PT20J

That’s I use and what the M20J manual calls for.

My 28V plane has relays -- perhaps the 12V ones do not. The switches don't really get dirty. What happens is that the arcing from breaking an inductive load eventually penetrates the plating on the contacts and then the base metal oxidizes. Many switches are designed to open and close with a mechanical wiping action to help clean the contacts if the switch is exercised often enough. But, these switches don't get used often enough for there to be much wiping.

When moving the gear switch either up or down, I keep my hand on the switch until the light confirms that it has completed the operation. When putting it down, I confirm the floor indicator. This habit helped immediately alert me when it failed to retract due to a bad relay recently.

Curious - What did Premier suggest?

If it’s the airspeed switch you should get a gear warning horn and the override button should illuminate.

We bought oil in drums for the museum (big radials use a lot of oil). You need a cradle and spigot to mount it horizontally or a pump if you store it vertically, and it’s difficult to get the last bit of oil out.

It was a option for the 700 to accept input from a fuel flow transducer. JPI EDM-700.pdf

You make my point. There is tons of data that Eaton springs go many thousands of hours since many (most?) owners and shops don’t even seem to know about the 1000 hr replacement interval and failures are extremely rare. The last Plessey spring with a documented failure had been replaced only a few hundred hours before it broke. I agree that periodic inspection and lubrication is a good idea.

That’s only used for the Dukes actuators which do not have a no back spring.

I ran the picture past George Braly and he also thought it looked like detonation damage. If you zoom in, it appears that the exhaust valve is thinned and that may be why it broke. George suggested looking at all the engine monitor data since the last borescope inspection if its available.

Call JPI. They may be able to repair it. If not, I have a 700 with fuel flow I'll sell for $500.

Great observation. But, I can't see what material would be available to coat it. I looked at the picture again and it looks more like the carbon was scoured off and the head and valves eroded. When I had my short preignition event it scoured off the carbon. A longer event will cause erosion. It would be interesting to see what the piston crown looks like.

If you think about how the flaps are wired, it's hard to see how jiggling could help. Taking the original system without takeoff preset, when you put the flaps down the flap switch closes a circuit the runs through the down limit switch to the down relay. When the flaps reach the down position the down limit switch opens the circuit removing power to the motor. If you next put the switch in the up position and the flaps don't move, the fault must be in the switch, the up limit switch or the up relay. None of these are in contact with the flap mechanism when it is in the down position. So, it's probably the vibration from climbing out of the cockpit and walking down the wingwalk that has a much to do with it as wiggling the flaps. The system with a takeoff preset is only slightly more complicated with two more microswitches for the takeoff position limits, but the idea is the same. Mooney didn't use hermetically sealed microswitches for the limit switches because they are in an area that is not very exposed to the elements. The biggest risk to them is someone hitting them with lube while lubricating stuff in the belly. The relays are probably more likely to fail than the microswitches because they carry more current. Skip

Well, as I said, the 1000 hrs comes from the two early Plessey failures. It’s not a airworthiness limitation so there is nothing that requires you to adhere to it. Eaton apparently did have traceability and recalled a certain lot of actuators, but since it was a Mooney service bulletin rather than an AD, there is nothing that required owners to comply. If you have the Eaton actuator you should be fine.

Manual extension should be tested at annual inspection when the airplane is on jacks There’s not much data on the springs because out of thousands of airplanes and countless gear cycles there has only been a handful of documented failures. It’s statistically insignificant and the 1000 hour limit seems completely made up.

I did some research on no-back springs a while back. It's confusing to sort out because Mooney used two different actuators with "no-back" springs; one manufactured by Plessey, and one manufactured by Eaton. There were a couple of early spring failures in Plessey actuators with TT > 1000 hours, and I believe this is where the 1000 hour replacement recommendation came from. There was another recent failure of a Plessey NBS bringing the total Plessey failures to 4 or 5. There was one reported failure of an Eaton NBS that led to Eaton recalling a batch of actuators for inspection. Don Maxwell told me that this was due to a bad batch of springs. Don also told me that the spring was supposed to be rated for 20K operations. Mooney seems to have just carried over the 1000 hour limit from the Plessey to the Eaton. Personally, I have an Eaton with a spring that was replaced about 700 hours ago by the previous owner and I don't plan to ever replace it. The Eaton actuator seems pretty robust. It's weak point is the brass clutch for the emergency gear extension that can get cobbled up if the emergency gear extension lever isn't fully engaged and the motor is activated. If I had a Plessey actuator, I would be looking to replace it with an Eaton because I don't believe there are parts available for these and they have had several failures. It's an expensive replacement, however. Skip

The valve doesn't look discolored, but it appears to have cracks and a chunk is missing. Maybe a defect in the metal that finally let loose?

If you want something simpler than the Koch chart, you can get a DENALT computer. https://www.ebay.com/itm/275872215202?chn=ps&mkevt=1&mkcid=28 These adjust SL takeoff distance and ROC for density altitude. They don't have landing distance because you can always land shorter than you can takeoff. The wing doesn't really care about density; it only knows TAS. However, the engine and propeller performance decreases with altitude. The combination of reduced power and increased groundspeed due to increased TAS is what eats up runway and decreases climb angle and ROC. Great video from the past: Skip

This is an interesting thing: Basic Med is not permitted in Canada, but I have never had Canadian customs ask to see my medical or pilot certificates. Basic Med is permitted in the US, and CBP always asks to see my medical and pilot certificates. (I asked why once and was told that the FAA asked them to check -- apparently they sometimes catch pilots without appropriate credentials). So, I wonder what happens if you fly to Canada and then return to the US and CBP finds out you have basic med? Probably nothing since you are back on US soil and haven't broken any US laws. Skip

Remember that you have to file US eAPIS both leaving and entering the US and receive an email. When entering the US, you have to call CBP before you depart and secure permission to land verbally. Canada is simpler. You have to call 888-226-7277 before departure and give them the manifest info over the phone. This can take anywhere from 5 minutes to an hour on hold. Also, you can check with them regarding current availability of customs at various airports since staffing can change due to personnel shortages. Once you land, ask ground control where they want you to park for customs and call the same number again. They will ask a few questions and give you a confirmation number and you're good to go. With both customs, everyone should remain in the airplane until cleared. And with US customs, God help you if someone removes anything from the airplane. A VFR flight plan is required if you do any VFR flying in Canada. Also, if you don't open it, it will be opened for you automatically at your ETD, so if you cancel the flight or are delayed be sure to call the Flight Information Center to update. The FIC contact info is in the Canadian Flight Supplement (CFS). Sometimes when you take off from a towered airport the tower will open the flight plan without asking; sometimes not. Best to check if there is any uncertainty. Same with closing flight plans at towered airports. Many airports have Mandatory Frequencies that you are supposed to use to report your position and intentions. Here's a good link to a simplified overview of Canadian Aviation Regulations: https://www.langleyflyingschool.com/Pages/Canadian Aviation Regulations.html Canada really likes to carve up the airspace in busy areas and it can be confusing. IFR is the way to go in terminal areas unless you are familiar. Skip

They’re good - I’d discuss it with them.

Yes, it’s sad because FedEx used to be so good. According to Wikipedia, their motto has changed over time and each change seems to further deemphasize timeliness: "When it Absolutely, Positively has to be there overnight" – 1978–1983. "It's not Just a Package, It's Your Business" – 1987–1988. "Our Most Important Package is Yours" – 1991–1994. "Absolutely, Positively Anytime" – 1995. Perhaps they should update it to “Absolutely, Positively Sometime.“

Almost as slow as FedEx ground

I always keep a record of the tracking number. I’ve noticed a lot of delay is the Post Office delivery. Also, If I have a question, I phone them. They answer the phone immediately but email can take awhile.

Switches and relays do wear out. I have zero tolerance for electrical components - if one acts up once, I replace it. Especially something as inexpensive as a microswitch.