buzzard

Great points, thank you! Absolutely understand your point about risk. Part of my process here is understanding what that additional risk looks like with a more complex airplane, and then deciding how much I'm willing to tolerate in exchange for speed and space. As far as prices, there's a '62 C model on Barnstormers right now for $32,500 that went pending within a few days of listing. On paper, seemed like an intriguing mid-time example with newer pucks and extended tanks. I haven't seen enough yet to know if this was a low outlier.

^ This. You're in my neck of the woods, so I'm sure that you can appreciate the mind-numbing drive from Philly to west-central PA.

Well taken, but I think you missed my point. I realize that the 150 is on the bottom of the food chain but as an owner for nearly a decade, a pilot for going on 20 years, and having just gone through the overhaul process, I do feel like I'm not naive to the financial exposure that owning presents. The costs of moving up are not an impediment, just require a different allocation of funds and a potentially different mindset. I can write the check but I'm not an open wallet owner, and one or two $10k annuals might really take the luster off of a new plane. If vintage Mooneys are often budget busters -- which it sounds like they could be -- then maybe one isn't the best plane for me right now. That's all part of what I'm trying to determine as I learn more about them. And I'm still trying to gauge if the Mooney market has been equally as crazy, but Cessna prices have skyrocketed lately. A 150 that I know well sold recently with clean airframe and low time engine for low $30k before it was even listed. I haven't tested the waters but would hope that my solid 200SMOH 150 would potentially be in that ballpark. If so, the acquisition cost gap doesn't appear quite as wide as suggested.

Again, thank to all who took time to answer here. If it's not already apparent, I am a planner and the info here has really helped fill in some of the blanks that just perusing the forums didn't answer. One of my biggest takeaways here is that it sounds like the vintage Mooneys can also be flown "recreationally" - a huge plus for me given my mixed mission. Also confirms my impression that they should stay at the top of my list if/when I move up to a four place. Didn't mention it in my initial mission list, but the in-laws live 180nm away by air but a circuitous 5 hour drive by car, so that 150mph would really be an added bonus to shuttle the kids out there for a long weekend. Biggest concern for me remains the costs. I don't like to finance toys and my flying budget is relatively modest, so the cash outlay to acquire a decent one plus keep a reasonable reserve for a big repair might still have even a C model slightly out of reach for now. Going to keep learning about them as well as the common concerns (tanks, pucks, cage corrosion, etc) and try to be in a well informed position if one becomes available. I live in the northern Philly suburbs, so I may drop into Robbinsville or Lancaster and introduce myself to the Mooney gurus there. Thanks again. -Jim

Thanks guys. Great discussion, I appreciate the insight. I know it was kind of an open-ended inquiry but based on the responses you guys get the gist of my dilemma.

Hey gang - I'm a forum lurker coming out of the shadows for my first post. :) I've owned a Cessna 150 for about 10 years. Love it and fly the heck out of it (avg 30-40 hours/month recently) but have become enamored with the cost vs performance of the vintage Mooneys. I have conflicting missions - on one hand I enjoy almost daily "fun" flights into and out of local grass and short strips and I'm trying to build time to open some professional flying opportunities. But I also recently got my instrument rating, would like to travel more, finish my commercial, and would be great to fly with more than one light passenger at a time. No regrets about the C150 at all. It has served me well for 100s of hours and at 5gph of mogas the cost to operate is insanely low. But its slow speed, limited useful load, and VFR-only avionics really limit it to a very specific role that some days I feel like I am outgrowing. Curious to see if other have made a similar ownership move and would be willing to share their insight. I realize that this is a Mooney group and will probably skew to "buy a Mooney" responses, but I'd be interested to hear your experiences. Have you moved up and never looked back? Or are there days that you miss the simplicity of a primary trainer to just enjoy flight? Will I be shell shocked by the comparable costs of ownership? Will maintenance be a new league? Along the same line of thought, would an M20C be the most logical entry? I fly on a budget and although I've seen prices wildly range from about $30-60k, the M20Cs seem to be the closest price-wise to what I could expect to get for my 150 in today's market. (I'd be a buyer on the low end of this range). FWIW, I wouldn't necessarily object to an example that was at or beyond TBO if the price was right - I recently OH'd the engine in my 150 so I understand the process and pitfalls and think I know what I'd be getting in to. Welcome any advice and insight that you'd be willing to share. Thanks! -Jim