mike20papa

I have landed & taken off my A model on grass several times. No problems. Ohhh .... and NEVER with the gear up.!? I'll never forget going to a flyin at Kingsburry Aerodrome and a guy in a pig of a Cessna ( a stretched looking 210) collapsed the nose gear just trying to initiate movement during taxi. Holding NO up elevator, reving the engine and .. well kinda grusome watching all that dirt begin to fly!. I don't know how he ever got that airplane out of there.

On my A model - that always runs cool with under 375F cyl head temps - has a 2" duct at the taxi/landing light bucket that feeds the exhaust system heat exchanger that feeds carb heat or cabin heat. NO HOLES in dog house for cooling except for two 1/2" blast tubes for the mag.s - mounted on top of the house. I also have the 1" blast tube that runs from front of lower cowling back to the fuel pump. The entire design of this system got lost when Mooney dropped the dual pipe exhaust and went to the single pipe - I've had both. The dual pipe system is way superior. My opinion. Joe Again - sorry for the inverted photo ?!

Besides myself & the A model - anyone else planning on flying into Dillard Field? See you there. Joe

I would be interested in looking at the wing. Joe (M20A N8335E KCFD Bryan TX)

I couldn't help but build my own version. I couldn't believe a cordless drill would actually haul the mooney with any authority. I have a 1/4" ft slope just out side my door and this contraption pulls it out no sweat. I built 4 while I was at it. Uses a modified 12v China Freight winch driving a chain with mini bike components. No, Unfortunately, it doesn't fly inverted.

As an '59 M20A owner/pilot - I 'll share a few thoughts. First, there are no aluminum to wood glue joints anywhere on the airplane. What I guess you mean is that there are some indication that the plywood wing skins have possibly delaminated from the underlying wood structure. Ask how was this determined. If you want to get a basic understanding of the construction & condition of the wing, I recommend you read the Mooney SB titled "Wood Structures" 20-170A. To do a preliminary visual assessment, I'd remove the aft lower alum. panel that will allow you to inspect the aft face of the aft spar and inboard Flap hinge attachment brackets. Also, you can remove the flaps and attempt to wiggle the brackets to check for any problems with delamination. The wing is not sealed from the outside, except for a piece of tape under the top wing/fuselage fillet. Often this tape is "long gone" and if the AC has seen outdoor tie-down, there could be problems. Then you could proceed to remove the seats, and aft fuel tank to further check for problems with the aft spar. This is the area that caused all of the original concerns with the wing - all related to outdoor tie-down. Also, you can check the main spar and the steel tubing condition. The gear can be expensive to up-grade from the original Fire Stone biscuits to the Lord type. Around 5K in parts if you do it yourself, and it's not a novice's job. Check to see if this has been done. All that said, I love the wood wing on my A model. No "weeping" wet wing, no prone to inter-granular corrosion 7075-T6, no crevices and unprotected laminated metal faces to hold moisture and corrode, etc. I cruise mine at 175 mph, it's seen lots of rough air and red line IAS. But, they are not the "run of the mill" Mooney. Joe, N8335E at KCFD

Post annual, I'll fly my A model, with out the back seat and right seat. The climb difference is "seat of the pants" different. Also, which one of those screens do you watch for the impending bird strike?! In Texas, I share the air with 25lb buzzards.

To a Stearman pilot, some of these cockpit photos would make one wonder, ".. so just how many smart screens does it take to get that Mooney off & then back down the ground?" Or is it just entertainment while the auto pilot does all that? Brings to mind David Bowies TV walled bedroom in "the man who fell to earth"

Boyd Maddox (A&P/IA) at Houston Southwest is an old contact I have regarding wood wing Mooneys. He is a Mite guru. mooneymite@yahoo.com Best of Luck, Joe

The true spill over from the cloth era is the FAA's certification process. I once read what it took to certify the composite structure of the Columbia (I think that's the name) It was loaded into a custom fabricated jig and "manipulated" to simulate loading for hours on end. It was all so expensive - the FAA making sure they would never be asked to work that problem again. By the way what happens if a Tesla hits a Sherman tank head on?

Sounds like you have your engine leaned to "stumbling lean". Normal vibration when leaned excessively. Recommend you familiarize yourself with "the red knob" on the ground. Especially if it is so cold, no possibility of overheating cylinders. Start up, then begin backing out, leaning until you continue to get a smooth idle at 1500rpm. reduce throttle to 1000rpm. Fine tune mixture to control power for taxi. This approx. mixture setting is "lean for taxi". If all goes well, I'd say you have functioning carb. and engine controls. Being so cold, the ability to "lean as normal" at altitude maybe not be SOP. With air so cold/dense a richer mixture maybe required.

I believe Continental bought ECI. That's where they are coming up with the Lycoming replacement parts. ECI never certified these parallel valve cyl.s - TCM did.

If you get desperate, I have a hangar in Hearne, KLHB I would possibly consider renting on a month to month basis ($235). Best part of living in TX is flying OVER Austin and thanking your lucky stars for owning a Mooney. But then I'm an Aggie, life best lived east of the Brazos.

Great starter - the 149NL. But remember, installation includes sheet metal work to close off reduced size of starter hole or you'll be right back on this site talking about why high CHT's.

There is such a better engineered upgrade to these shafts...than the "two holes are better than one" factory fix. I see a yoke/shaft connection that utilizes a thru piece of .25" X .032",4130 hard brazed (90ksi silver solder) to the interior of the main shaft that simultaneously reinforces and distributes out the yoke forces into the shaft... reinstall the control wheel, ream for AN3 bolt and forget about it...

I couldn't figure how to configure installation under cowling to meet EI's spec, so opted for under floor, just down stream of elec. pump. Required moving pump, forming new fuel lines, but it's a solid mounting. Joe

After ten years of owner/ops with N8335E, I have finally had enough with the original baffles. The center section had fretted edges at the right/left lap joints, busted up and patched pieces were the norm. So, rebuilt all cyl. attached pieces with .040, stiffened up the center section to eliminate all that vibration with full length angled pieces in the lap joints. any way, take a look. Joe

If new engine mounts are being installed then you may not need any shims. For me, the challenging part of the job is aligning the bolts as they are all angling in toward the "dynamic center" of the engine. They don't really want to line up with the engine case until the engine is hard against the mounts and the engine is not hard against the mounts until you tighten the bolts. Catch 21. Be patient, use grease to lube the bolts to help get thru the case. If you have a battery box mounted on the firewall, remove it (probably already removed) for access. The shims I have utilize slotted holes that can be added after the engine is hung/checked. Loosen the engine bolts, insert/remove shims to level. Enjoy your new engine & mounts! Joe

Yes, there Aero paint line goes by DESOTHANE

I know of a good project - thought of picking it up myself, but no time. It's in Kenosha Wisconsin.Wing was rebuilt new wood, needs plywood skins from gear out to tip. Also, there is a good wood wing in Kansas, in storage, owned by Mark Weibe. I bought a wood tail a few years back. Any of you familiar with the leading edges used by Mooney know that the plywood is 45 degree angle. Over time it can very slightly loose it's original shape and take on an "oil canning" look. Anyway, I cut it all the skin off the vert. stab to examine the internal structure, suspecting perhaps a glue joint here or there loose. ABSOLUTELY NOT. The thing was 100% adhered every inch of every joint (and no termites). My M20A will true out 180mph at 24/2400, easily climbs 1000ft/min with just me on board, economy cruise of 160mph at 20/2400 burning under 8gph. At 6k . Have spun it (one turn) from 10K coming out of a power on stall, red lined the airspeed indicator during recovery - we're both still the best of friends.

Maxwell is a MAPA guy. He and Trey and that bunch are very loyal to the MAPA group. His expertise and personal contact comes with a membership to MAPA. This site is seen as undercutting that group.

My first thought is - when situation is getting worse - is not to fly the airplane till you get the problem resolved. Put the airplane up on jacks and look for the cause. The difficulty in seating the bar sounds like it could be as simple as "Stuff" in the carpet in between the bar and wheel well or incorrectly, over adjusted gear actuator rods. Best 'o luck. Joe

What happened? Moose on the runway? if the spar is okay, perhaps only shear web damage - it's doable. Otherwise ... There are better options.

Did you do the restoration? I have always wanted to see how Al designed the tail dragger gear into the wing. The simplicity of the leaf springs doubling as the scissor links .. neat.

Another Al Mooney signature design!