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Bucket List Flight today Beautiful morning with maybe the best opportunity for flying while we're here in NC so we flew out to First Flight. Fairly smooth, hazy flight but the winds do swirl around a little coming in final over the beach to 21. Once you drop below the treeline it changes again, but wow, how cool to land there. I get emotional about some things but must say I was a little surprised at the level of emotion I felt being up there on top of the hill. There may or may not have been a few tears shed. We back taxied on 21 along with two other planes departing and my wife snapped a great picture as we lined on 21 and waited for the Cessna ahead of us to depart. If you look close you can see the monument in the background.

We all have to find our happy medium between risk of death and spice of life. Most people would say we are crazy to get in a little plane and that we've placed the balance far too far toward the "spice of life". With few exceptions you can get where you need to in a Volvo station wagon. I feel fortunate I live in a time we can make that choice though. -Robert

Hi folks, Since this has been very popular last year (again), we will hold the MooneySpace Social event in Oshkosh on Monday, July 22nd at the Mooney Caravan tent. To our knowledge this is the most attended Mooney pilots Pizza gathering "in the world". Same as last year, we will have pizza, beer and soft drinks for all people attending. As for the previous similar events, we will provide name tags (the sticky ones this time) for those who sign-up before the deadline while responding to this thread. This is the best opportunity to meet with other MooneySpace forum members face-to-face. We had a very good turnout last year. More info: • When: July 22rd, 6:30 PM (This is the Monday) • Location: At the Mooney Caravan tent which is usually on the west side of North 40. • All Mooney interested people are invited In order to help pay for the beer, pops, pizza and name tags we will accept CASH donations (no minimum, CBs are welcome). Any remaining amount will be split evenly between the Mooney Caravan Safety Foundation and the MooneySpace web site. One of our two sponsors from last year is returning with us: Thanks to Barry Leblanc of Genesys Aerosystem who will sponsor us again. We are actively looking for a second sponsor. People can contact me about this in private or email here: yvesg@semo.ca In order to get a name tag, please respond to this thread no later than July 15th and indicate the number of people in your party with the wanted names (usually MooneySpace handle) on the tag. Having headcount will help making sure we have enough pizza and drinks. I will periodically post the list of signed-ups here. See ya! Yves

I’m happy to close this one out with a solution and a lot of learning. Oh, and an AMU or two thrown out chasing the wrong culprit. The problem started with a low bus voltage, around 13.2, but sometimes 13.5, sometimes 12.9. Relatively variable during flight. Looking back through engine monitor data, it has been slowly declining on average for 2 years. Before that, it was solid at 14.0. Mechanic suggested replacing alternator at last annual so I did. Brushes were worn. I trust him very much on engine/cylinders/flight controls... in the future, I’ll do much more homework with electrical issues. No change with alternator. Lived with it for a while but it was declining. Tried to use Zeftronics troubleshooting guide but needed just a little more specific help as I had no experience troubleshooting electrical. Now I do. Talked to different mechanic. Talked me into new voltage regulator because “that’s cheaper than paying us for a few hours of troubleshooting.” No change in voltage. Although now I have a spare Zeftronics VR if anyone needs one. Decided to try my own hand. Bought $20 voltmeter at Lowes. Spent couple hours quality time with airplane apart. Cowl off, battery/avionics compartment open, instrument panel cover off. Identified two issues... Master Switch on my airplane is a single switch, dual pole. Not only does it Power the master relay, but it connects the alternator field wire. It isn’t the later model split switch. My switch is getting old. Voltage drop across it is the maximum allowable on the Zeftronics troubleshooting guide, .5 V. There is absolutely no access to change that switch without tearing out the panel. It’s on the list for next time the panel is apart. The other issue was the bus voltage was good (matched battery relay) but power input to the VR was .4-.6 volts lower. Found out the “alt field” circuit breaker was actually the power for the VR. Tested drop across the CB... .5 volts. New circuit breaker cost me $20 on spruce. It was accessible from under the panel so I changed it. Just flew it... 14volts and rock steady! Be aware, the electrical diagrams in the maintenance manual are model and year specific. I was surprised to see that both my field wire and my VR power wire went back behind the panel and then came back to the engine compartment. Also, that “battery master” switch on older models also cuts off the alternator field, so could be an area for resistance. They are cheap switches if you can get to them. Anyone want a working alternator with worn brushes or a gently used Zeftronics VR??

I HAVE had a corrosion issue with my airplane but it was in a location that seems unlikely to be related to tks, which is in the fuel tank area. And I had not been using, or even been aware of, the anti-corrosion misting agents - but I am now! But - not doing TKS because of worrying about corrosion, is worrying about a chronic problem vs an acute problem. Sort of like deciding not to get an x-ray to examine your broken arm because you are worried about the possibility of the cancer causing properties of x-rays. If you find yourself in a situation wanting-needing-wishing for tks, because of an inadvertent (or fiki) ice encounter, I promise you, if you flick that tks on switch, you will not be thinking about corrosion at that moment.

I’m sorry for his loved ones. I don’t know the pilot, his motives, or his state of mental health. If his attitude toward flying was all about thrill seeking and careless low speed flying, then he never belonged in that airplane. Aerobatics training with a responsible CFI may have been a better option for him although those of us who fly aerobatics regularly know that the fun involved isn’t about risk taking, danger or adrenaline. I’m glad he didn’t directly harm anyone else if indeed he was just being reckless.

Don Maxwell says to use Permatex #3 on the screws, FWIW.

The trouble I had walking to town was heat exhaustion; my legs and feet held up nicely. April would have been much better walking conditions. Our friend from upstate NY, who measures annual snowfall in feet, and duration of white groundcover in months, may be bothered more than I was, although I had been in milder Northern weather for ~10 years when I visited and had lost much of my acclimation.

It's not just the sun, it's the sun and humidity . . . . After all, it's the beach!

If you get a new Lycoming case you can put roller lifters in it. Then you have the newest technology without having to pay the factory overhaul premium which is we know that’s expensive

Air does exit the breather. Initially, very moist air is pushed out. Actually, I'm sure dry air from the pump is mixing with the moist air but after a very short time the humidity levels are very low within the engine. You end up with dry air pumping in and dry air coming out. I tried it both ways and after measuring the internal moisture levels I couldn't see any difference. In practice the levels dropped quicker through the oil filler tube. I assume the air exchange was quicker with zero backpressure. For clarification, I measured moisture coming out the breather tube and by inserting a sensor through the filler neck as deep as it would go. In the end I determined the unit was pumping a very large volume (over time) of very dry air into the engine.

Appears to be installed correctly to me. The tool/tug probably won’t use the axel as a tow point as you may think. It will most likely uses the horizontal tube above the wheel itself. Left or right side, but the tube should be hollow. Welcome!! -Matt

Richard, you got the right haircut to visit the hot, humid South! It's a far cry from Utah or S. Calif. Glad to see that you're having a good time.

Made some progress in solving the CO issue. I taped the edge of the wing roots with duct tape. Also, I found a belly panel screw missing under the plane right downstream of the exhaust, which I also taped (see pictures below). With this, CO dropped to 0 ppm in cruise, with both cowl flaps in or out. I still have a little before landing with gear/flaps down. Next time I fly, I‘ll remove the tape on the wing roots and see if I still get zero. I this case, the fix would be to just put a bigger screw into the worn out thread. If it‘s the roots, they would need to be removed and re-taped below. That would be quite costly. I hope, it‘s just the screw. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Flying at single digits low level is stupid, especially in a single engine airplane. And the hours this guy had were too few to go about this. I have 1000s of hours low level and I've done some stupid things over the Pacific Ocean in a B-52G at 390 KIAS, but never 10 feet! Either act is stupid. But a Buff at 10 feet AGL going 390 KIAS would attract attention and make noise. A little bitty Mooney at 10 feet is 'meh'. Therefore, he gets no cool points from anywhere. RIP. This is my first post. I love flying my M20C. But I like cruising at 10,000 feet. More time to make decisions.

We discussed the various capacities in the long bodies here: https://mooneyspace.com/topic/17789-standard-fuel-long-bodydropped-back-to-89-gallons/?tab=comments#comment-258612 The 100/102 gallons is only with the new filler openings. Without the notch there is not a reliable path for the trapped air to escape. If your plane doesn't have the kit, it can be ordered and installed to officially support 102G in the Bravos.

M20C cylinder cooling is always a challenge... the square dog house, and guppy mouth weren’t designed for the best airflow that is needed. Make sure all the sheet metal is correct. Holes filled. Seals working around the starter and alternator... that kind of thing.. +1 on controlling rpm... overspeed is a measurable challenge... how much for how long... Best to stay on target... Best regards, -a-

Went to CRQ for Father’s Day weekend and shot the ILS behind our very own @kortopates providing instruction to some lucky Mooney pilot. Little Dude said he finally approves of his in-flight entertainment and snack options

I've had to divert several times. Depending on several issues, Northwest/Delta used to give us anywhere from 20 to 120 minutes of extra fuel over and above what was required. However, there were times when ATC would use up that fuel (ground delays, route changes, vectors, altitude restrictions..) followed by holding for various reasons (weather, traffic, runway changes, runway closures...) as we got close to the destination. When I got down to zero extra fuel, unless ATC would let me continue to the destination with a realistic expectation of landing without further delays, I would divert. Once I started a divert I would not turn back. If I did so, and ATC lied to me (they would never do that would they?) I would be between a rock and a hard place. Going to either airport would require using some of my reserve fuel. I considered that fuel to be used in an emergency, not due to poor decision making. I was not willing to risk running out of gas with 100+ people behind me. I even had one time when my dispatcher let me know that I was not authorized to divert. I let him know I'd call him after I landed at Rochester.

Some points to consider keep in mind this is a C and he is doing high rpm ground runs with an OAT at 103 degrees I bet there aren't too many dog house Mooneys that can keep it under 400 degrees in these conditions. I agree the temps and oil pressure do have a relationship and as such your pressure is low compared to what I am used to seeing in my C. When things are running hot and hot I still see at least 75psi in cruise and around 80 in climb with CHT around 360 and 400 respectively on my factory gauge.

Flew to empty the leaking tank do reasearvh level at which the leaking starts. Last time I filled to 20 gallons and saw a drip. 15 gallons this time didn’t show a drip. Photos taken by airport owner who was mowing along runway (25 minutes from low fuel warning light til empty at 65% power.

The net gain in useful load is nearly all of the 230 lbs, double puck calipers, thicker rotors etc only weigh a couple pounds more, heavier control weights only weigh ounces more. I can’t recall exactly to the pound, but I got within just a few pounds of all of that 230 lb gain. That’s absurd to suggest the brakes weight 100 lbs! The heaviest component of all is the spindles, but the only mod is for the beefier torque plate for the brakes. So their difference in weight was negligible. It’s a very worthwhile mod and highly coveted. It brought my 252 to nearly a 1120 lb useful load! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well, a polished aluminum Mooney would look awesome!

That's easy...Go West! If exploring the West you need some time though. I would go check out Green Bay if anyone likes the NFL, The Packers have a great HoF at Lambeau Field. Not too far away is Mackinac Island. Niagara Falls is always nice. And of course you can't go wrong landing at KFFA. Those boys from Ohio knew a thing or two.

My understanding is the factory sends the new plane to cav for the install. They don’t do it themselves. So no difference. My system was installed at 50 hours or so.

I have used a bit of polishing or rubbing compound on a rag.

I have owned an 1967 M20F now for 10 years. I have redone the avionics, new paint, tanks stripped / resealed, and even an engine rebuild back in 2015. Back in 2010, i did a rough cleanup of the interior and had lived with it up to this point. I had been looking for a good shop to do an interior job for me. In my search, i came across Jaeger Aviation in Willmar, MN. (KBDH). This was the same airport i had my tanks stripped / resealed ( WeepNoMore, http://www.weepnomorellc.com). I made a visit to Willmar and Bruce Jaeger showed me his Spatial panel system he designed for old Mooney's. The Spatial system enables easy removal / replacement of the panels without using a ton of screws, which was one of my biggest gripes when i reworked the interior. My visit was back in 2016. This year, i decided to really redo my interior. I had SCS Interiors (https://www.scs-interiors.com) recover the seats in leather and also bought their carpet kit pre-fitted for M20F. So, i made the trip Aug 1, 2017 and i worked alongside Bruce Jaeger, which, saved me several labor hours. He taught me how to repair, patch, and refinish the old panels that we would be re-using. What a nice outcome! Along with the new Spatial panels, the old window frames, baggage area plastic, nose gear housing, and headliner look practically new! We removed about 350 screws from the old interior and only re-installed about 40. The side panels and spar panel are easily removed for maintenance & inspection. i have attached some photos of the a job well done. Feel free to ask me any questions. If you would like to contact Bruce about redoing you interior, http://www.jaegeraviation.com, bruce@jaegeraviation.com, (320) 444-3042

One Hail Mary and Our father. Go forth and sin no more. Otherwise, carry on.

We totally considered heading west but everything seemed too far. DC-OSH is about 600 nmi. OSH-Bozeman is 900 nmi! We did an air race to Osh a few years ago from Mitchell, SD, and I was like "let's pop over to mount rushmore." But "popping over" turned out to be like 300+ nmi! The west is expansive. For your grandson, have you considered Niagra Falls? Also, if you want to do outdoorsy things if you like to fish there's some great options in the UP of Michigan or Sault-Ste-Marie. Apparently I have more ideas for you than for me

First Flight... The town is a bit of a walk... but anyone with 50 bicycles in their garage should be able to handle it pretty well... Me and two other not-so-athletic people walked into town to find something to eat... This was a stop-over on the way down to SnF... nearest fuel was the next airport south... really strong winds that day my ground speed on final was close to 10kts.... Funky memories... -a-

I disagree. I think poor judgement, irrationality and faulty decision-making are normal states of the human condition, and require no additional explanation. The goal is to find ways to mitigate those faults that everyone is capable of. Blaming the on unspecified "mental health issues" is another way of saying "it'll never happen to me."

Divco might be able to help

Ross, You could be right. I remember the louvers on the skin however not sure where the "in" of the duct is. But I would think it can't just suck air directly out of the cabin as would get really cold. I'll have to look next time... But I do seem to remember it was more difficult to close the door with window closed, second time around. Only one way to find out!

You don’t replace the jackscrew because it is too tight, you replace it when it is too loose! You can take the ball bearings apart, clean and re-grease them too.

Not sure if you were serious in asking why he would do that. Because its a thrill that's hard to parallel. I spent many years flying and teaching in J-3 cubs. No one every asked how high it would go. Racing cars is very dangerous as well but people seek that thrill. They also die a lot. Some people seek out deadly activities. Alternatively you could live the fantasy of dying in a home at 100 sitting in your own poo and drooling. -Robert

I've also recently been looking at the Black Max. Still need to determine if it will work with the TSIO 360. Whereas they mention that most breather hoses has an ice hole a little way up and that you need to stick the Black Max hose high up enough to go beyond that hole - the TSIO 360 has it significantly high up - possibly too far up to work with the Black Max. And you can't get to that hole without taking the bottom cowling off. If you don't deal with that, the dehumidified air is just going to leak out.

Indeed, we were being vectored on from the south and then I heard him call out traffic to a much faster mover to the north. Then when I heard him tell you to alter heading for the traffic I recognized your voice and checked the full call sign on my Ads-b traffic and sure enough it was you. Approach asked us to keep our speed up for you. I checked again and you had 60 kts on us! Meanwhile I am telling my client he just has to keep our speed up till CIDRU, then slow to normal approach speed. We were in a J model - no match for the fire breathing 310HP Ovation on our tail! Meanwhile my client did an excellent job on the approach till we went missed into the IMC layer for our next one at Oceanside. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I agree with Jim about the FF sensor which should have been included with the kit. It might be a programming oversight as to why it’s not displaying. Please keep an eye on the max RPM as you fly the plane in the near future. You might need to lower the governor setting slightly.

NNOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At the risk of being an a__hole, that line of thinking is a prime candidate for confirmation bias. you should be looking for examples that disprove or undermine your hypothesis... Actually, that's not a risk, most people I know do think I'm an a__hole...

This weekend, made a quick trip down to Lakeland to meet with the company doing the next thing to the new house - pool. Beautiful flight down for this one exception, which I first saw about 130 nm away. ATC started moving me about 50 nm from it, and was glad they did.

Yesterday's flight makes three in almost as many days trip to meet family to celebrate a belated Mother's Day at LVK. There was some cross winds at 90 degrees gusting to 12 and I might have caught a gust but lost all lift a few feet above the runway and the bottom fell out. Ugh. Prior to that as we entered the 45 CT advised that a P51 was departing and making a cross wind turn that put him right to left low in front of us. If I had 50's in the wing I could have rolled left and been right on his six. As we headed for home there was some convective build up over the east side of the lake again this is so unusual for this time of year. Not near as much bumping as I expected and second landing was much better.

Nice little flight along the coast to see if I had eliminated the static in the intercom that showed up after I installed the transponder. It was a beautiful flight and the static was almost completely gone. It is as quiet as before and I think as good as it is going to get until I decide to run shielded wires (when it was installed a looong time ago they didn't use shielded wiring.) https://intothesky.us/2019/06/01/the-coast-for-fun/

Ok so here are the before & after pictures of the plane. The paint as described was in very good condition but the top wing panels & the tail were repainted a matching white. Only the Ruby Red metallic on the fuselage/wing tips/tail as well as the tail stripes were painted. It makes this A/C look like new & makes me feel a whole lot better! The original scheme & colors etc. were left intact. The stripes are columbia blue metallic & cumulous grey metallic which worked really well with the ruby red metallic. The interior is medium blue leather with dark grey carpet. This was done at Reece Brothers in Robbinsville NJ at about 25% of the cost to strip & repaint an entire plane. Reece also insisted that to do this correctly it required a clear coat over the base coat within hours so that the clear would fuse to the underlying paint. By so doing it is supposed to eliminate the flaking that can occur with clear coats in the future. Should hold me for a few years.