00-Negative

Careful buying used even from a reputable seller like BAS. That unique barrel-shaped bearing may be missing. I just did this a few weeks ago. Removed mine and installed a light weight strut which I read about on earlier threads. -David

@Gary Bymers

So do you think the ground personnel warning system is a bigger factor for lower rates of gear-up landings per hour flown by military pilots than regular repetitive redundant training exercises? I wonder how often the flare is used to prevent a near-miss. I'd bet that pilot gets some crap from his peers if he gets a flare popped because his gear isn't down. -David

This is what I deal with all day every day at work. That emphatic statement suggests that the etiology of our ever-more distracted and attention deficit population is somehow organic. Are some people just unfortunately born with this disease of being more distracted than others and nothing can be done about it? If so, why is this not screened or tested for prior to obtaining a license to pilot an aircraft with passengers? Seems extremely dangerous to put unfortunate "distracted persons" that will not benefit from training in positions requiring high levels of focus. It is not a disease. It is a set of behaviors, habits, and mannerisms completely controllable by the pilot or person in mind. On the contrary, I believe that we can train ourselves to focus and operate without distraction. I haven't analyzed any statistical data, but I suspect that the rate of gear-ups among military pilots is much lower than that of civilian pilots. The most glaring variables are training and consequences. Both of which are much higher among military pilots. I bought the Microkit LHS system when it was on sale around a year ago. Was maybe $800-900 or so. I installed it myself without any hiccups and what a world of difference it made mostly with night landings and landing with passengers/baggage. I fly a lot solo and make good landings in different configurations and conditions. The ground-effect characteristics and sink rate are quite different when I'm loaded down with fuel, family,. and baggage. -David

I did mine myself as well. Ceramic coats do not last very long at all on airplanes that fly often. Planes are subjected to harsh elements/UV damage every time we fly. Much more so than automobiles. I've done it all including 3 stage paint correction, ceramic, polish, glaze, wax, etc... I've used several commercial grade ceramic coatings available only to professional detailers. I basically wipe down my plane after nearly every trip with Aerocosmetics waterless wash. Takes me less than 10 minutes. I use Maxl triphene spray every couple of months on the entire plane. I don't mess with ceramic coatings anymore. My plane stays so slick, no one can put tools or parts on the wing. Everything slips off. The business structure of professional detailing has evolved to exactly what the OP described: $5k initially, $2.5k every 2 years. You will eventually need paint correction after 4-6 years or so. Doing the math, you'll pay around $25k in 12 years for a shiny airplane that will still pick up chips, nicks, scratches, and other flaws. Ceramic coating on airplanes should be measured in hours instead of time. It will last a very long time in a hangar. But I estimate the ceramic coats I've seen last around 100-120 hours flown. That's less than a year for me. Check out Maxl. https://maxl.com/products/maxeasy - David

I did this around a year ago. Bought it from Woot as well. It works well but I would prefer the full speed pace slightly quicker. I use it frequently to pull my Mooney approx 100yds to or from the fuel pump before/after flights which prevents unnecessary startup and run for only that short time. I welded a generic trailer tongue to a universal clamping tow bar. I posted a short 6 sec clip on one of the Mooney Facebook groups yesterday. Seems I can't post the video clip here. -David

I know with hydraulic flaps and manual trim, four pumps of flaps will induce a significant nose-down attitude which will have to be fought with the left hand/yoke while the right hand then reaches down and and rolls the trim wheel several times. All of that would have to be done after clearing the trees at the end of the road. I can see why he didn't get the flaps in. He probably saw a clear stretch of road and committed. Good form. -David

I did this only one year ago. Bought my M20e before i had my ppl. No one world insure me, so i bought it without insurance. I paid $71k. I finished my ppl 1 month later and insured the plane with Avemco for $3k. I had approx 85hrs total time. Requirement was 10hrs dual in my model. So i paid a Mooney CFI for the 10hrs & complex. My renewal was a little better at $2900 d/t safety training throughout the year. I look at it this way... if insurance rates are as much as a note on the same value plane, it would be much smarter to take that money and just buy a backup plane. We're only talking $70-110k. We buy vehicles in this price range every 5 years that have basically no value at trade-in time.

Meaning I don't think the advanced timing has any effect on starting. I'm pointing out that the change to the SureFly itself changed my engine starting characteristics.

We removed the shower of sparks. I would think it would have some impact on starting.

Just installed SureFly to replace my left mag last weekend. We set if for advanced timing. My initial startup after install was fine. However, a few days later, I went to startup and I think I almost immediately flooded the engine. Usually cold starts easily. I hammered on that starter for 25 minutes before it finally started. I will have to change my cold startup technique. Once it finally started, it ran like normal for a few laps in the pattern. I have not tried hot start yet. -David

What about a Dynon SkyView with G5 in lieu of Dynon's D30 backup and Garmin's GFC500 autopilot? The best of both worlds. What's appealing to me is that I can buy Dynon over the counter. The downtime quotes that I've gotten for Garmin installs are 3-6 months and I frequently see plans down longer than that. I rarely go 2 weeks without flying.

I put a cheap, Amazon dehumidifier hanging from the coat rack in my plane. The outlet tube runs into the tailcone and hangs above the opening for the retractable step. I just leave the tubing in place and connect the dehumidifier when I put the plane up. My hangar leaks through the roof and during periods of high rain volume water comes in under the walls and remains standing on the hangar floor for a few days. But I don't have any other hangar options and my cost is $60/month. The humidity in south Louisiana is 99% year-round. The dehumidified air inside the plane gets as low as 30%. I don't do anything for the wings/ fuselage. -David

Maybe reach out to this guy. I think he installed his own nearly a year ago. He seems to like it. - David

Haha. That's why I do more reading than posting. I would get corrected too much. This group has a very diverse spread of expertise.