Books

I am not aware of any books covering post-war Bellancas in detail.

Very early Bellanca history is covered in Bellanca C.F., The Emergence of the Cabin Monoplane in the United States, by Jay Spenser.  This book is specifically about the C.F. and restoration of the example in the Smithsonian, but also contains a summary of Bellanca airplanes and history in the 30's.

Links

For early Bellancas, check out:

• The Bellanca Airbus and Aircruiser Home Page
• Aerofiles Bellanca Information - complete type information.

Vikings:

• List of Viking mechanics and a Viking-oriented website
• The Viking Owners Club

Type Club

The best support for low-wing Bellancas comes from the Bellanca-Champion Club.  This is an active club with an excellent bi-monthly newsletter, two fly-ins per year, numerous publications and manuals, and cool logo merchandise.  Check out http://www.bellanca-championclub.com for information.

If you have general questions about Bellancas or Citabrias, I strongly suggest calling or emailing the club for the answer or at least ideas about where to find the answer.

Manuals

14-19 "190" Cruisemasters

• Scanned version (PDF)
• Typed version with cleaned up formatting (PDF)

Note:  The 190 manual is more complete when it comes to maintenance, specifically it has a rigging procedure.  Most of the non-engine and prop airframe maintenance information for 190s applies to 230s as well.

14-19-2 "230" Cruisemasters

• Scanned version (PDF)
• Typed version with cleaned up formatting (PDF)

Mechanics

Three mechanics I'd recommend for Bellancas of all sorts are:

East Coast:  Witmer's Aircraft Service, Pottstown Municipal Airport (N47), 1149A Glasgow St, Pottstown, Pennsylvania, 620-323-0320.

Central:  Miller Flying Service, Plainview (PVW), Texas (near Lubbock).  Miller has been a Bellanca dealer for over 20 years and runs a large repair  shop with lots of wood wing and fabric expertise.  If you're shopping for a Viking I'd call Miller to see his inventory.

West Coast:  Dan Torrey of Mobile Aircraft Repair Service (MARS), in Santa Paula (SZP), California.  805-933-3994.

Parts

For airframe repairs, try one of the mechanics above.  Chances are many of the airframe parts can be fabricated.  Bellanca Aircraft in Alexandria, MN also owns the stock of Cruisemaster and Viking parts.  They're very helpful but they operate at their own (slow) pace, so don't expect lightning turnaround.  I've purchased a fuel valve, rudder bellcranks, tailwheel bushings, and landing gear springs from Bellanca and have been generally satisfied with the parts and the service.

Engine parts of the 14-19-2's and later are easy:  just call up Superior, Continental, or Lycoming since these engines are all in production.  This is a significant advantage to owning and flying a 230 or later.

For 190s:  I don't know of a good source of O-435 parts and this engine is out of production.  I'd suggest getting in contact with Stinson L-5 owners, which also used this engine.

For Cruisairs:  engine parts for the 150 HP Franklin are getting scarce. I suggest getting in contact with the International Stinson Club, where there's a large community of Franklin owners who use this engine in Stinson 108's, and where there's likely to be knowledge of current parts sources.  In the past I've had good luck with Don Maxfield of Li'L Red Aero in Kearney, Nebraska for Franklin parts and overhauls.  For consumables like gaskets and piston rings try Univair.