PT20J

With all the avionics on, my 28V system draws about 11 A. I have a 16 Ah battery.

But note that it is special order. I doubt they can fill an order unless there is stock at a distributor. MDI Aerovalve is listed by Yelp as CLOSED and the phone was disconnected when I tried calling them a while back.

I believe they also have to reprofile the blades for an OH, and you can only do that so many times before the blades are out of spec and have to be replaced. My well-known prop shop suggested an IRAN and said if they found a problem once it is disassembled they could always convert it to an overhaul.

Next time you cut open a filter, take the media out, cut it into quarters and squeeze them in a vice. Besides getting the media really dry which makes any metal flakes easier to spot, you will get to see all the gray lead ooze out.

Here's the SB. Note that the MDI F391-53S valves are no longer manufactured and are unavailable unless someone has some old stock. I found one on eBay. There is a equivalent SAF-AIR part, but it has a much stiffer spring. SBM20-188A.pdf

There two types of CiES senders: The variable frequency, and resistive. The G3X EIS can be set to either, but I believe that variable frequency ones are more accurate. The M20J has two senders per tank. The G3X EIS should be calibrated at multiple fuel levels. Garmin recommends at least 5. Mine was calibrated in 5 gal increments. The G3X EIS will support a two calibration curves: one in level flight attitude and one in ground attitude. It switches between them based on speed and altitude. The ground calibration curve is optional. Skip

Ah, the eagle eye of a pro. Priceless!

Here's one of mine. CIES, G3X/EIS, M20J.

Torque values agree with Lycoming SSP-1776 and the math is right. However, that seems like a low value for a torque wrench calibrated in ft-lbs. I might get an in-lb wrench where 100 in-lb is closer to mid scale and recheck. What's up with the red RTV? Maybe someone tried to fix a leak? That may be what caused the bolts to lose torque as the RTV shrunk.

I hear those engines make metal

MIL-PRF-5606 hydraulic fluid is red and it's actually an oil. Unlike automotive brake fluid, it doesn't have much smell. It gets thick and sticky when it has been in service for a long time and should be replaced when it gets in this condition. A foot wide puddle is actually pretty large. I would check the hydraulic fluid reservoir above the battery and fill it if it is low. I would check all the hoses and fittings for leaks. It is not uncommon for the o-ring in the brake caliper piston to leak and need replacing. Skip

Just software. Here are the changes for the G5.

Doesn’t the Dukes pump need a filter?

New valve guides have tight clearances and there is not much room for deposits to build up. As the guides wear, they become more susceptible to deposits and sticking. The motion of the rocker arm puts a side load on the valve stem which causes them to wear in a bell-mouth pattern. The 400 hr Lycoming wobble test (SB 388) is for pre-1996 valve guides. The newer higher chrome guides wear better and per SI 1485 can go to 1000 hrs before inspection. Skip

Great questions. The first thing to think about is that engines cannot burn liquid gasoline. The fuel must be vaporized and well mixed with the appropriate amount of air to combust. The carburetor or fuel injector nozzle does not vaporize the fuel but instead breaks it up into tiny droplets in the proper proportion to the airflow which vaporize and mix with air more readily. Once the engine is running the cylinders warm up and provide the heat to vaporize the fuel. During starting when the engine is cold, the only heat source is the compression heating in the cylinder. To prevent vapor lock at high altitude, avgas doesn't vaporize quite as readily as mogas so it is harder to get the fire going than in your car. Also, automobile engines generally have higher compression ratios than aircraft engines, and the higher the compression ratio, the more heat generated by the compression stroke. Sticky valves are caused by deposits on the valve guides. Burned valves are caused by failure to rotate. If a valve sticks open, the cylinder will have no compression and will not generate power. If a valve sticks closed, exhaust gasses cannot escape and will dilute the incoming mixture charge to the point where it will not burn. Depending on the cylinder design, if a valve sticks open, it may contact the piston. If a valve sticks closed, it can result in a bent pushrod. Skip

There are differences between the Whelen PAR 36 and PAR 46 bulbs. I have the wing mounted PAR 36 and was disappointed in the Parmetheus Plus. I didn’t do enough research. According to Whelen’s published 3rd party test data, the PAR 36 Parmetheus Plus is less bright than the stock incandescent bulbs. I upgraded to the G3 and they are now brighter than the incandescents. I am very happy with the G3s. For the PAR 46, according to Whelen’s data, the Parmetheus Plus is about equivalent to the incandescent and the G3 is brighter. Skip

My cowl flap position indicator stopped working today, so I can’t tell until I fix it.

Food for thought. https://www.avweb.com/features/pelicans-perch-80-gear-up-landing-in-a-747/ Skip

Here's some ideas from Kerry McIntyre: https://www.knr-inc.com/shop-talk-articles.html?view=article&id=87&catid=25 https://www.knr-inc.com/shop-talk-articles.html?view=article&id=88&catid=25 https://www.knr-inc.com/images/downloads/PurchaseUsedMooney.pdf Skip

Eaton has a repair center in Grand Rapids MI, and the website lists the Mooney actuators as something they have the capability to repair. I called them several times. The repair selection on the phone menu always goes to voicemail and they never return my call. I think that tells me how interested they are in dealing with airplane owners - and I didn’t even get a chance to whine https://www.eaton.com/content/dam/eaton/services/aero-repair-centers/grand-rapids/eaton-grand-rapids-repair-capabilities-list.pdf

Everyone worries about the no-back springs used in Plessey and Eaton actuators. But it doesn’t seem like a lot have failed. PLESSEY: The original Mooney SI for Plessey mentions 2 failures. There was a recent accident in the NTSB database for a gear up due to a failed Plessey spring. A search of the FAA SDR database shows two entries: one for a failed spring and one for some internal defect not determined. So, the total documented failures is 4 or 5. EATON: The Mooney SB mentions a single failure. It may have been due to a manufacturing issue because it caused Eaton to recall a certain serial number range. I can’t find any issues listed in the SDR database. I’m not sure how many Plessey actuators were used vs Eaton, but Plessey has been out of production for some time (maybe since the 1989 acquisition?) so I suspect there may be more Eatons. Skip

Roger didn't tell me the exact test conditions, but it was probably in a dive. Roger Hoh is a handling qualities engineer hired by Mooney to try to get the handling qualities of the Predator acceptable. Even in normal operation, the tubes rub a bit on the outboard block because the motion at the outboard end is partially fore-aft due to the aileron bellcrank pivot. It might not take much to bind.

You're not alone. Daniel Kahneman won a Nobel Prize in economics for his work developing prospect theory, a cornerstone of behavioral economics. And research psychologist Robert Ornstein often pointed out that humans are primarily motivated by emotion rather than logic because for much of our evolutionally history quick (emotional) decisions were more advantageous for survival than well-reasoned ones.

It seems to me that trying to find an airplane you want to buy and also get a bargain price requires two uncorrelated events to occur simultaneously. I wonder what the joint probability is? Sure, it can happen. But, as others have pointed out, the purchase price is such a small part of the overall cost of owning one of these things that I wonder if the real value in getting a lower price isn't primarily emotional rather than economic? Skip

My concern would be that if an airplane has been sitting a long time without being inspected and maintained that any corrosion that did start would have advanced uncorrected.