Greg Ellis

Thanks Scott for doing this. It will help anyone heading to Oshkosh. I will be watching for sure.

If I recall correctly, at one time the A and B models were listed on Garmin's website of models to be certified in the near future when the early C, D, E models were still in the works. Now they have been completely removed from the website. Makes me think Garmin is done with the Mooney line.

According to his Avatar he flies an A model.

In my 63 C model I have a 10.5 inch iPad pro mounted with a RAM mount to the yoke in portrait, no way it would fit in landscape. Fits fine. A mini would be better I suppose but I can see a full approach chart without having to scroll or zoom in or out on it. Does not block anything on the panel either. When I need a new one I may switch to a mini just for its smaller compact size.

There is one in the download section on the second page of the Pilot operating handbook section.

It’s on Wednesday at 4:00 pm at the AOPA Pavilion for anyone interested.

Yep. That just came out yesterday after I posted what I did the day before. I found out about it, funny enough, while I was at my avionics shop, yesterday, talking to my installer. The message came across his phone while we were talking.

If the controller said that you weren't allowed to fly through the Bravo on an IFR flight plan then I think he misspoke. Now, he can vector you around the Bravo if he does not want you to fly through it but I don't think there is a FAR that actually makes it illegal. In fact I have flown through the DFW Bravo many times but it was usually at a very slow time at night or very early morning. I fly out of an airport under the Southwest area of the Class B airspace at DFW. This is quite a congested airspace that is compact with a lot of satellite airports close to DFW itself including some big ones like Dallas Love and Addison, Alliance, Meacham, etc... When I fly from my airport (Fort Worth Spinks) over to the East side of the airspace I am routinely vectored south east, outside of the Bravo, along the southern edge then back up the east side. There are a lot of arrivals and departures daily into DFW as well as Arlington, Grand Prairie, Lancaster, Dallas Exec (all close together), etc... and having me out of the way lightens the load. So, do not expect any sort of direct routing unless you hit it on a slow day or a slow time, otherwise you will be vectored around. If you look at a chart of the arrival corridors and departure corridors for DFW and Love traffic, you will realize why they vector you around.

My C model has velcro. And it is damn good velcro too. Not sure what type it is but it is strong and stays in place and in 15 plus years of ownership it has never had to be changed out. I like being able to pull up the carpets, clean them and then put them back in easily.

Nice work. Airforms used Dzus fasteners for easy access openings to the upper spark plugs. Yours looks like screws. Either way, yours look really good.

The GFC 500 is good for the C models except for the 1962-1964. They are still working on those, according to their website, so depending on what year model you have it may or may not work right now. But they do say they are working on it.

I could be wrong about this because I am not an A&P or a mechanic of any sort but I would think that you may not want to torque these two bolts. Seems that most things on our engines are torqued in a certain order for a reason. For instance, when torqueing a cylinder to place you do it in a specific order for a reason. I would be concerned that if you all of a sudden just torqued two bolts randomly that it may make things worse. Just a thought. Maybe wrong but I am sure someone will be along anytime to provide the correct response .

Back in 2013, I ordered them from Airforms. I am surprised they were getting so many returns. On my C model, they actually fit better than stock and I saw a decrease in CHT's immediately because of how well they fit. The mechanic that installed them was very impressed by them. They have held up very well over the years and still do the job well. Too bad things did not work out. I guess I was lucky. Before I went to Airforms, I actually got a quote for the parts from the Mooney factory. I still have the excel spreadsheet they sent me with the parts and the prices for the parts. All totalled about $2500 from the factory. I think I paid $1700 or so for the Airforms one but I could be wrong. I have slept since then. I do know Airforms were less expensive than the factory.

Yes. Just be mindful that the airport is closed during the airshow which is from 2:30 to 6:30 pm daily. It then closes each night at 8pm until 7 am. Just plan accordingly.

I’ve never used one like that. However, I would think that having a solid borescope with only the head being flexible is probably easier to use than the one you had where the whole cable is flexible.

It took me many tries to navigate the cylinder and I am still experimenting. It is pretty easy to use but I found it took many tries to orient myself as to what I was looking at. It just takes time and practice. Also, you want to use the scope when the engine is cold. Heat will quickly ruin the camera.

I use the VA-400 with the WiFi adapter on my iPad. Works fine.

I hate to ask.....but with 4 airplanes, what possibly could be better than your Mooney?

You could contact Guido Warnecke: Owner and world-wide delivery pilot at Aero Logistics (guido-warnecke.com) If you have ever watched any of his Youtube videos, he is extremely professional and an awesome pilot. I don't know how much he charges but I know by watching his videos he is probably one of the best. And he has flown many a Mooney.

Wow. At my airport if you were to start your airplane in the hangar and taxi out that way, you would lose your hangar space. It is in the contact signed when you lease the hangar. You must pull the airplane out, turn it away from the hangar before starting the engine.

Along with other posts, I think this pretty much sums up why GA is so valuable at least to me. Other than the fact that I love flying myself and it is fun, I cannot stand the amount of time it takes to get onto an airline flight and off again. The waiting around, the pushing of people in line at TSA and check-in. Just don't tolerate the lines well so I would rather fly myself or just not go at all. My job does not require me to travel unless it is for CE. So if I can't go by Mooney I usually just do not go. Plus, to go by airlines, I have over an hour drive in awful traffic to the airport, check-in, TSA lines, wait to board (being there 1-2 hours before hand) so now I am 3+hours into this and I haven't even boarded my plane yet. I can go a lot of places in my Mooney in 3+ hours and have more fun doing it. Reminds me of a patient of mine. She asked me one day about being a pilot. I told her I was. She asked if I knew of any small commuter airlines that go from DFW to Colorado. Her family apparently took a trip on a small commuter airline out of DFW to northern Arkansas. She loved the fact that she did not have to go through TSA or any type of security or check-in lines. They departed out of the GA FBO at DFW airport. She got a glimpse behind the GA curtain and liked it. Anyways...I digress.

Don’t have any help to offer but noticed that we are 5 serial numbers apart. Probably in the factory at the same time way back when.

Those are pretty cool. Thanks for sharing the photos.

This is why you want a professional to do the tanks. They are a thing of beauty when cleaned and sealed properly. Work done by Paul Beck at Weepnomore LLC. And just an aside, I for one, would be interested in photos of @steingar Origami.

Or retainer clips on old, old models like my 63 C model. No screws on the outside. Clips on the inside. And mark them by number in such a way that they go back in the exact spot they came from or it won't work out well.