carusoam

ZeroTach, What car did you use for training to get your driver's license? If you say Corvette with a six-speed... Start shopping for your Mooney right now. The economics for purchase are spectacular. On the other hand, if you say mom's chrysler Reliant K with automatic transmission...... Start looking for your Mooney, and buy the one you want when you are ready. It may take a year or longer to study and find the ONE..... in the meantime consider working on getting your training in economically sensible trainers. (For me: around 100 hours in C152s/C172s (PPL+IR) and 500 hrs + in M20C/M20R) Dream big..... follow your dreams... Best regards, -a-

Dico, I think it goes something like this: 3 blade prop + 2,700 rpm govenor = 310 hp. Sometimes called the screamin eagle. There are a couple on this board.....that can update this mild guess with actual facts. Best regards, -a-

I've got bump in the R. That's when it's time to look and see the green on the floor. -a-

"KSN 770 will have Localizer Performance with Vertical Guidance (LPV) and Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS)" Is anyone currently using their GPS for LPV approaches? I haven't seen any LPV approaches in my neighborhood. So I don't feel like I missing anything yet. Put an LPV on my home drome, and I will be much more interested. Best regards, -a-

Rich, I keep drinking the Kool-aide... Going to the MSC is the only place where there are always 10 - 20 mooneys all opened up for various new ideas and upgrades. Its fuel for the addiction.... Best regards, -a-

Sealed batteries were first introduced into aviation a few years ago. It was thought that taking a sealed battery to altitude might crack/leak. I used the Gill sealed battery as well as their standard battery up to altitudes including 12,500. The sealed batteries didn't leak, they lasted as long as the standard battery. The standard battery seamed to leak all over and require maintenance to keep from eating the battery box. Some people love their Concordes, other people are indifferent about their Gills. I will be trying Concorde next time. http://www.mooneyspace.com/index.cfm?mainaction=posts&forumid=1&threadid=905 I went to the concorde site to see the differences. The performance is the same on either RG or RG-M. RG means recombinant gas or "sealed" battery. -M is for "manifold" vents. The -M battery looks like old style lead/acid battery with "non-removable" vents. Vents might be a good idea for the guys with turbos that prefer the higher flight levels? It seams like a solution for those concerned about the internal air volume of the battery in relation to the change in atmoshperic pressure. Best regards, -a-

I changed out the old red grimes unit for a Whelen (red & white flashing) unit on the M20C. Your requirment will be related to the year of manufacture of your plane. Search this site or the Whelen web site for previously posted answers. I like the solution suggested by Luc (Vref), very small, less drag. Paperwork will be important. Best regards, -a-

Mike, When you are looking up parts, 2-0-100 is referenced in the mooney parts catalog as the fastener on the doors. If I remember correctly, you will see this on the heads of the southco fasteners on your plane. the other reference 82-32-101-17 is a reference to the split ring... There are 23 sets... Luc, I am stopping by to visit Belgium in mid May...Will your M20J by finished by then? Best regards, -a-

"there is a correlation here with the ease of gear operation and airspeed: the faster you go, the easier to come down - the slower you go, the easier to go up. I know most of us manual gear folks probably get that gear up right after lift off, because the gear is much harder to get up (for me at least) once the plane exceeds 80-85 mph" - Brandon For manual gear... At low speeds the springs overpower wind on the doors, making it easy to retract. At high speeds wind on the doors overpower the springs, making it easy to extend. It is designed that way. It is not an accident. Those mooney brothers were sharp. Upon positive rate of climb, up go the wheels. If the engine quits, the wheels go back incredibly quick compared to the old electric or hydraulicly powered systems.... you can always wait to the last second to get every inch of glide before dropping the gear. Gear swings into place almost on its own at 120mph ias. trying it at speeds higher than Vlo is probably where the saying "blow the doors off" comes from. The J-Bar will move more forcefully through the cockpit with more pressure from the wind. When the mooney manual gear is properly rigged and operated, it is nearly as smooth as any powered equipment. (it's hard to beat electric for the modern feel - pull the switch and put it in the position you want). As for bulging forearms... operating at less than optimal speeds, when you pull on the J-Bar, try not to push on the yoke, and vice versa. When I first got my M20, I nearly came out of my seat pushing the J-Bar to the floor every time. The peanut gallery, they are impressed at how fast three wheels can dissapear more than they are about when they dissappear. If needed, they come right back. The standard training about keep the wheels down in case, may not apply to the fast re-appearing mooney wheels..... ymmv. Best regards, -a-

Mike, Battery in the tail cone on the M20F? I thought you might be looking for Dzus fasteners for the doors on the cowling.....That's where we kept the battery on the M20C. Either way they are available in SS. Best regards, -a-

Cris, I sent you a PM....

Cris, No docking stations or computer simulators that I am aware of. (expensive and out of production years ago). You can probably download a complete manual from BK if you haven't done so already... https://www.bendixking.com/wingman/servlet/com.honeywell.brga.wingman.gps.GpsApprCustOptions I have the KLN90B which is very similar in operation (knobology). The KLN94 upgrades include color, waas? and IAP accesiblity improvements. A 24V battery charger attached to the plane probably made the docking station less desirable. I briefly considered having an instrument shop make a wiring harness for a couple hundred bucks. This also included a power supply and PC connection for uploading database files. Let me know if you are interested in the shop, it is at KTTN, not so far from where you are. Nice to see another long body in NJ.... Best regards, -a-

70E, Checking a recent post on this topic.... http://www.mooneyspace.com/index.cfm?mainaction=posts&forumid=4&threadid=2334 "The shock absorber was found to be in effective and was removed. Email me direct and I will send you the approval drawing to remove the shock absorber. sellis@mooney.com" The words come from Stacey Ellis at the factory. Check with him for proper removal procedure. Best regards, -a-

What is your recomendation for the following situation? Traveling to FL for a few days to witness the end of pre-season baseball. The stadium we will be visiting is at Tampa International. I will be traveling by M20R. What airport and FBO do you recommend. We will be renting a car for local trans. Thanks for your ideas. Best regards, -a-

dp

So I took Dales advice....and went to www.avblend.com AVblend did receive an FAA letter: FAA approval for use in airplane engines: http://avblend.com/images/faa/faa.pdf From AVblend's FAQ section... "Is AVBLEND ok to use in turbo-charged engines? Yes. AVBLEND works very effectively in high temperature environments persistent in turbo-charged engines. " The fine folks at avblend made a demonstration to the FAA using a WGN helicopter engine - "Enstrom Helicopters, powered by Lycoming HIO 360 C1A" Generally speaking impressive long runs on cylinders with minimal wear. FAA demonstrations / measurements were made at 1,000hrs and 1,100hrs of operation. Seems very early on in the overall 7,000+ hours put on their cylinders... Now I can understand where people draw the line. AVblends statements: FAA Approved for use in airplane engines, and OK for use in high temperature environments persistent in turbo charged engines. AVblend does not come out and hit the nail on the head... They do not say it is OK to use the oil additive in turbocharged engines or in oil related to the turbocharger itself. Nowhere does it say "approved for turbocharged engines" Are the turbos in mooney's oil cooled from the engine oil sump? Do mooney turbos get hotter than turbos on other planes? It is difficult to compare the results of helicopter engines that get used everyday to an airplane engine that sits 9 out of 10 days. You can see I am not protecting my airplane from over use. I keep using Aeroshell 15 - 50. Unfortunately, I just don't see a good way of demonstrating one oil additive package over the other. Best regards, -a-

Mark, One thing I would get after annual (on an M20C) was an odd oily smell from the cabin heat. After the first annual, I departed climbed up to pattern altitude, opened the cabin vent and heat and got a puff of whitish smoke and the smell of burning oil. It came out the defroster holes also. There was a slight delay between opening the heat and getting the smoke, but get to the ground is what I had in mind... Turns out, that the smoke and smell began to clear on my way back into the pattern. IF it were a blaze, I couldn't get there fast enough. Degreaser used to clean the engine and its parts were an annual event. The A&P had inspected the muff for cracks and holes and cleaned things up while he was in there. Scared at first, then unhappy second for having to breath vaporized degreaser... Does this sound familiar? Best regards, -a-

Has anyone contacted the factory or know who the original seat frame manufacturer is? I am thinking at the price offered by Bennet ($2K as described above), that a new frame should ought to be available at that rate..... Stacy (Sellis) any thoughts on this? Adjustable seats with head rests seem to be the unmet need of many mooneys.... Best regards, -a-

dp

I was unable to use the search function to find the link and quote of one person not flying in the other's mooney if it was not painted correctly....flutter issue regarding painting control surfaces.... -a- Now updated with post.... http://www.mooneyspace.com/index.cfm?page=2&mainaction=posts&forumid=5&threadid=2288

Skybrd, Check your garmin for vertical guidance options.... I have a 196, it can select: [1] What altitude you want to be at... (1000' agl) [2] How far out from the airport you want to be at that altitude... (1 mile) [3] What rate you want to get there at... (400 fpm) It gives you: [1] a vertical nav timer (how long you have before you have to start down) [2] Glide slope bar on the HSI page that you can follow. I use it all the time for guidance in terms of when to start down. You won't believe how valuable this is. Again it is for reference and situational awareness only. Before I got the garmin (many years ago) I would routinely show up too high and to fast at my destination. Too conservative maintaining safe altitude for single engine ops..... For IFR operations, It gives me a hint when to ask ATC to let me start my descent. I like 400 fpm descent rate....good sustainable mooney speeds downhill over a long distance. Adjust power to keep safety margin between airspeed and redline. I also have a similar function on my IFR GPS KLN90B. The calculation is a clumsy version of angle of descent....go figure... Best regards, -a-

Brian bowed out, so I am in.... Soap box under my feet, here I go....... MSC pre-purchase is about about one thing: It is a one time, risk management, effort. I used one on my most recent Mooney purchase. [1] Any used equipment purchase has risk that the equipment may have a deficiency. (new equipment has risk, but often comes with warranties) [2] The purchaser wants to minimize this risk, because he gets stuck paying for any unknown deficiency. [3] Employing a mechanic that knows mooneys is the most reliable way to identify unknown deficiencies. [4] MSCs are loaded with mechanics that know mooneys, and are not hard to find. (they advertise in MAPA) [5] MSCs as are an entity that are larger than the sum of their parts. People will recognize / value the MSC signature in your logbook no matter which qualified mechanic in their organization performs the work. [6] This method allows you to feel comfortable that you have selected a good way to minimize risk. Unfortunately it does not eliminate unknown risk altogether. Things to avoid: [1] Using the same source for ppi as the source of previous annuals or the sales agent. This is a bad business practice. It is not a matter of trust or quality of the person in the logbook. This becomes a source for unnecessary distrust if they were to honestly miss something. A second opinion is often appreciated. [2] Using a mechanic that is not familiar with mooneys. Anything they miss will be your expense. Mooney familiar people know right where to look for expensive things. (corrosion shows up in different places on different airframes) I would not use a non-piper expert for a piper ppi either... Things that do work... [1] The more you know about mooneys yourself is very powerful. [2] Employ a mechanic that is expert in your model mooney (education does not need to be MSC related) this is also very powerful. [3] Find or ask for recomendations on mooneyspace. This will help you avoid unscrupulous individuals and organizations or identify the various U-boats that are for sale. [4] If you are not an expert at purchasing machines, seek the most professional help that you can afford that matches the scale of what can be missed. PPIs are like buying insurance. If everything works as expected you didn't need it in the end. Best regards, Kool aide served...., -a-

Congrats on the acquisition... For that fresh do it yourself look....Alodine for primer (available in spray cans) and the best match you can find at Autozone. Get some good tape, sand paper, use patience and avoid over-spray. You will impress yourself with how good you are. Just remember, it is temporary protection for the aluminum until the real paint can be applied. Too see how paint should be done, see the recent lists and valid arguments put forth by LT4Bird and others.... http://www.mooneyspace.com/index.cfm?page=2&mainaction=posts&forumid=5&threadid=2288 Best regards, -a- Don't use electric tools to sand or buff....to much risk in damaging the aluminum surface or rivets...... Some people in Florida, may not fly in your recently painted bird... (see post )

I typed too long to be the first to answer.... When selecting an expensive piece of technology (expensive meaning, I can't afford a do-over), I am looking at total installed price and functionality. With complex items such as the MFDs there is a deaper challenge in decision making that comes in. I place an overweight in my decision tree towards the tried in true. First hand experience weighs very heavily, followed by shared experience from other mooney owners/users (aka mooneyspace, mapa, etc.) What's important to me today. I use my plane for flight in IMC. It would need to meet the requirements of the government and this harsh environment. For engine instruments, this is probably not as critical as a PFD. If my engine instruments go blank in IMC, I can land without incident. If my PFD goes blank, that could be disastrous. Accurate fuel information is an important detail. If my tanks run dry because of a calibration faliure in the MFD, I may have found out too late that I chose the wrong brand. (I usually don't fly until empty on either tank...) Number of units in the field seems to be important. Nothing beats collective actual user experiences. When I was an M20C owner, I was looking to purchase these types of instruments. Just because the C was missing data and the data that was available came through old and worn mechanical devices. With the M20R, not so much. I am glad you asked... Best regards, -a- Now about the fish...it says something about how your company is run and its level of ethics that I find interesting.

There seems to be a shortage of mooney seats with two attributes: - Head rests. - Height adjustability. I see many companies in the business of refurbishment. They will change foam and leather seating surfaces. But does anybody add the headreasts or height adjustability. Is it too expensive? In the Mooney world it may be too expesnive for some, but as Bennet has pointed out not for all? Best regards, - Anthony -