The-sky-captain

I've taken off at gross weight numerous times from Denver and Colorado Springs, in the summer, in my NA J with no issues. I'm usually off the ground before 11am or so. It took a few trips up there, with me gradually increasing the weight, before I attempted a full gross takeoff. During the winter she climbs like a bat outta hades, summer makes her a little more sluggish on the roll and climb out but it's manageable.

I love that this thread got revived.

I generally feel the same way. I think the reason is that at the end of a flight I'm more comfortable that the engine and airframe are not going to give me any low altitude surprises.

Can fixed belts be added to the rear seats?

My engine was only 600 SMOH when I bought it although it was 12 years old and had only flown 30 hours in the previous year. The first year of ownership was fine but after those 200 hours lots of metal began showing up in the filter and chunks of it in the suction screen. Bad cam= OH. In the end I'm happy I did it because I know how the engine has been treated since OH. 400 hours and going strong. Jetdriven went through a similar ordeal. Buyer beware of infrequently flown planes w low engine times...

A great instructor in the Denver area is Cleon Biter and he has a lot of Mooney experience

I think I would be interesting and insightful. It would probably encourage more people to tell their tales.

I read that article in one of the recent magazines or e-zines, can't remember which. It truly is sad that the pilot would let the situation get that far out of hand when there were so many outs avaliable. I'm always amazed at the trust my passengers have in me to just jump in my plane and blast off into low overcast. That's a huge responsibility that I take very seriously.

I agree 100%. I always thought I was able to handle cold wx until I got stranded in the Colorado backcountry on a backpacking trip due to blizzard conditions. That was COLD!! At one point I was in my tent for 27 hours straight as it was to windy to have a fire. Luckily I had good gear and after 3 days was still kicking and ready to continue the climb.

I think the biggest reason is corrosion inside the engine and Lycomings seem to fare the worst with the camshaft being the culprit. The engines need to be flown once a week or so at temps hot enough to burn off any moisture in the oil. As long as the plane is hangered and the tanks full I don't think there would be any deterioration of the fuel tanks.

Congrats Oscar. My 2 year old likes flying much more than his mother does. Grrrrr...

+1 here

Tom K I hope all turns out well for you. I always enjoy your posts and am glad to hear there are no injuries.

Some local pilots are hosting a fly in to benefit the operator of Carroll County airports FBO. He has recently been diagnosed with cancer. For those that do not know Perry he is a huge advocate for GA and has provided anybody that has stopped by his airport top notch service. I don't make it to many fly ins but I plan on being there. The wx looks nice this weekend so if you are looking for a place to fly check it out. See below for more info... January 19 – Harrison, AR – Boone County Airport (KHRO) Fly-in lunch 11:00 AM till all food is gone. This is a benefit chili cook-out for Perry & Sheila Evans from Carroll County Airport (4M1). Chili, cornbread, drinks provided free. We ask that you leave a donation in return. Our FBO, Fly Arkansas Inc., is offering full service fuel discounted to $4.95 for this event.

I have the fixed straps on a 77 J and have no issues reaching the fuel selector while staying buckled in with the shoulder harness. I've never used IR so I can't compare the two, although I would like to get some shoulder harnesses for the rear seats. Is this avaliable??

The probes are fine. I have the original factory probe as well as an oil temp probe hooked up to my EDM. Believe it or not but the factory probe is still pretty darn accurate. I'll be headed to N. MO tomorrow so I'll try to remember to note the correct OAT and oil temps.

Good read guys. Great job.

Two questions/ comments here... With the frigid winter temps here in the midwest my coolest CHT gets down to 290-300 while running LOP. The other 3 are in the 330 range. Other than running ROP I really don't see how this can be changed. Secondly my oil temp doesn't get over the magic 180 degree mark in cruise to burn off the moisture the Lycomings hate so much. It does get over the 180 mark in climb but cools down to 176-178 or so once cruise configuration is reached. Does this make my 3 hour cross country flights as useless for engine longevity as a ground run?

Great story Ward, I'm glad all worked out well in the end. The more PIC experience I get the more cautious I have become when it comes to blasting off into low IFR and such. I'll no longer take off in zero vis/thick fog where the tower has to ask me to let them know when I am airborne. I'm confident in my ability but know that I can't control many issues that may pop up and cause an emergency in a single engine, low IFR environment. I control what I can (preflight, fuel, go/no-go) and pray for help on the stuff I cant control.

"I don't feel that a Mooney is a good plane for a pilot with less than 200+ hours." ... I bought my J after logging 202 hrs in a Cherokee so I barely scraped by on 201er's minimum req's. That being said I did get stuck in night IMC (before my IFR ticket) and made several terrible landings the first 200 hours in the Cherokee.

Looks like she has some pretty country to fly in by the looks of her home airport. Congrats on the purchase!

My worst landing was at the end of a very turbulent flight back from Denver a few years ago. The winds at my home airport, Rogers, Ar (ROG) were 27g40 at a 60 degree crosswind. I came in fast, bounced hard twice and finally got it under control. I did not want to get back up in the bumps and was SO happy to be on the ground that day. We had seen consistent 1200fpm up and down on the VSI for the last hour of the trip.

Fltplan.com for filing and weather. If its looking like turbulence or icing may be in the vicinity ill also pull up weather.gov. We are spoiled with smartphones, Internet and GPS. I learned to fly in the modern age and love to hear my dad talk about the old days of GA navigation.

I have a 2001 Chevy Astro van (8 seat) sitting at PLK Branson, MO. .... And I appreciate you letting us use it both times Charley. Merry Christmas everyone!

Hmmmmm.... Since you want no MM bashing I have absolutely nada to contribute.