Mooney_Allegro

I have a 1998 Mooney M20J and recently took it in for an annual inspection at a MSC. I told the mechanic that I had a starting issue. After 2 weeks, the plane was done and I flew it out that day. On the 2nd start, that same day, I observed a loud scraping noise as I engaged the starter. The plane started right up and the noise went away. I decided to fly back home since it was late Friday night with no maintanance available. Monday morning, I called my mechanic and told him of the problem and he told me to bring the plane over and he'll look at it. After he uncowled the plane, he discovered that the Presto Lite MHB4016 starter that was installed the year before with only 80 hours on it was falling apart. 2 screws that hold the 2 parts of the starter together were missing, 1 screw was sheared off, and the other was hanging half-way in, half-way out. He said he never has seen anything like that before. As I was engaging the starter, the entire motor housing was spinning very fast, so that was the scraping noise I was hearing. I then asked him why he didn't see that when he did the annual, since I just paid $1000 for the starting issue alone. He said he should have seen it, but the starter is not an airworthy item, so he's not required to check it or to see if the screws are in place. He then installed a used Skytec light-weight starter in place, and $370 later, I'm back in business. So to make a long story short: Tell your mechanic at annual to check the 4 screws that connect the motor of your starter to the Bendix part or front part of the starter if you have the factory heavy weight starter. If my mechanic would have inspected the starter on annual, he would have seen this and saved me $370 plus taking off a day of work, and avfuel/time. David Lincoln

Followup to my last post. I had a 1979 Piper Warrior II and had the LoPresti Boom Beams installed. 1 in the nose, and 1 on each wingtip. The Boom Beam was great, but they use a plastic lens, which fades yellow over time. Precise Flight uses a glass lens cover, which will not fade, so I would recommend the Precise Flight, and I think they are cheaper when I priced the two. Dave 1998 Mooney M20J Allegro

I have a 1998 M20J Allegro and have replaced all 4 landing/taxi lights with the Precise Flight HID's. I LOVE THEM! They blind people on the interstate when I turn base coming into KLZU at night. They lightup the runway like a Boeing does. I also added the Precise Flight Pulselight system too, which pulses only the landing lights. The instructions say to pulse the recog lights and landing lights, but I didn't want the recog lights to pulse because they are expensive to replace and don't come in HID. I purchased the HID system including the Pulselight for $1910 and the labor for installation from a Mooney Service Center was $1979.06. It took them 22 hours of labor at $82/hour. Unfortunately when I got the plane back, the MSC had installed the lights incorrectly and needed another 4 hours of work to get it right. They claimed the installation diagram wasn't clear. The light housing needed to be modified so each light would be positioned properly. The ceramic rod needs to be on the bottom on the bulb, and another slot had to be drilled to fit right, otherwise you will get a small amount of shadowing when the light is on. Also, make sure you turn on the lights for at least 30 seconds before you pulse them for longevity of the bulb. Steve Crenshaw, Joe Wanko, Charlie Babb and Doug Creach were great for their customer support at Precise Flight. I can tell you one thing...the MSC did NOT like doing this install. It was a big headache for them, and I doubt they will do another one. I also spent a lot of time speaking to the wonderful people at Precise Flight for help with the install. I love the lights though and would have them installed again in a heartbeat. The factory lights were good, but the HID's are much better and you won't be replacing them if at all. Dave 1998 M20J Allegro

I purchased a 1998 Mooney Allegro in 2006 and love it! I got my start in Mooneys back at ERAU in Daytona Beach, as a college student. I rented an M20F Executive, and got my commercial license in it. After college, I moved back to PA, and rented a Porsche Mooney at York Airport. That plane drew a lot of attention on the ramps. I pursued a career in aviation and flew many types of planes to include the SA-227 Metroliner out of Boston, the SD-360 Shorts out of JFK, the SAAB 340B out of JFK, the ATR-42/72 out of Chicago and Dallas, TX. Also I have flown the Citation I, Westwind II, G-200 AstraJet, Beechjet 400A, King Air B200, B737, B757, and currently flying the B767-400 International. I also like modding cars. The Mooney will not be left out. I have added 4 HID PreciseFlight landing/taxi lights, and the LoPresti Hubba Hubba Caps to the mains. It's in the avionics shop now and adding the G600, GTX-330, 430W, 530W, GI-106A, Skywatch, WX-500, ME-406 ELT w/Rod antenna, GMA-340, GRC-10, Whelen LED Nav Lights, and a marine antenna on the belly. I can't wait to get the airplane back! Hopefully it should be done early December. As for the next upgrade, it will be the carpets replaced. Thanks Craig "Mooniac58" for starting this site, it's GREAT!!!! Dave/M20J Lawrenceville, GA