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I am guessing you all know where this is headed...... My plan was to replace the KT76a with a Stratus ESGi since I didn't have any WAAS position source installed. Between the Superbowl Traffic/TFR's and the wonderful winter weather in Minnesota I scheduled the upgrade for the first week of February. The plan was to remove the KLN89b and install the new Stratus in it's place. I also figured it was a good time to remove the ADF. That would leave the center stack free for a future upgrades. What I didn't realize was how much work was required just to pull the those three radios and run new Coax for the WAAS antenna sorry for the upside down image, no matter what I did the the photo MooneySpace rotated it upside down (note to admin, please fix or add rotate controls) Rather than pay to put the panel back together now and redo it again in a year I bit the bullet and replaced almost everything. Avidyne AMX-240 Audio panel, IFD-550 and IFD-440 navigators, and the Stratus ESGi ADSB transponder. Good measure I installed a used Insight engine monitor too. In a major case of "while your in there" I also had the attitude gryo overhauled and the vacuum hoses replaced, carpets were ordered from SCS Interiors, and I ordered the DIY interior repair kit from Bruce Jaeger to spruce up the interior plastics. I may be broke now, but it is an amazing transformation. I can't wait to fly to SUN-N-FUN and actually file /G. I didn't realize how bad the old KX-170b's were getting until I was able to pickup up ATIS 60+ miles out.

Its not a fair question for me , as I am an A@P and do my own maintenance and decide on what to defer , The Bonanza is a lot easier to work on , with lots of room and a cowl that opens like a cars hood....... All things considered I think they are comparable , with the exception of the overhaul cost , The Bo engine is 25% more at overhaul , They say cylinders last longer in the Lyc. but I haven't seen it , because I usually run at 60 to 65% in either.... As far as holding value , its all about condition..... Its better to buy more plane and grow into it , than buy less and then have to upgrade in 5 years...... Look at your mission , Mission decides airframe , not the other way around...... The fact that I did not get crucified on this thread , probably means I am on point in my descriptions....... And I do enjoy my Mooney....... I just enjoy my Beech more......

Well, It's been quite a while since I've posted on this subject but thought this weeks progress might be interesting for some of you that have been interested in the project. All the body work is done and now it's getting some color. A lot of the prep work for the interior has been completed during the last 6 weeks as well. I have a very unique paint scheme that Cris at Scheme Designers "NAILED" and Brad (Airframes, Inc) and his painter are very excited about. Something different than the typical airplane paint scheme. I will elaborate later as that takes shape on the airplane, but for now we're at least getting some colors. Tom

This has got to be the stupidest question ever asked on this site. You get on the Mooney site asking which airplane to buy. Duh.

Bringing back an oldie, but wanted to follow-up and close the loop as I FINALLY got it fixed after 8 months of not having a functional AP. I wasn't in a huge hurry, because I enjoy flying it and the ~180 hours or so of hand flying in that time period has probably been good for me. But, I'm getting ready for my IFR checkride and wanted to have it functional and get some experience with it, in case I really need it some day. After months of trying to get the local avionics shop at my field to troubleshoot it in earnest as well as trying to even get a return call/email from a shop at Centennial where I travel frequently, I finally threw in the towel. I called Century directly on Tuesday and asked if I could just bring the plane to them and get it fixed. They said come on down. I went to Mineral Wells Wed evening and they pulled it into their hangar first thing Thurs while I hung out in their lounge with another gentleman who did the same thing. They spent a few minutes troubleshooting, then pulled the AI and walked it across the street to the factory. A couple hours later, it came back, rebuilt and with a clean bill of health. One of their techs went up with me, calibrated it in the air, then gave me a tutorial on how to use all the functions, followed by programming up and letting the plane fly a full RNAV/LPV approach down to minimums (practice approach) and it worked flawlessly. Left Mineral Wells and was back home in Abq on Thurs night. In my 10 short months of airplane ownership, I seem to have had a pretty constant string of maintenance/repair experiences that were, let's say, 'meh'. Mostly over-promise and under-deliver with a few that just flat out lie to get you off the phone with no intention of actually following through on their promises. This experience, however, was as good as it gets! Truly great people at Century (Matt, the service manager, especially) and the super friendly folks at the FBO, etc. Wish I had done it sooner and for anyone in a similar situation (unable to get qualified local help to fix it), I'd highly recommend this option. Cheers! Vance

This is the only thing I have to disagree with in Alan’s comparison. If you are tall the Mooney wins in front seat comfort. I love Bonanzas but at 6’3” I don’t fit well in the front. In the Mooney I can slide the seat back in cruise and fully stretch out my legs without touching the pedals. Alan looked comfortable enough in @201er‘s video heading to the Summit . What ever you end up with, get a CO monitor! cheers, Dan

I own both , The Mooney is a good plane for economy , As far as a sports car , I have never heard of an Aerobatic Mooney , There are quite a few Aerobatic Bonanzas..... You be the judge.....The V-35 can have a CG Issue , when reaching 1/4 tanks , as fuel burns , the CG moves rearwards The useful load on most Bonanzas is about 1200 UL , most J Mooneys 950 , Personally , I do not like running either at MGTOW , The Bonanza is a true 4 place aircraft , The Mooney is not .... The V tail Beeches post 64 run about 175 KTAS at 7500 ft , The J Mooneys are about 155 KTAS at 7500 feet .... On trips shorter than 200 NM 20 kts is not a big deal , On 500 Nm trips the extra 20 kts is huge.... The Beech will burn about 15 GPH on the rich side , The M20J will run about 10 on the rich side ... The Beech carries 80 gallons standard , the Mooney J I believe is 62 , Both can get extended fuel , The Beech fuel system is superior in that it uses bladders , they are cheap to service , and generally last about 40 years .... You will NOT get that type of service from wet wings , The Beech is MUCH more comfortable in the front seats , and a Zillion times better for the rear seat passengers , It also has about twice the baggage space.... The landing gear retract systems are similar , electro mechanical , but the gear on the Mooney is expensive to maintain , as the pucks must be replaced every 10 to 15 years at 2000 dollars average , The Beech uses Oleo struts , which are superior not only in function , but as well as a maintenance......You will hear people say that Beech parts are expensive , The one positive is that the Beech is built better than every other GA aircraft and you are not using parts to the degree of most other aircraft , On a positive note , Mooney comes in a not so distant 2nd as far as quality build , So parts for the most part are not a big issue..... People try to compare these aircraft Apples to Apples , They are not so similar , YOU have to decide what your mission is , mission determines the airplane .... The budget at 130 will allow you to get a lot of airplane , I recommend you fly both for a 200 NM trip , and decide which is for you....... I will venture to say though , if economy is first on your list , I would gravitate towards the Mooney , economy should not be first on your list..... And fair warning , If you bring your wife shopping , she will make you buy the Bonanza , Also the Bonanza , is a much easier plane to operate and land , also a lot more responsive on the controls..... And at 550 lbs heavier (stock) you can stc it to 900 lbs heavier , It is a much more stable aircraft....

Or get a TBM and have a 3rd and 4th [emoji2]

That'll buff out.

A bit?! Alan uses two seat pillows so he can see over the glareshield and double rudder pedal extensions so he can reach the pedals!

Glad you've found help and good people. I have probably seen your posts, but have zero recollection of where you are based (if I ever knew). Flying any airplane doesn't require a degree, but training is always beneficial. I'm just surprised that a multi-year owner doesn't know what the static drain button is, and despite this missing knowledge is proud to never have received any model-specific training (where it would have been covered on the very first preflight inspection). On the other hand, I applaud your asking about unfamiliar things, it's a great way to learn. See you 'round the pattern somewhere, if we're in the same part of the world at the same time. There's a lot less badgering here than I've seen on other aviation sites, although some people do get things hung in their craw from time to time. We all do, it's part of being human; some deal with it better than others.

No pictures, but I went out to get some landings in for night currency. Mine would have expired today and we will be making a trip to AZ arriving after dark this weekend. Got to the hangar and did preflight and then cleaned her up while waiting for darkness to arrive... While sitting in the run up area going through everything another Mooney came on the frequency taxiing down from the west end. Nobody else on the radio so I took the chance to invite him to the KPRB Fly In (we have to get more planes than those Texas folk). He didn't know about it but is based out of San Luis Obispo so said he will probably come. After getting my landings in, fueling her up, and putting her away I drove around and slipped invitations to the fly in under the hangar doors where I know two Mooneys are on the field and then left invitations on three more that are tied down, slipping them between the flap and the wing, sticking out where they will see it when they go to step up in the wing walk. (Did I mention the effort to get more planes out than the Texas people? )

I haven't used anything but ForeFlight for weather briefings in the last five years or so. It's given in plain English, everything is decoded, the times are local, and there are pictures as opposed to charts. What's not to like?

My commute this morning

That's just not practical in a short body. To get in and out of the left seat, it really needs to be all the way back, which means touching the back seat. My wife always asks if she is clear to slide her seat back after I shut down, and its quick and easy to move anything on the floor out of the way.

You can keep the air driven or replace with an L3 500, Sandia (with field approval), G5 (with a kind installer), a lifesaver (with backup battery), or any electrically driven unit if you have dual batteries/alternator/bus.

Recently when planning a flight I saw this message. While DUATS is not a perfect system I use it religiously for filing flight plans and for weather briefings. I know it's a learning curve but I dislike the new system they are pushing. My dislikes are: Weather briefing are all in UTC no conversion to standard local times. I really hate converting back and forth. I understand the reasoning for UTC but for me and I think most of us we don't change time zones fast enough for it to matter. I can't get a regular low level weather briefing if I put my departure time too far in the future. Again I like looking at the regular full briefing even though I know my flight is a day or more away. I haven't been able to look at 3 different altitudes for time in route and then I can decide which is best for me. Yes they have an optimization mode but I rater do that. It does not automatically fill in your time in route to you flight plan you have to manually enter that. There are other things too but these are the main one I have seen so far. The FAA will discontinue the Direct User Access Terminal Service (DUATS II) Program, effective May 16, 2018. Internet services, including access to weather and aeronautical information, flight plan filing and automated services will remain available at no charge to pilots at www.1800wxbrief.com. To continue to receive free services, users are encouraged to register with www.1800wxbrief.com. The FAA will work with current DUATS II providers on transition activities, including conducting pilot outreach, establishing commercial interfaces, and providing user migration assistance.

David, I think Brian said it best above. " Having said that, buying the right plane (any make) that has been taken care of is critical." I think the maintenance and annuals will be very close if the airplanes are clean and well maintained. ALL airplanes have expensive parts that can fail/break. You will have the best luck (maintenance cost wise) finding a well maintained and frequently flown airplane. @flight2000 That is a gorgeous E33! Cheers, Dan

The Mooney’s annual is virtually finished and should be done and signed off Monday. Just work on that April 14th weather and we will be there.

The tank reseal is holding up like a champ my friend. Never got around to doing the left one because I decided to fly her more this year rather than being a picky OCD owner I've been flying close to 10 hours a week lately. God I love that Mooney!!!! I'm super sad to let her go. Her new owner will be picking her up soon and every time I fly her I regret it a little more. I'm only letting her go because I'm about to retire so that I can enjoy some family time after 20 years in the Army. Taking a huge pay cut wasn't an easy decision but I'm ready to enjoy the family not that I'm getting old. Lol! Besides, the pay cut will only be for a few years and I'll be back on track. I'll be able to buy another Mooney then. Maybe a J model this time Thank you for being one of the most amazing people who made owning a Mooney a great experience bud Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

We are still trying to receive confirmation that this was in fact the plane owner Gordon Holley that perished and in fact if he is survived by his wife/SO Patricia Holley. If anyone knows for a fact that it was indeed Gordon who was in the plane, please let me know. I have reached out to Jolie and Phil Corman to see if they knew him and they did not. Perhaps one of the other California pilots knows Gordon.

Are you saying that a bonanza is more stable than a Mooney? If so I disagree.. Mooney does not have the dutch roll that Bonanzas do and if you are hand flying in imc conditions and divert your attention to look for your pencil or program an approach on the GPS you dont find yourself in a steeply banked dive at red line like you might in a Bonanza.

Well, I thought it was funny, and human. My brain works the same way. I can do the math in my head, but getting the commas and the decimal point in the right place is a chore. Easiest to just mentally step back and say, what should it be, 10,000 or 1,000,000. If I do it with a calculator or computer or even on paper, it’s not ever wrong, which is what I do when there is time and it matters. In all seriousness, this is an important pilot skill, knowing in what operations the pilot is prone to error more than in others, and knowing that when it matters, the pilot needs to check his work in those areas

OK then. never mind.

OP has a M20C, with only one sender per tank.

54 years of flying Mooneys, I’ve never encountered spring loaded wing buttons. I guess that tells me I’ve only flown those made in ‘60’s. I can’t wait to move on to one of those button jobs. Sigh

I've linked the album on Google photos, some of them seem not to want to load when hotlinked... https://photos.app.goo.gl/vNeY0Ik22SxdQu362 Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk

How much are Beech bladders? Not every Mooney needs a reseal, mine has been patched once and she is 40 years old. Hangared planes last much longer, every time I’ve seen a leaking Mooney, it sat outside. We need another poll to see what the lifespan of sealant jobs is.

Pucks last longer on short bodies and less on long bodies due to the weight differences. I’m guessing short bodies last 20+ years, long bodies 12-. We should do a poll.

In addition I keep a small pack with basic survival gear and always pack as if we will spend a night outdoors (more pertinent for the winter months). Contents: - knife - cord - fire starting materials / signal mirror - shelter (tarpaulin and space blankets) - first aid kit - water purification - PLB -YMMV All fits in what’s essentially a kids size backpack and is about 8 lbs.

A fair comparison of drag coefficients is look at a 285hp S35 Bonanza which can cruise at 172-175 knots while a 280 HP Ovation can do, what, 190kt?

YD is for the tail wag. the hardware for electric trim is mostly the same, just add the controller to the KAP/KFC... like adding the altitude pre select device... Mooneys have pretty good stability in that axis. Even with the shortest body. PP thoughts only... -a-

Thanks for posting, Bob. I'll definitely give FltPlan.com a try since I already use the FltPlanGo App.

Ok, so, we are thinking sometime in July or August for the Fly-In here in Lakeport. We are looking to be there in Paso Robles and I may be speaking at lunchtime on ADS-B Solutions. Let me know what dates work for everyone for the Fly-In!!!!

I used DUATS for a while 5 or 6 years ago but gravitated to fltplan.com which I liked better. I now use Garmin Pilot because I have a GTN and FS510 and a couple of Android devices that play nice together. I have used the wxbrief but I find I usually go to fltplan.com when I am planning a long trip several days in the future because it's easy to get a feel for wx systems.

Curmudgeon complaint coming... Before apps existed, DUATS is what I learned to use for on-line weather and no that I had a record of a weather briefing before a flight. Quirky or not, I knew where to find everything on their site. Like the OP, I have not liked the WXBrief interface when I tried it.

Not long now!

One of my Engineering profs gave no partial credit on tests for math errors. His reasoning was that if you're doing an estimate for a five story hotel where each floor is the same layout, forgetting to multiply by 5 may bankrupt the company but will certainly cost you your job. In the real world, transposed numbers and shufted decimals are quite common . . . . .

I’m a math prof - I misplace the decimal point all the time and the students laugh at me...

I love my three-blade. Its very smooth. I've flown/rode in three other Mooneys with two blade and some vibrate, some don't. I'd say mine is right in the middle, probably smoother than most, and thats with mags at 700SMOH and last balance in 2005. I'm sure I could spend some money and make it nicer but its perfect for me. If my instruments are any to believe, cruise anywhere from 145-147KTAS at 8,500ft and block-to-block fuel burn is 8.5-8.7gph. Solo with 20 gallons, I'll easily peak 1,500fpm, and at full gross is 750-800fpm This Mooney has taught me three things: I'll never own a fixed-gear plane, I'll never own a fixed-pitch plane, and I'll never own a 2-blade.

Never got a transition training. Just logged 5 hours of burning holes in the sky. Had to learn everything on my own by reading the manuals and asking this amazing mooniac community Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

I sometimes use a power driver to remove screws, but never to install them. When removed, they range from warm to hot and if the drill jumps it buggers up the heads . . . But the blue & gray double ratcheting screwdriver is a wonderful tool!

Kay's is great! I'll even treat ya! PM me next time you are thinking about heading down and I will send ya my #. Its not there in CGE yet. Still stuck at another small airport close by, out of annual. I give it another month before it's totally done.

I live in southern DE. I am based in CGE (Cambridge, MD). I fly a Lear out of ILG on a regular basis, so I know the area up there well. I just purchased my J in December and is still in mx from being stationary 10 years. I have another thread started "resurrecting a J" on here if you want to check it out. Haven't updated it in a while tho.

Jay, I left off the disclaimer... I have never flown a Brand B, But I did sleep in the back of one once... Alan Fox did the flying, his buddy Chris did the SIC duties, I rested well while the V-tail gently rocked... Best regards, -a-

Yes. The 5000 hours has much less to do with corrosion and lack of maintenance than does the 50 years that have likely gone by since it rolled off the line in Kerrville. In fact, the 5000 hours is a much better sign than 2000 hours on the same plane. If the plane is being flow regularly, it will likely be in much better maintenance shape and more likely that corrosion has been addressed and treated, than the hangar queen with 2000 hours since new.

You do what you want. My family will never get in your airplane beicause it’s not maintained to airworthy standards. . I’m advising people to follow the service manual lubrication requirements. An MD80 crashed and killed everyone because they used the wrong grease on a trim jackscrew. WD-40 IS NOT A LUBRICANT.

The worst advice ever. The WD-40 is not a lubricant and it washes away the grease that is there. So then it can seize at an inopportune time. Maybe even crash and kill someone. Follow the service manual folks, not advice from an electrical engineer who pisses on his plane.

Had a real nice flight today, leaving -18 temps in the U.P. of Michigan to landing just under 3.5 hours later, 1231 nautical miles south, just south of Daytona Beach at Spruce Creek Florida where a T-shirt was comfortable. I know it's not a Mooney, but it WAS a Mooney driver. It's soooo cool I built this animal in my garage and it flies faster than certified planes costing 5 times or more than I have in this one. Now if xcrmckenna Can hook up with me in Florida I can get another Mooney Space member a ride in this magic carpet. Tom