if sh*tty weather. In Vegas it just happens to be in the summer.

The hangar has swamp cooling, plus I won't be working for a living in the hangar so it'll be about the same as I'm used to at my existing shop.