Hank

Why does it take 4 seconds to reach full Takeoff power? It won't "save the engine." Ever watch a video of Bob Hoover from inside the cockpit? Full throttle to idle as fast as he can move the lever; idle to full power just as fast, except when doing an engine restart. I go from 1000 RPM to full forward while rolling just over the length of the numbers. If it's cold, my first flight and short taxi time, I'll advance the throttle slower, but there are still trees just over 3000 feet away. Warm up your engine before taking to the runway, but please don't do it at the hold short in front of me.

Bad news: all of our planes experience 1 G every 1/4 second on the ground, during level cruise and most descents. I rarely bank far enough over (60° isn't it?) to hit 2G on purpose. In turbulence, I cannot estimate it with any accuracy, other than what makes me physically uncomfortable. That's when I slow down some, so that it won't increase to temporary loss of control.

Byron, your math is bad. Corp jets six times safer than GA is less than a single order of magnitude; removing Experimentals makes it even less than an order of magnitude, not 'several.' An order of magnitude is one thing being 10 times another. How much of the 'professional corporate jet' accident rate is due to higher aircraft capability than in GA? Our Mooneys are far from the bottom of tbe GA capability list. How much is due to the second pilot in the cockpit? to rigid and enforced procedures, deviate at the risk of your job? to required airport minimums? Not many Corp. pilots drop over the trees to land at my 3000' home field, but we have ~50 GA planes based there. How much is safety improved when the pilot flies 50-80 hours per month? I'm fortunate to be on the high end of personal GA at 85-110 annually, but some winter months I am lucky to fly a single hour. What does frequent emergency-filled simulator check rides do for pilot proficiency and safety? There is much more to the lower accident rate than having the Corp. Office make most of your pre-flight / dispatch / landing requirements / alternates decisions for you and giving them to you written down for each flight. There is no Dispatch Office to arrange anything for me, or that I can call to discuss questions / concerns. And yes, I just completed another MAPA PPP, complete with IPC, and flew with a safety pilot for foggle time (proficiency, not number of logged approaches) prior to making a trip with forecast IMC that did not occur.

What do you use on Approach between IAF & FAF? That would make a good starting place, adjust throttle for desired results within approved RPM range.

Lift is proportional to speed. If you want to take off at 2900 lbs, you must go faster than at 2740 lbs. The J's with increased gross also weigh more empty [due to installed equipment, improved insulation, wingtips, a thickened frame member, and general weight gain over the years]. For climb, they must have a slightly higher angle of attack, which will further slow them. For obstruction clearance, if there's something 1000 agl to worry about, I would turn . . . and I am based and travel around in the mountains . . . And yes, DA can make a huge difference in obstacle clearance. My plane climbs like the proverbial homesick angel solo in January with single-digit-F temps, but is a different animal on a hot July afternoon leaving the beach to come home, loaded as full as my wife can pack.

I don't fly a J or an IO-360, and my gross is well under 2740 lb, but I only have 2 takeoff modes--normal [no flaps], and near gross [with Takeoff flaps]. Other than flap position, everything is the same; away from my 3000' home field, runway length is rarely an issue, and we have trees at both ends at home, too. Why do you feel the need for a "max performance" takeoff? How does it differ from normal? Push everything forward, rotate at 65-75 mph [for my plane], positive rate gear up, flaps up if used, accelerate to Vy after clearing obstructions. Climb speed will be partially determined by OAT, as that affects Oil Temp [my limiting factor during hot weather] and CHT. Climb to cruise altitude, trim. accelerate, set power, lean and retrim. Simple, easy, and I can be trimmed at 9000' in less than 15 minutes from engine start. You should easily beat me to altitude. Who needs a max performance takeoff? Stand on the brakes until full power, then release them?

C'mon, Byron. I drove a Bandit Edition Trans Am across downtown Nashville on I-24 at 105 from the right seat, while the driver was eating ice cream. When he finished, he took the wheel back and sped up. I had my Honda Accord to 126 on I-75 near Chattanooga. We won't discuss the Jaguar V12, it was faster even on two-lane roads through rural NC. For the Mooney, my sustained, level-flight groundspeed envelope runs from 68 knots [10,000 msl, 20", 2500] to 183 knots [7500 msl, 22", 2500]. Nice wide envelope at cruise power setting for a supposed 140-knot bird. And lots more fun that the cars!!

My C will take most 172's for time and fuel burn. WV to the beach, I run 2½ hours vs. 3+, on 10% less fuel.

The slowest in my C book is 20"/1950, but I don't like how that feels, so I generally run 2300 and use throttle to control speed. Just be aware of your placarded restrictions . . . .

Taxi at 1000 RPM, no braking necessary--just go to idle ~50 yards before making a turn. Airplane brake pads are $$$$!! I save mine for landing on the runway and hold short line for runup.

That is a great writeup for a truly saddening event. The evident humility and lack of anger are both amazing. Thank you for sharing with such clarity. I sometimes raise flaps during roll-out, very consciously, and do it with my hand still holding the throttle at idle. Your story will make me much more cautious. No-wind landings are very rare at home, and I often float somewhat due to inability to practice no-wind landings; even a 5-knot headwind makes a difference at my 3001' home field. I think this is common, or else I only know pilots at the low end of the skill level.

If you want to heat them up, make trips around the pattern, with full stop landings--simulate short field with "heavy braking." Time you make your next approach, they should be nicely cooled down and ready to reheat.

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.