Greg Ellis

On the Chief Aircraft Website, it states that it does not fit Mooney aircraft. It is at the very bottom of the description. Taken directly from the description... it will not fit on the Beech Sundowner, Traveler or Musketeer with Lycoming engines; the Piper Cherokee Series; ALL Mooney Aircraft.

Just going on what was listed in the G-model on the ad, I did a Vref on it and it was valued at $48,000. Not precise because I don't know what all is on it but I think it would be close since they do not list a GPS etc.... I know some don't beleive in Vref but it would be a place to start.

I should be able to make it Don. Thanks for setting this up.

Dave Morris' Mooney is N1960. No alpha in the tail number. He has a nice M20A but I don't think he lurks here. www.n1960.com He did quite a history on his airplane including meeting the original owner. Bill Wheat was the first to sign the airplane's logbook on its maiden flight and Dave also had Bill sign the inside of the oil filler access door a few years ago. Some interesting things about an old Mooney.

The South Central Vintage Mooney Group is having a fly-in on April 25th. The festivities begin around 10:00 am For those unfamiliar with the group, it was started a few years ago as a way for Mooney pilots in the South Central US (Mainly Texas) to get together for small, informal fly-ins. Basically an excuse to fly somewhere. Look for us on www.vintagemooneygroup.com Our fly-in on April 25th will be at 66TE (Landings). This is one of 2 airports in Pecan Plantation in Granbury, Texas. We will serve burgers and other side dishes. Quite informal. So, please join us if you can. Sign up should eb available on our website shortly so please check back there and sign up if you are able to come.

I like the PVC pipe trick. Well done. I have heard some folks using one of these http://tinyurl.com/lox3jtm I do it old school. I watched my first A&P IA do it (very well known and well respected A&P in Texas). His method was to just let it spill then clean it up with mineral spirits sprayed from a gun hooked to an air compressor. I have since been stuffing paper towels under the oil filter and I get minimal spillage and just wash it down with the mineral spirits. But I may give the PVC pipe a try. I tried the bendable drain like I mention at the beginning of my message however I could not get it to wind through the hoses and wires to get to the oil filter (1963 C model).

Is this why we have missed you at the last couple of fly-ins? Sorry to hear about your foot and hope you get well very soon.

One of the mottos of the VMG is "It is not the planes that are vintage....It's the pilots!!!" So no airplane is too new.

1) Engine failure (loss of oil pressure and increase in CHT's; engine quit on short final to an emergency landing) 2) Generator failure X 2

I am 50 hours into an overhauled engine from Western Skyways. The overhaul after all was said and done was closer to $30,000 for me due to circumstances of where the overhaul was done. I had to land in Clovis, NM after a loss of oil pressure and high CHT's. Clovis is not where you want to be if you need an engine overhaul. Western Skyways did a great job of the engine though and after my regular A&P fixed the issues from the shop that did the engine swap, the plane is doing great. So budget wisely for any overruns because there definitely will be. Western Skyways charges an initial $5000.00 deposit to start the engine building. You get that back if you return them a usuable core. The final rate for the engine (O-360-A1D) was $20,000. The rest was in labor. This was back in June. It took roughly 7 weeks to get the engine because of a back order for the pistons they were using. Fuel system and Mags and wiring harnesses were all new.

I use Pilot WizPro, aeroweather, Checklist Lite, Aopa's airport directory. Flight Aware has a live tracking app for the i-Phone. I also use www.Fltplan.com/iphone.htm to file flight plans.

I have a 1963 C model and put about 150-175 hours per year on the plane.

I also calibrated a Paint Stick but was a little more anal about it. I started with the empty tank and marked off gallon increments (put in a gallon, marked the stick, put in another gallon and marked the stick, etc...) until full.

I agree with the previous post only in the comment that everyone should run their airplanes where they feel comfortable. I feel completely comfortable running a tank dry. Now remember I am not running both tanks dry. I still land with my reserves and have been doing this for 3 years, since I bought my Mooney. I did not see it in any of the posts but I recommend reading the following by John Deakin. http://www.avweb.com/news/pelican/182044-1.html Whether you plan on running the tanks dry or not is your choice but this article makes a lot of sense and it completely works. As far as the idea of sucking in junk from your tank, John covers it in his article. It is a good read and even if you are not considering this procedure. Greg Ellis, 1963 M20C @ KFWS