MLerro1986

An interesting topic came up the other day while reviewing the POH of my 2006 M20R Ovation2. As it states, and as indicated by the white arc, full flaps can be deployed at 110kts. Typically, in the other aircrafts I've flown, I've been instructed to put the first notch of flaps and gear down at the same time, as the increase in lift counters the increase in drag and results in less needed control input. This has always made sense to me, but most aircraft I've flown have a placard for the airspeed deployment for the first notch of flaps, or at the very least, have some indication in the POH. This, however, is not the case on the Ovation2. I would assume that the first notch can withstand the forces that the gear can withstand at 140kts, but since it is not listed anywhere, I have not attempted it. My instructor and I were both a little confused by the lack of information in the POH, which seems to only mention full flaps in most cases. Any input from my fellow Mooney pilots would be appreciated.

I recently purchased a 2006 Mooney Ovation 2. Upon inspection, everything seemed to be working properly. As a former student used to keeping log time by the Hobbs, I frequently open the baggage door and record the hours. A little while ago, however, I noticed that the Hobbs wasn't moving. I took the plane to my local mechanic who told me that the Hobbs meters typically go bad and that they are easy to fix. After a short inspection, however, he told me that the meter itself was functioning properly and that the issue had to be something else. Doing some research through the threads, it appears (although I am not certain) that the air safety switch controls the Hobbs on the Ovations. Not knowing enough about the topic, I elected not to have the mechanics dive into the problem at the time. Speaking with several other pilots, there is a little bit of a discrepancy as to whether or not to even bother to fix the problem as the G1000 still calculates tac time on the panel. So here's where the question to my fellow Mooney pilots comes into play. How important is the Hobbs meter to you and would it be worth sending the plane in for maintenance?