Paul Thomas

I do believe that's who I remember, the name is familiar, although in my memory the strips shorter and bumpier. Rumor has it that the only reason he was able to get out of some of those places are the wheel covers.

I don't have the bush kit either and since my bearings get repacked every year, I'm not sure how useful they are. I have noticed some damage on the flaps though that I could have avoided with mudflaps or fenders. Back in the early days of the AOPA board, there use to be someone that took his Mooney on back country strips, places I wouldn't consider even in a 182.

Don't they help keep even more stuff out of the wheel bearing than the felts do?

My IA indicated that we'd have to look into the fine details to determine whether it is a minor mod or not which stopped me from buying it during the S&F special. I ended replacing the existing strobe light. Mine has 3 and the ones for the tips are in the last inspection panel if I remember right. The packs are much lighter than I expected.

If I used one of those regularly, I'd find a way to make it convenient without the door or cutting the door. I'd run the cable into the cabin so that I can plug it from the baggage area side.

When I looked earlier this year, the J is not covered under the STC for the LED.

The interior is out and I've started to repair the plastic. The last person who worked on it loved epoxy and metal to fix things, especially on the overhead console. There was a 1/4 inch or more of epoxy. I've removed the metal and ground down the epoxy so that proper fix can be done and I'm going to start on the overhead console this weekend. If I can salvage that, I'm hoping to limit what I need to order from Vantage. I did a couple of test with other parts and it appears that ABS cement and cloth works wonders. I'll use EZ sand and follow the Jeager process to complete the project. I've enjoyed having interior out because I can really look around. The list @1980Mooney shared was completed yesterday (except for replacing the fuel line). I also had my IA look at things for SB208. It appears it had been completed before including new insulation; I did not recall that in the log which matches handwritten notes that I found earlier this year. The seats will be redone in Lexus leather, with flame certs, by a local upholstery shop. I think I have the carpet selected, they just need to ensure that it will also have flame certs before I order it. I'd prefer to find a local place for the trim that goes around the windows so that I can see the color first hand. One of my remaining items to figure out is the fabric for the speaker covers.

It's my understanding that not only did the airport sell the product, but that it helped market and encourage sale. Am I correct?

Has an insurance company paid $600k for the claim? If so, I wonder if they seek to be made whole by GAMI and the impact it will have on the insurance market.

If I looked for a place to do this, I'd have a trophy shop do it.

I do believe my belts were originally Davis and re-webbed in Georgia in 2011 but I need to verify that. Since mine have been re-webbed, Davis won't touch them and Davis' position is no one can legally touch their belts. I asked if they had any documentations as to why no one is legally allowed to work on them but the person I talked to was not aware of any, it's just what he's been told to say. Aircraftseatbelts is the cheapest I've seen at $735 for all based on their online price. I called an authorized repair station 45 minutes away that does them; their cost is $225/seat and their process is to replace the material (rated by G force), re-stitch is how it was, and relabel. 10 days turnaround. It makes one wonder how hard it is to get the certification to be a repair station; it sounds like a great business to be in (probably till you get an insurance quote for liability).

It appears that part 23 airplanes are subject to TS0-C114 while CAR 3 airplanes can do as they please? Looking online, two places that re-web belts have prices were at $800 for the all 4 seats while another was at over $800 per seat. I do plan to call around and learn what makes a belt better than another but I'm shocked at the price difference and struggle to see what makes on 4x the cost of the other. It's even worse when a friend with an experimental just told me he has $50 in the job and places that specialize in re-web/certification for race cars are much cheaper than what I'll pay. Is it all about getting belt with the proper paperwork or should I be looking for more? Who have you all used and why? BTW: do you know that that multiple manufacturers have a 10 year limit on belts?

I ordered the sample from SCS; I wish they had more colors. The quality of the wool vs. other fabric is obvious.

https://www.mooneysummit.com

My understanding is that most of the flying is not to get to place but to build flight time and experience toward an aviation career which is why I'd look for the cheapest airplane to operate per hour or something that's really fun to fly.

I'd be aiming slower and more fun. Get a cub, acro plane, etc. Just cruising around is boring, especially when doing 500 hours/year.

We've been under $5.00 all year in SWFL.

My limiting range factor is passengers; we stop every 4 hours. If I did a long trip by myself, I'd probably push for another hour, landing with over 15 gallons (all in one tank). I'm a chicken when it comes being low on gas. For quick planning, 150 knot &10 gallons/hour is how I do it so that gives me 750 solo, 600 with a passenger. I have a bad back as well and it's triggered by seating. I've found that I don't have an issue in some cars (or the airplane), but do in others.

Get two airplanes. One to enjoy and travel in, the other to build hours. You don't need to go fast or burn a lot of fuel to build hours.

What was the configuration problem?

The quality of work from owners never ceases to amaze me! What does the overhead console look like on the 77J?

I don't have electric trim and only have alt hold on my airplane and I'm more than happy with that. Having GPSS is more than I thought I'd have when I first thought about airplane ownership 20+ years ago. While I would use vertical guidance from an autopilot, it's not something I wish for except during approaches. If I was installing a GCF500, I would want the ability to fly fully coupled approaches. If trim is needed, I'd bite the bullet and do it. If it's just a question of trimming the airplane when it tells me to, it would annoy me to do it but I'd still do it.

The closest bathroom from my hangar is a short drive, just inside the fence line; it is too far to walk and I've thought about getting an electric scooter. I would not consider such an option, not from the use aspect, but from the maintenance aspect. If I were desperate enough to go that route, I'd just get some buckets and consider them disposable. In your situation, when the flight school is closed, I'd drive to the McDonald during the day and, at night, I'd enjoy the cover of darkness.

I've heard many people say a Lance is a 150 KTAS airplane; I've never flown one but if that's the case, that would be close to Mooney speed, just more fuel burn for the load carrying ability. I would investigate that if I was looking at a 6 seater. The A36 is a great airplane, but it's not in my budget.

Where are you going to stay overnight? If you are camping, you'll be in the N40/S40 and it can take a while but it has never taken me that long. For one night and not camping, I may contact Basler and see if they still have some space; you'd be parked on hard surface and it's fast to get out.