PT20J

No, it depends. Some had a rotating beacon and only wingtip strobes. You have to check the POH.

Buying a complete used KFC150 might have some issues. First, how do you know you have every little bit and piece? It’s common to find the servos and computer used, but there are lots of special mounting bits. Second, as Byron said, you’ve got to find someone willing to install it. Most shops wouldn’t touch it. What if they spend a couple of hundred hours installing it and it doesn’t work right? I know a guy that bought a used Aspen and a GNS 430 cheap at Oshkosh and still can’t find a shop willing to install it.

If you have a tail strobe then it’s there because it is required. The reason I mentioned the POH is because you are required to have one and so it is a readily available reference that everyone has access to. If you look in the Limitations section there is a Kinds of Operation Equipment List that will indicate that 3 strobes are required for night IFR or night VFR. None are required for daytime flight. The Limitations section of the POH is FAA Approved (check the page footer). So, operating at night without three strobes is a violation of FAR 91.9.

Per the POH, 3 strobes are required for night, so I guess you’d be OK if you only want to fly during the day.

You have to check the effectivity. There are a couple of different installations depending on the backseat. My MSE has the lower configuration in the drawing moved to the left behind the pilot’s seat and pop riveted to the spar web because the levers for reclining the back seats would not allow the original mounting on the centerline.

It’s a strobe. My MSE has a strobe in each wingtip and one on the rudder. The white position lights are in the wingtips.

I keep the iPad on the yoke with ships power, but I would not rely on it to replace any certified equipment. That said I have found ForeFlight/iPad better than the panel mount equipment in a number of instances: 1. Both ForeFlight and ADS-B use tfr.faa.gov as the TFR source. However, this site does not have the "stadium" TFRs associated with major sporting events and ForeFlight uses other sources to depict these. Also, Garmin has had issues displaying all TFRs. A few months ago it issued a fix for a bug where a TFR lasting more than one day was depicted on the first day only. Recently, when Biden visited Seattle, the GTN depicted the VIP TFR but the G3X did not. 2. ForeFlight allows setting the transparency of overlays but the G3X does not, so if I have radar or terrain selected on the G3X, map features below are obliterated. 3. The GNSS receiver in the iPad receives position from Galileo, GLONAS, QZSS, BEIDOU as well as GPS. Maybe something will work

That's probably the best you can do. The standard Rochester gauges use a screw through the tab to attach the dial and the whole assembly mounts on top of a tank. Mooney obviously wanted a version that would mount flush with the wing and so the Mooney dials are glued in with RTV -- some better than others evidently.

You could call Sigma-Tek. I found them responsive in the past. The cluster unit is easily removed from the panel and you can take it apart and trace the wires from the back panel connector to the individual gauge connectors. That's what I did when troubleshooting a fuel pressure gauge. The wiring from the back panel connector to power and ground and sensors is in the Mooney schematic. The cluster unit is well built and it seems unlikely that a wire broke. The individual gauges remove from the front by loosening the screw. That will give you access to the pins on the backplane and the gauge. Once out you can also take the cover off the gauge and see if the stop is sticky. D'Arsonval meter movements have an armature that rotates against the tension of a hair spring. When power is turned off, the spring snaps the needle against the stop. If age makes the stop sticky, it can cause the needle to stick. Sticking at the off position but coming to life when tapped is a classic symptom.

The newer Mooneys use high quality connectors. Most connection issues are at the alternator because that’s where the most vibration occurs. I presume these were checked when the alternator was replaced. There have been some reports of loose connections at the alternator and master switches.

That makes sense. Cooling airflow is different in climb: more volume, but less pressure differential I would think. Also, exhaust back pressure decreases at higher altitudes. I would try pressure testing the exhaust with a clean shop vac and a spray bottle of soapy water.

From your description it sounds more like a mechanical issue with the meter movement than electrical. Schematic for connections to the cluster is in Mooney service manual for your airplane. Used gauges are available online. Sigma-Tek also overhauls these.

The bottom is the hardest to get the seal placement right. The front, top and rear are held in place by pins, hinges and latches, but not the bottom. Also, the bottom has the cutout for the hold open arm and the curvature of the door corners doesn’t match the fuselage.

Ross, easiest way to do this is to aim a heat gun at each cylinder near the probe and see which rises on the monitor. BTW, are you using bayonet probes or spark plug gasket probes?

I bought some 3M clear tape and covered each dial with a piece of it. It helps keep the moisture out and should keep it attached to the wing

Garmin vague? How unusual . I don't know but my best guess is that they use it to smooth out variations in the localizer and/or glideslope. What is interesting is that the first line of the pertinent section of the AFMS says, "This procedure applies only if the optional GPS navigator is installed:" According to the install manual, if there is no GPS navigator but a VHF Nav Radio is interfaced through a GAD 29, then NAV and APR modes are available. So if you never install a GPS, VHF approaches work, but if you install a GPS they don't unless the GPS works.

Excellent point. It’s not required for SE piston aircraft 6000 lb. or less, and the second navigator can be a GPS, but prudence would seem to demand a second navigator. Since my G3X has an internal GPS, I installed a GNC 255 for #2.

I tried to design my installation to protect against single point failures. Failure of the GPS constellation is a concern because where I live in the Pacific NW, the MON network appears to me to be insufficient if there is really bad weather. But, the risk seems relatively small and it's something I cannot control. If I can get to an airport with a working ILS, having the ability to couple would be nice, but not critical.

In my installation (G3X/G5/GFC 500/ GTN 650Xi) either the G3X or G5 flight director will drive the GFC 500 and both have RS-232 connections to the GTN. If the GTN fails, I can switch the G3X Navigator from external to internal and use the G3X VFR GPS to navigate and provide a GPS source for the autopilot.

Hey, question for our attorneys here: Since SCOTUS overturned the Chevron deference doctrine, what is the effect on FAA enforcement based on its interpretation of the often vague FARs, and what weight do chief counsel legal opinions carry, and what about appeals to the NTSB? It kind of sounds like the FAA (and NTSB) might have to be much more circumspect about enforcement, but I don’t know.

Let us know. It’s a puzzler.

It’s a valid concern. It irks me that the Government is saving money (well, OK, it’s my money, but still…) by decommissioning legacy navaids and thus making us dependent on GPS while at the same time regularly making GPS unusable in large areas.

Hmmm. Let’s see. 1. This is an airplane you have been flying for many years and know well. 2. #1 and #4 traditionally have the coolest climb CHTs 3. Suddenly, and for no apparent reason, #1 and #4 CHTs got significantly hotter. 4. You investigated and removed a small obstruction from the cooling fins of #4. 5. On a subsequent flight, #1 was cooler but #4 was still running hot. The symptoms don’t make sense, which is why you posted. Just a guess, but I’d assume that the scotchbrite was a red herring and look into perhaps an issue with the engine monitor.

That is clearly described in the AFMS. (Everybody reads that before buying, right?) The G3X VFR GPS will provide sufficient GPS position to the autopilot in the event my GTN fails (Garmin confirmed it and I verified it in flight). So, it’s only interference or failure of the GPS constellation that would be an issue.

Have you tried calling Mid-Continent?