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Apologies if its taboo to make an update to something I posted this long ago, but just thought it would be interesting to give some closure to this since I'm currently in the research phase again. I ended up doing more research and after what people here said and talking to my flight instructor, I ended up getting a Cherokee 140. Flew it from RI to WA mid December, which was fun. Been delayed taking my checkride due to WA weather sucking, but I think I'm mostly ready. Annual is racking up some fees, probably going to be far above average (in the 6-8k range, if not more, but we're running out of things to have break/need repair) due to old inspections missing things or "missing things" (mags were both overdue to be overhauled by 200 and 400 hours respectively, which was within the amount of the time plane was owned by the previous owner for several years) so we're replacing one with electronic ignition and overhauling the other. Luckily I overbudgeted when it came to stuff like that by a large margin, so it shouldn't really be putting us in the red too far if at all. I do think that getting the Cherokee was the right choice when it comes to the airframe, as its very forgiving and the one we got has very solid avionics which will make flying IFR much easier. Only concern right now is the climb performance being suboptimal due to me being a larger fella. At max gross on the flight back to WA, my instructor and I topped out at around 7500 DA (maximum, that was at around 10 fpm if not less, it refused to go higher) Hoping that some of the things we're fixing and looking at during the annual will help with that. Also plan to replace the wingtips and add flap seals to hopefully help with that. Plan is to use the Cherokee up until I get my commercial, then soon after sell it and more than likely get a Mooney. Hopefully I can get the insurance for much cheaper and I'll be a more competent pilot. If I recall correctly, we were quoted at around $8000/yr insurance for a non PPL/PPL primary flier (me) with around 100 hrs at the time. I have family in Utah so not being able to easily fly through that region due to the very high terrain is unfortunate, still need to see how it does after the annual when it comes to climb. I don't remember exactly how much my insurance is on the Cherokee, but I believe its in the range of ~$2000/yr which is much more reasonable (at least compared to the alternative). When it comes to if I even fit in a Mooney, luck has it that my mechanic actually is a co-owner of an M20C and he's offered to let me take a look at it when we have time one of these days. I'm doing what I can to help him out with the annual since its cheaper to have me pass him a wrench vs having him get up and grab it, even if its not by much. I'm also learning quite a bit about how these work. TLDR: Got a Cherokee 140, not a Mooney, checkride delayed due to wx, hope to one day get a Mooney once insurance won't kill me and I'm more competent, and annual inspections are terrifying. Fly safe!

What a crappy thread ;)

N201Y flies again! When we bought our J in 2022 it came with tail number N202Y. Right next to the sticker that says "Mooney 201", it just struck me as not quite right. Last fall on a whim I checked the FAA N-number web site to see if maybe N201Y was available and it was! After a few weekends of sanding, taping, painting, it's done. Yesterday I reprogrammed the transponder and flew to HAB for some $4.30/gal go juice. N201Y just rolls off the tongue, and I never once said N202Y. Here she sits on the ground at HAB. Showed up on flight aware as N201Y. This tail number previously was worn by a J model that was seemingly "retired". The total cost was $10 to the FAA, $110 for some two-component paint, $50 for miscellaneous sanding/painting supplies plus about 40 hours of my labor. Not quite done- I need to sand some edges and paint the shadow on the new "1"s.

The difference between changing the pucks and completely disassembling the gear isn’t that much. Stripping and painting is tedious but not difficult. I have done it like 5 times. Use paint stripper, then scrapers and wire wheels and finish in the blast cabinet. In the past I would just prime with zinc chromate, but those days are gone. So you will have to find a good paint system. Painting tubes is tedious too, but the results are awesome. Buy all new hardware and bushings and you will have essentially new gear.

I have found the pistons wear more than the rings do. Most people just think about the rings sealing on the cylinders, but they seal on the piston as well. The top and bottom of the rings have to form a seal in the groves in the piston. I have found the groves get a taper to them after a while. If you are going to reuse the piston you should clean according to the service manual. It is very tedious. They don’t allow any kind of abrasive blasting. I have found tooth brushes, string and comet cleanser works fastest. Expect at least 1/2 hour per piston, if you are good.

I’m pretty sure cylinders are in stock and shipping immediately from AirPower. that being said, if it’s making full power, and running smooth I would keep flying. compression tests are just not that critical. are you sure it’s burning and not blowing out? all of my airplanes have had a sweet spot between 5-7 qts indicated and anything over that just blows out.

I just painted my nose gear truss in place... It was not that difficult. Any decent paying shop skills be able to do it. Make sure it's impeccably cleaned of grease and dirt first Alex N1084U

The spot welded clamp part number for the TSIO-360-MB was 653337. It is now superseded by this new riveted clamp, 670105, in the Continental parts catalog. I tried to buy a new 653337 and they were also unavailable anywhere. I even put in an order on Air Power for one and they emailed and said it was discontinued and they weren't going to sell them any more and never charged me for it. This is what my old spot-welded V-band clamp looks like, for reference.

That’s literally nothing. It literally says they are not aware of any issues, but if you do have issues, to please report them. nothing to see here let me ask a practical question to the 3 of you. - When all paths to a drop in replacement are exhausted and none are found, what do you think the next step is? It’s NOT “oh I guess we need to use leaded fuel forever”. You’re going to HAVE to do something to make your aircraft compliant with whatever the requirements are, or scrap it. That’s what it is. At least 1 of the 3 of you thinks this is strictly someone else’s problem to figure out financially. And it isn’t, and it never will be.

I had both eyes taken care of several years ago with no issues whatsoever. Couldn’t be happier. I do still need readers.

Laser CNC cutters? And here I am using a handheld router. Thanks for the kind words.

The fastest I saw was 259KT ground speed but 250 was closer to average for the highest tailwind portion. https://www.flightaware.com/live/flight/N5773S/history/20250326/1755Z/KSMX/S35 ATC called at one point to ask what my tailwind was. I should have told them "It's a 30 knot headwind, but I did just install a PowerFlow exhaust!" But I didn't think that quickly.

I'm doing my first annual now, and I've been at the workshop helping out best as I can. Also I have an independent mechanic, he is very friendly and we are building a "friendship & trust" together. With a helpful mechanic owning an aircraft is much more easy! Last tip, open your wallet because you don't know what you will find :-) - Propeller sent for overhaul = New Hub, 3x Bearings and repair of 2 blades (MT PROP) = $15000 - Alternator also sent for 500h inspection (Direct driven) = Need of new Drive coupling and new brushes = $2500 Hopefully no more surprises, but we are almost done. This annual we fixed all small stuff I found or didn't like. Repaired Fuel Sender, so I now can see how much fuel I have in left wing :-) New - Air intake tube to engine (Old was scuffed quite badly) Repaired JPI 701 EDM Display. Replace one of the magnetos with a new SureFly Ignition. New Airfilter after 500h Repaired side wall interior from some small cracks.

@Jim Peace

Thank you very much Rick.

thanks Lance - greatly appreciated

In all honesty unless it’s changed recently, Alaska is well, different. Unless they are flying Commercial etc. a very great many pilots if they ever got their license are probably way over due a flight review and Medical? Neatest Dr is hundreds of miles away. I’m not talking about the people that live in Anchorage etc. Many live out largely by themselves with a Supercub or if they live high off the hog a 180, forget an A&P, where are you going to find one? The rules down here in the lower 48 often just aren’t possible to follow, I think everyone understands that. Now since that accident made the news tge FAA will respond, they have to, but if it didn’t It’s likely nothing would happen as there weren’t any fatalities. Commercial, part 135 of course is different as it should be. I’ve landed my Maule on the AK highway and taxied to the gas station and we ate lunch, they had real long hoses on a couple of the pumps to fuel airplanes, landing on roads is common, try that down here.

1ch116-6 down limit or p6-24014 or 1en1

Its also a really big challenge to find a DPE that will give a practical in any Mooney without Dual Brakes - even at the commercial level. The ones I know won't for a private, but they will in a Piper that has the parking brake lever they can pull from the right seat but of course the Mooney doesn't have this. Was hard to find one that would do the commercial without dual brakes, but more possible than private.

Is there air leakage past rings on any cylinders? I had good luck with the Savvy ring flush procedure. As for compressions being marginal, could be valves or rings. Potentially there are inexpensive mitigations if no major damage has occurred. Some shops are very comfortable lapping valves in place and trying the ring flush, and some look at you like you grew a second head.

No, that's something I just wouldn't do - too much risk. In my case, it's easy to avoid that risk because I have instruction privileges at a local flight school. I can take anyone who is a truly green newbie over to the flight school and put them in the left seat of a 172, which is frankly a better Discovery Flight platform anyway. Over the course of a few flights at the flight school, I might build enough trust with them to get into a different airplane with only one set of brakes. But there is a lot more to that conversation than just the brakes, see below. This is a little awkwardly worded, not sure what you're asking here. I wouldn't hesitate to give instruction in a non-dual-brake Mooney to someone who already held a Private Pilot license. At that point it's reasonable to assume basic competency with the brakes, along with an understanding of the (rare) conditions under which they're needed. It's just transition training, a very common and reasonable operation. If you're talking about a student who is a post-solo but pre-private pilot, transitioning to a Mooney for the remainder of their training, whether or not the Mooney had dual brakes is the least interesting question about such a proposition. I'm not a naysayer about this sort of thing. One can absolutely train for the Private Pilot certificate in a Mooney, and in fact I'm familiar with a person who successfully earned his Private Pilot certificate in a turbo Mooney. But I declined to be involved with that operation for a couple of reasons. One is that it predictably took them a very long time to finish, working in fits and starts. It wound up being a multi-year effort, and to be honest that just didn't sound like any fun to me. More importantly, this person did all their training "naked", because they couldn't find anyone to insure the operation of a turbo Mooney by a student pilot. Even though I carry my own liability insurance for instruction in owner-flown aircraft, the details and dollar amounts just got too far above my comfort level, so I recommended they seek out someone else. Which they did. Another instructor I knew casually took on the training gig, and succeeded. Based on observing their success over time, I did agree to give the student a single "mock check ride" right before their practical test. But at that point, whether the aircraft had dual brakes (I don't even remember at this point) was irrelevant. A J model is less complicated than a K, and perhaps more reasonable for primary training. But I have no idea what the current insurance market looks like for that sort of thing. And whether I would take on such a gig would depend more on the person than on the airplane. In addition to physical and financial risk, I care about the likelihood of success, and whether it's going to be any fun for both of us; and training in an airplane that's not a trainer weighs on those goals to some degree, even if you think Mooneys are cool. I think people who point out in these sorts of threads that the military solos people in an 1100shp complex turbines, inappropriately gloss over the fact that doing so is a full time job for both instructor and student. Most civilian aircraft training is a weekend/afternoon hobby, and it doesn't take much additional overhead to make the hill of success too high to climb.

Yes, the riveted clamps still need to be replaced after two retorques, and as @Rick Junkin mentioned, that's the only clamp allowed since 2004.

My wife has always wanted a plane with a toilet.

Please remove your copilot seat, put it there, and take a picture.

Just got my annual finished. Flew down to Santa Maria to Artcraft Paint to have them take a look at the plane. Chances are pretty good I'll be taking it to them this fall for a full repaint and interior. Some pictures: Some buildups over the Cascades on the return trip today (26 March). They'd been predicting 1/2" hail, but unless something drastic changes I don't see those clouds producing anything that wild. I had a tailwind of up to 60 knots on the return trip at 16,000'. Lake Tahoe on the way North today, from 16,000' Sunset over the low clouds over the ocean on Tuesday evening. (24 March) (OVC 800 at SMX so it was an instrument approach and landing with a tailwind because the other runways have too high of minimums and the circling approach mins are 800'... And I'm not about to do my first circling approach in 7 years in the dark right at minimums) Crater Lake from Tuesday afternoon (25 March):

Lube the hinge bearings with a light oil such as LPS 2 and lube the rod ends with Tri-Flow. It's covered in section 5 of the service and maintenance manual.

I try to lube the flight controls every 30-60 days. Basically if I’m doing my preflight and I’m not in a hurry I’ll grab the spray can I keep in the plane and hit everything that is accessible without unscrewing things. My understanding was that Triflow is the correct lubricant.

By day in the office he constantly put his hands in other people's mouths. By night on the forum he constantly put both of his feet in his own mouth.

Here's a good source for the Service Bulletins: https://www.mooney.com/contact-2/

It is complicated because you not only need to search for Mooney ADs, but you need to search for the engine, propeller, and all the appliances installed. LASAR used to have this neat resource, but I don't believe the new owners have kept it updated. Still it has a lot of information for older ADs and SBs. AD_Log.pdf

I thought that was about the price of a NEW prop!