Hank

Early C's have adjustable cowl flaps. On my 70 model they are fixed.

Negative, they are steel. The aluminum block and head, however, would be significantly weakened if the temps were 600ºF for very long, and the bolts will probably all need to be tightened up from where the bolts heads sunk in. Look for loose wiring connections, chafed insulation, corroded leads, etc.

You're just bragging 'cause you got that fancy engine upgrade. The rest of the C world runs 140 on 9 gph in the 7500-10K range. At least mine does.

Depends on the manufacturer. Almost all of the thermocouples we use at work default to a high reading when broken, whatever the display will show [with digital controllers now, that's often 999º, whether F or C]. However, if the wire is loose and changing attitude from nose high to level caused it to temporarily short, a high spike may be observed. The safety wire on my oil fililter shifted once, touching the Oil Temp probe and making the needle deflect to full right. You know that can't be correct when you haven't flown in several days and turn on the Master.

I feel like we are in circles again. Its like ground hog day around here. I'll sum it up for you . . . The OP isn't trying to run a tank dry, he is inquiring about the safety of taking off with an empty tank following a reseal. Unfortunately the empty tank is on the right side, increasing the imbalance. POA, Red board, Blue board, Purple board, Beechtalk, round and round, further and further off-topic. 74795, good luck with your flight. I would add weights in the baggage compartment and right rear seat to approximate your own weight or a little more. Remember, no more than 120 lbs in the back. My weight plus a full tank on the left, empty seats and an empty tank on the right is some significant imbalance.

When re-wrapping the boots, there should be an o-ring too. It is used as a rubber band, fold the boot over it, then tape over everything to hold it in place. Call Brittain for details; not counting removal & reinstallation, it's a two minute job. Cracked boots call for shipping to Oklahoma.

You have to supply your own girls. I replaced "my" ashtray with an Ash Light from Spruce. Four red LEDs, running on 2 AAAs, makes a great back-up panel light. Good for notes/clearance at night before engine start, or for general lighting. Have not yet found a use for the other ashtrays.

My 430 started showing altitude input lost; my G327 transponder would also show strange pressure altitude [often "0000"; sometimes -1000, or 22000 or some other random number]. ATC would tell me that my mode C was lost. then it would come back on. Took her to the shop, surprise, the encoder was bad. Buy another one that matches your requirements, the guys in the shop will have several recommendations.

I had a wing servo redone at Brittain just before Christmas. Cost me $124 + shipping. The other wing servo I redid myself, after talking to them on the phone. Parts are available locally, and are approved for use! Amazing!! And the dad-gum thing actually works . . . Google "Brittain Industries Oklahoma" for contact info. Nice, friendly folks, and they'll also tell you what to do if reworking the servos doesn't solve your problem. Getting them out of the wing is a challenge, it's a tight space there behind the aileron access panel.

Reb the Rocket Man-- Interesting article about flying the short body, but my seats are comfortable. My wife has only bounced off the ceiling once, apparently her seatbelt wasn't properly tightened for a 15-minute breakfast run. [Yeah, I know, upstate New York ain't very rebel-ish, but that's just how I keep track of you.] So far, I've only throttled back for turbulence in cruise twice, once in eastern Wyoming when it was forecast, and once in the NC mountains going past AVL, unforecast but the westerly winds were quite strong [my passenger later said it was the worst he'd ever flown through; it would definitely have spilled coffee if we'd had any]. I'm pickier on descent, when my normal profile puts me almost to the yellow arc, and in it if I don't pay attention and go past 500 fpm for very long. Bumps get harder as you move faster, so if it starts getting bumpy on descent, I'll moderate speed a little to ease the thumps.

Hear, hear! Florida, too!! War Eagle!! Ga. Tech was on my list of possibilities, but being in downtown Hotlanta was a strong reason that I avoided it. In-state tuition was also higher than out-of-state was at Auburn, and there's no doubt that housing cost more. I worked with many Techies after graduation, all about the same age, and they definitely confirmed the expense. [$400 water bills??? That was three months' room and board for me!] How's life in Houston? I have a cousin who lives there, and I'm curious. Mild winters? Hot summers? It's on the Gulf coast, so it will be Southern humid, can't be worse than LA was.

No door opening in the cover. Would be nice, I seem to forget glasses and/or camera when exiting the plane away from home. The cover came with the plane when I bought it in 07, and holds up well. The plane is hangared at home, and the cover has a very nice zip case; it usually rides atop the luggage heap to hold things down. P.S.--the windows in the photo are difficult to see out of, thus the different appearance in the avatar, taken during departure.

That's an awful high fuel burn! Must be influenced by the Bo avatar and the E-model in your signature. I fly my C using the charts in the POH Owner's Manual usually, or MP + RPM = 46 or less, at 9 gph. One tank is 26 gallons, almost 3 hours' duration, or 2 hours plus even IFR reserves. Lean to rough, enrichen to smooth works for many; I have a single-point EGT and usually set it 50 ROP since LOP is not an option. Do pull the throttle off the stop at altitude, that will stop the auto-enrichment in the carburetor at full throttle. I generally pull the throttle back just far enough to make the MP needle move when flying high [>6000 msl]. In cruise at 8-10K, 21"/2500 works very well, or WOT - a tad when I can't pull 21" any more. Some people who want max performance will lean at WOT, then pull the throttle back and watch for a sudden drop in EGT, then lean again, but that's too much trouble for me. I have a 201-windshield and 3-blade, and pretty much make book speed [165 mph true; often indicating ~135 mph at 9000']. I have never flown with 150-lb fuel imbalance, although I have flown with 2 people sitting on the right side. Unless you are flying left-tank only, you should do alright, I think. But my opinion is backed by neither science nor data, so it's worth what you paid for it.

I like my Plane Cover. Maybe tomorrow I will remember my camera to attach pictures. I parked beside an Eagle with a Bruce cover, and can't remember how well the Eagle shows up. Side by side, there was no comparison. Hands down, Plane Cover. Here's a teaser of just mine, while traveling.

Yes, when it's cold [~freezing or below]. If you start smelling fuel, then do a Flooded Start. Remember to not crank it for too long [less than 30 seconds per attempt], and let it rest between attempts to cool the starter. No, I don't go the book's 3-5 minutes between attempts, especially if she is coughing and trying to run.

I used to carry one only on trips. Then on an instrument training flight, after descending out of the clouds and beginning a VOR approach, ATC cleared me for the approach, told me I was off radar and call them on the miss. i dropped gear to descend and had a total electrical failure. My handheld radio was safely in the hangar . . . So far, that's the only time I needed my handheld. Made it 30 nm home just following the river, then the inside door handle broke off. Bad day. Now it lives in my flight bag, with the headset adapter plugged in and ready to go. There are NiMH rechargable batteries in it [bought at the local big-box, complete with charger, much much cheaper than $porty$], and a second battery pack with Duracells ready to swap out. From time to time, I will run down the NiMH and recharge them.

I cold-start mine by running the pump until fuel pressure stabilizes, then off. Mixture rich, pump it several times [colder = more pumps]. Then I give the fuel time to vaporize--wind & set the clock, put on headset, do anything to kill 60 seconds or so. Then turn & push. Sometimes have to let her turn and turn, get a cough, let go; if she won't run, let her sit a minute and try again. It may take several attempts if you don't pre-heat.

Most anything in the C/E/F/J range in decent shape with good maintenance history should meet your needs. Some people will tell you to go for manual gear and hydraulic flaps on the pre-69 planes. The important thing is to get a plane in good working condition that will not start costing $$ immediately, fixing things. I bought my C with a still-damp temporary certificate; there's an article on the MAPA site about someone who jumped right into a turbo model. Part of it will be availability; part will be condition of what's available; part will be how much performance you actually need [turbos are best if you fly high often]; part will be how much more information you can absorb, and how much extra time you are willing to spend on the ground and in the air learning about the extra goodies.

Whose stage? What part of KY? I'm where KY, OH and WV all meet.

Here's an interesting writeup about cheating, how/why it happens, and the all-too-frequent results: http://www.flyingmag.com/technique/weather/clouds?page=0,0

When Mooney/LoPresti made the J model from the F, various aerodynamic changes were made, some of which have not been disclosed. Cowl, windshield, gap seals, wing/stab root fairings are all obvious; the stabilizer fairing is there, wingtips to cover position lights, lower gear doors to cover more of the wheel when retracted, these we can also see. But in the quest to hit 200 mph on 200 hp, many additional minor tweaks were made, 1 & 2 mph at a time. I think the induction under the cowling was changed [when did the doghouse go away? I need to fix mine . . . ], an additional cover was put over the landing light, antennas were repositioned, etc. Either one [F or J] should do well, as inside they are the same [at least the electric F's]. Condition, maintenance history and installed equipment is what I would concentrate on. Search here for George Perry's excellent, detailed thread on what to know and what to look for when buying a vintage Mooney. Can't get any better information than that. If I ever replace my plane, that thread is what I will start with. Then of course, there is a PPI by a knowledgable shop who has not been working on the candidate plane. Have fun, relax and enjoy the search process. Haste makes waste, especially when buying an airplane.

My plane came with a set of jacking adapters when I bought it. They live in a baggie on the hat rack. Whenever it needs it, the mechanic knows to look there [every annual, and hopefully not in-between]. They are not very large, are close to 45º inside cones to fit on top of the jack points and screw into the tie down ring spot.

The fuel tank access panel under the wing walk is not routinely removed. Neither are the fuel tank access panels on the bottom of the wings, nor the one on top of the left wing.

I know I'm ROP because I pull the red lever back until EGT peaks, then push it forward. 1970 M20C, 140 knots, 9 gph block fuel burn. Yellow arc = 175 mph.

My wingwalk was completely redone when I had the tanks resealed. There's an access panel under it near the front, so something needed to be done. While I cannot provide details of the "what," I can say that there is no trace of gaps, cracks or a height difference around that access panel. Before that, it was fairly gray and I had thought about repainting, now I don't need to think about it for several more years.