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Showing content with the highest reputation on 09/22/2017 in all areas

  1. If you want to live with planes, but don't want to be tied to one location, the Navy has a deal for you:
    6 points
  2. I like his price, hope he gets it. When my '66E gets @Sabremech's cowl and a $15k paint job it will match up fairly well, lower airframe and engine times, similar panel... I'm thing $179,000.
    5 points
  3. It looks to nice to do touch and go landings with.
    5 points
  4. I kinda wish EAA had a different name, because it is a bit misleading. EAA really does support all of General Aviation, and while they do make a special allowance for experimentals (which AOPA does not), they also represent vintage, warbirds, gyrocopters, and even some turbine stuff. At this point, I think EAA actually represents people like me and Gus better than AOPA does. (Sorry if I'm speaking inappropriately, BTW.) But, like a lot of others, I am still a member of AOPA, EAA, and MAPA. If I had to drop any of those- it would be AOPA in a heart beat. (And I'm an AOPA Airport rep, to boot.)
    3 points
  5. Hank, anyone with a wife is going to be forced into an "immodest home". Most of us would be perfectly happy to live in our hangars....it's those darn wives! They push up the cost of everything. Guess which one is a husband hangar and which is a wife hangar....?
    3 points
  6. We moved to C77 in May. We have a modest house (2400ftsq), an 800 ftsq shop and a 3000 ftsq hanger. All attached. $366K I LOVE living on an airpark, but ours is more like KOSH all year. Very active EAA chapter. Many vintage airplanes, the occasional B-17 flyover. Just a couple days ago we had a Ford Trimotor do a low pass. It's great to be able to have the plane close! I'm with you on the golf. Many airparks are snooty. Not my cup of tea. There are good ones out there though. Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
    3 points
  7. I moved to Florida, 7FL6 about 10 years ago and really enjoying Spruce Creek. The Creek has about 1600 properties including hangar homes, condos, golf course homes and commercial hangars. The 4000 ft X 175 ft runway was just repaved about a month ago. Spruce Creek also has a nice 18 hole golf course if you play golf. The airport has a GPS approach, 2 self serve pumps 100LL and Jet A. PM me if you need more info. Buddy
    3 points
  8. "Hold my beer and watch this."
    3 points
  9. Seth, While you are at it, perhaps you could suggest they have an option of adding recognition/taxi/landing light in the forward section of the wingtip. I use the MAXX combination LED lights in the clear section of the regular Mooney “sculptured” wing tip. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    3 points
  10. Cool story here: http://www.kansas.com/news/business/article174600981.html I never knew! Hard to imagine that kind of company loyalty these days. I know that was a great place to work back in the good ol days, as was Mooney. Sent from my LG-US996 using Tapatalk
    2 points
  11. Yeah, I am definitely a Mooney booster. Its a pretty easily bragged on airplane. I hope they stay in business and continue to make airplanes, because they make good ones.
    2 points
  12. We can't do much about the fact that most pilots start out in Cessnas or Pipers. (Unless you count the short lived M20D, Mooney always had the handicap of not having flight schools using their planes.) Maybe the M10 will pan out as a popular trainer but that's years down the road so not a reasonable strategy for "getting people in planes". Nor are we going to have a national or international network of stocking dealers with a half dozen $750,000 demos parked on the showroom floor in the color of your choice. So... I'm thinking @mooneygirl's grass roots efforts, Mooney Girls, Ambassadors, Right Seat Ready, a Mooney presence at AOPA Regional Fly Ins, AOPA Blog, and @mike_elliott & @rocketman' efforts to better the breed are helping to tell the Mooney story. If there are 9000 Mooney owners who are happy enough with the product to be owners they/we can help. For my part I start by exaggerating the roominess of the back seat in the "original" length Mooneys while mocking Arrows, C182s, and plastic airplanes for their lack of speed, economy, fixed gear, and general ugliness. More seriously, I helped get another MSC recognized, a real one who loves Mooneys. And I try to challenge the nattering nabobs of negativism that pop up here from time to time. I am very grateful that Mooney was rescued from complete dismantling less than 5 years ago. I am sure than behind their brave public face that staying afloat long enough to become a serious competitor to Cirrus is a tough lift. I can't do much to make their load lighter but I sure am not going to throw any extra bricks on their hod.
    2 points
  13. I can't say I disagree with the folks who no longer support AOPA, but I'd feel a whole lot better if they were supporting an alternative. General Aviation is besieged on all sides by Taxes, fees, insurance, exploitive FBO's, the govenment regulators, the ATA.....you name 'em, they're against us. And the only organization we have that purports to support general aviation (not just a part of it, like EAA, or MAPA), is AOPA. As @WilliamR said, we need to become more involved. It is, indeed, "our fight".
    2 points
  14. Vref is not up to date to deal the avionics and other mods and upgrades in a '66E. FWIW, Jimmy Garrison''s valuation sheet in Mooney Flyer has my '66E over $100k. I'll point out again that the owner did not post his plane here on MS, someone else linked it from the agent's ad. It is not smart to give the parrots who live here a price on anything.
    2 points
  15. Are you calling my C a Pinto?
    2 points
  16. Looks like the secret "Hard to Start" switches which so many IO-360 engines are equipped with. All those guys who have the "technique" to do hot starts know about these switches, but keep the secret to themselves. Shhhhhh!
    2 points
  17. So ... The Mooney is as put together as she's going to be for right now. The stormscope (WX-1000) works. The autopilot (S-Tec 30) works and is connected to track VOR/LOC or GPS (deviation only, not GPSS); Tucson Aero performed an internal repair on the S-Tec computer (a plastic universal joint was bad; $70 fix). The Garmin SL30 (sourced from a MooneySpacer) works great, and my non-standard install (DB25 pass through in line between the PM2000 intercom and existing headset etc. wiring, with milspec multiconnector wiring split off to patch in the SL30; no audio panel, for now, though I have a GMA340 ready for install‡) is signed off and blessed. Weight and balance was updated. The to/from flag assembly on the well-used IND-351 I also got off a MooneySpacer (for pennies) had failed*, and TA wouldn't work on the old plastic Collins stuff; PSI would ($700 at the top end) but between that and the new hole they were going to have to put in the panel for a back course annunciator light to be fully IFR legal wasn't worth it to me; I sourced a pristine MD-200-306 on eBay for $1300 (mid-range for what they're going for, and well under what Wentworth is quoting for a used unit). The repaired GX55 is still working great, and as long as the track doesn't change more than 10° or so at any given waypoint, I can fly long distances without touching the controls. Next up will be a panel redo with engine monitor, and probably Garmin G5s (though that might wait for the GPS install). But the immediate need is a blind encoder. I keep losing my Mode C (but not the Mode A component) on my transponder, a new-to-me but tested working pristine KT76A. Tucson Aero checked connectors, wiring and the encoder to 16 k/ft hot/cold as a system, and never saw a problem (while noting via email that the encoder in there now "is a Narco Gillham and that would be suspect at this time"). I'm going to have the encoder swapped locally. I was looking at the SSD120-35C-RS232, which TA says is as good as any other selection. It's RS-232 (future) and grey code (KT76A), and, cheap ($215). A self-styled avionics guru at the local FBO vehemently suggested I go with the SSD120-30N-RS232 instead ($349), and that the 35C was a "piece of junk." Any opinions? Alternatives? (Still not sure if I'll go GTX-345 or just slap a GDL-82 on the back of the KT76A...) It's been a trip so far: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B3wWtj5n3Y6QQTFhUV9CdG1IV3c I have 63.4 hours in her at this point, despite it being down for a month with no radios (expected when I bought it; the Terra equipment was prehistoric), then down for a week with a flat nose tire (sigh), then in Tucson for six weeks. ‡ When I fix up the interior, I'll run new wiring that will work with the Garmin audio panel, and when I have a second source of audio (GTN-650), I'll install it along with that hardware. * But it enabled me to fly a couple of critical Pilots n' Paws missions in actual IMC down to minimums before it died, so, several rescue dogs say "thanks!"
    2 points
  18. Those are legal for anti collision but it really is annoying to other pilots with airplanes taxiing by with strobes on, especially at night. hazardous in some instances, actually. You can always spot a cirrus, they're mostly the ones taxiing around with strobes on.
    2 points
  19. What a piece of junk! Its located in Florida and we all know that means you should run not walk away from it
    2 points
  20. With your finances and 1100 SMOH, I'd look at the IRAN. Stipulate you want to keep your cylinders, but probably go for new rings, hone, and valve seats. You're probably looking at a new cam and lifters after which your engine will likely go to 2500 hours easy.
    1 point
  21. Asking friends that are mechanically inclined to help rebuild your engine is a poor idea imo. Any reasonable IA would be running from a proposition like that.
    1 point
  22. Thank you Scott. I'll do what I can. I don't really consider myself very mechanical, but I do have friends who are and I can turn a screw. And yeah, GoFundMe's do get annoying if they are so prevalent for every little thing. And you're right, kind of humorous...help me fix my airplane, friends! That said, I wouldn't really promote it aside from friends who I've happily given many rides in and have never asked for anything in return. In those scenarios, I may be inclined to help and throw in. As far as a web skills, I'll do my best to hustle and see what I can do. I love Mooney's and aviation too much to throw in the towel.
    1 point
  23. You're in a pickle. I hate the gofundme idea that seems so prevalent now, especially with folks in your age group. Hard to get sympathy from people to get your airplane fixed. Having said that, you need to earn money and you seem willing to hustle with a marketable skill. I'm not in that industry, but it is surely freelance friendly, so figure out how to find side jobs and make some money. If you're reasonably mechanical and have a friendly licensed mechanic to supervise, you can do a lot of the work yourself and save many thousands. You can also spec out a field overhaul with a local mechanic, and again do a lot of the labor yourself. These engines are very simple. You can remove it, disassemble it, and send parts out for inspection/overhaul as required yourself. I'd have a plan with a mechanic before doing this, though! Often a field overhaul will turn out better than a factory exchange since you can get things balanced, flow matched, etc versus just slapping parts together. Maybe there is a local shop that will trade labor with you for web stuff, but that is a long shot IMO. I hope that helps. This is a good opportunity for sweat equity if you're inclined, and you'll learn a lot about your engine and plane. My bet is your cam is failing and you might be able to get away with replacing it and the lifters and bearings. Sent from my LG-US996 using Tapatalk
    1 point
  24. I am no marketing expert, but I know this -- compared to Cessna, Piper and even Cirrus, too few potential airplane buyers have flown or had the opportunity to get familiar with Mooneys. When I was in the market for my first plane I didn't even consider a Mooney (due to lack of familiarity) until my wife pointed one out at the airport and said "I like that one." Ironically, when I called the local factory authorized Mooney brokers, the first guy I spoke with told me that a Mooney was too much for a newer pilot to handle. Can you imagine a Cirrus sales rep every saying that to a prospective buyer?? Long story short, test flew a J with a different broker and made an offer the next day. Sold the J for an Ovation 3 years later. Mooney needs to invest in some mechanism to get prospective buyers familiar with and into their airplanes. You don't have to steal much business from Cirrus to start getting momentum. But pictures in magazines is not going to get it done. Getting people in planes will.
    1 point
  25. I understand. My AOPA # is 393927. That's seared in my memory for some long forgotten reason and goes back to 1969. I pay EAA dues. I know why, to park at KOSH. I stay in MAPA, and AOPA because I always have and because IR1. I also pay AARP and Golf Club dues for practically no reason at all. But I save a lot not contributing to the GOP. It's nice to live like a wealthy American.
    1 point
  26. Cliffy, you might get more traction if you don't use words like stupid and BS (yelling/bold, no less). Also, there are at least a few pilots on that board not associated with FBO's or AOPA. One of those members owns a Mooney, in fact. Another flies Angel Flight missions is his Piper Malibu. Sure, those pilots are CEOs and former CEOs. So what? I also doubt the fees are on the backs of small airplane owners for the benefit of large jet owners. I know the fees paid flying the Beechjet I work with are much higher (almost a logarithmic function) than for my Mooney for the same airport and FBO despite taking up only twice the space and the same number of people using the facilities (usually just three of us in the jet). Fueling time is not much different either. I thought that disparity was typical. The real focus should be airports that receive fed funds should also have public access (without fees) and FBOs should be required to publish all fees and fuel rates. You kind of do that, but get wrapped up in a bit of class warfare and a diatribe on why you don't like large "jet center" FBOs. Level headed, clear direction will often win the day. Or, I'm just absolutely full of crap. Either way. William
    1 point
  27. I live near 7s5 and know a couple people who live there. I never asked about details, but they seemed to enjoy it. There's no golf course either. The houses go from not-so-modest to not-quite-excessive. Prices seem to be in the $275k - $550k range. Huge EAA chapter on the field, and a ton of RV's since Van's is up in UAO about 30 miles away. I've never considered it because of where I work, but it's a nice fantasy. I imagine the biggest drawback is no instrument approaches on the really bad weather days here, but that actually happens less often then most people think--ceilings in the Willamette Valley are generally 2000-5000 AGL when it is raining, so you can do an approach to nearby SLE or CVO and then scud run home. Income and property taxes in OR are relatively high, but remember, no sales tax. That's huge if you buy a plane Overall, I think OR ends up in the middle in terms of tax burden.
    1 point
  28. "Everyone can drive" but Nobody needs a $100,000 '55 Chevy. Or a $130,000 Boeing Stearman or a $4,500,000 North American P51. An updated, classic airplane be it a Bonanza, a Comanche, or a Mooney whose bones are essentially the same as the newest models can provide excellent transportation as well as the type of satisfaction Jay Leno gets from his impractical, obsolete cars and bikes at a fraction of the cost in mad money.
    1 point
  29. Here is a nice hangar and RV (toy) parking garage that happens to have a modest house attached . Isn't the hangar more important. I have a lot on the same airport. All depends on what your definition of "modest" is and what part of the country you wish to live in. Yes, if you are addicted to flying then living on an airport can make a great place to live among other addicts. https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/1135-W-4390-S_Hurricane_UT_84737_M23803-74599?ex=UT608272960
    1 point
  30. In my own limited research, "modest home" and "airpark home" are in different universes. Once i saw that, I quit looking, so your experience may well be different. Let us know what you find, it may only be a difference in definition of "modest."
    1 point
  31. This is a potassium lactate aerosol. May result in damage to electronics, has a relatively short shelf life, will freeze under 20F, and does not meet any ANSI/UL standards. Other than that, it will likely work better than a dry extinguisher but not as well as Halon on an electrical fire.
    1 point
  32. Same LEDS, I did not sync them, I personally like the apparent randomness (like a Christmas tree).
    1 point
  33. Look guys, and gals, pricing ideas may not have caught up with reality. For all our over 30+ year old M20E-Ks the model and year is not the biggest value factor. The buyer will have to factor in what she's going to spend after the initial investment. Condition, engine time, and panel are more important than model and year. Now, if someone is happy to drive around in a Pinto and pat himself on the back that he's only got $12 invested in his wheels and he could sell it at a profit, good for him.
    1 point
  34. Well Rob, there is a N # I want that becomes available in the next couple days. I'm assuming it'll be snagged by Short N Numbers though. Ill call the DOT OIG and file a compliant if they end up grabbing it. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    1 point
  35. I’m one of those pilots. No rotating beacon so legally I need to have the strobes on while moving. Pretty sure I can still turn them off if it adversely impacts visibility.
    1 point
  36. Baxsie, thanks for sharing your addiction! Best regards, -a-
    1 point
  37. I think this E has gone beyond Super. I'd say Ultra, but Mooney already snagged that one I will say that I didn't see AC controls, so that E is going to be Super hot in the summer with that paint job. Other than the paint, what was done to that E would be what I would do to The Mistress if I hit the lottery. IIRC, you can add AC to an E for 30 AMU--they should have gone all the way.
    1 point
  38. I find it interesting this one keeps rolling. I am STRONGLY in the don't do touch and goes in MY airplane. That's my operation. I think it is a legit operation to do so, but I feel like in the long run for my own operation its asking for it. Its not paticularly dangerous to gear up while rolling down the runway, so I am not worried if that's what you want to do....haha - anyway not kidding around Ill do what I want and you guys do what you want and this is one where we really don't need to agree but it is interesting hearing each others opinions - and we do seem to hold them strongly.
    1 point
  39. It's not that touch and goes are unsafe. They just expose the pilot to additional risk. It should be ok to discuss risk factors.
    1 point
  40. 1 point
  41. If the mission is aerial photography I can think of worse platforms than the Mooney, but not too many.
    1 point
  42. Generally speaking, you don't need to worry about a carburetor fire if you pump while cranking. The intake strokes are more than sufficient to pull the fuel into the cylinders. I worry when I hear about people pumping 5-6 times before cranking. That's a lot of fuel to shoot into the intake and then have gravity drop it back into the carburetor, just waiting for heat or a back fire to spark it off.
    1 point
  43. And 99% of the folks here. The factory is running, which it wasn't when I bought my old E 6 years ago, the company has delivered a couple of wonderful planes and it is present at KOSH, SnF, Vegas, etc., it is running full page ads in several mags. It will man up at both the MAPA convention an Summit next week. If you think the KOSH display was weak you were not there in '16. I spent a fair amount of time there both years as Nancy helped @mooneygirl in her booth. There was no comparison with staffing from Kerrville, enthusiasm, and materials. I suppose their Sales and Marketing outlays have exceeded their gross revenues. They fired the dimwit CEO who had announced the M10 cancellation at SnF, cut off factory tours, fired Tom, and in general p*ssed off most of the long time employees. Let's give the lady a chance to get the right folks in the right slots. We owners are all benefiting from her investment.
    1 point
  44. Bad battery? The landing light etc load along with the gear causing voltage to drop momentarily?
    1 point
  45. A small update. We have had the accelerator pump tested and it works fine. Will check out the shower of sparks during the next scheduled maintenance. I have several pilots fly the airplane as I don´t create enough flight time currently due to other comitments. It´s only two of us who have problems starting. What is weird though is that the other 3 each use totally different procedures to start it but get it to run every time. One uses fuel pump on, wait for pressure build up, fuel pump off, pump 5-6 times and then engage the starter with throttle 1/4 inch open. Another runs the fuel pump, does not prime at all but pumps the throttle slowly while cranking. Takes him 4-5 blades to start. That is my mechanic who does it this way. I think the problem has to do with too few fuel in the engine when I do it. I am scared of carb fire so I did maybe not prime enough. I will try the method my mechanic suggested and see what I can achieve. Thanks for the tips regarding clogged pump. Will have that checked yet again.
    1 point
  46. I'm betting production costs, tax structure, bureaucratic roadblocks, labor rates, and just about everything else are a lot more favorable in Texas than in California!
    1 point
  47. carusoam said: How much material did you need for your car? Certainly less than $1000, it is an automotive product, so it is low cost: https://smile.amazon.com/s/ref=?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=dynapad+by+dynamat carusoam said: Did you focus on the interior of the car only? Since we did not have weight, flammability or regulatory issues, we covered the interior floor, some parts of the doors, and the sunroof. We used a 1" foil-faced marine product on the engine side of the firewall. Since there was room and we had material, we also used the 1" marine material in the side panels beside the rear seat. bradp said: You want closed cell foam that won't absorb water. I think so. For the car, we covered every bit of a surface we could. For an airplane, I think you would want to do small patches in the center of panels that have vibration or resonance. I would only apply this kind of material to a finished panel -- for the car that is epoxy primer+panit. Not sure what the aviation equivalent would be. I guess if you did a couple panels with a self-adhesive product, you could remove it at the next annual to check for corrosion? Here are some photos of the car installation: Here are some of the relevant posts from the build thread: Doors: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7384405#7384405 Floor: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7605329#7605329 Sunroof: http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7659656#7659656 With the weight penalty and regulatory requirements of certified aircraft, I am not sure that this approach would be useful for airplanes. Just a thought from a similar sound reduction project.
    1 point
  48. We live in a free country. We are free to make our own choices on just about everything. Nobody is forcing anybody to do touch and gos. I have no animosity for people who do touch and gos or for people who don't want to do them. It just seems a bit strange to me. Sense the first day I had my hands on the controls of an airplane in '78 I thought that touch and gos were a normal part of flight training and didn't consider them to be a hazard until I got here.
    1 point
  49. Lee, who did you talk to at Mooney? Was it Frank Kehner? The comment about upgrading to NXi is non-sensical as all you need is GDU software version 15x+. Now, it's true that Mooney doesn't currently support this version in their legacy G1000 fleet. Whether or not they plan to do the testing to support this upgrade is a question, but Frank told me when I was down there a few weeks ago that it's on the drawing boards. But it's equally true that Mooney has done a much better job than other manufacturers on getting the latest Mooney build (0401-034) to a point where it can use the WAAS source from the GIA 63Ws for the ADS-B position. I just installed the GTX-345R on top of my WAAS upgrade and it works beautifully...passed my ADS-B validation flight on the first try to get my $500 rebate from the FAA. I had always planned on keeping my XM weather subscription anyway because I think it's better coverage than FIS-B, but I do have a Stratus w/FF that I use to compare the two. So the lack of FIS-B on the G1000 is no big deal. I can't get the Bluetooth from the 345 to sync up with my iPad/iPhone in the cockpit, but this was also a known problem due to too much interference from all the electronics in the tail section. But again, no great loss as I already have the Stratus, which gives me a totally independent backup system. Belts and suspenders, you know... So to sum up, in the last six months I have done the WAAS upgrade to my G1000/S-TEC55x bird for $23K, plus the ADS-B upgrade for $5.8K (after rebate), and for less than $30K I am totally compliant and can fly LPV approaches hands-off to minimums. At the end of the day, I'd say that Mooney has done a fine job stepping up to the plate and supporting these planes.
    1 point
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