Mike A

How bad of damage can they fix? Some of my pieces are broken into multiple sections. How important is flexibility in these? The repair company was concerned about strengthening sections and causing additional stresses elsewhere. Did you use a standard auto body shop or one that had a specialty?

The plane goes in for avionics next week and while its down I was going to get a jump on refurbishing some of the interior plastics on the plane. I had a company come out and give me a quote on repairing and redying all the plastics in the plane, which came out to about $400 more than buying all new parts from planeplastics.com. I added 20% for trimming/fitting/dying the new pieces and it still came in below the cost of having the old, disintegrating pieces repaired and redyed. Has anyone done a full interior refurbishishment using planeplastic.com parts? How difficult are they to fit and get installed. The online pictures make them look like they don't come with screw holes, oxygen cutouts etc. How hard is it to get all this cut in correctly? And is the color decent or should i plan on having them redyed upon receipt? Any insight that you all have would be greatly appreciated.

Also, does anyone know if Chartis will release what the winning salvage bid was on this plane?

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Under 500 miles: plan to fly but drive if weather causes a no-go. This does mean that a no-go situation can cause you to have to leave at the absolute crack of dawn to keep any sort of schedule. Over 500 miles: I am lucky to live in a Southwest hub and will purchase a ticket to my destination. That way I can cancel my ticket up to the day of if the weather will allow me to fly and if not, I am already covered. If it is a trip that you have to go on, always have a plan B and C.

My OAT gauge reads about 10 degrees lower than the ATIS temperature on a consistent basis. Is there an easy way to adjust it?

Can anyone help with the removal of the burnt out tail position lamp? I tried to get it out and broke the tip off......

Thanks for the help everyone. I went back out to it, cleaned some of the wiring up, did a little dance, and like magic the strobe started to operate again. The nav light is still out, so my next mission prior to working on a replacement assembly is to attempt to replace the bulb. Has anyone removed the rear nav bulb in a SDI rudder nav/strobe assembly? The SMM states to "Remove lamp (6) with S.D.I. special tool no. 203541 or equivalent" but I cannot find this tool anywhere. My guess is going to be that the bulb pulls straight out and the "special tool" is nothing more than tweezers of some sort. Also, once I get the bulb out, does anyone know the replacement bulb number? The assembly is SDI P/N 701557-1M.

I would prefer to not have to get FAA approval for installation until I redo everything, which will be at some point in the future.

I was looking at Potomoc or Washington Exec, but would be open to any airfield. Both say you have to comply with 14 CFR SECTION 93.335\ An hour drive on top of the flight makes commercial look a bit better....

I need to replace the nav/strobe light on my 231. I looked up the Whelen replacement part number on their website and ordered it from Aircraft Spruce. When I got it, I realized the wires are about 3 feet too short. Has anyone replaced their rear nav/strobe? I would like to eventually replace all my strobes and position lights with LED, but right now it does not look like there are that many good options for certified aircraft.

My wife and I have a wedding to attend in DC in September. Obviously we would like to fly, but I know that it is a pain in the ass to get into that area with all the security requirements. Is it worth jumping through all the loops to get cleared and obtain a pin or should I just find an airport outside the no fly zone and drive in? What have others done in the past?

Does anyone use a iPad mount attached to their windshield that places it near the compass? I was experimenting with places to put mine and realized on a flight the other day that it was causing 20 to 25 degrees of deviation. Mine is WiFi and was conntected to a SkyRadar ADS-B receiver at the time I noticed it. Has anyone else noticed this. Also, if you use a suction mount, where do you locate it?

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Thank you.

So I need some more help on the mechanical fuel pump. We ended up buying a rebuilt one from TCM, installed it, set it up and it worked fine in its ground checks. We then replaced the alternator (voltage problem), and I finally got it back last week. We ground tested the system, then took it up for flight work. The mechanical pump worked fine for that 2 hr flight, with no issues at low RPM. Last Friday we went to take the plane on a short hop, and the low RPM cutoff problem resurfaced. I just got back from doing some tests and this is what I found: 1) Below about 1000 RPM, the engine will not stay on with only the mechanical pump 2) With the plane on the low boost and setup for 1200 RPM, turning the low boost pump off yields an increase of close to 200 RPM and the engine is operational 3) With the plane on the mechanical pump at about 1100 RPM, moving the mixture back towards cutoff there is no RPM rise, only the dropoff This leads me to believe that the low RPM settings are too lean/low. Does that sound right to anyone else? Also, is there a good way to setup the system without having actual fuel flows. The factory FF transducer is no longer operational and the engine management system has not been installed yet.

Got it out by simply removing the cover then unbolting. Whew.

She is probably not going anywhere without an alternator. I have seen the adaptor removed so I am going to suggest that to the guys before they start on the mounting bolts.

Does anyone have any tips for removing the alternator on a 231 (-LB)? The SMM says: NOTE The main alternator is very difficult to remove. The lower engine firewall mount bolts may require loosening,the upper bolts may require removal and the engine pivoted around the lower attach points. I would really prefer not to have to do that.

It really comes down to the involvement of the aircraft owner and the quality of the mechanics the shop uses. I took my 231 to a MSC for its prebuy, during which they gave me a list of minor squawks and fixed the "big ticket" items, but after taking it home and to a local shop (which is not a MSC) for some followup work, they found massive issues that the MSC missed (and some even caused by them). Just because they have MSC next to their name does not make them the end all be all in terms of maintenance. Find someone you trust and go with them. This was the first prepurchase that I have gone through where I was not able to be present 100% of the time, and I will never make that mistake again. I would rather go to a mechanic that I have known and trusted for years who may not be as well versed in Mooneys than go to a shop out of the blue (especially not near your home) that probably doesn't care about you, just your money.

Congratulations! Your IFR ticket definitely turns flying from a hobby to an actual mode of transportation. I second the guys saying to get a CFII to go on your first real IMC trips. I used to bring mine on business trips until I got reasonably comfortable. Think of your rating as a chance to keep learning. Like everything you will definitely still have good flights and bad flights. 2+ years into it I still have off days where I want nothing more than to not be in the soup.

I am like you where I live 5 min from the airport so if am taking off in the early morning hours or going on an extended trip I will do a thorough preflight the day before as well as get my fuel, top off the oil etc when it is in the daylight and in a more laid back atmosphere rather than trying to poke around with a flashlight during the rush of the morning while trying to get out and stay on schedule. Also, it is much better to find any potential no-go issues far enough in advance that I can change plans (aka climbing in the car for whatever trip) without a lot of headache. In my opinion, you can tell if anything has changed fairly easy even in the dark. I still do a full preflight before I leave, but knowing that I don't have to worry about the fuel, oil, and show stoppers when I arrive at the crack of dawn allows me sleep better (and normally a few minutes longer) the night before. And let's be honest, who doesn't love spending extra time with their birds anyway.