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Reaper's Wrecking Crew

Here are some of my numbers. I'm flying a 1987 252 with the TSIO 360 MB 210HP engine. I'm reading TAS from the Aspen and the engine numbers from the JPI EDM-900. Most are ROP. All are straight and level, on the autopilot, after some time given to settle in. I often take a picture of the Aspen/G5/JPI in flight which captures this data. TAS - Altitude - OAT - MP - RPM - GPH - %Power 170TAS 10500 10C 28.8MP 2480RPM 14.2GPH 73% 166TAS 10500 13C 27.3MP 2440RPM 13.1GPH 67% 181TAS 16500 3C 29.3MP 2430RPM 14.0GPH 74% 176TAS 12000 13C 30.1MP 2450RPM 13.7GPH 74% 190TAS 21000 -8C 28.4MP 2480RPM 14.4GPH 75% 204TAS 25000 -14C 27.7MP 2490RPM 14.1GPH 74% 176TAS 17500 3C 25.7MP 2430RPM 13.0GPH 65% 159TAS 14000 8C 25.1MP 2480RPM 9.4GPH 61% 185TAS 20000 -6C 25.0MP 2500RPM 12.5GPH 67%

I left Tuesday morning for Denver and arrived late afternoon Denver time. Visited my son Wednesday and the two of us flew home yesterday. Out was at 8500 ft. First stop and with plenty of wind on lading was LXT on the east side of Kansas City, about a 3 hr 45 min flight. From there I flew on to FTG in Denver. A little bumpy for the last 100 miles but not terrible. The runway was wide and long which was why I picked it as it was my first landing at an elevated airport. The visit was great as we toured Denver a little on Wednesday, had a beer in Golden and a nice supper in the evening with my son and his future wife; my son even picked up the tab. My son Adam decided to fly home with me so we planned to leave Thursday early, about 8 am. He wanted to finish a video interview he started several months ago with his 96 year old grandfather back in Cincinnati. Well, he had lots of cameras, tripods etc which he had estimated at about 50 lbs the night before but was probably well over 100 once he had it all together. Borrowed a scale from the FBO and promptly broke it. We had just fueled the plane the night before so had a full load of fuel on board. End result was we left my tool kit, the tripod, bottles of water etc behind as an insurance policy on not being over gross at 5000 ft. Finally heading home at 9500 ft we were cruising at a ground speed of 132 knots and 6.7 gph running lop. I was amazed at this but was afraid to keep it up so rolled it up to 7.4 gph. I'm pretty certain we could have made it home without fueling but I decide to stop at Omar Bradley field in Missouri and fill up at $3.75/gal rather than 5.22 at my home field. Left KMBY and up to 7500 where we picked up a heavy tailwind and 175 knots cruise on the remaining leg. Used flight following all the way out and back; that was great. Gas at LXT as 4.08, at FTG 4.48, at KMBY 3.75 and my home field 5.22.

Ah she's a sweetheart though. Today we flew down to Williston to watch Jason Schappert's presentation on crew resource management. Free pancakes! Going through my logbook, I have 150 hours in my plane so far. That's not bad considering with the exhaust, alternator, and governor, its been down for about 6 months collectively. So averaging about 200 hours a year. I need to get my IFR cert done and finish my IFR training.

OK. Here it is. It's still a dream to fly behind. There is so much more that can't be seen in the photo; the stormscope, all the ADS-B stuff, the FS 510 and 210, the correlation of active and passive traffic that displays TargetTrend on all displays, the new Aeroled lights for taxi and landing that are unbelievably brighter than the regular 4596 lamps...

Thank you everyone for your input. I've settled in on a plan of action. Some will agree, some won't. Let me preface with a few things. I have a good plane that meets my mission. It was great this summer to make I think 2 trips to Idaho, 4 to Utah, and a few to AZ, not to mention some local trips in the 150-200nm range. It's clean, corrosion free (as far as what can be seen) and the engine is sound. I will most likely have this plane for at least 15-20 years at which point if I trade up it will stay in the family for one of my sons to fly. (They have both expressed their interest in flying) So I'm not looking at "what will this upgrade get me when I sell" but rather "how is this upgrade going to benefit me." I think upgrades should be balanced with the value of the plane. While I appreciate those saying go with the 900 or 930, I am reminded of old beater cars I see that have stereo systems in them that are worth 2-3 times the value of the car and every time the base thumps I wonder if a fender is going to fall off... My plane is worth probably around $30k or so and as such I want to put in what will add the functionality that I want without going over the top. Current Round of Upgrades I couldn't justify the additional $1,400 for the 900 plus $1,500 in install costs over the 830. The 900 would get the old instruments out of the panel, but the 830 will do everything I want for about $3,000 less than the 900 (including installation costs). So, the 830 will go into the panel where either the CDI is or the #2 radio. I'll talk with the installer, my preference is to drop the CDI down and put the 830 on top which I think will require moving the intercom. I have an SL 40 coming which can go into the stack. This will give me a very capable engine monitor and a good radio (the 12D has some issues) and all of it without too much expense. I got hooked up with a great deal on the 830 and the SL40. Next Round - Sometime Next Year This one will be the bigger of the two upgrades to get me set for IFR training. My idea of IFR flying is going up or down through the marine layer here or just light stuff flying through the clouds. Check out Mikes video flying in the Bahama's for an idea of what I think looks like "fun, light IFR". Flying in the west during the summer usually means convection and during the winter usually means icing in IMC. I have no desire to ever fly "hard IFR" and if I ever found myself in that situation then it means something went terribly wrong in either my planning, execution of the plan, or both. For me, flying is fun and I'm not looking to ever replace the airlines. Flying in hard IMC conditions is not ever going to qualify as fun to me. The other reason to go after the IFR is because I have always tried to be a "lifelong learner" and after putting 130+ hours on my Mooney in the last ten months I am looking for more training. I'll keep my eyes open for some deals on someones used stuff that they pulled for an upgrade. I have an ancient audio panel so I plan on putting in most likely a PMA8000 to replace it. The Narco 12D will come out and a GNS 430W/480/530W or possibly an IFD440 will go in. Over on the left side there will be a clock going into the panel. Both upgrades should come to around $15,000 which I think is a reasonable number to take what is a good plane and turn it into a good IFR trainer. (It's already a great cross country machine).

My annual runs out at the end of November. Nail biting has commenced. I'm going to use the older mechanic I've been using. He's cheaper and lets me do most of the work. I ordered a set of tires and have an appointment with my local powercoat shop for the wheel halves and yokes. I'm going gloss white on the wheels and flat white on the yokes. Then I'm going to cut out the metal Mooney logos that were sent out and then seal them onto the yoke in jewler's epoxy.

Congratulations!!!! Now go fly!! Make sure you fly the numbers on downwind, base, and final - worst thing you can do is land too fast - she'll operate just fine in slow flight - stay coordinated - go up with an experienced Mooney instructor. Every landing is a go around and if you land, well, bonus. Once you get proficient you can operate a Mooney out of a 2000 foot strip. Don't try that until you know your airplane well. Good luck - go fly - welcome aboard, and there are no stupid questions - this community is here to assist. My first Mooney was a 1967 M20F. Flew it for about 500 hours. Loved it. If you've already flown her more than she did over the last two years - there will be some unexpected maintenance. That's okay and take care of it. It'll work itself out over the first few years with deferred maintenance getting fixed up. Great plane. Now go fly! -Seth

Hello folks, After much planning and some shopping around I bought a nice 74 Executive a week and a half ago. We bought it from a gentleman in Colorado Springs and flew it hope to Dayton over two days taking the opportunity to do some sight seeing along the way. It was like a mini vacation and we started to get to know the airplane. It is pretty amazing. When I was doing my research I was looking at speed numbers, weights, fuel capacity, range and things like that. Now that I am starting to plan and execute flights the capability of this plane is just fantastic. I just transitioned from a Cessna 175 which was a pretty good traveler but this Mooney is great! It feels good that my research paid off. I have a fully IFR outfitted traveling machine that makes good time and uses relatively little fuel to do it. I'm excited! Gerbil

I don't use camguard, but I came across this ad which may be of interest for those who do: https://aslcamguard.com/shop/ $18.71/16 oz.

I’ll bet a coke on that (either way I win ). Wild card is that I’m betting that Don won’t find a way to get a GFC600, and that’s probably a bad bet. I’ll bet that a GFC500 (and the Dynon skyview / autopilot) are available in a Mooney by the end of 2018. You want come coke action?

Chris, Mooney did do a test using your women. For obvious reasons, those pictures were destroyed.

Lots of supervising going on around here

Byron (jetdriven) and I will be there. More shockingly, apparently we will be driving because our Mooney 1. Has no engine, 2. is in Texas (and we're in D.C.). This BBQ better be good and chopping up dead Mooneys sure better be cathartic, because a 2 hr drive is decidedly less fun than a 45 minute flight (Also, a childhood in Pennsylvania is coming back to me... BBQ means "cooked outside" to yankees. To Texans like Byron it has a specific meaning of meat smoked for a number of hours. I will explain to him not to be disappointed if in this context it simply means "cooked outside." He's getting used to this northern living still).

So how does N2 violate the basic laws of physics i.e. Boyles Gas Laws where PV=nRT ?? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Or a fire hydrant.

If a Jet asks nicely if he could cut in front of me I will always accommodate. If he tells me to get out of the way he can go #$%^ himself.

I’m partial to an 80% nitrogen mix...

The second Com isn’t thought about much until you need it. I have a GTN 650 as the primary and had a Narco MK20 D+ as the backup. I lost the 650 on an IFR due to interference caused by a newly installed JPI 900. My Narco decided it was time to take a rest. Made for an interesting flight. I elected to pull the Narco and installed a Garmin GNC 255B. Great radio with nice features. If you intend on going IFR, you will want a decent #2 that you can rely on. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Just got my ppl last week of Sept and decided to go all in. I had posted some of this on the Facebook mooney group but here's a little more since the setting is less personal. My wife and I were in Hawaii the first 2 weeks of Oct and while we were there, the mechanic at KSCA texts me about what is now our plane on EBay. He had seen the log books already and thought it was a good deal. So we bid and at the last second didnt get the win. I had talked with the seller that morning before bidding and texted him after i didnt win, and just asked him to think of us and our cash if the winner didnt work out. He called a few days later and after a few calls, we end up in an agreement to buy his plane. But we're halfway around the world in paradise and he wants paid. I coordinate thru the 6 hr time zone change a wire deposit to be sent and the seller agrees to fly the plane to its new home. He gets there to collect the balance in a cashiers check one of my employees had ran to the field. After a day in the courtesy car running around rural Sidney, my cfi flies him to KCMH to catch his commercial flight out. Incase anyone was wondering how to buy a plane sight unseen with no involvement from half way around the globe. There it is. Just need a few good men involved. Its in the shop for annual now. Engine is good, just a few minor squaks. Airframe should be this coming week. Someone on fb said they are keeping track of "deals" outcomes when bought this way. Ill keep an honest update as things happen. Hoping this goes in the win column. Cant wait for training in my plane. Want to be able to fly my family to ATL for thanksgiving.

Sure enough! Thanks. I had just looked the other day and the later models were missing, but it's there now. (just 11 days old now)

The same occurs with platinum miles... By the time you have sat 100,000 miles, there isn't much drive to go sit in a big airport to go somewhere. Many have sat through 1,000,000 mi. Fortunately they sit in the front rows where the seats are a bit more comfortable.... It is really cool to fly your own Mooney, non-stop, 800 miles..... Best regards, -a-

KFXE $700+ with weeds trimmed.

Don will be installing his gfc600 in July of next year. The gfc500 installs will begin August of next year for the c-k Mooney aircraft. I will be purchasing cases of coke (hopefully the soft drink variety) to hedge my bets

Same here. I fly my Mooney for fun. I've always figured that I get to have 5 more minutes of fun flying my favorite airplane in the world. I always tried to impart that to my students, too. Let the other guy go first, even if he's a jerk. If he's a nice guy, he'll appreciate it. If he's not, starting a confrontation over the radio isn't going to change him- at the end of the day, he'll still be an jerk.

What's that on your feet Al, not shoes

That ain't nothing. Try it with a wood wing.

Thank you Maruader.

These are the ones I know from the photo Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

These are for the J. The early J one matches the 74 F pretty well. What are you looking for? http://mooney.free.fr/Manuels M20J/M20J/Mooney Service Manuel M20J Vol. 2 of 2.pdf

I use the airspeed indicator with temp/altitude compensation window. Best technology that I have... iain

Just chilling

Real travel, not just around the patch and hamburger runs. That's why we fly a Mooney.

And that is not an option at all.

How many of you all are Aggies? Gig' em. Mark '91

Excuses....you just want to go to the Dixie Chicken....

G, your spelling is too good. Sikeston is known for their throwed rolls. Siri is trying to help me with my spelling.... Best regards, -a-

I could guess but it probably wouldn't be any better than your guess. I have a Ph.D. In chemistry so I can discuss ideal gas behavior all day but my expertise is mostly theoretical. Maybe one of the engineers around here can comment on the real world application.

MAube in one year for mooneys. Maybe longer. Here's the thing, what are they doing about ADSB. Because I'm not ripping out my 6500$ transponder that integrated with my GTN750 to install theirs.

I have had some issue with the bolted splice connections between the leads and wiring harness.Sometimes tough to get a good connection with them. In the milli volt range that these run in, it doesn't take much resistance to cause inaccuracy. I think I need to review my CHT 'issues' on this basis. iain

I have a Nitrogen bottle in the hangar and use it to fill tires on theory it's better to use dry N2 rather than oil and water contaminated air from an air compressor. Besides, I had the Nitrogen already from some HVAC work.

Hey Mark, i flew up to KRUT(Rutland, VT) on Wednesday to do some fall hiking. I wanted to check out 65% at 8,500. See photo below. If you figure an additional 2 kts per 1000 ft, you're at 160 at 10.5k. Any plane that can do 160 burning between 10 & 12 gph is nothing to sneeze at. My edm930 is accurate as far as %hp is concerned, the power numbers adjusted to oat do indeed come to 65%. Jack

Fantastic! Do yourself a favor and spend a little time with Karl Ludolph, also based at Xenia. He will teach you how to really and properly fly that plane!

I like N2. Bottle rental is minimal. I use it several times a week at the shop. I've only changed one bottle in 10 years. N2 tends to last longer in tires N2 is more stable. I never need to wait for the damn air compressor to turn off. I can wheel the bottle anyware on the airport. I don't need AC power to fill tires. The pressure is much higher than any air comprsssor. But I don't fault anyone for using compressed air. It's cheap. -Matt

I fly light to heavy IFR - I've been instrument rated for over 15 years. I would never fly with out a second nav/comm. My work plane has dual 430W, my personal plane has a GTN 650/SL 30. I use the second comm on every flight and back up the GPS with ground based navaids enroute and on approaches.

Thanks for the offer. I had written a reply yesterday but it got deleted with the rest. Definitely appreciate the thought though. I ended up flying into Front Range as it had two perpendicular runways to cover the potential wind problem and they were both incredibly long and very wide. Their 100 LL is under 4.50/gal and the tie down is $5 /day. I got in the air about 9:15 AM this morning, stopped on the east side of Kansas City, Lees Summit (boy was it windy) and gas was 4.08/gal, then flew into Denver Front Range. Did flight following the entire trip which was reassuring. Probably head home with my son Thursday morning. I'll post more when I get home. So far a great experience!

Or if it's only indicating 150 MPH instead of 175....

Some photos from today's work on the F model cowling.