danb35

Calaveras isn't very close to Charlotte, NC, unfortunately. Wings over Carolina, near Raleigh (http://wingsofcarolina.org/aircraft) has a Mooney J for rent, and I'm pretty sure there's a club closer to Charlotte that does as well. Don't know of any older. If you can/want to make it down to Hartsville (HVS) in the next few days, you can check out my F. Edit: Oops, just noticed that the OP was asking about California--I'd just seen a couple of posts back. Yes, all Mooneys (except the Mustang) are the same width, so if you're trying to get an idea of shoulder room, entry/egress, etc., any Mooney will do the job for you.

Quote: danb35 You sound more like a Cirrus driver to me but it doesn't look like you could afford one.

So is it "I don't have the manual handy", or "I don't have a manual"? You're saying the former, but repeating it suggests that the latter is closer to the truth. Both the fuel drains and the brakes are standard parts, nothing Mooney-specific there.

You sound more like a Cirrus driver to me but it doesn't look like you could afford one.

...and a Battery Minder is a particular brand of (moderately high-tech, but fairly expensive) battery charger. It does have a good float-charging mode, as well as a regular charge at up to 8 amps. It gets good reviews, but some folks figure that they can do the same job with a much cheaper device. I use one and am happy with it.

What size are the 4 people? A family of four adults will likely be kind of tight in a Mooney for any significant period of time (and a 1000 nm trip will take a significant amount of time). Two adults and two kids would be fine, at least until the kids grow up. Cargo/baggage space may also be an issue, particularly if you're planning on staying a long time. Save money - Maybe, depending on how you work the numbers. If you count only direct operating costs (gas & oil), probably so. For a 2000 nm round trip, one fuel stop each way, you'll be burning about 150 gal. of fuel and flying about 14-15 hours. At $6/gal, that's $900 in gas. You might need a quart or two in oil over that time, but that cost would be minimal. If, instead, you add up all your ownership costs (parking, maintenance, insurance, carrying costs, etc.), and divide by the number of hours flown, you'll come up with a very different number. Save time - quite possibly. You could make a 1000 nm trip in about 7.5 hours of air time, and you'd need a fuel stop. How long that fuel stop takes is largely up to you--30 minutes is probably a minimum, and you (and/or the family) may want to take a bit more time to stretch the legs, use the restroom, etc. Other variables would be the distance to the airport on each end, and the possibility of weather delays. Flexibility - Definite yes, weather permitting. For $80k, you could easily get a nice M20F, and probably a decent M20J. The J would be preferred, all other things being equal, due to being newer and faster on the same fuel burn (10-15 kts faster). You'd really want an IFR GPS (WAAS preferred) and a capable autopilot, and your family may have something to say about general appearance. Other ownership costs are a definite issue. Some of the biggies are maintenance, insurance, parking (hangar or tie-down), and loan payments if you finance the plane. Mx is widely variable. I've had very little unscheduled Mx in the 4 years I've owned '48Q, maybe $2k worth. My last two annuals were under $1k each, but I was working on them with my A&P. My first two were $2k-3k unassisted. It's commonly recommended to set aside a fair portion of the purchase price (I've seen numbers from 5%-20%) of the plane for unexpected maintenance the first year. If you're mechanically inclined, you can do a lot of the routine maintenance on the plane yourself, and you can do anything with your A&P's approval and under his supervision. Insurance will depend a lot on you--what ratings, how many hours (total, complex, and Mooney), any negative history. I paid around $1800 for my first year (4 years ago) with 80 hours, no instrument rating, no appreciable complex or Mooney time, for a $66k hull value. Now, a little over 400 hours, 350 complex/Mooney, and an instrument rating, I just renewed for $1k Hope this helps--good luck!

Battery life seems to be highly variable. Unfortunately, if we just wait until it won't start the engine any more, it's already been mostly gone for quite some time. Concorde calls for periodic battery capacity tests, and for discarding the battery when its capacity falls below 85% of spec. Few shops have the appropriate equipment to do the test, though (and Concorde's recommendation isn't mandatory), so it doesn't happen. The tester could be approximated with something like a couple of landing lights hooked together, but it'd be a rough approximation at best.

I'd assume that the drawing could be obtained from Mooney, and then the appropriate parts (obtained from other sources) installed with that drawing as authority.

Quote: allsmiles Recall that our airplanes' load characteristics are expressed in g's which is an acceleration quantity (aka acceleration due to gravity.)

Diluted aircraft Simple Green (which is clear, not purple, green, or any other color) in a garden sprayer, rinse with water.

Quote: Seth I've stalled in getting my commerical, and then after that, my CFI. I passed my Class 2 Medical already last May, so I really want to hurry up and finish the commerical license!

Quote: Cruiser Ross, the only disadvantage to a seperate FF system would be the lack of ability to download and retain historical data as from the JPI 700

Quote: Cruiser Can you provide the attention needed to maintain CHT during the very active phase of flight? This has always been the basis for Lycomings resistance to LOP ops. The pilot will screw up..........

Actually, Greene County (I19) is closer to FFO than either MGY or DAY. I know they have rental cars available, but I don't know about a crew car.

I have the EI FP-5L, and I'm very happy with it. The LCD is easily visible in all lighting conditions; I would expect that the LEDs on the FS-450 might wash out a bit in direct sunlight. However, the 450 has a dual display--the top always shows current fuel flow, while the bottom can show fuel used, remaining, time to empty, etc. The EI unit has a single display, so displaying those other parameters will replace the fuel flow. I'd prefer the dual display, but I don't find the EI display to be a problem either.

Quote: jetdriven You dont need an STC to mount an HID. No 337 either. Minor modification.

Quote: KSMooniac Frequently wrong, but never in doubt!

Quote: allsmiles And if you want to talk about being ignorant, what's ignorant is trying to convince someone to use one addiive over another! Instead of giving unbiased opinion and steering them in making their own decision.

Quote: Shadrach The engine in my Mooney (and I suspect yours), a piston fires every 180 degrees of crank rotation.

Quote: M016576 And from what I understand, av blend is very similar to camguard.

Actually, depending on what you're using for a PDF reader, you don't need iTunes to do that transfer. GoodReader, at least, has a number of other options for getting content into the app, one of which is over WiFi. See http://www.goodiware.com/gr-man-tr-wifi.html for details. You can also download PDFs over the Internet and open/save them in GoodReader. That said, I'm not aware of any CAC-aware apps for iOS that are currently available--though it looks like there's some development going on. See http://www.thursby.com/PKard_Reader.html for some information that might be useful. I'm not trying to talk you into an iPad, but I'd like to try to set the record straight on any misconceptions you may have.

Quote: Greg_D I sent Trey a note with some very consrtuctive critisim after he emailed and asked if I was a MAPA member. I never heard back from him, but got an auto-generated mesaage that I had been disenrolled from the mail list.

I'm afraid I don't have any information about Windows-based EFBs (though AnywhereMap is another option, FWIW), but I'd like to briefly address the "chained to iTunes" remark. You aren't. In fact, you don't need to use iTunes, or for that matter a computer, at all to use an iPad. As long as you have WiFi available for it, you can install apps, download data, and back up the device to the cloud without ever connecting it to a regular computer.

Quote: N9453V What technique do you recommend?

Quote: Piloto Check if the cylinder fins has been repainted. A thick coat of paint can easily increase temp by 30F. Being a front cylinder it should not be hotter than the others.