Hank

Hey, Squirrel. I just got my free copy of Trade-A-Plane, and someone has a BIG ad near the front advertising floats and skis, and even mentions retractables. Check it out! Your Mooney could be next.

Let's not go there again!! I've learned more than I ever wanted to know about the capacity and opening size of many different brand-name drinks, how to refill the once-empty beverage container in flight, and what to do with the bottle after landing . . . as well as how to not confuse it with the "good" bottle that is still being drunk from . . .

My C doesn't have one [1970], and my neighbor's 75 F doesn't either. I've read that Mooney recommended the removal, but don't recall why. Seems there was a discussion about it late last year on the Mooney Tech Board.

You're all making me feel better about my trip home from the beach at the end of July, when my groundspeed was 104 knots at 10,000 msl. Yes, I fly a mighty carberueted C-model!

I tried looking this event up in Facebook using the link provided above by retyping it into my cellphone [facebook is blocked here at work, only dial-up service is available at home, and I'm not a facebook user], and it could not find the event. What time should we plan to arrive? I think I will be able to figure out where to park. Is a schedule available for review with my wife? She said it sounds like fun, but is amazed that I would take her there "just for the day." Hope to meet everyone, and put some faces to the names!

I'd love to go, it's close and looks like LOTS of fun, but two pilots here are getting married that Saturday . . .

Quote: Barry Seniors 60 and over ... 8.50 REGULAR ADULTS ?? Geeee ... I wish I was still a "REGULAR ADULT" !!

Quote: Aviator4Life Thanks Hank, what is the business name in WV?

Dave-- I live at, and frequently fly to, uncontrolled fields. If I am clear to depart VFR, I'll go, and call up either the Class D across the river from home or whoever is listed as Departure to open up my IFR flight plan. So far, I've not needed to call and get a clearance do depart from an uncontrolled field, but I'm new at this game, too, and won't depart if I can't get back in VFR.

I forget their name, and I haven't used them, but there's an MSC near Lynchburg. Or you can come west to Huntington [KHTW] and let my well-trained mechanic do it for you. He has several Mooney's in his care, from C through J that I can think of.

I've never hangared my plane when travelling. Most places I've stopped are $10-$15 per night, waived with fuel purchase. I parked for a week at ROA due to weather and paid the monthly fee as it was cheaper. JGG is also cheaper to pay a month's tie down than four days, I think it was $50 when I visited for a week, ate lunch, fueled up and rented a car. There's a grass strip I visit at the beach that just lowered their rate from $10/day or $50/month to just $5/day or $25/month! Smooth grass, the lights now work, watch the trees at both ends and the power lines running through them to the sub-station beside the runway. But it's less than a mile to the Intra-Coastal Waterway, and sometimes the Marines are practicing following/tracking you from their helicopters as you go in and out.

Part of the fit problem is due to the handmade nature of our birds. As I understand it, even now the factory does not have robotic bending or welding jigs like you see at the auto factories. Someone cuts all of the sheet metal by hand, and even baggage doors are not interchangeable between planes. I had much trimming to do replacing just the nav light cover in my 201-style wingtip, about 1/2" at the rear corner slanting down to 1/8 at the front and rear curved edges. Then I had the pleasure of marking and drilling and countersinking the screwholes to match. At least no one will steal them to [not] fit their plane . . .

I usually land with Takeoff flaps anyway, even when VFR. To quote from my Owner's Manual: "Degree of flap deflection needed will vary according to landing conditions, but for most landings you should lower flaps about half way just prior to turning on to base leg. Extend flaps as required on final approach to adjust for variations in wind, glide angle, and other variables. BEFORE-LANDING CHECK 1. Seat Belts--FASTENED. 2. Fuel Selector Handle--SET for fuller tank. 3. Electric Fuel Pump--ON. 4. Mixture Control--FULL RICH 5. Carburetor Heat--FULL ON. 6. Airspeed--REDUCE to 120 MPH. 7. Propeller--FULL INCREASE. 8. Landing Gear--DOWN and LOCKED; green annunciator light on. 9. Flaps--As required. 10. Trim--As required. Most times I don't even look to see where the flaps are, I just push the switch to raise them when I'm comfortable on the rollout. And since I reset the trim prior to takeoff, I usually ignore where that indicator is, too, but I do notice that it is often very near the Takeoff mark when I'm doing the run-up. [P.S.--my home field is 3000', with nice, tall trees at both ends. No problem getting down with Takeoff flaps. I frequently take off with no flaps, too, but that's just input from two Mooney instructors.] I move flaps and trim, and sometime the throttle, as required to put the plane where I want it. Following a glideslope, though, I usually do at Approach flaps, and find the slippery Mooney descends well if I drop the gear with the needle a dot-and-a-half above center--that will usually bring me down right on the glideslope if I don't muck up anything else. Missed approaches require full power and lots of forward yoke, sometimes with both hands, until I've established and verified positive climb, raised gear and flaps, and then start cranking on the trim wheel. Makes me glad that I'm not in one of the new fire-breathers! Touch-n-goes on long fields [5000+] give me time to get the flaps up [i rarely slow even to 50 mph], and I adjust the trim during the climbout anyway, to hold the desired pitch. We do have the perfect planes for instrument work. Fly safety pilot for someone in a Skyhawk, or fly a practice approach in one. There is so little to do, and so much time to do it in, it's almost boring. My plane rides better and handles crosswinds so much nicer! The whole key is practice, and I really need to go practice some more approaches real soon. It's been a long, nasty winter, and I can feel myself getting rusty. The real challenge to IFR flying, in my very limited experience, is getting/keeping a good scan, and staying sharp. Don't fly any approaches for a few months, then go out and do 3 or 4 at different, nearby airports--it's like being a student again, hot and sweaty even in the winter . . . .

Yep. The center eagle is great. It's visible in my avatar, head towards the rear on both sides of the tail. Brian's image is the same in my avatar. Right now, I'm working on carving one out of a piece of scrap mahogany.

My 1970 Owner's Manual has the first one on the cover, but the middle one is painted on my tail [2 owners ago, in the 90's].

Just wait for your first bit of spatial disorientation! Whheeeee!!! It's a quick trip down, but fortunately I caught it just after exiting the clouds, and climbed back as required. Only happened the one time, on an early training flight. Seems I was turning right to capture an airway, at cruise power. I have not yet had a problem with descents in the almost-a-year since getting my IA. Even during heavy training, being down to 90 knots [105 mph] with Approach flaps by the IAF made all the difference. I have not noticed a huge difference in vertical speed by going to full flaps; dropping the gear seems to do more, and pulling the throttle back does the most.

Just measure the screws you want to replace, and order a bag of 100 from Spruce. If memory serves, there is mostly one size on my one-piece belly, except for some little ones behind the front wheel, and a different size for the wing panels. Some go into struts, some tinnermans. I bought two sizes of SS screws [100 ea], and the smallest bag of tinnermans that they carry, in time for the '09 annual. Ran about $50. Any screw I don't like on removal is thrown away. At re-install, I start at one end and put screws in about every fourth or fifth hole, alternating sides the ful length. Use a small pick to get everything lined up for the screw. Then I remove the support, run these screws about halfway in, put in the rest about halfway. Run every 3rd or 4th one until it touches, alternating sides, then touch all of them. Then alternate again snugging them up, then finish snugging. Don't forget to recheck, as I've found one of the 52 belly screws sometimes gets missed . . . Panels are similar but much easier. With the tinnermans, the pick is even more important. Work the star pattern like on your tires, there's just more screws. Start, seat, snug, check. Do I want Bill Wheat's new one-piece belly with cam-locks? You bet! Am I prepared to pay 3 AMU's plus crating, shipping and install labor on the cam lock kit? Not any time soon . . . But I'm getting faster removing and replacing the belly, and I use a simply Craftsman replacable tip screwdriver, with a standard #2 Phillips on standby for the stubborn ones. It's a good forrearm workout, but at least I'm not doing it in July any more!

Quote: flight2000 Speaking of holds, in the 15 years I've been flying IFR, I've never experienced a hold outside of training. Done plenty of missed approaches for various reasons, but never made it to the published hold before being rerouted back to the IAF or on to the alternate. Guess I've been lucky or just odd... Brian

Hope to see everybody there! I'm looking for a 2nd set of eyes in the cockpit, since my wife is heading off to a DAR Convention at the same time. There's a local EAA meeting tomorrow night, so I may find someone then.

Samsung has generally good quality. My touchscreen smartphone from them works well, and the Galaxy Tab looks quite interesting! Not so huge as an iPad, runs Droid OS, has a nice, narrow bezel unlike the iPad, and also has memory card slots to download files onto--the iPad has to email files to get them off the durn thing.

Anyone played with the new Samsung Droid tablet?

Welcome to the club! I'll ask my former partner if he knows of any Mooney-specific instructors in the area. He spends a lot of time in his A-36 now. Another resource to check with in Charleston would be Col. Peters. He's very knowledgable and very experienced, and has always been pleasant and professional to work with. Someone there at the airport or FBO should be able to put you in touch with him.

Kurt-- I bought my C-model with 62 hrs. total time, and I paid for it in the first year's insurance. Go for your complex rating first, and getting it in a Mooney for less money than your current Cessna is a wonderful opportunity. My insurance cut in half for the 2nd year because I tired to fly the wings off of the plane, and hit 100 Mooney hours before renewal. It's a magical number for the underwriters. The more of it you have when you purchase, the better off you will be, but expect 15 hours dual when you do purchase. The IR is a wonderful thing for travelling, but you really want to be comfortable in the plane, know the procedures, know the settings, how she handles and responds, before you start. I started a couple of times . . . a good "fit" with the instructor is critical, too. While it is hard to do, put the Mooney out of your mind and finish your PPL. I had to concentrate hard on that for my last three weeks before my PPL checkride, and five weeks later I owned half of her, but getting insurance was a challenge. Get your PPL, get checked out and have fun getting some good Mooney time while you are shopping!

I love my C-model. It's fairly fast, and pretty frugal. On real XC, figure 30% less time and 10% less fuel than a 172. I average 9 gph and close to 140 kts. groundspeed. Home is 3000', and she goes in and out even at max gross just fine, and I never worry about the trees at either end. Space, though, can be tight. I took some cousins to Kitty Hawk this summer, departing and returning to a 3500' grass strip at the beach. Four adult males limited me to 34 gallons, and I made sure to refill to that level for the return trip, too. Flying with just the wife and I, though, I find the baggage capacity [including the back seat] to be just less than the not-packed-tight trunk of her Corolla. That fills the cargo area to above the back seat, and fills the back seat, too, with only my flight bag in arm's reach. Plates go on the floor, charts go between the seats, and sometimes her purse is at her feet. The extra length of an F would be very nice from time to time, but we only desire it once or maybe twice a year. The O-360 is a good, strong, simple engine. My only difficulties to date have been electrical . . . I suggest finding the threads here about what to look for when buying a vintage Mooney. George Perry has some good information there. There is much more to consider than engine time and manual vs. electric gear. Welcome to the club, and whatever you decide to do, as always, fly safe!

I worked on mine for several months and was almost checkride-ready when the plane developed an electrical problem. Three months later, I got to resharpen my quickly-deteriorated skills and do lots of studying again. Taking the actual practical exam was a bit of an anti-climax, as I had worked so hard for so long getting ready for it. [i was chewed out for ugly holding patterns in a 40-knot crosswind under the hood . . . ] Everything seemed so easy, even the veering, gusty crosswind and the circle-to-land on a 40' wide strip that I couldn't see when the DE told me to remove my foggles. [it was really close on the right side; he could see it, but I couldn't, so I circled left and landed.] Getting that rating felt even better than getting my PPL in the first place, even if the first few flights afterwards were non-events. My first flight that I logged any [0.1] actual was climbing through a scattered cloud that I normally would have dodged around, but hey, I'm on an IFR flight plan so they expect me to go straight. It was the first cloud I'd seen the inside of in several months, and at 500 fpm, those 2000' took a whole 4 minutes. Duly noted. You will get lots of good use from your IR, whether you finish up quick or "traditional." The important parts are to not let the written test expire, and to make the DE happy. Good luck, and fly safe!