BKlott

In 2016 I replaced all of my glass with green tint with the UV screen from Great Lakes. I noticed that when parked outside during restaurant visits that the airplane no longer became “hot as an oven” but merely warm. The benefits to your avionics, interior and, more importantly, to you and your passengers at altitude make the UV or Solar Screen options well worth it.

The Air Force Museum, Huffman’s Prairie and the Wright Bicycle Shop were places we visited in 2003. When we flew our plane to Dayton, celebrating the Centennial of Flight.

I want a brand new Mooney, exactly like the one in the picture. You can have the blimp.

The proposed rules would seem to be a way a to eliminate the Third Class Medical nonsense for many of us and many of the airplanes that we fly.

My dad subscribed to all the aviation magazines back in the 1960s. Flying, Air Progress, Plane & Pilot, Private Pilot and AOPA Pilot. I read them all, cover to cover. Of all the aviation mags, I liked and miss Private Pilot the most.

I’ve had the privilege to attend a number of Air Shows at different venues. The very best we’re held at Torrance Airport back in the late 1960s and early 1970s. While the line-up of pilots was impressive, Art Scholl, Mira Slovak, Charlie Hilliard and Bob Herendeen, my favorite part of the show was at the beginning. The vintage aircraft would takeoff in trail, starting with the oldest and working up to the newer models, fly one large circuit around the field, perform a low pass down the runway and then one more circuit back to land. It was so much fun just to see the old, unique vintage planes fly by that it was the most memorable part of the Air Show for me. Not one other Air Show that I have attended ever did this the same way. Having been an eye witness to multiple aircraft accidents, I can assure you that I do not enjoy watching pilots push their planes and luck to the limits close to the ground. I would rather not watch this stuff to be honest. Having seen the consequences of things going wrong up close and in person leaves images that can never be forgotten. Accidents like this do nothing but harm General Aviation in this country. It scares people away from flying and hurts us all. None of it is necessary.

30 years?

I did the Poker Run as well, my first. It was fun.

You might try giving Zephyrhills a call. I don’t believe that anyone else in the St. Pete area would have any availability. ZPH is a nice airport with friendly management and ongoing improvements. I love it there!

Yes, LJ runs the place. That is who I dealt with.

Zephyr Aircraft Engines did the major overhaul on my O-320 last year. They were really good to work with. The engine is smooth running and turned up a static rpm a little higher than spec. One advantage to working with a shop like Zephyr is that they will inspect the valve installations on the cylinders that were done by the factory and correct any deficiencies that they find before placing the cylinders on your engine. The factory assumes that their installations are always correct. I recommend Zephyr without any reservations.

Airframe corrosion, disuse, lack of ongoing maintenance and upkeep, high time engine, prop approaching AD required inspection, out-of-date avionics, leaking fuel tanks, landing gear donuts overdue for replacement, damage, missing logs, gaps in log book entries, condition of paint, interior and glass, etc.

I sent my mount to AWI for inspection and refinishing. Looked beautiful when it came back. You mentioned repairs to the mount that were done in the 1970s. Was that the last time the mount was properly inspected? A lot can happen over a (roughly) fifty year time period.

I pick up a couple of cases at Sun N Fun every year at a good price and can usually get a golf cart ride back to my car thrown in.

I’ve flown into Parks or Downtown St. Louis several times while visiting relatives during our cross country adventures. Always seem to have a good, stiff crosswind when landing there. Parked at Ideal Aviation a couple of times. Good luck with your sale!

That is one good looking vintage Mooney! Would like to see some additional photos of the panel and interior. We’re these photos taken at KCPS?

This attachment from Aviation Consumer is what you need to know about the Model 35 Bonanza. Suggest you read it carefully. Structural failures were prevalent throughout the production run of the Model 35 Bonanza. Nearly 5% of the 1,500 original model 35s came down in pieces. The straight model 35, A35 and B35 tended to experience wing failures prior to the empennage failing. The C35 and later models tended to fail in the tail first. Enjoy the report. 1980%20Aviation%20Consumer%20-%20Bonanza%20Breakups.pdf

I have a Sky Ox portable system and really enjoy the pendant cannula versus the more common “under the nose” cannula. It is more comfortable and makes eating and drinking much easier and less messy.

Those five blade props look great, right up until the time you have to overhaul or replace it.

My Dad used to always kid our fellow Grumman owners with “Stay away from acetone clouds”.

In The Grapes of Wrath, they went to California.

We had an early Cheetah for four years and the only deboning issue we had was with the cowling. It needed to be re-glued every year. Imagine that! In a location known for heat, temperature changes and vibration, the glue would fail. Years later during an interview with Roy Lopresti, in a moment of self reflection he commented that they (Grumman American) had a mindset that they were building a bonded airplane. He said they went to great lengths to find innovative ways to bond parts together that could have better been connected “mechanically”, using nuts, bolts or rivets. It was an interesting and reflective comment.

Those beautiful, empty rolling hills around Orange County Airport. The undeveloped fields on the Palms Verdes Peninsula where I would fly my rubber powered, balsa wood airplanes. Sky Trails restaurant at Van Nuys Airport where you could meet celebrities. The great air shows at Torrance where you could see Bob Hoover, Bob Herendeen, Charlie Hilliard, Mira Slovak and Art Scholl all fly the same day. Santa Paula Airport where you could see more vintage than modern airplanes. Lots of great California memories for sure!

Congratulations and best wishes! Enjoy your T-craft! You’ll become an expert on airspeed control or spend plenty of time floating and floating and floating on landings.

Someone once said that the Bellanca Viking was the most efficient airplane ever at converting avgas into noise. You should check out the Super Viking Forum. There are a number of threads and resources there that may benefit you. One popular thread is titled something like “How to land a Viking”. Apparently they can be a little tricky.