DavidB

Yeah, I saw that about an hour after it was posted. Called the owner, sounded good, made plans to go see it this weekend but some razor called after and sent him a deposit so bye bye birdie. Clearly a hot market. Oh well. No fault to the seller or the buyer. Just more aggressive. I guess I like to look before I leap.

I sailed around the world in the 80's in a 33' sailboat and certainly think that a Mooney would do the job a lot more quickly. I've pondered doing it in an aircraft. But first I need the plane!

Thanks for looking. I called Philippe there a couple of weeks ago. It had gone under contract three days before my call. It was an interesting, if ultimately theoretical exercise on SkyVector trying to determine how it could be flown back to the States. If you're curious it is CAPA (Port Alfred SA) to KAVL. 7,388.8 miles direct so if you want to stop along the way for things like fuel or a whiz then it's a LONG way. An especially long way to go in an unknown aircraft. The hunt continues...

Thanks -a- I encourage him to get onboard but he's a tough mule to push sometimes. This actually isn't my first rodeo. I bought a DA40 in 2015 and kept it for a couple of years. At the time it was a toss up between it and a 252. The DA won the toss when they surprisingly accepted my low-ball offer. It was a 2004 vs a 1988, low hours and G1000. Unfortunately it is a relatively short range plane so I sold it in 2017. Then a new house and 2 year renovation put aviation on the back burner. Now the coast is clear and I'm ready, willing and able once more. In the interim, I have explored many options. At one time I purchased a Lancair ES kit and hauled it to AirFrames Inc in Milan Tn but subsequently received an offer from S. Africa for it so it got shipped down there. I also made some new friends who owned Glasair II's and III's. The 3 was owned by an Air Force fighter pilot and he took me for some memorable rides. The upshot of that was that the Mrs. wouldn't be too keen on flying while wearing a parachute as the glide and stall speeds of the G3 are so high that an off field leading would probably not be survivable so bailing out would be the best option. Just didn't think I could get the wife to go with that. Tight cockpit too and I'm more or less a normal size. A lot of other explorations led me to the 2 finalists: the Encore and the VL3 Evolution. The problem with the VL3 is that it's made in Prague and although there are over 400 flying in Europe, there aren't many here, like 3. It's an interesting proposition and IMHO the future of GA. Inexpensive (comparatively), economical, fast and looks like a blast to fly. I can tell you more about the process of how you get one here if you are interested. https://jmbaircraft.com/newsroom/2020/flight-tests-of-915-successfully-completed/ So the Encore is the prime candidate. I sent an email to Gmax a couple of weeks ago to Jim and he put me "on the list". I also sent a note to Don Maxwell. I'm trying a little direct marketing too but from my business experience, that's usually a waste of time and money. So I'll just keep lurking in the wirings and see what happens. Thanks again for all your suggestions and advice and I'll keep pushing the bro to join the party. db

I heard from my brother about his tanks and he provides the following statement as well as the chart that he created to know exactly what is in the fuel tanks. My Monroys I have are officially 130 g. However I quickly discovered that if you rock the wings for the last few gallon when refueling, each tank will take 68 gallons instead of 65 (giving 136 total). To be sure of my fuel capacity, I would circle an airport and run one tank bone dry. I would then land and fill the empty tank. It would take exactly 68 gallons. Next, I would repeat the procedure with the other tank and it took exactly 68 also. When running a tank dry, I would rock the wings using both rudder as well as ailerons to get any last gasps of fuel out of the tank. It turns out there was very little additional gas; definitely not worth mentioning. Same with the other tank. BTW, each wing has only one fueling port, not two. My Mooney has speed brakes. I should also make it known, my Monroys were installed by Mooney at the time of the aircraft's manufacture. This might still be possible with aftermarket timing. I'm just not sure.The Monroy tanks are the best possible speed mod you can put on Mooney. I've heard of people spending anywhere from $3000 to as much as $8000 trying to get 5 more knots from their aircraft. Just a lousy 5 knots! Maybe! Saving a fuel stop time loss by never having to come down from 16,000' (or higher) for gas can be the equivalent of a 16-20KT speed mod and at the time you need and value it the most: Long Trips. Who even needs 3-5 more knots if your average trip is only 2 - 2.5 hours. Yes, I know long trips require urinary relief equipment ..... but that's another story. fuel2.pdf

We've just returned from a long weekend in Lexington Ky and exploring the Bourbon Trail. I'm not much of a boozer but it was still interesting and beautiful country. The 6 hour drive home had me again wishing I was flying. I've almost pulled the trigger on a 252 in the past and it's entirely possible that I may do so. There have been a couple of Encore's go by in the past year and I've actually gone to the FAA registration site and gone through all of the Encore serial numbers to try and ascertain their status. 5 or 6 are out of N. America, mostly Germany. The serial numbers are 25-2001 thru 25-2032 so 32 in total. Not a big field to chose from. Good to know that the 25-1000 numbers are the one's. But you never know what will fall out of the trees, so for now I'm content to wait a while. Not forever! Just a bit. Thanks for the info. Best,

Thanks for the tip. I'll go and see what gsxrpilot is up to.

You've got it right. One great big wing tank. Speed brakes are located as usual. BTW - I'm still looking for an Encore! Cheers!

Here’s a quick pic regarding UL on the M20K.

Older. He has about 6000 hours in Mooney’s. He has about the last Bravo DX that Mooney made before the GX came out. When he ordered it he had them put in long range tanks (136 gallons) and TKS. It’s a nice plane A 2004. He’s at TBO now. His opinion is that if he had to choose he’d take an Encore over the Bravo even with the long body. He is extremely conservative with engine management and doesn’t go through many cylinders. I wish I could get him on MS because he has a wealth of knowledge.

I may be chasing rainbows or tilting at windmills but I’ve got to ask. You never know what might fall out of the trees. Certainly the 252’s are a good candidate but I’d really like an Encore. My brother took his 231 to TBO twice and has also suggested a 252 and there are a couple on the market. I’ll just try to be patient for now. Thanks for the feedback!

I’m looking for an Encore for my own personal use. I know they are a rare thing but just in case you find one tucked away in the back of a barn or are contemplating selling your own, please contact me. I know there is one for sale in South Africa but they haven’t responded to my query and the prospect of launching off in an unknown plane for a 10,000 mile flight back to the States is a little daunting. Thanks, David

I engaged Savvy a few weeks ago to look at a Columbia 400. I had a little back and forth with one of their specialists who suggested a couple of shops within an hours flight of the plane for the pre-buy but I had already found a Columbia specialist of my own that was near to it and after extensive conversations with their A & P and studying the logbooks I decided not to proceed. There were several "life-limited" items that were out of their limits so technically the plane hadn't been airworthy for about 6 years. That and only 3 hours on the Hobbs in 18 months. Savvy hadn't picked up on any of that in their free logbook review and had said it looked like a good candidate. I certainly got what I paid for there. I contacted Savvy and told them I was pulling the plug and was told that I had 60 days to find another plane to inspect or my $750 was forfeit. In all I probably received about 4 paragraphs of info from Savvy and the chances of me finding a worthy candidate in the next 60 days are remote. I sure didn't see anything in their agreement about that so Caveat Emptor! I had used them previously for engine analysis and will again, and I certainly like Mike's books but watch out for the pre-buy inspection! BTW - If anybody has an Encore looking for a new home, please let me know.

Did you pass? Thought I chose default fonts but...

I am skeptical too but there is a whole fleet of these things in Europe and a couple flew to Oshkosh a couple of years ago. Nice youtube video available on that. Here's some test flight info they sent me a couple of months ago. https://jmbaircraft.com/newsroom/2020/flight-tests-of-915-successfully-completed/ We’ve all seen wondercraft that never make it to reality but these guys are doing it. Maybe Mooney could make them in the USA under license? And they aren’t a kit. They are shipped in a container with the wings off which (I believe) are then installed glider style. To meet the 51% rule for home built you do have to go to Czech Rep and hang around the factory for a couple of weeks. Probably not hard duty But I’m not posting all this as a promo, just trying to see what others see in their crystal ball.