Hank

At one point a few years ago, they did advertise the ability to finish off the last one or two from near the end of the line. Maybe the year after the shutdown when Beijing cut funding?

Because it lets the FAA decommission many VORs and save all that money on maintenance and repair. Instead, they have shifted the burden to aircraft owners, using weather broadcasts as the carrot, and limiting altitude to 10,000 msl and requiring advance written permission to fly within 30 nm of Class B airports as the stick. It also permits billing of ATC and airport services based on ADS-B location, along with whatever future fees the administrative state decides to implement, and they don't have to depend on you to self-report, they just pull up the daily ADS-B tracking report and auto-generate bills to send to the recorded address of the N-number owner (no new headcount required, just a bit for coding and server maintenance). This is just part of why I am not equipped. Besides, I hardly ever fly within 30 nm of Class B fields; the only one I want to fly near with any frequency is ATL, and they've yet to give me clearance to transit the Bravo in 17 years of asking, and no, I don't want to overfly their 13,000 msl ceiling in my little C--I'd have to buy an oxygen bottle, and the climb would take a considerable time to achieve. Charlotte, however, is nice, and recently directed my to transit West-to-East directly over the field, so yes, it's really just an ATL thing (must be too many damn yankee controllers!).

Thus is quite a surprise to me, I thought the E would significantly outperform my little C. We're much more comparable than I imagined! At 7500 msl, 2500/21" the E is faster but the C goes farther . . . The important thing is that they're both Mooneys!

Owner assisted annuals are the best, but are not an option with my new IA. They let me see everything, and participate in decisions, sometimes pointing out things to watch or to plan for next year. Now, I just have a thorough preflight, checking everything external and under the cowl carefully. Inside, I make sure my seat locks in place, then check the position of every switch and button in the cockpit. Then I make sure to.hit every item on every checklist from Pre-Start to Takeoff. Make one lap around the field, then a landing to full stop. THEN I fly home, all of 15 minutes from wheels up to pattern entry. Followed by a walk around and leak check.

Someone here has VGs on their Mooney. Seems they also have FIKI. Who is it? @aviatoreb?

Talk to your broker, there may be steps in value that incur significant increases in premiums. Then you'll just need to decide to stay below that value, or go over it at higher rates. @Parker_Woodruff was able to raise my hull value last year due to rising valuations for no change in premium. Thanks, Parker!

Glad everything went well! You're now ready for summertime flying in the Appalachian Mountains. I've been flying on a CAVU day, no clouds for hundreds of miles, and had total whiteout on descent for several thousand feet before hilltops became visible through the murk, then suddenly visibility came back. Haze is real! My only western fire experience was missing the chance to go flightseeing over Yellowstone due to Fire TFRs. Flying in that much smoke sounds unpleasant.

Around here, ive rarely seen above 60°F = 15-1/2°C at 10,000 msl, even when it's 100°F or more on the ground. Waiting for traffic still 5 or 6 miles out on approach, with temp near 100, humidity in the 80s, plus the extra warmth radiating from all the concrete, is extremely uncomfortable, and also totally unrecognized by the folks in the nice air-conditioned Tower who think I can't take the runway and get away in less than 60 seconds, so I sweat and wait for 10 minutes . . . . . Just one more reason to limit my exposure to Towered fields.

My 1970 C, same age as the OP's E, makes book speed (165 mph) at 1000 msl on a fall morning, with a Hartzell 3-blade prop.

It's an STC, plus labor. Is it available from LASAR since they moved?

If you have AC, crank the engine then start AC to cool off the interior. Add "AC--OFF" to your Pre-Takeoff Checklist after control checks and before the actual runup. I really don't need AC in cruise; just fly higher and you won't either. My wife uses a blanket and half cabin heat at 9500 msl in July and August. Even 20 minutes at 6500 can be a blessing on shorter trips. Practicing maneuvers and doing pattern work? There's just not a lot to do . . . .

That looks good. Much better than my little built-in flat light.

I hit mine with Tru Flow every now and again. Keeps them from getting difficult to move, and weeps down into the o-ring a bit, too. Blue fluorosilicone lasts longer, but a bit of lube won't hurt them.

Some people read the manufactured year as the model year, despite the J being introduced in the 1977 model year.

Bbb-bbb-rrrrrrr-rrrr!!! Lift is good in cold weather, but preflight and taxi out suck!! Fortunately I no longer have to deal with that very much. Although Christmas before last, it was innthe teens when I took off, and a whopping 20°F with wind in the teens at my destination. Thankfully it didn't last very long. But even when the temp is 96°, and it's much hotter on the runway, it is often comfortably cool at 7500 and up; my wife has sweated out departures with me, then turned on the heat in cruise. And yes, I always turn it back off during descent!

Altitude is great! But eventually you have to come back down . . . .

Buy your glasses from Zenni Optical online, you will care a whole lot less. I've been a very satisfied customer since 2014. Mu current glasses (single vision, titanium frames, Transitions for sunglasses outdoors) cost $90. I haven't pursued reimbursement from insurance . . .

This is why I buy Air Stop tubes. I probably add air once or twice a year.

I don't like foam ear olugs--they're hit in the summer, hard in the winter, and if you roll too much taper they ooze out if your ear. Fortunately Halos ship with several different silicone tips, and I really like one of them. They last for years, and replacements are $3/pair. My wife didn't want an in-ear headset, sticking with Dacid Clark 13.4's until I bought a set of Halos for her to try, because I could resell then easily. Only took 20 minutes to change her mind. "Try it, you'll like it."

@GeeBee, I had laser surgery (not on my eyes) last fall. It was easy, doctor said it was more accurate, and recovery was a breeze.

I'm so glad your long-distance diagnostics are so much better than the IA who worked on my plane. Next time I have a problem, I'll call you instead. You seem like you need a trip to Sweet Home Alabama!

@A64Pilot, that's been my experience with the folding doors, too. Six or seven panels to each side, fold up a little over a foot thick, with a chain to latch open if it's windy. Mine were unpainted fiberglass, which let in light during the day, and my headlights shone through at night. Now that im behind a folding metal (Schweitzer?) door, I miss the translucence.

My current IA found that my 2-year-old ignition harness was about to fall apart at annual. So he checked other local planes and found two more. Kelly is close, so they sent people over to check them, and we all got new harnesses; they made some changes in their production operations, too. A year later, he had to replace one of the new plug leads. Absolutely not Mooney specific, but it could have been exciting if my ignition harness had come apart in IMC. The one bad lead cost me a long weekend at the beach, because the plane just wouldn't climb.

Looks similar but different. Smaller, anc completely below the cowl.

Buy your hours with integral firesleeves. It's less expensive than adding separate firesleeves at install. That's what I did. I called a hose shop, then LASAR--turned out I had called LASAR's shop, but a friend gave me the number. Looks like it's listed above.