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Showing content with the highest reputation on 01/11/2019 in all areas

  1. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
    4 points
  2. Do you depreciate the CapX over the GAAP standard 3 year or a more aviation-realistic 3 minutes?
    4 points
  3. I separate CapEx and OpEx. CapEx is the price of the plane and any upgrades I make or money I spend on improvements. OpEx are the recurring costs such as fuel, hangar rent, annual maintenance, other maintenance, nav subscriptions, etc. I flew approximately 250 hours last year. I have no idea how much I spent in either of the two categories last year. But all the bills got paid, so I guess we're ok for another year of this.
    4 points
  4. Like many above stated I don’t keep close track of my costs nor do I keep a fund for long term expected maintenance items such as new engine etc. being an accountant I’ve become anti-numerical outside of work, if I can keep making the expenses I’ll keep flying if not I’ll sit in the corner and wither away. Having a pristine Bravo at least mechanically which is expensive to maintain I’d rather not keep track. Some years I’d guess on the low side of $30000+ on the high side like last year $60,000+ many of us are on our final plane just hoping for another year of flying. My wife mentioned yesterday to start planning for our flying season, last year was the best flying year we’ve had flying over 120 hours of long cross country ie vacationing...was awesome. Onward to 2019. Have fun keep flying in you can, the years fly by.
    3 points
  5. Spoke to Paul Odum this afternoon with the stc group... he was very helpful in explaining the process and installation of the pro pilot. Paul was here briefly with a couple posts to explore the possibility of producing an autopilot for our ships. He mentioned that much of the design was already done. I think he was somewhat disappointed after one or two of us weighed in. I told him don’t let a few outweigh the many. I for one, really like what they have in the way of a cost effective digital autopilot... and hope they know there are a lot of Mooney touring aircraft here and around the country, seen and unseen, that can benefit from all their hard work. Also I would like them to know that I for one, really appreciate the stc group helping General Aviation... it’s a huge contribution. let em know they are appreciated
    3 points
  6. Went to Los Angeles area yesterday to pick up a friend who dropped off his Bonanza. It was busy as usual but ATC was professional, efficient and friendly. There was a Mooney pilot at KPOC that couldn’t figure out the ODP and the ground controller patiently talked him through it, reviewed all the altitudes and headings and even told him where he could find the written version-all with patience and not a hint of frustration. As we were flying home I commented to my friend how impressed I was with the controllers and he said “It’s even more impressive when you consider the fact they’re not getting paid!” Ran across this article today and I guess it’s true (although I’m not sure how it works for contract controllers). Not trying to get into politics here, but I just wanted to say kudos to our aviation colleagues who show up every day, do their job and act like true professionals, even in the face of personal hardship. I wish more people acted that way... https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/11/politics/shutdown-paycheck-what-it-looks-like-trnd/index.html
    2 points
  7. How many of you have flown an early Mooney with and without the positive control operational? In other words with no autopilot at all? It sure seems different than a Cessna. Edit: That is, flying them on instruments with and without Positive Control?
    2 points
  8. What you describe is not a lot of metal. Typically the lifters fail before the cam. Lifters breakdown rapidly when they stop rotating. The cam typically follows rather than leads the this type of failure. I do not understand why you've not had the cam lift measured. This should not be a major endeavor. A dial indicator and a few ours max for an experienced A&P. This is the first thing I would do.
    2 points
  9. 2 points
  10. My transition instructor said I was too tall to try hand propping a mooney. I have a rule of never go forward of the wing when plane engines are running. It's a good rule since the plane lives in a $100 hamburger airport and there are lots of yahoos with spinning props.
    2 points
  11. Eight years ago we had a case crack on an engine with 855SMOH. At that time I was very active on the AOPA forum (Red Board). Many folks told me that it was best to just overhaul (what’s $30K to remedy a case crack right?). At the time I had just punched out of a corporate banking position with a nice severance due to a merger. I elected to remove and reinstall the engine myself and utilized a “local” Engine shop about 50 miles away to do the engine work. I learned quite a bit during that endeavor that may be applicable to your situation: 1) There is a tendency in aviation for mission creep towards “while you’re in there” kinds of items without knowledge of the actual condition of those items. 2) The relative ease with which a case can be split once the engine is off the aircraft. I dropped my engine off at the engine shop around 11:00 AM sans accessories. The case was crated and on its way to Tulsa that afternoon. 3) Owners have a tendency overstate the paper advantage of an overhaul. Some buyers want something run out so they can choose where to rebuild it. Some like to see “Factory zero time”. If you have no reason to sell the plane, the best value is typically to simply correct the problem and get back in the air. It’s only when you find an engine with multiple issues that an overhaul starts to become a better value. You’re doing a lot of hemming and hawing (just like I did) over what if’s before you really know what you have on your hands. I was terrified that we’d open up my engine and find corroded lifters and a spalled cam. We didn’t, internals were beautiful at 10 yrs and 800hrs. At the end of the day the IRAN with crankcase overhaul and going over the cylinders was about $4000. Engine was returned to me painted and wrapped just like an overhaul. My local IA charged $500 to supervise my reinstallation. If I had paid someone could’ve been closer to 3k to R&R the engine I was really close to overhauling. At the time I was out of work but has been given a check for more than a year’s salary. I had both time and money but I’m glad I chose the route I did. I’ve put 400 hours on the engine since and it’s running beautifully. Do you have an engine shop close by? This endeavor sounds best suited to a shop that will advise you as more info is garnered. Lycoming won’t give a core credit on anything if the case is split (must be in running condition). For what it’s worth, 1 quart every 6 to 7 hours is perfectly acceptable and healthy oil consumption. Pull the jug and take a look.
    2 points
  12. I think you should take into consideration, the memories you will get with this plane. A rental can only get you so far. Back when I rented the Cessna 172, I'm sure it was considerably cheaper than what the ovation is per hour, but the capabilities that a privately owned Mooney offer over a rental Cessna is massive. when I rented the Cessna, a good day was flying to an airport 80 to 100 miles away. I can take the Mooney any day I please 300 to 500 miles away in 2 to 3 and a half hours and not have to worry about not having a plane available. I also love the fact that ownership motivates me to travel. I can hear about a fly-in 3 days away and not be concerned that an aircraft is not available. The memories I've gotten with the plane are priceless and will be with me for life. Flying from So-cal to Canada to ride some of the best bike parks in whistler with one of my best friends over 2 weeks. Taking day trips to Oakland with my family or flying to Kernville to go camping. Flying the aircraft over 1500 miles from Kenosha to the southwest. A rental will give you 20% of those memories for 40% of the price. I can plan a trip from So-cal to Oshkosh next year. Ownership opens up new opportunities, but it comes at a price. A lot people open that door and most seem to like it since they still own a plane. I'm sure a lot of people will back my opinion, that ownership has given the opportunities and memories that would never have been possible without consistent access to an aircraft and the desire to go anywhere when they feel like it.
    2 points
  13. If the engine is running well, why mess with it until you have to? New and overhauled engines can have infant mortality, so you may or may not get better reliability. I recently replaced a A3B6D (broken oil control ring took out piston skirt and cam was spalling) with a factory rebuilt A3B6 after duscussions with Lycoming and mag overhaulers. Roller tappets are clearly a design improvement worth the extra cost to me. Dual mags are reliable in my experience, but are no longer made, some parts are hard to get and fewer mag shops will work on them. There are numerous internal differences between A3B6D and A3B6 which has more parts commonality with other engines. The A3B6D will likely end up being more expensive to maintain as time goes by. Lycoming will give you a break to retire a A3B6D core which says something (to me) about its commitment to that engine. Lycoming has standardized timing at 20 deg on 360 series engines with the exception of the dual mag engines for many years. Some think this is a big deal, some not so much. I don’t want to open that can if worms, but personslly I haven’t noticed much difference. Hope that helps. Still really currious about the injector lines. I think the newer lines are just thicker walled for fatigue resistance and have the same ID, but I’m really interested to know for sure. And, even if the ID is different, it would be interesting to see if that affects the flow rate through the nozzles since the tubing is so much larger than the nozzle orifice. Skip
    2 points
  14. The vacuum pump is a posative displacement pump, it pumps a volume of air, not a pressure. The vacuum regulator is actually just a controlled leak. So if you block it off it will be working pretty hard. But you are just blocking off the suction side, it can only make a vacuum. If you were to block off the pressure side you could destroy the pump. Your best bet is to hook the filter to the manifold.
    2 points
  15. I used to fly a gazillionair around in a Falcon 50. I once started talking about operating costs and he told me, “You never think about what it costs per hour or you will never do it.” If you want the plane and you can afford it, buy it. At the end of each year, add up the total cost to own it. If you can live with that, keep it. If you can’t live with that, sell it.” Works for my Mooney. (Which my wife has christened The Mooney Pit!)
    2 points
  16. There's no luck involved. Fine wire plugs provide 1-2 percent better fuel economy, so they pay for themselves well before they wear out in 2000-2500 hours. RAM Aircraft published findings on the topic. In which time you will have had to buy 3 or more sets of massive plugs, and pay for gapping and cleaning that fine wires don't need.
    2 points
  17. Seems like a lot of work. Most people just wait for Chris to fix it for them.
    2 points
  18. When I was in High School I had a summer intern gig at a local university in a high energy physics lab where they had a massive electron pulse gun that shot a massively powered arc through a 2 ft vacuum for a very very very very short time burst. The thing was about 2 stories tall, round and probably 50ft long on the side. My job was to make little anodes of various shapes designed by the professor, who would specify the shape and material and I - and a few others the same - would spin those special shapes in a machine shop lathe for like 2 days to get them perfect. Then we would literally blow them up in a glorious nano-second. This was the mid 1980s during the "Star Wars" research era of Reagan and high energy pulses of all sorts were all the rage. On the side of that very big electron pulse gun someone painted Champion One very artistically looking like the real trade mark logo of a real spark plug marking. Because that was what that thing was - one very big spark plug.
    2 points
  19. Sorry to hear that your wife went through the boat ownership thing with you. That is like telling a woman you are going on a first date with that your serial rapist days are over. Hopefully you can convince her that airplane ownership is different. Instead of throwing money in the water, you’re throwing it in the air. [emoji1787] As others point out, pride of ownership, the ability to have access when you want and knowing the condition all of the time are great benefits. The downside is that you own the costs when you own and you just can’t throw the keys at the FBO anymore and say “it’s broke”. I am sure that I am paying more than renting, but I also eat lunch with a Pilot friend and hear the whining about the availability of the rentals at our airport. As for the financials, you have heard some clearly say they ignore certain costs. If your financial situation can allow that, great. If it can’t, it can become a pain point with the family when you are deciding whether Johnny is going to get braces or you are going to fix your plane. I look at ownership cost as all in. I count everything because if I didn’t own a plane, I wouldn’t have those expenses. Also, I do reserves because the money is clearly earmarked for an intended usage. If you need to rebuild an engine, it is nice to have saved up the money and know it’s covered. As long time owner, I flew a number of years with an avionics reserve that kept building up. In 2012 it allowed me to do this: Be realistic with your finances. I can’t tell you the number of times we have had people post here about buying a plane and then a few months later are dealing with huge financial hits. And on other side of this, you only live once. And unless you plan on being buried in a gold (or gold lined) coffin, enjoy the ability to own and participate in something that most people never get to do. How many people can say they are able to fly a plane and capture a picture like this? Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
    2 points
  20. I purposely don’t keep track. Quite the contrary its one of those things I try to have amnesia about.
    2 points
  21. As I said, not a lot of metal. You're getting way ahead of yourself. Check the valve lift...
    1 point
  22. Pre-purchase inspections are all the rage... Don’t accidently buy a plane that is best scheduled to be parted out... Best regards, -a-
    1 point
  23. In a brief search I can't find a spec on Mouse Milk. I note it is sold as a "penetrating oil" that is effective as a cutting oil. I did see a comment that it is "unaffected by temperature". Whether it has a long lasting anti seize properties is not clear to me. I suppose it might be the right stuff for a slip joint that was seized due to lack of prophylactic lubrication.
    1 point
  24. I've heard them referred to as "rodent boots" and not dust boots, and rodents in your wings can be far more corrosive.
    1 point
  25. My guess is they are being over run with orders and can’t keep up with the production. They probably have supply agreements with Chief among others and are pressed to keep up with those commitments. Sounds a little like the issue Phil has with the Quiet Comfort headset. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
    1 point
  26. Va is never marked because it varies with weight. As weight goes down, Va goes down. The Manual will give one number, which is for gross weight. If you're worried about turbulence, fly slower than your published Va. There should be a table or list giving Stall Speeds in various configurations and bank angles; it's worth studying. For Vintage Mooneys, there is only a single gear speed, so you don't need to worry about Opening Speed and Max Operating Speed being different; we just can't use them as speed brakes since we gotta slow down before putting them down. Depending on year, Flap Speed may be higher or lower than gear speed due to different construction methods for attaching the flaps to the wing. Vx and Vy are in the Takeoff and Climb discussion, using descriptions like Best Angle and Best Rate of Climb. My Vy is 100 mph - Altitude in Thousands, there is even a chart showing Rate of Climb at two weights (gross, and solo with full tanks) and airspeed every 1000' from sea level to 18 or 20K. This makes the decreasing Vy very obvious. Study up! Have you found the correct Owners Manual yet?
    1 point
  27. I separate my costs into two buckets: Cost to Own--hangar, tax, insurance, registration, GPS data, Annuals, Biennial Pitot-Static testing, MAPA Membership because I own a Mooney, etc. Cost to Operate--fuel, oil changes (owner maintenance), fuel, parking fees away from home, fuel, occasional tires / tubes (one pair of mains and three nose tires in twelve years), etc. The capital expenses and opportunity costs are simply ignored, as they would exist for doing anything at all with the money other than investing at maximum return, and who can really do that? Then there us the general cost to just Be A Pilot--headsets for self and wife, flight bag, subscriptions to plates / charts (paper or electronic), medical, Flight Reviews, training and proficiency flights, AOPA, EAA, etc. Still more fun than a boat, and loads more useful!!
    1 point
  28. I love how these things look like musical instruments.
    1 point
  29. See some additional reviews here... ScottD is MS’s most knowledgeable weather guy... he gives some additional insight as well... Best regards, -a-
    1 point
  30. As long as it isn’t March or april Norman is 1:15 away. I’m not going anywhere near Norman during F5 tornado season!
    1 point
  31. I think its been discussed extensively on here in the past, with some folks citing old time Mooney factory people as having stated it was purely a paperwork based change - no formal published source I can cite, though it may exist somewhere. I dont worry too much about the 150mph Vno on my ‘68 for this reason on a bumpy day - the thing loves to cruise in the yellow arc down low so I let it. I’m not inclined to mess with Vne though- no need in routine flying - but if an emergency descent ever is needed, its nice to know a ton of extra margin is there.
    1 point
  32. Perhaps you can explain why my gyros has carbon dust in the bearings even though the pump is older than the Gyro and has not failed?
    1 point
  33. Not sure what model you have, but the Gen2 will be easier than the older Mooney with all the screws. Ram air is deleted as there wasn’t enough gain from it after moving the air filter inside the cowling and the cost to keep it was too high. I have a couple of Gen1 parts sets still on the shelf and they could still be installed. The Gen2 looks much better and fits more airplanes. There’s quite a bit more labor involved on the Gen1 and especially so if there’s been previous nose cowl damage as I found on both Bob’s E and Matt’s F. Lots of hours to make this cowlings right and thankfully I had other cowlings to use for parts. All in, I believe the Gen2 will be more cost effective and the aesthetics are certainly much better. David
    1 point
  34. Yes, a fuel measuring stick is very useful for your M20C. The best fuel stick will be one you make yourself. A wooden dowel, a paint stirrer, or similar that you mark yourself will be the most useful. The max fuel you can have in the tank without reaching it with a fuel stick, is only about 8 gal. And that is probably not enough to consider for take-off purposes. In other words, if there's not enough fuel in the tank to measure with your stick, there's not enough fuel to go fly. From here it gets more high tech, more accurate, and more expensive. Get an engine monitor with proper fuel flow and (primary) digital fuel gauges. Pair that with CiES digital fuel senders. Now you'll know how much AND where it is at all times. Typically accurate to within 1/2 gallon on each side. The more accurate your fuel information, the more range you have, the safer you are, and the more peace of mind you enjoy.
    1 point
  35. Not sure what additional equipment you mean... It does require a GPS signal for any ground based tracking, but it basically requires a GPS for everything it does, similarly it requires 2 G5s as well for pretty much every install. Now, if you're comparing it to the TT, yes, the GFC500 does require more than just an 'autopilot'.
    1 point
  36. I think owners can be divided into two categories: Professional pilots who fly company equipment for work Amateur pilots who only get to fly if they're buying the fuel. I can't speak for the Pro's other than my brother who is an SWA Captain. He loves to fly my Mooney, but spends his own money on BMW cars, and a massive motorhome bus conversion. While I'm sure he loves to fly as much as I do, the company scratches just about all of that itch for him. For an amateur pilot who's only route to the left seat is to pay for it myself, there are many reasons for ownership that don't show up on the spreadsheet. In no particular order... Safety - flying the same airplane all the time means I know what it sounds like, what is feels like, what it smells like, and when it doesn't. I also know the plane's performance and capability intimately. I always knew who flew it last... me. Accessibility - the expensive activity that it is, flying has to take a back seat to my methods for funding life, i.e. the day job. Having to schedule flying around my schedule is one thing, scheduling it around a lot of other people's schedules, or a flight school's schedule, is just all too complicated and results in greatly reduced opportunity to fly. Even if I flew the same number of hours, as an owner, the hours are of higher quality as they fit perfectly/easily into MY schedule. Destinations - I'd guess that most Mooney aficionados like cross country flying. And we're not talking about FAA cross countries of 50 miles, but Mooney cross countries where when you stop for fuel you're still outbound. This often requires multi-day access to the plane, nights tied down in interesting locations, and possibly insurance considerations for flights across the boarders or to the islands. All non-issues for the airplane I own, but all layers of additional complexity or barriers for rented aircraft. Pride of ownership - granted not all owners actually fly as evidenced by the ramp queens slowly rotting into the ground, but for those owner flow aircraft that fly, they are typically in better shape than anything in the rental fleet. Ownership involves hanging out at the hangar, cleaning, upgrading, maintaining, etc. None of which we do for rental aircraft. Better airplanes - I have to laugh every time someone posts the question on this forum about where can they find a Mooney to rent... in their local area... we know there might only be two Mooneys for rental purposes in the whole country. Complex, high-performance, turbo, high altitude, cross country machines like ours, just don't exist in the rental fleet. Much like if your passion are Porsche 911's, you're just gonna have to buy one. It's about the only way you'll ever drive one. I'm sure others will come up with other reasons as well... But with the above considerations... if I can get within even 30% to 50% over the cost of renting, it's worth it for me to own. In my case, because I own, I fly a lot more. At just shy of 250 hours for 2018, I'm sure owning is cheaper than renting for me. BTW - I consider the CapEx value of the airplane, $120K, and the hangar I own, $45K, to be investments, not costs. Even if I'm losing money because they are underperforming compared to other investment vehicles or inflation, I fully expect to get the $120K + $45K back if I sold out. The other money I've spent on CapEx such as glass panel, and other upgrades... I might get 25% of that back. But it's not calculated as such. It's just spent.
    1 point
  37. I have not listed it yet. Have a few inquiries based on this posting. I don't even have a spec sheet completed on it yet. I need to figure out what I have first then I will start the process in earnest. You guys have been a big help so far. Thanks to all!
    1 point
  38. According to the book, my Moony stalls dirty at 57mph, lean at 67. Vx is 80, Vy is 105, with 120 being a fasts cruise/climb. Gear speed is 120, flap speed is 105 (all in mph by the way, mine is a 62). If mine has a maximum cruise speed I don't know what it is, I just try and keep it out of the yellow in rough air. Vne is 189. For approaches and whatnot, hey, it's an airplane. Fly it.
    1 point
  39. Really wish sometimes @gsxrpilot had told me buying a plane was the dumbest thing to ever do and not dare think of doing it. On that note he didn’t. Owning a Mooney has made me happieR than I’ve been in ages. @mstephenson51 where in Oklahoma are you? I’d happily fly up from DFW and take you for a ride. Could even fly you back down to DFW and give you a tour of American Airlines mission control center. As a 17 year old, I’m Fairly confident your eyes will fall out of,socket.
    1 point
  40. Please don’t ask me to think about how much it costs! Besides, I’m not very good with numbers.
    1 point
  41. My boys were renting substandard equipment for $127/hr back in 2016. I sold the idea of aircraft ownership to my wife based on idea that I could operate a nicer/mechanically sound aircraft for less than $127/hr. I purchased a 1964 M20C (35K) and my boys flew it 200hrs in 13 months. I kept every receipt related to the aircraft.... Insurance Monthly tie down Pre Purchase Inspection / Air fare to inspect aircraft Annual / carburetor O/H Fuel / Oil changes FBO Ramp/custom fees Taxes Total expenses were $18,500 working out to $93/hr. Please note this does not include engine or maintenance reserves....20-25/hr? In my experience it was totally worth the time and effort I spent owning the plane..just hope I have the same experience with our newer J model!! Hope this helps. Hank
    1 point
  42. Thanks for the tag, Scott. We are up and running at Airspeed Insurance Agency. We should be licensed in all 50 states and DC by the end of the month (currently fully functional in about 30 as of 1/9/2019). Kmac - most every company using automated raters has different hour amounts where their rates step down. 46.9 may be no different than 50 at many carriers. There are a few where that might hit a step in the automated rating systems at 50 make/model. An agent that properly markets your risk to the carriers it represents would really like to have updates 30 days or more before renewal so that each company can respond. At the last minute you may not have as many answers, especially for a lower-time pilot where the risks are underwritten manually as opposed to coming from an automated rater.
    1 point
  43. And retired... Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
    1 point
  44. I had a post somewhere in my original DIY install thread about the vacuum like rerouting. I used a barb and a cap. However the lines themselves needed to be rerouted. I’ll see if I can dig it up. I’ll also dig up my excel sheet with the pin-out for the 430W/330ES/dual G5’s and Send it to you. Brad here is my G5 diy thread ... this post has the description of the need to reroute the Vacuum connections and here is my diagram of / question about the vacuum system
    1 point
  45. In the vacuum hose between the AI and the vacuum pump. When you shut the engine down the instrument cases contain vacuum and the pump has none and the carbon dust migrates up into the gyros into the grease thats in the bearings and then causes failure
    1 point
  46. My tempest have been trouble free at 400 hrs
    1 point
  47. Evidently these are the perils of flying behind 1940's technology in the modern, digital age...
    1 point
  48. Perhaps I've missed something with regard to engine data. Looking at your richest cylinder's data, at what mixture setting does the engine begin to get rough?
    1 point
  49. Tri flow is the correct answer. You might want to lube everything else in the system all the way to the elevators too. Sent from my LG-US996 using Tapatalk
    1 point
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