Piloto

Check for pitch holding on no ALT hold mode. If the pitch changes then you have an attitude gyro problem that also shows on ALT hold. The altitude pressure transducer has a heater coil that when defective it causes small altitude changes. José

Exactly my problem, I even cleaned all the connectors contacts. What finally fix the problem was increasing the vacuum to 5.5"Hg. José

COM, antennas can go on the bottom side and will perform equally well. José

I had the same problem. Check your vacuum indication. I found that Century attitude gyros run better at 5.5" Hg. I adjusted the vacuum regulator from 4.5 to 5.5 and now pitch is rock stable. José

I am 66 living on SS, Medicare, retirement fund, real state leasing. I bought three properties in Florida 30 years ago and they all now worth three times of what I invested and they are all paid off. On rent I get at least 8% annually on each. Try that in the stock market. José

Peripheral vision is good. Like in many products they have different lenses grade, I didn't get the ones with X-ray vision. I pay $4,000 for both eyes, well worth it. Before the lenses replacement the floaters in my eyes were annoying specially when flying in clear weather. At times I thought I saw birds passing by. After the surgery the floaters are not annoying at all. José

The lenses are fix focus (no shape changeable) at any distance very much like a pin hole camera but without the light attenuation, infinite depth of field. I can read my cell phone while driving and simultaneously see at distance in sharp focus the street sign at night. I was able to drive the same day the doctor took off the eye patch three days later. No issues for flying. At night on approach I can see the actual runway pavement while reading my cell phone map on the sun visor. Because the new lenses are more clear than the biological ones you may need to wear sunglasses on sunny days. This clarity causes the colors to be more vivid, that was my first impression looking at trees and the sky. José

Wait until you get the cataracts replacement lenses. Crystal clear super sharp vision day and night and yes they are compatible with headsets. Guarantee for life. I am very happy with mine. José

I have my Samsung S7 with Garmin Pilot Velcro to the pilot sun visor. Works great for internet weather during approach. It is almost like having a HUD. I also have it Velcro to my car visor. Works great for GPS driving directions and for when on speaker phone. José

The pilot window limitation is to keep women pilot long hair from being pulled out.

G Barkman You may still have water in the tank after you drained. Remove the drain valve and check for water. If the drain holes on the adapter plate are plugged the valve is just draining from the top of the stem. This leaves about 1 1/2 inches water not drained. José

You are right. The problem is that some shops assume the dual mag engines do not require a spacer like the other engines so they do not install it. The leak does not show until the prop is set to a low rpm (2200- 2400) with power greater than 50% This is the range were high pressure goes to the prop. That is why the leak will not show on a ground run. Some shops put a lot of sealant but no spacer to correct for the leak, but eventually the sealant will give up and a lot of oil at high pressure will come out. There is no warning to the pilot until all the oil is depleted and the engine seize. You can suspect of a missing spacer by looking at the right side nose gear door. If you consistently see oil drips on the door after every flight suspect a governor leak. Using a white towel rub the bottom side of the governor mounting flange. If the towel is oily suspect a missing spacer. José

Tie down ring leaks usually occurs on Mooneys with long range tanks. If this is the case do not unscrew the ring until the long range tank is empty. To temporarily fix it unscrew the ring, clean the screw and the hole with MEK. Apply PRC 1422 sealant to the ring and screw it in. Allow one day to cure before putting any fuel. For a permanent fix to allow installing the jack pads without emptying the tanks do the following: 1. Empty the tanks 2. Remove access panel behind tie down ring 3. Clean the tie down ring inside bracket with MEK 4. Apply PRC 1422-B2 on top of the bracket to build up a block of sealant. 5. Let it cure for a day before installing the cover. With fuel in the tanks there should be no leak even with the tie down removed. José

I had the same leak problem with my prop governor. It turn out that the spacer between the gaskets was missing. http://www.mooney.com/en/si/M20-120.pdf This spacer is only required for the dual mag IO-360. If the spacer is missing and the governor was installed with a lot of sealant it will eventually leak a lot, to potentially cause total oil depletion in a short time. BEFORE NEXT FLIGHT VERIFY THE SPACER IS IN PLACE. DO NOT ATTEMPT FLIGHT WITHOUT THE SPACER. José

For about two years I had my C31 A/P doing occasional pitch oscillation or sudden pitch changes. I had the AI overhauled by Auto Pilot Central, after six month the A/P started pitch oscillating. On my last flight to KAGC I noticed there were no oscillations below 8,000ft but at -20C OAT this turns to about a DA of 6,000ft. The vacuum pressure was consistent at 4.5"hg (the bottom edge of the blue arc). I decided to increase the vacuum. I removed the vacuum regulator and found it was limiting the vacuum to 4.5"hg by sucking on it while measuring the inlet port. The placard on the regulator indicate a setting of 5.5"hg. So I adjusted the regulator to 5.6"hg. Reinstalled the regulator and checked all the vacuum lines. After 1 hour at 10,000ft at 7F OAT not a single event of pitch change. Pitch was super stable. It appears that Century gyros do not perform well at low vacuum. José

This may sound cheap but I found that sticky paper (Avery 5165 at Office Depot) labels works really well. You print them on Word, cut them out and paste them. They look like factory placards. You can choose any background/text color. I found them very useful for printing list of FBOs frequencies so the lineman is there when I arrive. I replaced the old fuel selector placard with them and added a sticky clear plastic film for added protection. For exterior label I use the 1 inch P-touch label maker. They hold better than the factory decals. See attached some of the placards made. José Labels.doc

Be ware that LCD display clocks freezes at very cold temperatures and the display will show black spots. José

This is a common transducer problem. After some time the fuel residues in the turbine shaft inhibit it from turning freely. Remove the transducer and spray carburetor cleaner into the fuel ports. Blow air by mouth into the IN port to get the internal turbine spinning. If you can hear it the transducer is good to go. José

Don't forget to lubricate the eyeball wemac vents before flight, otherwise you may be unable to close them in flight and it will get very cold. José

My dream fantasy island. https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=Generation+girls&view=detail&mid=9D6C400CB9F6D8A56ED69D6C400CB9F6D8A56ED6&FORM=VIRE Let me know if you find it. José

Good batteries. My 12V Concorde cranked my M20J at 5F and right away it started. Best performance if charged at 14.2 Volts. José

The best of both: https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=silicone+lubricant+vs+wd+40&qpvt=silicone+lubricant+vs+wd+40&view=detail&mid=575D5BE8D91D99AF5E7A575D5BE8D91D99AF5E7A&FORM=VRDGAR

Keep them lubricated with WD-40 during winter. On my way to CYYT from LPAZ during winter (ferry flight) I accidentally depressed the speed brakes switch on the yoke. When tried to retract them they stayed half way up frozen. This reduced my range to reach CYYT. I went on doing very steep turns (60deg bank) to increase the g forces. This helped on fully retracting them. After this I pulled the brakes circuit breaker. José

Will put some in the refrigerator and let you know. After it leaves the plane it becomes snow flurries with no clouds in the sky, great for ski resorts. José

I parked at Corporate Air that provided very good service. Unlike KFXE this time of the year my plane was the only one on the ramp. Corporate Air provided free preheat (temp 5F) and help on opening the frozen cabin door (left plane on the ramp overnight). Uber service was quick and only $30 to get me to Plum (45 min. ride) were my son lives. We spend Xmas with my grandson playing in the snow and opening gifts, real good family time. Happy New Year José