MBDiagMan

New?

I would much rather have an engine that needed cylinders than one with low oil pressure or making metal.

I am a retired engineer. The vast majority of my career involved controls and automation. In the course of this experience I learned that no matter how many safeguards are put in place, NOTHING substitutes for the human brain. All these bullet proof interlocks, alarms, warnings and safeguards can not substitute for the human brain. Don’t expect all this automation to be a 100% substitute for your own noggin. If you develop a good habit pattern it will go farther than all the automation you can hang on the airplane. Since you’re discussing such automation, I assume that it’s not a Johnson Bar plane. My first Mooney was a Johnson Bar and I would still have it had I not injured my right shoulder. My current plane is electric gear and I felt more confident of not having a gear up in the Johnson Bar plane. I developed a habit of giving the bar several tugs after GUMPS. In the pattern I would tug after turning base again when turning final and still again on short final. When I had to go to the electric gear plane I converted that habit to looking at the light and if possible looking at the gear window. One of the biggest shortcomings of automated systems is lack of need for operator knowledge of the system, but more significantly is complacency developed from dependency on the automated controls. In the case of the gear, there’s is no problem having full understanding of the gear system. The danger is dependency development. I sincerely believe that good habit development will give you a much better chance of escaping a gear up than all the automation you could employ. If you will simply develop the habit of multiple glances after GUMPS and have this burned into your brain it will be better assurance than all the sensors, horns, lights, bells and whistles that you can install without causing the plane to be over gross. My $0.02,

An oil leak alone, unless it is gushing so much oil that you can’t get where you need to go, does NOT justify an engine overhaul. If it’s holding good oil pressure, making good compression (which it is) and not making metal along with running well, you stand to lose more than you gain. Putting in a brew engine does not mean that everything will be perfect afterward.

Everything forward in takeoff as the manual says should result in 2700 for takeoff roll and climbout.

Off the runway, positive rate of climb, gear up, flaps up. Super simple. A short runway with obstacle I would leave flaps in until obstacle was cleared.

TruTrak didn’t need any coaching on how to drag out product delivery. They were doing fine on their own even before the purchase.

Outstanding! I’m anxious to see one of them!

Thanks guys!

So how sacred is the no continuous operation zone with the IO360? I find myself sometimes in that range on an approach and it really feels like I need to leave it there. I guess the key is to change the governor speed to get the right power from a different RPM range. Any words of experience and wisdom to share? Also, WHY is this range to be avoided? That is, what is the engineers explanation?

Great responses! Thanks guys!

Good point Raptor!

Sorry to drag this back up, but I was not saying that others were saying that their plane was faster than mine. I was trying to say that others got the idea that I was saying that MY airplane was faster than THEIRS and that was never my intention. I was simply excited by what I saw and anxious for other information regarding speeds of the breed to compare to. You provided information and shared your experience And I appreciate it. It was never my intent and I apologize to all if it sounded that way.

I put the no step sign on it as soon as I got it and I’m not shy about politely asking anyone not to step on the flap while pointing at it.

Thanks carusoam! My IR checkride is the only reason I’m doing this so you’re right. I will look when at the hangar tomorrow. I am thinking that it will stick fine with that small area of tape and come off later with no trace left behind as long as it doesn’t set in the Sun for a period of time.

Thanks carusoam. I looked for accessories from the compass manufacturer and can’t find anything. If I try to put it at the bottom of the compass I won’t have access to the adjusters. That would be the obvious best location though.

Are there any guidelines I need to follow? I have a holder for a card that is about 1” tall and 1 1/2” ’wide. I’m thinking of mounting the holder with double sided tape. I might could put it on the left side of the compass but the copilot couldn’t see it. I don’t want to drill holes, but over time the tape might screw it up as bad if the time comes for it to be moved.

I agree with Ross on his initial take on it, but the panel is slightly aged. If you’re going to fly in IMC you will indeed need a modern navigator. The 375 would be a much better choice than simply adding the Beacon being that you would get a more usable ADS-B IN solution as well as a modern navigator. The beacon is a cheap way to get minimal ADS-B Compliance, but doesn’t give any ADS-B IN which is wonderful to have if you have a navigator. The fact that it has an autopilot is a big plus which makes the addition of the 375 feasible. All this IMHO. If I were you though I would be doing some research on how well the 375 would couple with the STec already in the plane.

I understand the experience pool here. I thought I was asking for folks to share that. My apologies to all.

Did you go to Conroy Tractor? He is friend of mine?

Thanks very much for the data brown! You are correct. What he put in for CAS was what I read off the ASI. I have had this plane awhile, but worked through some problems including a hot cylinder. There is finally no longer the hot cylinder to worry about so we were able to dabble with LOP. I was flying in IMC most of the trip and was not expecting this, but the instructor started playing with it. If it had given me 135 knots at that burn I would have been impressed. I had no idea what to expect. In my excitement regarding Mooney efficiency I started this thread. Apparently people got the idea that I was posting a “my airplane is faster than your airplane” thread, causing them to get defensive, or maybe even might appear offensive if I went back and studied it.

I never made such a claim. I simply reported what I saw with no guarantee it was correct. I even commented along the way that I am anxious to hear from a savvy J pilot. In the meantime I was doing my best to find information to compare to. Talk to the people who have met me in person. I don’t make claims like that. If it came across that way I apologize. I am STILL waiting for a knowledgeable J pilot to tell me how far off it is. In the interim please don’t be characterizing me as a type of person who I am not! Thank you!

A very safe assumption and if you fly it in IMC I would recommend that you replace it or overhaul it. The last one I had done they sent me a loaner to use while they had it in the shop. I expect that all the good instrument shops will provide loaners. I found an excellent shop in the Houston area that I sent mine to. If you’re interested I will dig out their address when I get home from Galveston.

Not being contentious, but I did not start this thread to claim that my plane is faster than anyone else’s. That was not my intent and I apologize to anyone who has taken it that way. I don’t believe I have made or implied any such claims. If I am bragging on anyone, it would be Al Mooney. It is the Mooney breed that I’m bragging on. Even if the the tolerance build up in this calculation was way off, I believe it says a lot about the efficiency of our planes.

Outstanding! Checking for metal and reading the message it’s sending should be part of the ownership process whether the engine is freshly rebuilt or 2,000 hours past TBO. God job on your due diligence!