0TreeLemur

I'll buy the curtains.

Wow- perhaps the most creative application of a sawzall that I've seen...

@jlunseth Thanks for recounting your story for those of us who are new around here.

If you are worried about losing a lot of oil, why not clamp on a short length of closed-off tubing to the bottom? That should alleviate your fear without doing something drastic. My PP/SEL 2-cents worth.

The logs don't give manuf. or reason for replacement. The a/c was flown at a rate of 80-100 h/y during this period. There is mention to an AD regarding cylinders but the note is that it did not apply.

This traffic detector? Almost all the other stuff that we've removed due to upgrades has sold. This item is not in much demand these days.

I'm enjoying reading this thread. The logs for my aircraft show that it was given four new cylinders about 600 h. ago, only 750 h. into the current OH cycle. Cyl #1 was replaced first, followed by #2, #3, and#4 about six months later. This was long before we bought it and I've often wondered why. The logs don't give a "why". From what I can gather by reading this thread, it seems likely that cylinder replacement was necessitated by incorrect engine operation more so than some material defect. True?

Thanks a bunch. We are really enjoying the upgrade. ADS-B in/out and the iPad have just revolutionized flying. On page 2 of this thread you'll find a photo of the panel that I think was last improved when you owned her.

Yeah, I think it is a baked-on ceramic coating that imparts some serious hardness to the coated material. It was done by a friend of my son who is very fond of the material, and he applies it to many things- including firearms.

Dear Ken ( @KLRDMD), I just stumbled upon your post from May. 2903L's still going strong. We bought her almost one year ago. Since then we've given her a major electronics/panel upgrade. In August we flew a 2800 nm trip and all went very well. -Fred

Well then, it didn't happen. Sorry.

Looks great. Bob- are those the gray SC windows?

My co-pilot in life...

@TTaylor the link to your photos is broken.

Thanks Hank! I'll swing out to the hangar tomorrow and see what color they are.

Looking at the Great Lakes Aero Products www page, there are five different "styles" of replacement windows: Clear, *Green, Gray, *SC Green, and SC Gray, with * denoting OEM I guess *Green is the default. But, they don't explain exactly what the others are. I would guess gray is "smoked". Not sure what "SC" means. Why not go with clear? Is there a durability or visibility issue? Anybody have info on the meaning of these different styles?

So much good advice! Thanks to all who have replied so far! I've established a very good working relationship with an A&P who will be happy to help, inspect, and approve the work.

Thanks for your reply @N201MKTurbo. Reading "trim window to fit" - doesn't it include a layer of glass? Sounds really challenging and like something a specialist would do. Looking at the LASAR www site, I don't see side windows. Anybody know where they can be had?

I tried that. Personally, I find the MS search functionality pretty limited in most cases. The reliance in boolean terms like "AND" in the search term is pretty old-school, and actually not properly implemented because it returns posts containing the word "and". Unless you are searching for a specific unique word like a brand name, or very narrow technical term like "Turbo Encabulator ", a search using the words "window", "replace" or "replacement" turns up a whole bunch of non-window related posts. The low signal-to-noise ratio of MS in some threads because of topic drift (e.g. this post) doesn't help with discovery either. A lot of the older info is stale due to turnover in the industry and MS membership. On topic and to the point, I'd still really like to learn from any MS members who have successfully had the door window replaced in their vintage Mooney in the past 12-18 months.

Hi all, The window installed in the door of our C is crazed like crazy. At certain sun angles it is almost impossible to see through. Has anyone had this replaced? Any suggestions? Thanks-

The caps on my bird are painted something like "International Orange" like the Golden Gate Bridge. They look really nice.

@McMooney could you rent the equivalent of your E for that? I imagine that if so, it would be difficult to find?

One other aspect that strikes me is related to the age of our aircraft. There is a "musical chairs" aspect to owning what is essentially a museum piece. Remember when you could get (still can get?) classic license plates for cars > 25 y.o.? As our aircraft approach or exceed twice that limit, the likelihood that some annual turns up a really expensive problem or that some expensive SB or AD is issued increases, probably with some rapidity. You might own something that isn't worth fixing. Happens all the time with incidents thanks to our insurance companies. That fact will prevent the value of our a/c from rising too much or too fast. May the music never stop on your watch...

The shirt on the wall reminds me that I soloed 6/29/1981 with about 12 h under my belt. The total cost of my PPL training was about $2500 when I finished in Sept. 1981 with about 40 h. Because of life getting in the way with kids/jobs/moves/etc I have had two huge decadal gaps in my flying career. When I moved here to Tuscaloosa last year I decided to resume flying after last PIC in 2007. I did a BFR check-ride last June in an early 2000's model C172, the rental cost was $158/h wet!!! That seemed ridiculously high to me for 117 kts. Looking at what that C172 cost new, I guess that is what they must charge. Coincidentally, that is when I discovered the Mooney. The instructor who gave me the BFR check ride told me he had a Mooney and that he was looking to sell her. I asked for a ride, and was hooked from there on out. I calculate my cost of flying her, including the approximate cost of the engine overhaul she'll need in about 600 h (knock on wood) is $140/h wet. I never thought I would be able to afford an a/c. As an academic, my salary was just never going to support that hobby. But, two things happened- kids grew up and went out on their own. Second, the leading edge of the Baby Boom started getting too old to fly which has created a large supply of older a/c on the market at remarkably affordable prices because of relatively low demand for certain aircraft like the Mooney. "Ain't if funny how time slips away" -Willie Nelson

Hank, are they the same size, but fixed in some open position? Or are they spayed and neutered ?