0TreeLemur

I've been keeping track of reported TAS values for C models since I've been lurking here on MS. It seems that the average is about 143 kt, with a std. dev. of 2 kts, for various degrees of airspeed mods. Having 3 blades is inescapably known to knock a couple of kts off cruise speed. Power setting and those habits are really important, and I think that accounts for a fair bit of the variance. This small variance caused by the various speed mods pales in comparison to the average headwind that I fly against... So, I'm happy with what I get. Remember, power=drag*airspeed. Planes having similar power, will fly at the speed that similar airframes get. When considering drag, there is no magic, like there is in the case of lift.

The wingwalk on Lil' Sister was painted on but faded/dirty and with missing bits here and there. I re-did it after we finished the interior redo. I used this product https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/cspages/randolphwingwalk.php?clickkey=6290 which is a real hard thing to stir. Enamel paint with grit. Looks real nice. Taped off with blue painters tape and applied with a 4" roller.

Thanks for the link. I agree with your assessment- small warheads, high accuracy. Scary. The videos I've seen online look like some kind of interceptors in the boost phase. I just assumed they were Patriots. Wouldn't the US position Patriots near potential targets? Were the 5 that broke up in flight failed propulsion systems or intercepts?

There was nothing in the NOTAMs on that day for the ILS. The more I think about what happened, I think it was an attempted slam dunk that went missed because of a new IR pilot.

Yes, the loc was steady, but the gs was really erratic. The MSA in our area is 3700. They held me at 4k until established, and max fwd. speed until 5 mile final. More I think about it with me being a relatively new IR pilot, this was a setup for me to have missed the real GS and then momentarily caught the false GS, which I quickly went above.

Paul, that sounds like a good New Year's resolution: "This year I vow to fly more." I'll second that. I want to do three long cross countries. I've talked with my co-pilot about trying to touch both shores in one trip. Florida to the Pacific Northwest and back via Arizona would be one. I think I'll have a trip to Wisconsin. We do plan to visit Gettysburg and Yorktown sometime soon (weekend trips).

Cool stuff @201er! That $100 is not too bad. Now that I know that it is possible, I might do that myself some weekend. Did you have to do anything super-secret to not get shot down by missiles, or is that just DCA?

yes I used the tank sealant remover from knot2u that has a citrus smell. Worked well.

My door is flush. I've asked the shop doing the annual to try and adjust the top hook to close the gap that remains based on some hissing that is happening at the ~10 o'clock position looking outward.

Thanks @Marauder. I always thought that a new audio panel is for music-listnin' wusses. Now I want one.

In the summer of 2018 we landed in Cedar City, rented a car, and toured all around southern Utah and northern Arizona. We did a lot of driving but we saw a bunch of national monuments: Cedar Breaks, Bryce Canyon, Escalante Staircase, Capitol Reef, Moki-Dugway, Monument Valley, and Glen Canyon. That took 4 days. Overflew the Grand Canyon on the way out.

Your poll is incomplete. I would almost never make a large avionics purchase from a random person on eBay. When I bought a 430W in 2018, I searched the classifieds of aviation www sites, found one that seemed to be a worthwhile purchase, called the seller to discuss, and made a deal. That option is not on the poll, so I didn't answer.

When you switch it on, it goes through an internal calibration using 1g orientation to know where it is relative to the vertical before you move. That takes less than about 1 minute. This way it compensates for the panel angle.

Good point. This is an approximately 1 amu reason to get your tanks resealed there. That plus palm trees.

Deep South Aerospace in Okolona, MS, has done some fine work on my a/c. They installed a 430W, Appareo ADS-B transponder, and a Brittain Accutrak II, and it all works! Very nice folks to work with.

The AV-20S AOA indictor is not even close to accurate in my instance either. I contacted the manufacturer (Aerovonix) before they were bought by uAvionics, to inquire about why I couldn't calibrate the AOA sensor in our M20C. I received the following email in italics from Bill Shuert, who was their CEO before the buyout: Sorry to hear about your issues with the AV-20-S. The AOA has been challenging to set up in the Mooney. You can disable the AOA page in the set up menu by cycling down to the AOA line (highlighted) then pushing the right button will disable the page. You will need to go into the AOA Limits and move the lower limit to its lowest number then do the same with the upper limit--this will ensure you won't get any pop up notices. Thanks again for the feedback. The AI agrees perfectly with my vacuum AI. That is really nice. The TAS indication is not accurate. Recently I contacted uAvionics about that, and was told that they are looking into it. I use it for its timer functions primarily. Knowing that it has a backup AI with a 30-minute battery is just comforting.

I have thought about doing a trip like that. I've done a lot of work in the Caribbean and have friends I could visit. But- when I trained in Australia we flew to Tasmania from Melbourne in a Cherokee, and we had a life raft on board. Looking back on that experience, flying over the open ocean was a lot like instrument flight. You must agree that getting anything out of a Mooney in a hurry is problematic. We've learned from MS that when our airframes go in water, they leak like sieves. Floating time is negligible. There was a recent thread here on a water landing in a wetland and the plane filled with water immediately. I'm curious - are you taking a raft? How do you plan to get it and you out of the aircraft in the unlikely event of a water landing? Please don't think that I'm throwin' cold water on your plans, the decision is yours. But that thought keeps me from making a long leg over water. Not sure what the odds are of an engine failure during that particular multi-hour round trip, but they aren't zero.

This thread is older than me, and I'm barely older than my Gemini-era Mooney. Read the quote in my signature block below....

I guess they would need vibrators. We have 4- or 6-cyl. vibrators attached to our altimeters!

When we redid the panel in our 'C, I wanted an airspeed indicator with kt on the outer ring, and mph on the inner. So, I bought a really nice used one and to test it I bought a U-tube manometer cheap. After verifying that the ASI was accurate, I sent it to an instrument company to verify have them paint '67 M20C arcs on it. Love it. Wow, Interesting. I don't think the pitot tube on my a/c has a hole there. I'll check. Last Feb. or Mar. I posted on this forum regarding a "belching" pitot tube that seemed to not be draining properly. At that time I looked it over real well and don't remember seeing a hole there. I disconnected the pitot line inside the wing and blew back out through the pitot tube with compressed air to make sure that nothing was plugged up, as was suggested by one MS'er. No problems. This "belching" has happened a few more times when flying through rain. The pitot tube on my a/c seems to be designed to occasionally need to "belch" to get the water out.

Yet, an airspeed indicator is required as part of TOMATO FLAMES for VFR flight. Come to think of it when they tested my pitot-static system last year, they paid little attention to the airspeed indicator, mostly just to be sure that they didn't send it into unapproved pressure territory. As they depressurize the static system to simulate a climb, they must also depressurize the pitot tube to prevent overpressure on the anaroid element or differential pressure transducer inside it, depending on type (analog or digital).

The shortest unit of time in a man's life? 9 months. <drum roll> Really, the stock answer to the question of which Mooney to seek is "What is your mission?" Short body (C & E) are really great two person airplanes, with enough back seat room for little people. If your mission includes hauling non-small people in the back seat, then the F it is. The O-360 in the C does can produce carb ice any time the dew point is greater than freezing and the carb temperature is below 32. I use carb heat as a precaution flying through clouds or precipitation when the carb temperature as indicated on the engine monitor says I should. One time I forgot, and sure enough, carb ice developed. Other than that I think one could safely say that this engine is one of the most robust and reliable aircraft engines ever produced. The IO-360 gets you 20 more horses, but at the cost of a fuel injection servo and injectors, with additional maintenance and fault pathways. The long body F comes with a slight speed penalty all things being equal. Good luck. The C is perfect for me and my co-pilot, and an occasional passenger.

When my avionics guy tested the pitot-staic system in our M20C last summer, he showed me that the drain hole on my pitot tube is on the back side, not the bottom. Then he put a piece of electrical tape over it.

My co-pilot and I, reflected in the nose of a beautiful Beech 18 at Destin, FL, while we reflect on the classic beauty of a flying art piece! Happy New Year everyone!!!

You are welcome- my painted in 2002 Mooney has many oily fingerprints that have sorbed into the paint- especially around the doors and engine, and a mineral spirits wipe has no effect- very similar to the ones you address in the vid. Love your work.