Yooper Rocketman

I've always liked the Comanche 400. Even took pictures and marveled over the "Past Grand Champion" one at Air Adventure a few years ago. I just don't talk about it much for fear your hat won't fit. :>) Some of these guys on the forum talk about their "other planes" too much already! (Obviously me included) Tom

Dual TKS pumps is part of the certified system as well. Tom

I was always taught the reason you disconnect the A/P in turbulence (serious stuff, not light) was to avoid over-stressing the air frame. Like Paul, I find I can provide a better ride by hand flying. Tom

I cannot get rated capacity on my Rocket with the flapper valves (I call them Dumb sxxt valves, for dumb sxxt's that would actually take off with their fuel caps off). BEFORE I installed my Monroy long range tanks (well, Edison did) I was picking my Rocket up in Salina, KS after the TKS installation and had called in a fuel order for a top off by the local FBO (CAV Aerospace does not have fuel). I explicitly told them how to get the last 4 gallons in each tank, noting I needed that fuel to fly non-stop to the U.P. When I arrived, I lost another hour getting going because I had to have them bring the truck back and install the last 8 gallons. With the paddle valves, to fill past the bottom of the neck you need the air to bleed out the tank vent, it can't bleed out the filler. And yes, this was how the plane was delivered by Mooney, and yes, I actually measured my usable fuel to verify the last 4 gallons on each tank were part of the "certified usable". It's actually easier to top off now with the extended tanks, as the outboard tank tends to help with the venting and back filling of the inboards. It's still a bit of a trick to get every gallon on and few lineman can get it right. As far as earlier comments about not being able to know for sure your tank level as you burn down the extended, I have two thoughts. First, the gauge DOES accurately when full and empty (it just doesn't come off "full" as soon), and secondly I only believe the gas gauge when it tells me something worse than I already know from my fuel flow computer. Compared to the experimental gauges in my Lancair, the Mooney gauges came over on the boat (the Santa Maria). As another eluded to, I think the external surface mount fuel gauges are more accurate than the dash gauges. Tom

200.webp

Erik, I just did that flight on Labor Day weekend from the U.P. I'll give you a bit shorter (1060 NM), but we did it both ways non-stop in under 4 hours. But then it's a homebuilt with my mom's old washing machine motor in it, not a Mooney. https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N994PT/history/20170830/1315Z/KIMT/KSAF Tom

Ya...........that's because you have a 10 blade prop :>)

I've always used the formula that my cruise time should at least be equal to my climb and descent time. The Rocket likes altitude for speed vs. fuel burn. The Lancair REALLY likes fuel down low! Tom

I've been flying mercy flights since 1994 and, up until recently, they accounted for 50% of my flying. I would guess nearly half the hours on my "past TBO" Rocket engine were accumulated doing donated medical flights. The last couple years I have backed off some, trying to complete the project plane that had run WAY longer than I anticipated when embarking on that adventure. Being the longest active pilot in the organization (Steve, my hangar partner is the only longer involved member, but has had many periods of inactivity) I routinely am asked to speak about our organization, Northwoods Airlifeline ( http://www.northwoodsairlifeline.org ). I could, and may, write a book on the many experiences I've had during this commitment. We were started by a great man, Bob Larson, almost 30 years ago and have performed thousands of flights since inception. We fly primarily patients from the U.P. and Northeastern Wisconsin to regional medical centers (Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, Milwaukee, Madison, Rochester, MN, and Minneapolis). I have done flights to CT, FL, TN, VA, NC, and MO as well. I will say it's one of the most rewarding experiences I have done in life. That said, Joe, go for it! Our organization requires 500 hours and an IFR ticket, but we are more restrictive the other mercy flight organizations (a large portion of the flights are done in organizational owned aircraft). Get accepted to fly with one of the organizations, pick good weather and a mission that works, and you will provide a service that rewards you as much as it does the patient. I will share just one of hundreds of mercy flight stories, one that may relate to others doing flights with Mooneys. I flew over in the dead of winter to Newberry, a small community on the eastern end of the U.P. The trip was to take an older lady to Rochester MN. There were 20+MPH winds and snow blowing everywhere with a temp below zero. The patient arrived AFTER I did, but in an ambulance.........? I said "we are not supposed to be doing flights for patients that are not ambulatory (capable of self boarding and no assistance during the flight)". Her husband assured me she could board and was brought from the hospital by ambulance "as a precaution". Well, when she got up to walk, it was pretty clear getting on the wing was going to be with serious assistance, and stepping down in to the front seat was not going to happen. As I assessed the situation, realizing they had no other option.... she would die in Newberry if I didn't get her to Rochester (there is no way they could afford an air ambulance), I decided to pull the front seat and board her in the back, making the step down much more doable. Long story short, the husband got to see his wife again a few months later, as she returned home to finish out her life with him. I made a special trip back a few days later and picked up my front seat............. but with a pretty good feeling in my heart about how that went down. To be clear though, flights requiring this type of assistance have been very rare, as our flight coordinator does a much better job today determining the patient's capabilities before accepting the mission. Tom

TIG is probably more like "GAS" welding, in that you are using the tungsten tip and amp control on the handle to control the heat, inert gas shielding the weld, and feeding aluminum in much like you would in a gas weld. These machines are usually water cooled as well, requiring a water source and drain point for the cooling water. The issue is the cost of the equipment for TIG vs. wire. If you're not doing a LOT of aluminum, you will struggle getting good at it and the cost is not as effective as wire is for standard metal welding. We only use TIG at my fab shop for aluminum, using wire for 90% of the welding work. You're looking at two different skill sets for TIG vs. wire feed welding. I would stick with a flux core 120 volt wire feed unit as this will most likely fit 90% of your needs with a very reasonable (and resale value option) cost of entry. Take your aluminum to someone that does it a lot. You will probably save money in the end, especially when considering the up front costs and stocking inert gas. I don't weld much anymore, but all my welders use the new hoods. If I was to take on a large project, the hood would be my first upgrade! For now, I drop the project off in my fab shop and seek out the best welder for the particular job I am doing! Oh.... you'll find wire much easier to strike an arc too, as long as your feed and amperage are set right. Tom

Don, Not aware of a flux core aluminum. Like nels noted, aluminum welding is more commonly done by professional shops using "shielded gas" (argon or CO-2) welding. We actually do a ton more welding with TIG than wire (aluminum fuel and hydraulic tanks, all the tiny mod parts I made for the Lancair, etc.....). For aluminum welding I find wire to be "crude", fine for large aluminum trailer repairs but not something for more precise work. A couple tips from a stick welder (me) that transitioned to wire; If the wire doesn't come out when pulling the trigger, stop immediately. You're bunching up wire at the feed end because you've got splatter on the tip and the wire is not able to move up the whip. To fix that issue, cut the wire where it goes into the whip at the drive end, pull the tip (unless you can grab the wire there with wire cutters) and pull it through. Cut off the bundled up wire at the machine and re-feed into the whip. Use an anti-splatter paste, keeping it right on the welding machine, dipping the tip into it occasionally when hot. It helps a lot with the first issue I just described. Practice your feed rate and amperage settings on scrap material about the same thickness you plan to weld until you are comfortable determining those settings without a test. As in arc welding (stick), have a very clean welding helmet glass so you can determine your flux vs. your molten weld material providing you the cleanest weld (keeping your flux out of the weld joint). Be careful with thin material. Unlike stick welding where you have to heat the material excessively to drop out a hole in your material, the wire feed will "PUSH" a hole through sooner on thin material. Lastly don't do like the TV motorcycle shops do, welding without the helmet! Tom

I've been in the welding and truck repair business all my life (now a truck dealership and trailer manufacturer). Back in the 80's my guys used stick more often than wire. I could probably sell my one and only stick machine if it were not for the fact they do all the TIG aluminum welding with it. All production work is with our wire machines now . Go wire Don!! Tom One of our recently completed smaller trailers.........

Flew my little cancer buddy down to Grand Rapids MI from up in the U.P. for more chemo treatments. The Airlifeline Bonanza was down for Avionics maintenance and my Lancair is down for a final bodywork push before going to my painter. Caleb was disappointed we weren't taking the prop-jet but was still happy they didn't have to drive. Tom

Neat story! That's definitely an accomplishment to RETIRE as a test pilot. Tom

Yep, Joe Trepicone. He's been drooling over my Rocket for years and I finally got him to move up from his Tiger this past summer. After my discussions with him during my transition training it became painfully evident a Mooney would be one of the best "pre-Lancair " airplanes. It's amazing the amount of Lancair pilots that moved up from a Mooney. Speaks volumes about our Mooneys. Definitely take you up on dinner! Tom

You're based at KOSU? Toledo half way.........that's funny. I get into KDLZ occasionally to visit a good friend building a Lancair Turbine. I'll give you heads up the next time and if it happens to be an overnight I can even have glass of wine ! Tom

85 knot landing speed??? I can't come close to 42 knots on landing (half the speed) with my Rocket. Over the numbers at 100 knots, land at 85 with the IVPT. Fatality rate has definitely been an issue. If we sat down for a drink and I told you the accident details on some of them you would be amazed. Tom

I suppose you guys were wondering when I would chime in? Bryon; the crash rate is no where near one third, but it IS pretty horrible. It's not a real forgiving plane if you don't fly it right. Two things absolutely necessary are to keep it in coordinated flight (it will swing fuel out to the wingtip FAST if you are not coordinated, which with under half tanks can be a real problem) and stall characteristics are all over the board, based on each builders work. The accident rate decreases something like 10 fold when you get over 150-200 hours on the plane (in a reasonable time frame, not 5 years). I am over 165 hours in 9 months on mine, for that very reason. Too many accidents come back to pilots buying this slick airplane with light logbook hours and/or more money than common sense or experience (V-tailed Doctor killer of the 60's comes to mind). I doubt there has been a Lancair IV, IVP, or IVPT accident since 1999 that I have not reviewed and studied the accident reports. Although a few are head scratchers, most are so flagrantly obvious what was done wrong I just shake my head. LOBO (Lancair Owners and Builders Organization) has been advocating a program for the Lancair's much like the FAA did with the MU-2's when their record was so bad. The program brought the accident rate down on that plane tremendously with the mandated training. Amazingly enough, the very people (owners) that would likely benefit the most from this program with the Lancairs (lower accident rate means affordable insurance and a truly justifiable resale value) seem to be against the concept, even if THEY are grandfathered in and not required to get the training. This proposed mandate would mostly address new owners of these planes. Here is a really interesting development for this air frame. Mark Manke and company at RDD (Mark worked on my plane in 1999 with me during my factory assist program as a Lancair employee) have developed a new wing and new tail for the plane, as well as incorporate the BRS recovery parachute in the LX7. They are targeting the "new" Cirrus customer looking for more speed and pressurization with an equally safe airplane. Preliminary feedback from insurance companies has been they will be near the same price point as the Cirrus fleet. This thing stalls like a certified airplane, has 6 hours of range which can be done in pressurized comfort, and is probably 40-50 knots faster in cruise. http://www.rddent.com/lx7.html Tom

That's happened with me and a month or two later they send me my money back, after "Short N Numbers" is assigned the number. Apparently when it first becomes available they will take anyone's money. Tom

Load the baggage compartment to the max. Helps a lot on grass with the Rocket! Tom

My local EAA Chapter hosted our 15th Annual Ford Airport Day last weekend (just getting caught up enough to post it). We invited the Model A club from the U.P. to come down to be part of the show and allowed them a photo shoot with the Ford Trimotor, our premier attraction this year. The main show was Saturday, but the Trimotor was with us for 4 days and Friday we hosted the local VA Hospital and their Annual POW/MIA Event. When the vets got off the bus, they buzzed right over to a T-6 we had parked as the backdrop to the podium for the POW/MIA speakers. It was pretty neat to see their interest in an old warbird era trainer, owned by a pilot from Pontiac, MI that was in the area and agreed to hang around for our event. He ended up on three TV stations that evening, so clearly got a bit of attention. Following the POW/MIA Ceremony, the chapter provided the vets a free lunch and after that they were sitting outside in their wheel chairs when the Trimotor taxied out for a flight. They asked if the pilot would do a "Flyover" as he departed the pattern. We called him on the radio and he complied. After the Trimotor departed the area a few vets asked their escorts if they might be able to get a ride? Pattie with the Trimotor from EAA called national and they agreed to drop the ticket price 33%, the airport manager and our chapter covered the rest, and after a considerable wait from the VA management for approval, 8 vets and a couple escorts loaded on the Trimotor for a ride. They were some happy vets when they got off the plane! Tom

As a fellow Michigander I had a wife that wanted a winter home where it is WARM. Like Buddy, we have a home on 7FL6, Spruce Creek. You can find homes in the same range as some have quoted above, but need to be watching closely and regularly to find them when they come up for sale in that price range. The Association fees are $1400 a year, but considering we are on probably the largest airpark in the world (600 airplanes based there, 1400 homes) with full security and the association fees cover both the runway costs AND the security, I feel they are very reasonable. There is no state income tax in Florida, and a decent homestead property tax break for Florida residents (of which I DON'T qualify for) so ownership there can be pretty reasonable. Unfortunately, Volusia County feels we got too GOOD of a break on my purchase, and we are fighting a 13% increase in our property taxes this year (hearing in late October). Absence of that issue, we love our winter home at Spruce Creek. Tom

I flew down to Grand Rapids, MI this morning to pick up a young boy after his weekly chemo treatment (was dropped off yesterday by one of our other pilots but blood count was too low to allow same day return). He gets really excited when he finds out he'll get a ride in the Lancair (this was his third flight in 4PT). He's been on weekly treatments since December and will finally go down to monthly in another month. One hour flight verses 7 hour drive each way so the family really appreciates it when we can fly them down. Anyway, they parked me next to this Mooney. Wondering if it belongs to anyone on Mooney Space? Tom

I've been monitoring guard for some time now, based on a private email from PeeVee a while back. He might hate me for my "second airplane" but at least he's given me good advice! Tom

Not me. Didn't think I should go there without paint. Tom