IndyTim

Nice work,Karl. And thank you for sharing it. Does anyone know of a process for engraving labels into the plastic, prior to applying the clear finish? That would be nice if there is a way to do it. I am going to see if I can tinker with the model a little, and create the half-width switches that my plane requires for the Master and Landing Lights.

Thanks for the support. i wish i could report that the deposits were small, but they were not. I do continue to have hopes that the receiver will bless moving foward. They have a full glass panel sitting in their shop with my name on it, but without the receiver, the primary lender, and the judge to agree, nothing will happen. CAV Aerospace is refusing to ship them my TKS kit, since apparently they owe CAV $$$. I am glad that I did not have my plane there when the receiver took over.

Yes, several actually since the legal mess is spread across at least 3 states.

Airnet. Columbus, Ohio (KLCK) What is sickening (from my perspective) is that all pre-receivership customer deposits are frozen, yet the company is trying to sell new installs.

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Congratulations. That's one of the most beautiful Aerostars I've seen.

The 201s, 231s, 252s, and Encores all have the same airframe and will be the same on the interior in terms of space, although there are trim and panel differences across the years. The Bravos and Ovations have a stretched airframe. They are not any wider, but do have about 2" more legroom for rear seat pax and I believe 6" additional baggage space measured from front to back. <corrected>

Ben - you seem to have a similar set of requirements to mine, when I was shopping last year. I bought a 252/Encore conversion (Parker's plane) about 1 week before I got my PPL, last July. I've put about 120 hours on the plane since then, with my frequent XCs and a bunch of IFR training. I live on the other side of the Rockies from you, but have the same requirements: long, efficient XC carrying 2 pax, occasionally 3, and safely get over or into interesting places in Colorado, Wyoming, and NM. I really, really wanted a Bonanza, ideally one that was TC or turbonormalized. At first. I spent about 7 months looking for a Bonanza, but there were always issues, not the least of which were the useful load/CG problems. During that time the insurer I was working with went out of business, and when I went back to get re-quoted, I found that I could not get insurance on a TC or T/N Bonanza with my limited number of hours. They would do an A36 Bo, for about $7000/year, or an F33A for about $5000/year. Surprisingly, my quote on my 252 was "only" $3200. Why would they do a turbo Mooney at pretty good price, but not a turbo Bonanza at any price??? Go figure, but I assume the answer lies in the accident rates. But how much of that is plane-related vs pilot related, I don't have the data. For $100k there are a bunch of J's and 231's on the market. At that price you will not get everything you want, so you'll need to prioritize your must-haves. At that price you can get good paint, a good interior, some newer Garmin avionics, or a newer engine/prop. But not all five. Each of those factors can be addressed afterwards, if you feel compelled and have the budget. I love having a turbo plane, but know that a remanufactured SB1 engine for a 252/Encore is $53,000 after the core return. For a complete overhaul on an existing engine at Custom Airmotive, it's $38,000 and change including the turbo-related accessories. I don't have prices for a 231, but I assume they are very similar. If I were to get a 231, I would make sure it had the Merlyn wastegate and the intercooler. And I would want records indicating that they had been installed early in the life of the engine. That, or I would find one with an engine close to TBO and plan on putting my own engine in. You never, never know how an engine has been flown so, in my book, whether the engine has 500 hours or 1500 hours SMOH or SFRM is irrelevant. You mention a budget of $100,000, but I wonder is that purchase price, or is that the figure you expect to have in the airplane after you've owned if for a year? If I were buying a 231, I would budget at least $15k, probably more, for the various surprises that turn up, and for a nice J I'd try to have $5-8k on hand.

Good tug. I have two of them.

My sentiments as well. I'll let you know what happens. My current assumption is that I'll have to kiss a big chunk of cash goodbye. Or wait a long, long time to see pennies on the dollar. But, I will say that the installer has not gone dark, that the DOM and I are talking, and he is trying hard to do what is right for his customers including getting the poor birds that are already in his shop back to flyable state. That would have been my worst nightmare, btw, so I'm glad I got the news before I delivered my plane to them.

It's somewhat academic debating the difference between FIKI and non-FIKI since the installer and CAV Aerospace would not even provide a quote for non-FIKI. On my 252, it's $57,385 for installation of the TKS system, which happens to be FIKI certified. But even that is academic at this point, since as of last week the only Mooney installer has been placed in receivership, along with my deposits for TKS and avionics. CAV Aerospace refuses to ship my TKS kit to the installer unless said installer coughs up cash for the kit. I've been spending a lot of sleepless nights waiting for word from the receiver on what is happening with my deposists. Word to the wise, which in hindsight I apparently ain't: pay for your equipment up front, get title to it. That way you can walk away with what you paid for. Or, insist on a non-deposit deal if you can get away with it.

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These units are now out of production. If anyone has one in good shape lying around, I'd be interested in buying it.

Good catch. I bet they are vacuum. Thanks for the heads up.

Knowing what I know now, or more to the point, knowing more about what I DID NOT know when I first started flying, I would not buy an airplane to train in. A lot of guys over on the the Beechtalk forum say "buy your last airplane first" and they have a point: once you acquire a plane you're going to put a lot of money into it, getting it right, upgrading, etc. But if you bought it as a stepping stone, then you'll be out a bunch of money on the transaction. So my strategy was to train, and buy what I meant to keep. I looked in a lot of the wrong directions before I got to that point, and I worked very hard at learning everything I could learn. There are very few excellent planes sitting around on trade-a-plane or barnstormers: the excellent ones get snapped up, often in private deals. Usually, they're still for sale for a reason, and the next owner gets to absorb the squawks. I didn't understand any of this when I started looking, although it's obvious in hindsight. I also had no clue what kind of plane I actually needed. I seriously looked at RV-7s and I seriously looked at Barons. Seriously. And everything in between. If you have money to burn, and you can consider your first plane a potentially "throwaway purchase" or something close to that, then go for it. But if your goal is to make a savvy decision, I think it's best to rent for training, let someone else absorb the somewhat unpredictable and usually expensive costs of maintenance, and not only get some flying skill but also learn about aircraft first-hand. If you've in the Bay Area, you're surely close to at least one flying club. That can ultimately be a good way to get exposure to a number of aircraft, while possibly learning from the more experienced other members. My .02 FWIW

/ Thanks for the links and info Dave. Good stuff. I could definitely get hooked on the performance in the flight levels so I'll need to find a mic'd mask soon.

jlunseth - my O2 levels were around 90, compared to base of 98-99 on the ground. I could feel the difference and I felt crappy when i got there. My nose ran a lot, and it was a long flight so I was tired. I did not use a mask since I don't currently have a mic'd one although I'm researching that. I assume that will help, in the flight levels. Nice to know that, if properly set up, I shouldn't feel any different if we fly high.

rad - I starting flight training in fall of 2012. I travel extensively, and therefore had numerous challenges in completing my PPL, but managed to knock it out by this past July. During that time I flew rentals - Cessna 150s and 152 for about $80-90/hr wet (including fuel). Prices may be higher (probably are) in your end of the country. I also acquired a Mooney, a 252, about 10 days prior to completing my PPL. I did not use it to complete my PPL, obviously. I was fortunate that the person who sold me my Mooney was also a CFI-II and we worked transition training into the deal. He signed off on both my complex and high-performance endorsements which I accomplished in my Mooney, post-PPL. It worked out well for me. Insurance was obviously a factor. I was able to get quotes, prior to my having my PPL, but the underwriters included clauses that required a certain number of hours (20) dual instruction before I could fly solo or carry pax, once I had my PPL. I felt like the rates were pretty good, especially given my inexperience. Since I was (and still am) pretty green, I continued to fly frequently with instructors in my plane as I expand my personal limits. Additionally, I pretty much went straight into IFR training, in order to continue the learning curve. There have been a whole series of "levels" that I've gotten through as I've expanded my skill set: there are no end to the challenges in flying. So, getting a plane, and getting it insured, prior to getting one's PPL can be done (YMMV). But, if I had to do it over I would not do it any differently: I would not buy a Mooney to train in. There is way too much complexity and you need to learn basic stick skills, basic power management, landing techniques, night landings, how to handle cross winds, not to mention how to navigate airspace and talk with ATC. There is a whole bunch of knowledge and skill required. If I had to do all that while managing my Mooney, with prop, and cowling, gear, autopilot, engine temp management, etc etc I'm sure I would have been overwhelmed and possibly discouraged. It's taken me quite a while to begin to get comfortable landing it since it is slippery and managing speed is essential: with the Cessnas you dial in flaps and they drop like rocks and almost land themselves. I'd also just go fly! And hang out at the FBO or flight school, get to know as many pilots as you can, maybe get a chance to see, sit in, or even fly in as many planes as you can.

Yes, the info about the micro sim was just added, based on my earlier comment. I like the fact that Reiff is following up and updating in real time to help clarify docs and make the product successful. I'm very happy that I have the switch. It makes my life better, and by eliminating several trips a year over to the hanger to plug in preheat, not to mention avoiding a cold start when I just could not manage to get here, the switch easily pays for itself several times over. I could not imagine not having a device like this, living anywhere temps get low. Unless there is a heated hanger available. ;-)

I have two corrections to the information I provided earlier in this thread. My complaint #0 regarding a lack of external status indicator wasn't valid since there is a small light that flashes green every three seconds when the unit is active. I didn't notice it. Regarding the 2nd connector (#3 below), the green connector to 12v / GND must also be connected to the circuit board. I discovered that without the connection it runs off the battery but obviously not forever.