Maverick laddie & Shy torque:
Hehe..
I guess its not really absolutely necessary to use a Quarter, I guess its just more a custom.
Outofwhack:
Im not really very familiar with the F28, however it is my feeling from the many F28´s I´ve seen sitting in hangars around that they are pretty difficult to keep in flyable condition.
Sometimes its cheaper in the long run to buy a newer model helicopter like the FX280, S-300 or R-22/44.
At the very least if you opt for a low cost 1971 or around that F28 be prepared to have an expensive hangar queen IMHO!
However I´m no speicalist in the F28, there has to be someone out there that knows more.
I have heard good things about the Enstrom, but the 15 hrs that I have in Enstrom were not that good. I had a lot of mechanical malfunctions during my IFR training in the FX280 Shark Enstrom I trained in. Out of those 15 hrs I flew there was never a single hour without some problems! However I have known a pilot with lot more hrs in them who really liked them and never had problems.