GeeBee

They seem to fail early and often.

Not mine. Somewhere between 10 and 12K miles depending on the sensor or 1 year. Usually I time out before mileage.

I call BS! Sounds like a cam out of time with the crank

I use Tempest, but the reality is very few filters are installed long enough to make a difference as a result of their individual design advantages.

I find on Mooneys there is a great variability in paint origins and processes. Some are factory, some are contracted. Some using really good finishes, some are economy paint jobs. You are correct, a good paint job costs a lot of money. It is one of the the few times, you really get what you pay.

Epi-bond is a two part epoxy primer. I have always wanted to paint a whole airplane with it. The problem is the masking would have to be perfect because there is no recovery from overspray.

Used to have a King Air that had a 50 amp C/B that protected the A/C system. The relay for the electric motor that drove the compressor was on the same circuit, but since the relay coil would never on its best day blow a 50 amp breaker it was protected by a 5 amp fuse, that would blow because there was no delay between the coil energizing and the compressor motor start up. The compressor motor would draw so much current on start up the relay would draw excessive amps to maintain its commanded latch. The fuse was in the nose and required the removal of screws and a panel to get to the fuse and relay box. Solution was to insert a slo-blo fuse.

The question was, why use both a C/B and a fuse. In most typical circuits, a thermal C/B is rated for the wire where as the appliance if it absorbs that much current would fry itself into oblivion before the C/B tripped. In that case, you would place a fuse close to the appliance to melt before the wire melts or the C/B tripped. This is often the case where two appliances are applied to one circuit where the possibility of one appliance would absorb the full load of the C/B is great. For instance, there may be a C/B protected circuit called "Panel lights" but it may be split into "Left" and "Right" panel lights which may be protected by a lower rated fuses respectively. Thus if the appliance developed a short, it would blow the fuse and leave the feed wire intact to power the remaining items on the circuit.

Here is a possible answer. 5 gallons methanol, figure about 35 pounds. Tank and installation figure another 12 pounds so 47 pounds off of payload. $12,000 installation cost is a little off the wallet payload. Then you have the corrosive nature of methanol, more maintenance costs. Simpler, cheaper and greater payload/range to burn high octane. 47 pounds is a 45 minute reserve in most SE airplanes.

That is correct. The C/B protects the wiring starting at the power bus. The fuse should be close to the appliance.

A lot of manufacturers use self-etching primers then paint. I hate this method. Self-etching means, the crap that was on the aluminum (mostly aluminum oxide) but tooling grease etc is encapsulated within the primer. I have seen this on Cessna, and Piper lines. I have never observed Mooney's line but I know they contracted a lot of paint out to independent "line shops" which means the self etching primer process was used. I can tell you from personal observation that Beechcraft was one of the few manufacturers that etched, rinsed, alodine coated then primed the aluminum with non-etching primer (because it was etched before and the contaminate rinsed away. With the alodine coating you create a tremendously strong intermediary between the aluminum and the primer. With the entire process you have a methodology that creates a very strong coating system. The only thing you could do to improve that coating system is to use something like Epi-bond Epoxy primer which is something that is often used in corrosive areas like battery areas and lavatory areas. What Beechcraft uses these days now they are part of Textron and with the advent of low or no VOC paint I do not know. I suspect Textron paints all their airplanes the same with self etching primer. I suspect those panels are old Beechcraft alodine method paint systems.

C/B protects wiring. Fuses protect the appliance.

If the airframe is life limited it makes a difference. For instance, the TBM's are life limited to 10,000 hours. After that, they are scrap. So a 7000 hour TBM would be seriously discounted. Are there 10K TBMs? Yes, Quest, the medical lab company flies a fleet of them every night and have sent two airframes to the scrap yard.

Some time back I was using FF (I now use Garmin Pilot) I did not know the app was open on my tablet. I had my iPad open reading on Kindle reader. Then I placed it in the seat back, in the back of a Delta jet taxing out at ATL Two Dead Mayors Airport when my iPad barks out loudly, "Approaching Runway 26L!". I smiled to my fellow of passengers and said, "In case you did not know".

The solution is for AOPA and EAA to pool resources, supply some field airplanes and hire an independent lab to do the tests. The AOPA Baron is nice, but not enough. If ever there was a reason for the two organizations to exist, this is it. They might however end up like the CDC during Ebola and Covid and simply spit out the bit.

The idea that there will be a fair hearing and trial of fact on an environmental matter in a court room, let alone a California court room I find "quaint".

Usually a mag that fries condensers has a bad coil. Coils are not replaced on overhauls, just checked with a VOM. Coils often are intermittent. Go ahead and use the new unit and see how far that gets you. They are cheap. If it fries again it is the coil. I'm not a fan of O/H magnetos unless they are O/H by Aircraft Magneto Service. He is a little more but I've never gone wrong with one of his units. Usually I just buy new because on the Continentals it is not that much more, but my last one there was no stock so I used AMS and once again the service was superb. The main problem with O/H exchange is there is too many crappy cores out there that get by the overhaul facility. AMS is pretty good at sorting those out although I have never done an exchange others I know have. https://www.aircraftmagnetoservice.net

You can always fire off the red one to let them know you have wounded on board.

I really like this stuff because it is not as hard on the hands as the grit stuff like Randolph. It uses chopped up rubber. It has very good grip in all weather (and TKS fluid) and it touches up easy if it wears. I have had it on for just over 4 years now with zero problems. It looks great all the time. https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/cspages/ultrawingwalk.php

There is no requirement for runway lights for IFR departure for a flight operated under Part 91. Part 121 and 135 required at night and daytime depends on visibility.

The problem becomes more acute when G100UL becomes ubiquitous enough to be self-serve. The whole idea of self serve is to reduce fuel exhaustion accidents.

I've had two passengers that had the point made.

And of course the DOJ never listens to the FAA

Yes, the insurance company has a duty to defend you from civil liability. Administrative or criminal charges, not so much. Guess which one the FAA will bring? Care to buy a vowel?

Depends if the hangman's noose needs a body. Crash into an elementary school and kill 9 children without an STC authorization, the gallows awaits. Ruin the furrows in a plowed field, nobody cares.