bigmo

Jimmy Garrison 210-872-1110 (c) Also: jimmy@allamericanaircraft.com Website Link: gmaxamericanaircraft.com Financing, Insurance and Other Mooney referrals available. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61559918482654

Call Jimmy with your wish list. He’s tracking several a/c that no one sees. I did the same thing - long list of must haves and a couple of wants. Told him I had cash ready to go. It was 3 months and he called me and said “I’ve found your plane!”

Your price doesn’t seem bad. I was weighing a few options and talked to Lafayette (arguably the busiest and lowest priced option nationwide). They were $19k w/o pitch trim and $22k w/ pitch trim all in. But they were backed up until July 2025. I know it’s a seller’s market on avionics labor - but even at $100 an hour, I can’t see 100 hours in labor. I did cold call a few small shops and did find a couple that said it’s more like a 50-60 hour job - and that seems believable. i got frustrated and bought a new plane…

Underinflated like 44psi? No, not at all. Underinflated like 18psi? Yes, 100%. I've gotten into the habit of checking tire pressure with every first of the day pre-flight. I hate laying on the ground as much as the next guy, but it takes all of a minute to do. I do want to get someone with a portable nitrogen setup and convert to nitrogen. SO much less impact due to weather changes.

In 1992, I was on a cross country from Oklahoma to Texas and landed at Addison. Saw my first Mooney (no Internet back then). I was in love... My CFI and I chatted up the owner and I hopped behind the yoke and told myself I'd own one of these fine machines someday. Well, barring any pre-buy snafus...my day has arrived! A few months ago, I reached out to Jimmy with my wants and needs. "Got it", he said. "Just be patient and I'll find you your dream plane." Yes. He. Did. Stellar maintenance. ALL of my wants (WAAS navigator, AP w/ altitude hold, GPSS, "the looks", nicely equipped, low time motor, no accident history (MAN, this is hard now), and good maintenance & records. Four owner history, with one long-time owner being LASAR themselves. So it got the "money doesn't matter" treatment for many, many years (and some great mods to boot). Sorting logistics and the adventure of bring her home from the Pacific Northwest (which frankly I'm fizzing about). One of our kids just announced what will be our first grandchild coming soon. The first thing I said to my wife was "...we need a faster plane!" She agreed.

Thanks for the link - that's a motherlode of info!

If so, I have a couple of questions about database updates and would love to hit you up via PM. Thanks!

Understand completely. I'm a professional pilot by trade - so this is truly an insurance requirement.

Not to scare you away from a Mooney, but there are some really good MUCH cheaper options that will get you reliable hours, and save you oodles of $. A few hangars down from me, a club just picked up a mint Cherokee 140 and paid $40K cash. It actually looks nice and it's been flying non-stop since they bought it. They're about as complicated as a claw hammer. In today;s insurance market you will find very few underwriters willing to write on a low time PPL. If they do, expect north of $6K...maybe more like $8K (or more). I pretty much did the same thing just to get on the other side of CFI/II and then ATP mins; I have family reasons for speed & efficiency now. But since you're in the time building phase, speed doesn't matter...time does. Go as slow as you can! Even if you got a REALLY simple C without any complications, you're realistically looking at at least double the operating cost per hour (I bet it's closer to 2.5x). Base annuals on a Mooney start at $3K and go up. You can get a C-152 or PA28-140 annual for $1200 - sometimes less. Annuals, gas, and then insurance will add up. Good luck for sure, but there's plenty of time for a Mooney. Took me 33 years...and finally got the plane I want (or need if you ask my wife).

I use this same pencil. For just writing down notes and CRAFT it's 100% perfect. My youngest does a ton of art on her iPad and demands a real Apple pencil - I get that. But unless you're spending time in the sky doing detailed photo or graphics work, spend the money on gas!

Thanks for the recommendations. I'll hot them up today. For transition, I am already linked up with Marvin Toepfer. Stellar rep, 1000's of hours in M20's and he'll do the flight back with me across the country. Feeling that's a super safe/smart investment (and seems like a stellar guy).

Have a deal looking likely in the Seattle area (north side of town) on a really nice F. Aircraft has a fresh annual, good pedigree, and no red flags in the logs. Ideally looking for a mechanic with some Mooney experience, but just about any A&P will do that can focus on corrosion, tanks, and some other big $ gotchas. Not so worried about piddly stuff and I will trust the system that the A&P that just signed off on the annual addressed airworthy items (I'm a trusting guy). Heck, I MIGHT be ok with a Seattle-based Mooney fanatic/expert that will just give a solid look over the plane with me if I get a good vibe from the A&P that has been maintaining it the last 10+ years. Not ideal, but for me new to Mooneys - might be an acceptable plan-b. Thanks!

Great info - thanks! And your suggestions were pretty much my plan. Sending you a PM too ref the hides.

Have my pre-J choice narrowed to a couple (really one) - working with Jimmy now. One item I want to do is a freshening up of the interior. Been reading older threads on some DIY (owner, upholstery, AP) jobs and have the process down I think. Evaluating ordering the cover material from an approved provider, or using a local upholstery shop and getting certs from Skandia. What I cannot find is the amount of material I need for seats, the baggage rear, and a couple of side covers. Has anyone been down this path and knows the amount of material you ordered? Any tips along the way appreciated as well. For cushion foam, I'll just go with Jim & Janice at Hi-tech. I expect it'll be cheaper to source plain leather and let Skandia provide their cert. Thanks!

This is gold - thanks so much!

I'm narrowing my aircraft search down to just a few aircraft now. My #1 has an IFD440 and an STEC-30 with altitude hold. I'd REALLY like GPSS. I do fly quite a bit of real IMC and really would like hands off procedure holds - I'm not lazy, it's a safety thing for me. If I add a Aspen E5 w/ ACU, is that all I need? Sarasota has them in stock right now for $5K. Help me ballpark install on a pre-J please? And, then I'll ask, am I dumb for not pulling the vac system then? I have backup ADAHRS, so I won't remount the AI.

Stellar feedback all - I know to trust my gut and my gut says walk. Really nice broker (it's Gary Black, the original Cirrus test pilot). Semi-ironically, he;s the first guy to fly this aircraft. Too many ? to make a risky decision. So...I'm scratching this oddball Cirrus itch and back to serious discussions with Jimmy at Gmax.

I have a contract on my plane I'm selling, so it's time to get serious. I was only looking at J's originally, but have found 3 pre-J's that are serious contenders. All meet all my requirements (clean logs, no damage history, mid time motor, autopilot w/ altitude hold). This comes for a price, right at $100K...but it's hard to beat the bang for the buck. There's still one turn-key J I have my eye on, but it's literally double the $ and aside from having a J with killer aesthetics, it doesn't get me much. I have a longstanding relationship with my A&P. Experienced, detail oriented, retired military mechanic. I've done all the initial logs review - no red flags. All have good pedigrees, no log shenanigans, and all are in great shape. One is sitting with Jimmy @ Gmax. Assuming we have 6-8 hours to do a solid once-over - where do you spend your time? Two of the three have recent bladders (< 10 years). All three have seen a decent amount of maintenance at well known MSCs. This is my third a/c purchase, so I'm not going in blind. But, I'd like to know from experience where the big dollar items are that we should focus our efforts on. 2 are IO-360, 1 is O-360 - carbs don't scare me and it has at JPI EDM900 All three are "fly away ready" - that being said, I have some minor avionics plans to add GPSS/roll steering and ADSB-in. Keen to hear a 1-n list of areas you'd start with based upon time. We'll spend 2+ hours on the motor and verify compression and borescope cylinders. All will be flown and all systems checked. After that, where's my (well, my A&P's) time best spent? MANY thanks...we're almost there!

Not sure if that's good English... I have a buyer lined up for my plane, so my searching for my new plane is ramping up. I have a few strong contenders now and going through logs. Several J's, a couple of uber-nice pre-J's and *cough* a couple of Cirrus SR20s. So this is reference one of the SR20s that I found. Absolute creme puff. Was owned by Cirrus corporate for about 1/2 it's life and so excellent maintenance. Then the current owner bought it and it became a hangar queen. For the past 15 years of his ownership, it has flown about 100 hours total. Most years are 5ish hours, some years a little more, and two years it did not fly. Engine is 6 cylinder Conti IO-360ES. Recent annual, compressions were all 76-78/80 and of course "no defects found". So keeping the conversation to JUST the engine - is this a deal breaker? I will NOT make her a hangar queen. I flew 200+ hours this past year...that's my normal jam. FWIW, that's a factory new engine and not an overhaul. We'll of course do a pre-buy inspection. Engine components have all seen recent maintenance/repair etc.. - but my concerns are strictly about the 15 years of VERY low use. And a little comedy, the owner just bought a G5 FIKI. Nothing like a new $1M hangar queen. My gut says pilot in his 70's, likes to drink his coffee, listen to his ball games on the AM and wash it.

Thanks for the advice, but I'm set on a Mooney. No other aircraft delivers a better performance/cost ratio IMO. The only thing that comes close is a Gen1 SR20, but they're about as sexy as flying a 1994 Camry.

Thanks gents for all the great comments. Like @LANCECASPER stated - they put some money into the plane. Just the engine, prop & panel are north of $100K. VORs are dead, but it'd be nice to have in a real emergency, but I have a portable radio with a surprisingly cable nav. My mechanic is looking over logs & ADs now so I can have a convo with the broker this week. For comparison, here's the J at the top of my shopping list: https://www.gmaxamericanaircraft.com/inventory/?/listing/for-sale/235881353/1985-mooney-m20j-se-piston-single-aircraft?dlr=1&dscompanyid=6946&settingscrmid=614667 Frankly, I think either of these would fit my mission VERY well.

Doing some pretty serious looking now as I have several folks looking at my own plane. Won't get REALLY serious until I have a deal done. So, this is a good time that I start building pricing bookends. Found a fabulous F that's turn key. Great paint & interior, fabulous no-compromises panel (all Garmin, Garmin autopilot, twin G5, ADB in/out & nice engine monitor). Almost new motor & prop. Great history. That turn-key comes in at $150K. Realistically, it's the most expensive pre-J on the market. Crazy? Logic has it for similar money in a J, one gives up a lot. A $150K J is missing a lot. To get all of that in a J, it's $200-220K. I'll be in this plane for years...maybe forever...so not worried about trying to turn it around in 2-3 years. But, I also don't want to be the owner of the most expensive pre-J in the USA either. Thoughts? Outstanding looking a/c: https://www.controller.com/listing/for-sale/236140843/1967-mooney-m20f-piston-single-aircraft

Yes, definitely will see IMC. Looks like the G5 HSI with GPS kit (and magnetometer) is $3700. $4700 for the navigator. $8400 materials. I can't see more than $4K for install even though the HSI is a bit more complex. Seems like the best use of $12K in the aircraft and will do everything I could possibly want.

Looking seriously at a SUPER clean pre-J that has pretty much everything I need/want. Aircraft currently has a functioning KLN90B, which I honestly have touched in 20+ years. It's not a crisis to replace, but want to get an idea what I'm looking at $. Autopilot is an STEC-30. Everything else in the panel is perfectly functional. As far as I can tell, I need this: GPS175 (should fit in the 2" height abandoned by the GLN90B While I'm doing it, I'd really like to have GPSS. There are some cheap/used options fr the STEC, but if I spend a bit more, I can step up to a single G5. Add a G5 (attitude) GAD29 (interface for the G5 to STEC) Am I missing anything? Hardware is about $7300. I'm assuming about $3000 install. Sound right-ish? I could just do the 175 and call it done, but feel GPSS adds SO much value, especially if weather is not cooperating. I personally hate flying procedure holds by hand or with the heading bug. A final option I have not looked into is just living with the KLN90B. The unit looks & functions like new. I think if I decided to live with the 90B, all I need is a cheap STEC 901 GPSS roll steer device (used is probably the only option). Will the old 90B instruct the STEC to fly a whole procedure like I think it would?

The Garmin GNC355 is really hard to beat for the money, but if $ are really tight, you might let local avionics shops know you're on the hunt for a used 430. If you find one in good condition, you can squeeze another 5 years out of it. But it's a gamble. The last time I was getting my pitot static test done, the shop had a few 320 WAAS units that still looked like new and they said they get $3K for them. Not cheap, but palatable.