Western Flyer

I am seeking one or two experienced pilots to partner in my 1980 Mooney 231 hangared at KAPA. King Flight Director/HSI, KFC200 Autopilot, Garmin GNS530 WAAS/Terrain Awareness, Garmin 430, Garmin GTX 345 Transponder w/ADS-b in/out, FlightStream 210 connects GNS530 to iPad running Foreflight, on board 4-place. oxygen. Call or text at 303-995-8659. Email dickinsonc@gmail.com

My wife and I have flown a J model Mooney for years and recently acquired a K model She has a difficult time pulling the yoke back with enough force during the flare, so she trims just a bit more nose up trim than needed while stabilized on final approach, requiring less pull force in the final flare. We often fly with just the two of us in the plane, and never reached the stop in the J, but we do in the K. And after about our third or fourth flight in the K, I could not get the trim unstuck from the full-nose-up position while trying to set trim for takeoff. The owner of my local Mooney service center said that this is a somewhat common occurrence. I pulled the belly panel directly under the trim wheel and freed the jack screw using pliers. It took quite a bit of force to break it free. He inspected and lubed the jack screw and recommended trimming manually when getting near the stop, to avoid jamming it using the electric trim.

In my newly purchased 1980 Mooney 231, the oil temperature would climb to near red line and the oil pressure would drop to the bottom of the green soon after takeoff. Cylinder head temperatures seemed acceptable, staying in the upper third of the green. A mechanic at my local Mooney shop opened the cowl and immediately noticed that there were a few small gaps in the engine baffling, and the baffle seals were rolled forward. He told me that the seals would not blow back and seal against the upper cowl. He recommended replacing the baffle seals and sealing small gaps. What a difference! After having the work done, oil temp and pressure are staying comfortably in the green