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Pittsburgh + KPIT, Lake Eerie and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, windmills + nuclear powerplants, tailwinds and more tailwinds!

I believe @Gagarin, The Pilot Formerly Known as @Piloto a.k.a. Jose designed the STC so he may be able to help you out. I believe there is an add-on STC that includes a pilot relief tube that you clean out with WD-40 to provide some de-icing for your plane.

And Paul as I said if I were an IFR pilot and flew the kind of missions you are able. I would be on the other side of that coin. I think horses are beautiful animals but I've no desire to ride one. Sorry if I pissed you off not my intention but it seems like people don't accept my version of the passion for flight as its not the same as theirs. I do have a garmin 296 and like the information it provides. Everyone wants to see the costs associated with flying and owning an airplane go down but all we talk about is this upgrade and that upgrade shoot most of your panels are worth twice my whole plane. And I celebrate all you are able to do with your awesome Mooney's.

Greetings from Mammoth Mountain where gusts are over 60mph. What is usually a 1:45 flight was a 7:30 drive! The Mooney has spoiled me.

If you really want to get into the details of airplane cooling design, check out resources at EAA. There’s lots of good information there. Homebuilders have two great advantages: engineering time is “free”, and they can optimize a design without worrying about production cost.

Yup. its about the higher pressure, slower air. Also, few realize that 737s have no wheel doors.

It is Dave's old airplane. He got a Cessna 310.

Seems to be a common theme

Took advantage of some tail winds...no outside pictures as most of the trip was flying over a cloud layer. Tom

One point already mentioned is seal the rear bulkhead especially where the wires run through it bottom left looking in the radio hole on the left side of the fuselage. Another point not mentioned - if the air is coming in it has to go out somewhere, Two of the biggest "out" leaks are the baggage door and the main cabin door. The main cabin door sits in an area of low pressure due to the fuselage design. If the door seal is old it will suck air out big time. The air out has to come in from somewhere- lower left baggage bulkhead.

A few notes: 1. The KFC 230 AeroCruz is STC's and available for the K's today. At least that's what BK has told me. I had one ordered and then backed out because it won't interface with the Aspen, yet. But if you have the BK AI and HSI, the AeroCruz can be installed today. I also confirmed this with the Avionics shop and BK dealer here in Austin yesterday. 2. I say this all the time, so I'll say it again. Do your self a favor and install the EDM 900 instead of the 830. It's a few dollars more, but then you're done. With the 830, you'll be spending again to upgrade to the 900 when your factory gauges stop working. Do it once and be done with it. 3. I love Avidyne and have a lot of their stuff, but I wouldn't buy their audio panel. If you're installing a separate standalone audio panel, it has to be the PMA450b. Ask anyone who has one.

Normally in life, it’s not really good to slam anything ...... especially your J bar. Gently push bar and secure into both up and down blocks. Gear down...you’ll feel and hear the up block latch and see the green panel indicator illuminate green. Gear up......gently insert into down block. Once inserted, I stick my finger inside from the back of the block in order to feel that the cap is fully inside the block. Extending and stowing the gear..... I twist the cap as I pull forward, or down, to remove from the up and down blocks. My 2 cents I’ve read some folks don’t twist it....twisting it works for me.

Thank you guys. It is a gorgeous airplane. I am going to share some pix if the size allow me here. Perry

I have had a chance now to view a number of down lock blocks, and from the wear patterns, it looks as though not everyone uses the same technique to swing the bar up into the down lock... Do you raise the bar and just slam it into the ramp on the down lock block and let the ramp guide the handle into the socket, or do you pop the handle into the block by avoiding the ramp section by holding the handle against the spring and manually moving it into the stop block, attempting a perfectly timed insertion? I do the latter, and am successful about 4 out of 5 times. I recently saw a chrome handle that was literally beat to death by someone slamming it into the ramp on the block, so I’m wondering what other people do. How do YOU extend the gear?

Simple questions: is it worth the 50 bucks a year?

I did it 2 years ago on my Acclaim, if you need shorter takeoff, better climb, it’s a worthy modification. If you are traveling I don’t think it’s beneficial. More fuel, less range and efficiency.

I'm using it because I got it cheap at OSH. I love it. Aviation Consumer magazine found a lot of benefit to the Lycoming additive for reducing corrosion in their tests. They found even more benefit to the additive plus Camguard or Avblend. The Lycoming additive is the only additive actually recommended by an engine manufacturer for helping reduce camshaft and lifter scuffing/wear. It is only required by AD for the O-320-H engines, but it's recommended for all. That's good enough for me. I also use Avblend in the summer and Camguard in the winter, but I'll admit I might be paranoid.

High overcast at Castle Rock at this moment.

Finally got to finishing up my post on my attendance at the Mooney Summit. If you haven't been and wonder what the summit is like, here's my perspective and experience. I highly recommend you find a way to get there. I have next years on the calendar, hoping to be able to work things so I can fly ourselves from CA, if not then it will be the aluminum tube again. Mooney Summit VII

I think that your CFI actually wrote this...."covering all areas of pertinent list for a private pilot" I have known a few CFIs that have some pre-printed labels with blanks for the dates and times so that in the future the log is discernable. Same goes for A&Ps that print their work completed on stickers. I wish all my past logs were readable.

The 50W HID has 750k candlepower. That’s many multiples of what LED lights put out. Replace the Ballast for 110$ and roll on. lamps are cheap. Amazon.

For less than the price of a fancy ANR headset, you can get a CO monitor, two sets of Halos and fly your wife to dinner an hour away!

I'm going to ask Seattle Avionics to add a 'Non-ADS-B Compliant" option to their flight planner. Should be easy enough, no Charlie or Bravos. I am too old to fly above 10K so that's not an issue

My first Mooney , was N74795....

Had a cold plane for years. Cold always hitting the back of my head. I think the main culprit was the rear bulkhead close out and the wire harness pass through. Both are rather easy to plug. Tape for the panel and RTV or putty for the harness. i also found something counterintuitive. I used to open the vents between the legs wide open. However,I found if you keep them mostly closed, especially the right one, it pushes more warm air to the defrosters AND the rear heat outlets. Be sure the rear are not covered over by interior panels. If you don’t want to get in deep at this point, at least try to seal interior gaps off. I also plug the rear overhead outlet, but as suggested, have a CO monitor....or two.

If you put flaps on the output, or even a little lip like a Gurney flap (like on a Cherokee/Arrow or a C172, etc.), it helps to create low pressure on the back side which can help increase flow. A throttle on the input won't do that. We do this for cooling air and such on race cars all the time.

They already have a mag with the onboard alternator. Saw one being installed on an RV a couple of weeks ago. Whether it makes it to the certified market is a question mark. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

You have to purchase the STC for the upgrade from Mooney through a MSC. At least $5000. You must have a prop approved for 2700 RPM (Three blade from Hartzell or a 4 Blade from MT Prop). Tach has to be replaced or serviced or upgrade to JPI 900 with instruments and tach. If you have Moritz gauges might be time to move to the JPI.

I’m still a(n older) student pilot. Very boring 172.

The tail usually has low pressure, it sucks. I have found that most of the leaks come from under the floor, up behind the sidewalls and into the cabin. Mooney originally taped up all the gaps, but the tape dissipates over time. Also the rat socks on the gear can let in cold. The original sidewall insulation did a much better job of stopping drafts than the new light weight insulation. Also, whatever lets in drafts can let in CO.

It looks good for most of us. I came from Dallas yesterday to Centennial (Denver). I only got about 1/2 hour of IMC. I'm here visiting my son in Castle Rock, to help him replace a head gasket on his wife's Prius. I'm having to adapt to trying to get enough oxygen at 6700 feet.

Aeroshell is semi-synthetic. One big benefit of synthetic oil is a longer change interval. Unfortunately, we can't take advantage of that because of the we use leaded fuel and the oil ends up very dirty. So, it is not worth the extra cost for Aeroshell.

Expect if the engine is running at 1krpm at idle.... Landing long is going to be a challenge... Typical idle rpm is written down somewhere... 6-700 rpm(?) Time to review my own engine docs while we are at it... Have you verified the working of the rotating knob? If the vernier knob is working properly.... it will require being turned all the way counter clockwise to achieve minimum throttle position... If you don’t use the vernier part... somebody else did, and you just found out... PP thoughts only, not a mechanic... Best regards, -a-

Wait until you get to the training part... 1) you will love Performing check lists... 2) you will love reviewing yourself before each flight... IMSAFE... 3) you will love checking all the parts of the plane before using it... What..? You guys don’t just jump in your plane and go...? Nukem, I get that you are helping out your family member... And your focus is starting to show up in the right direction... Keep both eyes open... while doing the right thing for family... doing it the wrong way won’t be helpful for you or them... An airplane can be the equivalent of a lethal weapon... All the training that your family has... won’t instill any value to you genetically... Go start your training... see how easy it is for you... Of all the 60 steps or so on your way to the PPL... a couple are going to be hard for you... If you can’t find a challenge in any of those steps... you have witnessed a miracle... The sign at the gym you go to... “it’s not what you start that counts... it’s what you finish...” The flight school will have a sign too... ”leave your attitude at the door... your not Maverick...“ If you run your own business... you have hired people smarter than you for a reason... believe it or not... 1) MS wants you to be successful... 2) MS Has seen many newbie pilot wannabes come through the entryway... 3) MS has seen many pilots get to their goals... 4) MS has witnessed many people rushing to get to their goal... all it takes is time and money 5) Unfortunately MS has witnessed people taking short cuts... at all levels... refuse shortcuts... 6) MS has seen plenty of people that thought buying a plane was the logical way to start... that’s kinda like buying a pool to learn how to swim... economically less sensible, than taking swimming lessons at the Y... 7) MS is trying to point out... having a Mooney can be a small financial and time burden... it is not the focus of this thread... your finances and time are up to you... you already know how to avoid a financial disaster... 8) MS is trying to get you aligned with avoiding rushing into Physical disaster... 9) Like your insurance broker... we point out how people can do better for themselves... 10) We have sat through the trying times when a college educated pilot had an accident... as in he went to a flying college to be trained in aviation... he didn’t make it to graduation... Learn as much as you can... Flying is exponential... Cross-country travel is great with a Mooney... Go complete some steps! Best regards, -a-

I think I am just getting a feel for how big a Mooney really is... Installing a gravity switch in the Ranger is key to keeping things in the back... Go War Eagle! Best regards, -a-

My point is simply that most of the airflow arriving at the cowling is going to go around the cowling (causing a certain skin friction drag) whether there are openings or not. When some of the air is diverted for cooling, there are losses involved which are highly dependent on the cowling design. Now, time to quit before someone brings up Meredith effect.

Take an unopened tin can and hold it under the faucet. Looks pretty much like the opened one with a hole in the bottom. Most of the water flows around the can in both cases. The can is analogous to the airplane and the water is analogous to the air. In the airplane flying along at 160 kts, most of the air is going to go around the cowling either way.

Are they going to interface your existing autopilot to the GAD29B? The GPSS is worth it. I wouldn’t hold your breath about the aero cruize AP, however. Probably won’t be out anytime soon based on the BK track record. See those Scat tubes? Do yourself a favor and have them replaced. The inside core wire is likely corroded. Soon little bits of rust will start blowing out of the panel.

Yep, two of the F-5's were on the ramp this trip. Last trip or the one before (I can't remember) there was a handful of Harriers, haven't seen the Antonov.

From Me and my family thanks for the well wishes. They all live with me and take good care of me. They are also Mooney rated passengers. Jose

The weekend before Thanksgiving we flew to Phoenix and on the way back I passed 400 hours of flying. I've learned a lot and looking forward to the next 400. It was a fun arrival into Mesa Gateway (KIWA) initially being held 700' above the regular TPA for traffic already in the pattern, followed by a 360 for spacing and descending halfway through the turn to landing with three F-18's holding short and two F-5's on the ramp. I downloaded the LiveATC feed and found I have an annoying habit of saying "All right" at the beginning of my answers to the tower (need to knock that off). More detail, videos, and pictures on my blog - 400 Hours!!

Perry, first of all CONGRATULATIONS on such a fantastic airplane!! To overcome the issue with Foreflight and since Mooneys do not have a zero fuel weight, just enter your max gross weight under the zero fuel weight box and you will be in businesses!! Please share some photos of your plane!!

Oh no Jose!!! I am glad to hear from you but I am very sorry to hear of your health difficulties. Please know we are pulling for a thorough recovery for you. Sincerely, Erik

Great! Now let’s all go tell Mooney how they should run the company!

When we left there was some heavier rain to the south so I ended up circling in the vicinity of Kalispell, climbed to 11,500 then headed WNW and crossed directly over the mountains near Marias Pass which I believe is Hwy 2. If I were faced with the same scenario I'd probably wait the weather out. The ceiling was 12-12,500. There was light rain the whole way which mixed with some snow at times so visibility wasn't the best. Wasn't IMC but certainly wasn't enjoying any views. Thought about getting an IFR clearance but that meant I would've had to climb to 13,000 which would've taken some time and put me in the clouds. Temp was +6 at 11,500 and the icing reports were between 14-17k feet so should've been fine with ice but would have been getting borderline. Winds were forecast to be around 10 kts at 9k but I think they were a bit stronger than that and did experience a bit of turbulence. All in all maybe not a horrible call but at the same time probably not the best. The rest of the trip back was uneventful. Stopped at MLS and ABR to C29. Cruised at 9,000 feet and enjoyed some tailwind just above some white puffys.

SA02193CH is the STC for the airframe 310HP upgrade. As mentioned before it mentions both engines, N and the modified G SE02930AT is the STC for the IO-550G upgrade to 2700 RPM Each of the props mentioned above has dedicated a STC for the 310HP upgrade. Hartzell did not charge extra for the STC. Depending on your cockpit you may need an additional TACH that is redlined at 2700 RPM. The M20S Mauritz gauge redline is at 2400 RPM Most STCs are on the FAA webpage for reference. I agree with everyone above: The Acclaim S prop is the way to go!

Airplanes are like dogs. They like to mark their territory.