Andy95W

Same here. If I start getting squeamish about something, like magnetos, I may do something about it- but never 2 mags at the same time.

And don't forget the name calling and foul language. My wife calls me names when she is losing an argument. With her, I have to listen. I guess at least on Mooneyspace I can switch threads and follow topics that are more interesting than people shouting at each other about things they can't change.

Definitely shared expenses, but of course the guy without a seat doesn't have to pay his full % share.

"Smokey smell". Any chance it smelled like a dead bird? Definitely pull the top cowling and take a look. #4 is at the back so if you did ingest anything into the cowling it would go toward the back, could block airflow, and could spike your CHT (I assume you meant CHT and not EGT). After that... Clogged fuel injector, which then cleared itself, but should probably still be cleaned. Just an educated guess and $ .02 worth.

Had one in my last airplane (previous owner installed). Worked so well in reducing noise I'm actually considering buying one. To keep my membership in the CB club, I will try Jose's $4.99 Home Depot seal first, however.

Yeah, I won't do that again. Funny the things we can rationalize when we're young. Hand-propping with the Mooney's Shower of Sparks requires 2 people. One person has to hold the ignition switch in the start position (but not pushed in- that engages the starter). This energizes the shower of sparks, retards the spark from the left magneto to 0° BTDC, and grounds the right magneto. Without this, you will be trying to start the engine without a boosted spark at 25° BTDC- simply not possible. Ah, to be older and wiser... at least hopefully wiser.

Anthony, The year was 1992. I had just bought my first Mooney, an M20C, in Columbus, GA. After a quick complex sign off from a CFI friend of mine, I embarked on my cross country flight to get the airplane to Fort Hood, TX. (Looking back, I can see with 20/20 hindsight the links in the chain coming together.) Somewhere over Louisiana, as I was getting ready to stop for fuel, as it was starting to get dark, I popped the over voltage relay on my alternator, which took the alternator off line. With lights on, it didn't take long for the battery to be almost dead when it came time to leave. At night. In an unknown airplane. Stay for the night to troubleshoot the problem? Nah, it'll probably be okay. (More links in the chain.) Found a CFI to sit in the seat and hold the brakes, after reading the POH for the first time to learn how to hand-prop this new-to-me airplane. BTW, I had never hand-propped an airplane before in my life. (More links in the chain.) Successfully started the engine, swapped seats with the CFI (of course the parking brake didn't work - that was kinda hairy) and took off for my new home airport. Ammeter seemed okay, so I didn't think much of it till later. Unbeknownst to me, but luckily, the over voltage relay is designed to reset itself when power is removed (master switch turned off). God protects fools and small children, and certainly kept me safe that night. And no, I wouldn't do that again. That Mooney took care of me in ways I'm only just now beginning to realize. That actually wasn't the stupidest thing I've done in an airplane. The stupidest thing was letting a King Air pilot talk me into running dangerously low on fuel in a C-172.

This is the correct switch. There is a Bendix Service Bulletin that specifies this part number as the replacement for our older ones.

Just because it works does not make it right. Our Mooneys are designed to have the 2-position start function, the first position to energize the vibrator and the second position to engage the starter motor. This allows you to hand-prop the engine to get it started with an energized, retarded spark to the left magneto only. Without this, you will never be able to hand prop your Mooney unless you disconnect your starter motor and hold the switch to the start position. Interestingly, 1962 and earlier M20B and C models had this type of ignition switch, in addition to a switch to disconnect the starter solenoid. I would not sign off the installation of this switch without the additional disconnect switch to the starter solenoid, and a POH supplement, and I am by no means the biggest stickler out there... I have IA friends who would demand that this is a major alteration to the design of the electrical system (read: field approval by the FAA). And they would still want to see the additional switch installed. So why not just install the proper switch to begin with, and that way we won't even have to bring up the whole PMA thing, either?

Thanks!

Jose? Please?

Not sure I agree. Weather kills VFR pilots wandering into IMC, but you have to try pretty hard to wander into a thunderstorm without a clue that one is out there. A good com radio, an IFR clearance, and asking ATC if they paint any precip goes a long way. How about we compromise and say that #7 is "tablet with moving map and Stratus/GDL-39 weather".

+1

You should already have some heat going to the back seat via 1" scat tubing that runs along the bottom of your side walls. It is pretty anemic air flow even when in perfect condition, but IMO you should start there. Those tubes tend to get crushed or become disconnected over the years. After that you could try some blankets that match your airplane's paint job or interior color, or some of those thick battery powered socks. .

Unless you are a hijacker, in which case you would leave them down.

I installed a set in my last Mooney back in the late 90's. Nice kit, and worked very well. Looks very professional when completed. One additional positive is that locked down the caps seem to seal out water better than not locked. Figure about 4 hours for the first one, 2 or so for the second. If you pay someone else, try to negotiate the installation price to 2 or 3 hours labor. My current Mooney is hangared, but after reading this thread I may put them on in spite of that.

Of course the weather is inferior to XM; it is free and piggy-backs on the limited remaining available bandwidth. Compared to other free sources of airborne radar data, it is awesome, amazing, tremendous, beautifully rendered, timely, and awesome. Cheap Ba$tard$ unite!

Actually, yes they do. Norm Smith (aka, "The Mooney Miser" from years ago) made a kit to modify the gas caps. Looks as though his company (Aero-Trim) is still making some of his old products. He unfortunately died in 2008; he was wonderfully nice guy. http://www.aerotriminc.com/id2.html http://www.aerotriminc.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/aerolockinstructions.pdf

+1 Great idea, Phil.

Which would you rather have, an Aspen or a decent autopilot with altitude hold? I would love to have both, but of the two, I'll take the autopilot every time. An extra set of hands to keep the blue side up and hold the altitude while I make sense of the VOR needle and charts... Priceless. But the moment I can convince my wife of the $10,000 buy in, I promise I will have an Aspen installed!

Rockydoc- I have owned 2 SPA-400s and been happy with both. The first airplane's I replaced for a PS intercom and was neither more nor less happy. My current I'm keeping, paired with a bulletproof Bendix audio panel like yours. As a proud member of the cheap ba$tard club, why not just take Marauder up on his offer, or send yours in to Sigtronics for a fairly inexpensive overhaul? At least then you would have an idea if the intercom is the problem and wouldn't be out $2000 for equipment you may not need. Just my (cheap-a$$) .02...

+1, Cliffy Love my C!

Leslie Nielsen?

I guess this falls under "to each his own", but I don't really understand why you would want to use a Battery Minder, or Battery Tender, or whatever. I've owned 3 airplanes over a total of 22 years and I have bought a total of 3 batteries, so I guess I average 7 years per. And I have never had a dead battery and never used a battery minder. I do fly 3-7 times per month for at least 30- 40 minutes each flight, but that's not really all that special. For the last 11 years I have used exclusively Concorde RG batteries and have my voltage regulator set at 14.1 per the Concorde guidelines and brochure.

Boy, I hate to admit this, but I think this is dead on.