What are your costs like on the Citabria? What unexpected things have popped up on you?
@killbill
Depends on the model.
The manual for my engine (O-235-C1 -- 115 hp Lycoming) has a requirement that the valves be adjusted every 100 hrs. Normally done during the annual inspection anyway, but if I fly it more that 100 hrs a year (never) it is something that I have to keep in the back of my mind as requiring additional costs beyond the normal. I don't think the 150hp engines have this requirement.
Lower longerons and the lower frame of the rudder are prone to holding water and thus rusting out over time if they are not properly drained. Something to look at very, very carefully on a pre-buy inspection as the repair costs for those items gets very expensive very fast as the lower frame of the rudder requires recovering the rudder itself while rusted out lower longerons require you to recover the fuselage.
Also beware of cracked and/or broken fuselage "bulkheads". These are generally wooden in the Champion/Bellanca Citabrias. Sometimes people will push on the side of the fuselage when moving the airplane and over time can cause damage. Again... requires a complete recovering of the fuselage to properly repair.
Don't be afraid of a wooden spar Citabria. Especially if there is no damage history. Just make sure that the spars are thoroughly inspected on a pre-buy and be aware that there is an AD requiring reinspection every year. Easily done through existing inspection holes and the type club for the airplane has a detailed procedure if your mechanic is not fully familiar with compression cracks. While on the subject of wings, probably a more serious problem than compression cracks (in my book) are the loss of rib nails. When we recovered mine years back, we discovered we were missing approximately 35% of the original nails holding the ribs to the spars. This had led to some fatigue cracks in a couple of ribs that we had to replace.
How the airplane is covered also makes a difference in yearly costs as well. Older/original fabrics with the Grade A cotton reinforcing tape covered with butyrate dope have a tendency to deteriorate along the cotton tape. Newer Citabrias or those recovered completely in a poly fiber are better and also easier to maintain.
Generally speaking, annual cost for me run in the sub $1000 range, but that is the mark I budget on as some years are really cheap (last year was $400) and others really expensive (2 years ago was $2500 -- tires, brakes, battery, new ELT, tracked down an oil seep, sent prop for overhaul, etc). Overall Citabrias are great little airplanes though. Not much to surprise you maintenance wise if a good pre-buy inspection in done and properly maintained after the purchase.