PT20J

When I took the course in 2007, the technique was just to pull the mixture back rather briskly until you felt a power drop and leave it there. Walter “demonstrated” it rather humorously by propelling himself across the room in an office chair while mouthing engine noises.

I asked Frank Crawford (tech support) and Shana Weiss (manufacturing engineer) at Mooney about the holes. Neither knows why they are there. Frank speculated that they may be tooling holes since they didn't show up on the engineering drawings. He did confirm that Mooney does not use any sealant in the wing skin joints, so I guess it is just the tightness of the joint and the paint film that keeps water out. Since most holes seem to be forward of the wing tanks, perhaps they are there to vent the wing in case of a tank leak. It wouldn't make sense to me to have water drains that are not at the low spot when parked because many airplanes spend a lot more time tied down in the rain than flying in the rain.

Just don't carry it too far. I was once doing an IPC for someone in an Archer at SJC and we were asked to keep our speed up to the middle marker on the ILS 30L. Bob carried it a bit too far and crossed the threshold at 130 kts. As we progressed, I could see the 2000' remaining runway edge lights coming into view and the tower must have taken note also because they began calling out runway distance remaining. With less than 1000 ft. to go, when I was certain Bob would do the right thing and go around, he planted it on the runway and hit the brakes which caused an ineffective squealing fishtail. I reached for the flap lever and pushed it to the floor and that allowed the brakes to take hold. We made the turnoff at the end of the 11,000 ft. runway.

It's listed on tfr.faa.gov as "Temporary flight restrictions for Special Security Reasons."

The Mooney main gear is fairly far aft because it is a trailing link design and it is attached aft of the main spar which is already pretty far aft due to the laminar flow wing design which has a maximum thickness farther aft than conventional airfoils. This means that Mooney's are "nose heavy" on the ground. In order to rotate for takeoff, this weight must be counterbalanced by a tail down force. The tail is a wing and the force is a combination of airspeed and angle of attack. Angle of attack is changed by elevator. Elevator force is a function of aerodynamic forces and pulling against the force of the trim springs and/or bob weight. Takeoff trim setting is a tradeoff depending on personal preference. 1. It can be set somewhat nose up. In this case, almost no pull is needed to rotate for takeoff, but as the airplane leaves the ground it will tend to over rotate and a forward pitch input followed by a nose down trip will be necessary. Some prefer this. 2. Many of us prefer Mooney factory test pilot Bob Kromer's "Mooney pull" technique of setting the trim more neutral and beginning the takeoff roll with a pull on yoke, and holding that pull until the airplane rotates, and then releasing it as the airplane reaches climb attitude. This will require no trim change until the flaps are raised. 4. If the trim is set somewhat nose low, the airplane will not want to take off and may wheelbarrow unless a strong pull is exerted and then it will need nose up trim immediately to reduce the force for a normal climb out. Skip

Whether you agree with Don @donkaye or not, I've found that his techniques always come after experimentation to determine what he considers the best or most efficient way to achieve his aim, and he can explain why he considers his technique superior. The speed brakes increase drag and thus will reduce speed if you hold altitude or increase descent rate if you hold speed constant. If you can't get the speed or descent you need in the distance available, they are a great tool. You have other tools: reducing power, lowering the landing gear, changing the flight path. I cannot think of a good reason to land a Mooney with the speed brakes deployed. Float is caused by excessive speed, not too little drag. In a gusty crosswind, you what less drag, not more, in case you encounter wind shear.

It depends on the model. The elevators will be aligned with the stabilizer when the trim is set to takeoff on the models that have trim assist bungees. This would be up to and including the M20J. Beginning with the M20K, Mooney switched to a down spring and bobweight and the elevator rests full trailing edge down.

I never thought about theses hole or their purpose before. It doesn't seem like they are intended to be drain holes; they are not at the lowest spots that water would accumulate. My first airplane lived outside for many years and I never noticed water in the wing. The cabin and tail (which also have a lot of skin lap joints) never leaked. Does Mooney put sealer on the lap joints before riveting skins?

I don’t sweat it. I just file what I want, take what they give me, and negotiate with the controllers once airborne. With an autopilot, programming the GPS is pretty easy. If I get a reroute to a nearby fix or airway and don’t have time to program the GPS, I just ask for a vector.

It’s not actually a transformer, it’s a series resistor. It doesn’t need to be bypassed and it won’t affect the brightness. Just buy the correct voltage and it will be fine. Lots of us have done it.

On a J, the trim bungees should center the elevator in alignment with the horizontal stabilizer on the ground with the trim set in the takeoff band. This is a quick check that the trim indicator is correct. If the trim is set right and you hold a steady ~5lb pull during the takeoff roll, the airplane will rotate and fly off when it’s ready. EDIT: As the airplane starts to rotate, release the back pressure so that it is completely released as the pitch attitude reaches 7 deg nose up and it will climb out without changing the trim until you raise the flaps.

How do you know it’s there if it is inside the wing? How does it get in the wing?

That's interesting. I fly in the rain (I live west of Seattle after all) and I never get puddles on the hangar floor under the wings. Do others get that?

Watch out for snow showers. Rain reduces visibility, but snow can be completely opaque. Best to be flexible about your route and time frame. You can keep going south down to ABQ and then back north if necessary.

I believe the STC calls for a fuse, but a circuit breaker might be considered a minor modification. But that won't really help you because the fuse or CB needs to be located near the battery. It's purpose is to protect the wire between the fuse and the mag in case of a short somewhere. A fuse is simpler than a circuit breaker, so it should be more reliable unless you mount it in a high vibration location.

Lots of them on eBay

It also now sports a modern glass cockpit.

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 302 (FMVSS 302) is the flammability standard for auto upholstery. I wonder how it compares to the FAA requirements? Maybe standard auto materials meet or exceed the FAA requirements in which case it may not be difficult at all to source acceptable materials.

Just to be pedantic, it is a partnership you are looking for; fractional ownership is a whole 'nother thing (see Part 91, Subpart K).

I never compared wingspans, so I looked up a few: A36 (square wing tips) 33'6" PA28 (taper wing) 35'6" C-182 36-0" M20J (sculpted wingtips) 36'1" SR-22 38'4" The Cirrus is going to be a tight fit for a lot of T-hangars which seem to range from about 39' to 42' wide. I think that most manufacturers shoot for the longest wing they can get for lower induced drag while still fitting into a hangar. Not sure why the Bonanza is shorter than most.

Aw come on, you just want to be right. A couple of us pointed out that it's not required by FAR. But, there is certainly no harm in having it. The compression numbers might be useful in establishing trends. But, can you honestly say that you gain any meaningful information from the card? Do you correct your altimeter in flight like you do heading with your compass card, or do you just fatten your logbook with it and never look at it again? Your original post said it is required to be in the logbook and I believe that we have established that it is not. The shop will generate it, so there is no reason not to get a copy and put it wherever you want, but it does not need to be stapled in the logbook.

I think it's fair as long as they disclose the deal upfront, which Garmin has done.

According to the Service Manual, the M20J has a wing loading of 16.59 lb/ft2 at 2900 lb. The wing area is 174.786 ft2 if you want to calculate it for other weights. The ailerons are 11.4 ft2. The pressure on the ailerons is lower on the top than the bottom, so they tend to drift up in flight (That's why they get rigged 1 deg down). This puts the tubes in compression and can flex them, but probably not enough to feel. But it will increase the friction through the guide blocks which should be kept well lubed. Roger Hoh was a contract test pilot who flew the Predator during development. The roll rate was too slow to meet spec and so Mooney shortened the flaps and lengthened the ailerons to increase their area. Roger told me that this caused the tubes to flex so much at high speed that they would bind and the stick would stay wherever you put it. Maxwell's changed out the wing for one from a K, so it no longer has this problem. According to Ron Blum, the Mooney's with squared wing tips have higher roll control force than the ones with the sculpted wing tips because the new tips get the aileron outboard end away from the tip vortex. Skip

I agree with @EricJ and @N201MKTurbo - they are most likely the same regulator and the difference in part number and price is due to the connector. But, a phone call to Zeftronics would clarify.

I think the BMP is implied by the fact that they are telling you to set power with mixture and not dawdle above 75% power when you do it.