JimColeman1

Hey, thanks anyway, I really appreciate that! Maybe next time?

I'm in Central Texas. Looks like you're in Vegas? I just got home from there yesterday. =)

Absolutely brilliant! You're the man! Thanks for taking the time to make and share this with us.

Haha! I guess "shitty" is relative. =)

Excellent perspective, thanks so much for sharing. $1700 a year is a lot, but doesn't seem crazy given the circumstances.

Wow, super helpful, thanks so much! I'm really excited about volunteering with Angel Flight. I'm also looking at Civil Air Patrol. Looks like there are many great aviation related non-profits out there. What an opportunity to serve in an area that we're so passionate about.

Ah man, that's perfect for Santa! I have a Santa business in Denver. Great money for my guys and a ton of fun. That beard is white gold!

Haha, thanks! Appreciate the nice words and feedback. =)

Haha, I think damn near everything is "cute" do girls. I'm pretty sure that's my daughter's favorite word. =) On another note, I didn't realize Angel flight was used for things like that. I was thinking it was medical related? Sounds like the scope is a little broader than that.

Hey Mike, I'm about an hour north of Austin in Copperas Cove. Looks like you're in Houston? My Pop lives there so I find myself in Houston often. Love it there. =)

Man, I would LOVE that! I'm in Copperas Cove, about an hour and a half north of San Marcos, but I don't mind the drive. Know of a local joint we could fly to for a $100 hamburger? Zap me an IM or email, if you would, and we can coordinate (jimcoleman1@gmail.com). Thanks so much!

Great points. We live in central TX now and just moved from CO. So I would like to be able to go non-stop from TX to CO. It's about 650NM or so. Seems doable in the F. I would also love to fly for Angel Flight or other charitable organizations as well, so I'm thinking the increased pax comfort the F has to offer would be great for that purpose. A little more room for a fragile kiddo and medical equipment, etc.

Ah, this is great, Hank, thanks for sharing!

Thanks, guys, this is very helpful. It sounds like we're good to go on the actual weight, but my concern is more our size, or specifically our width. Do you guys sit offset when you have larger people in the plane? I've only flown Cessnas, so I also don't have the experience of shimmying my way over into the left seat.

I've done hours and hours of research and have finally come to the conclusion that by all accounts a Mooney meets my mission. Specifically, the M20F with it's extra carrying capacity and longer cabin. I love that the Mooney is so damn fast and has equally impressive efficiency. But... Then I started hearing of the "dreaded" small cabin. So I look at some stats and learn the Mooney cabin is actually wider, at 43.5 inches, than the 172 or 182, which are 42." Apparently, the rub comes in how you have to shimmy into the left seat of a Mooney. I'm not a small guy. My son, who will be flying with me most the time, is also not small. I'm 6'2" and right around 300#. My son is 6'3" and around 275. I have my PPL and trained in a Cessna 172. I was about the same size, but my instructor was really small. I've never sat in a Mooney and I'm just not sure it's going to work. I badly want to make this not only work, but be realistic as well. The obvious answer is to lose weight. I get that. But if I had that whole thing figured out I can assure you I wouldn't be this size. So, yes, that will be the plan, but I need to figure out if it will work as we presently are as well. If so, then weight loss would be a bonus in many ways. I need a hand guys! Let me know your experience in this area and thoughts... Thanks!

Man, this is great! I was bummed that I couldn't get it working over the last few days. Thanks so much!

That makes perfect sense, thanks, Brian! Yeah, crazy how much more the car insurance went up compared to the plane's insurance. Reminds me of the fact of how ironic I found it when I was renting an airplane at 20, but couldn't rent a car until I was 25. =)

Sounds great! Thanks so much for chiming in.

Thanks for this, Brian. Great points. I appreciate you shedding a bit of light on the insurance piece as well.

Great points, Dave. Along the lines of insurance, how does it generally work if you are the one insured, but allow someone else to fly the aircraft? Does each person need to be signed up by your insurance company? If I understand correctly, if I'm insured for the Mooney, I could let my son fly it, but only if I'm in the airplane with him? Else he would need to also be insured? Trying to get a grasp on how that all works.

Well put. We don't fit the genius category, so I think we'll take the non-genius approach. =)

That's awesome! Is your son going to work on his license as well? I'm pretty well sold that my son needs to get his PPL in a more simple aircraft. Just seems like the smartest choice. Good luck on your checkride, by the way! I'm sure you'll do great!

Great info, thanks for chiming in. If you had it to do over again, would you get the same mods? Are some more valuable than others given the boost in speed vs cost? Also, with your 54 gallons of useable fuel, what kind of payload are you looking at?

Wow, great points. Reading the post now from Sam Husky. Thanks!

Awesome stuff, guys, thanks!