0TreeLemur

While at hangar today, I notice that the right tank in-wing sight gage said 25 gallons. Opened it up and took this photo. Seems right on.

There is a tab inside the fuel tank near the inlet on our J. It says 25 US GALS, but there is no level datum marked. Where is the 25 gallon level on this tab? The POH doesn't say. Is it at the flat portion at the bottom of the tab below the small hole or at the bottom of the big oval-shaped holes? Photo:

I decided on the ACK E04 over the Artex. Reason: aesthetics. A couple of years ago we installed an Artex ELT on our C. The antenna on the Artex has the attractiveness of a black hot dog. In my opinion, it doesn't look like it belongs on an airplane. Would look better on a truck. The ACK antenna is white and looks like it belongs on an airplane. Another plus, the ACK costs less. A negative: it requires periodic changing of a couple of small "specialty" batteries. Weighed against an ugly antenna, I decided to go with the attractive antenna and change some batteries.

I just removed those from our J to install the Lasar jack points. I've got two I'll send you. The thread is 5/16" x 18. PM me if you want them.

IIRC, it goes in the octagonal aluminum plug that has tiny holes in it. Typically on the bottom of the left mag. I had mine installed on the top of the right, and Maxwell moved it to the bottom of the left. Sure there is a reason, but it worked on the right.

Thought about that. Just don't want to spring the KX-155 tray. It's perfect. I'll try the reaper's suggestion first. Thanks @Alan Fox! If not that, then I'll try the left-hand drill bit idea proffered by @MikeOH. A plan is emerging. Thanks to everyone!

Thanks -a-. The stripped head in question is almost an inch behind the faceplate with access limited through a 1/8" dia. hole in the faceplate. It seems the faceplate must go. Don't see how to get it off without help from Dr. Destructo.

There is an KR87 ADF in our "new" J. Not that I have anything against ADF's but this one is UGLY. The display is all messed up. Looks really bad. Plus, it's lonely. Somebody removed its RMI. So I've decided to remove the ADF. Well, it turns out that the hex head socket that the removal tool fits into was stripped by somebody before I came into possession. This probably explains why it is still in the panel. Directly above it is a KX155, with its nice tray- preventing access to the locking mechanism on the ADF. Here's my question. Can I remove the face place in situ and gain access to the retaining screw for removal? Damaging this ADF is not a concern. It's on a separate circuit breaker. Thx.

Thanks for doing the leg work! Glad they are still available.

Considering ELT upgrade in our "new" J as well. ELT in a/c seems the original 121.5 Dorne & Margolin unit. Same issue. ELT antenna located under the fiberglas fairing. A couple of years ago we installed a Artex ELT in our C, but it came with an antenna that was ugly as a hot dog. The ACK at least comes with an antenna that looks like it belongs on an airplane, but with the added hassle and expense of requiring two specialized batteries in addition to the main ELT battery- one in the cockpit switch, and another in the noisemaker. Hard to see how either of the antennas that come with these units would work in a horizontal orientation. Ground plane issues? Polarization? The ACK antenna would be really challenging to mount because it is intended for vertical mounting and includes a 20-degree swept-back profile. The ACK using its own antenna seems the best option to me at this point.

I know the feeling. Here's another possibility (or stupid pilot trick): Last weekend I took off to visit my A&P who is about an hour away to swap out the turn coordinator. I'd been messing around in the hangar for a few hours before that looking things over. Rolling down the runway, airspeed not alive? Engine making takeoff power. Red X's on the Aspen. CHECK PITOT HEAT on the Aspen. Plane is new to me, so I'm trying to process this new weirdness. I'm off the ground. Fly the airplane. I immediately realized that for the first time in over 1000 hours I failed to take off the pitot tube cover. Landed, shut down, and started over. Took my time. Since the engine was running fine it didn't occur to me to abort the takeoff.

Thanks! I removed the interior panels many times in my C. My question was specifically aimed at the lower panels, and how they might be fastened. I appreciate your reply!

This is the best pic I have. I think this might be a Spatial Interior, but not sure.

It's an '83. It has wingtip and tail strobes. Maybe I just want to get an LED beacon for the belly to get away from the coffee grinder. Those are expensive tho. I bought a used Whelen HR, CFA strobe that I was thinking about having installed.

Yessir. I'm just planning. I've never installed anything in my aircraft without the assistance of an A&P/IA, and would never ask one to approve something after the fact. I am a P.E. with full understanding of professional licensing & ethics. When we first bought our C, I established a great relationship with a local A&P/IA but he suddenly flew west. After that, I established a great relationship with another one who was about 1 Mooney hour away but he retired in July and moved away. Sadly, there is no A&P/IA on my field that seems to care much about mentoring. I'm in the hunt. I rely on input from more experienced folks on MS because at present I do not have anyone else to ask.

Perhaps "could" is a better recommendation. Some say that Surefly introduces a few potential issues.

I suspect that the left inboard fuel sender in our J is leaking so I need to remove the interior panels. The logs say that the sidewall panels installed in 2017 were manufactured by Triumph Interiors. Anyone else have these, and any recommendations for removing the LHS panel with minimum hassle/damage? Thx. Fred

You somehow just helped me make some sense out of alphabet soup! Find a strobe that has the M20J on its STC AML and I'll avoid a BFD with the FAA.

Oh. That's disappointing. Here's what led to my question: My J has a rotating beacon on the belly. It's kind of wimpy because it isn't very bright. My C had a strobe. I would think that a strobe visible miles away would be much better. I was looking to answer the question- is the rotating beacon required equipment or can it be replaced with a strobe?

From the type data sheet entry for the M20J: In addition to the pertinent required basic equipment specified in CAR 3, the following items of equipment must be installed: 1(a)(1) or 1(a)(2), (b), (c), or 2(a)(1), 2(b)(1) and 1(c), 101(a), (b), or (c), 102(a), 103(a), 104(a) or (b), 201(a), 202(a), 205(a), 206(a), 301(a) and 303(a), 301(b) and 303(b), 302(a) or (b) or (c), 401(a) or (b) or (c) or (d) or (e) or (f) or (g) or (h) or (i) or (j) or (k) or (l) or (m), 601(a), (b) or (c), 602(a) or (b) or (c) or (d) or (e). As I'm getting to know a "new-to-us" J model, questions arise about the current configuration. This J has had six previous owners and had a fair bit of work done to it over the past 40 years. How does a person interpret this gibberish? Can someone point me to an index? For example: Where can I find a description of item 104(a)? Thanks, Fred

That's some great looking snarge. Sorry that happened to your J.

Being new to the Avidyne universe, I plead ignorance. Much to learn. Info on the Avidyne www page is hard to come by. I'll spend some time looking at the youtube vids referenced by @EricJ. Maybe that will help me focus in on what I want. The installation manual refers to a document 600-00299-100 that I haven't found yet. Switching from Garmin to Avidyne is kind of like switching O/S. A maze of twisty little passages that all look the same with hidden doors.

So, seven hours of O2?

Was asked and was given a 60-day trial subscription to navdata/obstructions/charts by Jepp. Updated those databases. Note when you download those to a usb stick using their update manager, it not only copies those databases but also creates a tiny authorization file. The unit will not update the databases without that authorization file (I tried). As I read the manual and the discussion on the Avidyne user's forum, it is possible to connect the IFD to a Stratux. Went to aircraft today and tried setting up wifi. It seems that the unit in my a/c has a 4 digit/character PIN that I don't know. Any change I made to the config in maintenance mode was not saved. Gotta contact support and ask about overcoming this PIN issue. The utility of connecting an IFD540 to a stratux as things presently are is questionable. IFD software version 10.3 can do stuff with stratux data, but that software version has a couple of annoying bugs. My IFD is still running version 10.2.something. I'm thinking maybe that if the iPad and IFD are both connected to the Stratux, it might be possible to exchange flight plan info but I'm not sure. Anyone have an IFD installation manual?

Resolved! Happy to report that cleaning the contacts on the master switch seems to have fixed the problem. The ammeter is stable, and the brightness of the panel lights remains steady. Thanks for helping me out @goalstop and @PT20J.