carusoam

"why does a shop need a lot of Mooney experience for an avionics retrofit" There is very little space behind the panel, and some of it is blocked by our favorite steel tubes. It is greatly helpful to understand the available volume during the layout phase. Many things fit on paper in 2D. The top of the panel does not go very deep. Extreme left and right are shallow spots also. Otherwise not much mooney experience required beyond the "does it fit" portion of the plan.... -a-

80 hrs in cessna for ppl training....Bought M20C more hrs in cessna for IFR training....Bought M20R If it meets your mission, have no fear in selecting a mooney as your steed. Good luck identifying your mission....especially what it will look like 10 years from now..... as for grass, I only taxi on grass. I am not that smooth a pilot to be confident landing on grass.....4 out of 5 landings are smooth. The one I put on grass will probably be #5, seems like it might be expensive. For good grass experience. Look up Bryan Painter and his photo gallery..... He probably has a "No Fear" decal on his M20C. -a-

I used it as recommended by the POH like any carbureted engine. Carb heat saved the day, once. High humidity trip over some swampy land heading VFR to Sun 'N Fun a few years ago. Power does diminish slowly, un-noticed, and carb heat is the only way to know that it was ice building up and not the engine going away. I like the idea of a carb temp indicator. I like the idea of fuel injection even better. -a-

Jeff, Nice job. The picture of Bosco leading the girls is definitely worth 1,000 words. -a-

So I have the Nat 4 place stereo system with DC 13.4S head sets to match.... I went to plug in the I-pod.......Where does the ipod go????????? Nobody installed the music input.....? I have two follow up questions for those that answered this thread.... [1] How many people listen to music while flying? [2] Is anyone so comfortable with their IFR skills / system capabilities to listen to music while in the clouds? I am thinking that I can add the 50 cent input line during the next annual, but I am not sure that it will ever get used.... Best regards, -a-

Too much freon would make sense from an over pressure situation. Acceptable pressure is detected on the ground, but as altitude increases, a higher pressure differential would be detected resulting in a high pressure cut-off. I am not familiar with having too much freon, but I guess that's possible. (pressure gauge reading compared to printed range - POH?) Did you have to to refill it lately? If it had all leaked out, there could be air in the line causing you some hassle. Is it possible that it is programmed this way intentionally? Keep things cold on the ground, followed by cutting it off at an altitude that is supposed to be cold enough to use OAT vents??? That would be nearly smart.... For Houston in the summer, the intentional cut point should probably be 9,000 feet. -a-

Docket, Rookie advice on this one.....AC is not that popular in the north east. Consider checking your refrigerant pressure. Make sure the coils are not blocked. Most AC units have a controller that is full of safety cut offs to keep the system from damaging itself. Compressor side temperature may be getting too high (less cooling at altitude) causing the compressor to be cut-off. These are the most simple typical maintenance things you can do for AC. As Bob Harvey put it, check the temperature leaving the vents, if it is the same as your OAT gauge, your AC compressor has been turned off. Best regards, -a-

Bob, I don't have the POH wiring diagram handy, but it should indicate that there is (or isn't) a fuse on the line. I have not hunted it down in my M20R. Best I can tell, what makes sense in my M20C may still makes sense for the R/M/S/T. There is no real need for the single wire plug to extend any further than the nearest source of electricity. The wire was only a few inches long behind the panel with a standard fuse in between it and the electrical bus. The ground is supplied by the socket attached to the instrument panel. (keep this in mind for those hooking up dremels, your radios may be sharing the same ground???). Therefore, I would not expect you to have to hunt on the hot side of the firewall for this one. I would be thinking that if you reach under the panel you won't need to go too far. The cigarette lighter is in approximately the same place on both short and long bodies, the electrical bus isn't much further away either, and the same glass fuse with a wire in it is probably the norm. The only thing you might find differently, is this wire is probably tidied up with other wires under the instrument panel. The fuse holders are often lost in a bundle held together with tie wraps. Long body story - shortened.... follow the single lead out of the back of the cigarette lighter, it will probably lead you directly to an inline fuse. I would not expect it to go any further than the nearest spot on the bus. Whish I had my documents on line.... Best regards, -a-

"Anyone have operating experience using their IPAD along with foreflight? and if so how is it working out? any complaints? any good advice?" Good morning Mark, Fellow East Coaster, find the search button at the top right hand corner of your screen and put "foreflight" into the search field, enter, and scroll down to find the related links....... You will find a dozen links of pireps on foreflight, mostly good, some indicate direct limitations you will want to know about. There is even a link to avweb that gives a few minute video objectively describing how good / limited it is. Nothing beats a certified, installed (garmin or other) waas unit for Hard IFR flying. The 696 comes close, but can only be relied upon for situational awareness. The IPAD in general is a cool tool, but I would not stake my life on it. It all depends on how you intend to use it. Check out what you find in your search. I think you will be happy. Best regards,

Sven, You may have the rare fixed fixed gear mooney that has not been converted..... Has anyone seen one of these unconverted gems? http://www.planecheck.com/eu/image.asp?Imgname=13917/img011009530433.jpg Replete with Butler button hook and stinger tail, and fixed step. For more information, its for sale.... http://www.planecheck.com/eu/index.asp?ent=da&id=13917&cor=y -a-http://www.planecheck.com/eu/image.asp?Imgname=13917/img011009530433.jpg'>

Does your chopstick come with a roll of electrical tape? Since your research is in high gear.... Are you able to purchase a replacement P-lead? My thought.... so you have the right one on hand, that you can hand to your mechanic in a timely fashion? This way you won't be surprised by the mechanic needing to source one and it may take a day or two.... Best regards, -a-

Mark, The search button at the top right of your screen will be very helpful for finding your basic topics. Search on a topic such as charts and go down the list. This is a recent one regarding electronic charts. http://www.mooneyspace.com/index.cfm?mainaction=posts&forumid=1&threadid=1359 For your entertainment....Garmin 696 www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mVU1iZqUfA Since you are the self admitted true rookie, search the www for items such as... www.mooneypilots.com www.aopa.org I believe these may be helpful for you..... Best regards, -a-

"Finally, I'm not happy with some here who insult people flying at night or with 2/3rd shift jobs. " Fantom, Today, I am in a time zone 9hrs ahead of Quinn. I was looking for a quick mooney fix, but that time of night is usually radio silence on MooneySpace. I got one input from Collvon in Australia and Quinn! Thanks for being there guys... Quinn, Last week, I had a discussion on the contact cleaner with an electrical engineering friend. Contact cleaner should be available at RadioShack. EE friend recommended long stick cotton swabs and fine sand paper. Clean both ends of the contacts (radio and tray) Let cleaner dry. Of course, I was going to use his advice, but went flying with a friend instead...... Best regards, -a-

Tony, I agree with the KSmooniac, engine analyzer is good and I would consider adding fuel flow / total to that too.... Sure these are not items you drastically need, book values are mostly correct, And running out of fuel only happens to the other guys.... In this thread, there is an example of a cylinder failure that was identifiable during the take-off phase. http://www.mooneyspace.com/index.cfm?mainaction=posts&forumid=3&threadid=873 The data indicates that a cylinder is going bad. An alarm condition was given. Without the analyzer all the pilot knows is something bad is happening. He was also able to hand this data to his mechanic to help identify the culprit, and of course share the data with the mooneyspace community... These are items that you want, and are not available by any other instruments in the plane. Long term, they will save you more than their cost. What is a better way to spend your money...? GPS if you don't have one already.... -a-

Jim, Funny thing, I nearly had the same opinion in that thread too...... I thought I wrote something on this topic before.... -a-

Quinn is either up really early today or is up really late from yesterday.... 3:26 AM....

Ron, (welcome to mooneyspace) From my experience.... I got my new windlace material from Airtex. http://www.airtexinteriors.com/catalogue/wall_panels.htm Start at the top of the door, work your way around leaving excess on both ends. I used the original windlace as the template for the new one. Specifically cutting the fabric part to allow it to bend properly. The stainless steel threshold strip at the bottom of the door comes out readily and can be reshaped back to original condition (sort of). It is a little challenging to finish the windlace under the threshold, removing some of the foam and tucking the remaining material under the threshold works pretty well. Try to get the windlace to want to bend towards the door, and not away. For the baggage compartment: Use a sharp knife when finished to butt the ends together. You may have a stainless threshold here also, (mine was missing). There are many small screws holding the plastic panels in place, I bought new ones made of stainless. It is challenging to reuse the existing holes. Word of advice. The windlace is supposed to have some stretch to it, but don't make it too tight. It should be stiff enough to hold itself against the closed door, but it is not supposed to be the seal. When I first replaced mine on my M20C, it was a little difficult to close the door because the new windlace was too tight. It did improve over time though. Anything is better than the raggy old windlace, with broken dusty foam falling out of it. This does not impress passengers... Is that your M20R with your M20C in the picture? (collvon gallery for others that are interested) Best regards, - a -

Jolie, I joined with you on this one... I went the Contact Us / Customer service route also.... (I also drive a Chevy Tacoe) After a decade of Santas in a slow moving, classic, high wing, aircraft, that don't really portray how the big man gets around the earth in one night.... Its about time the jolly old man move up to something a bit speedier (at least an M18).... -a-

Ray, Sounds like you are asking two separate government organizations to share information and accept each others documents at face value. Interesting idea... I can't wait to hear a knowledgable response on how this is done.... Best regards, -a-

Remember to order in the proper local parlance..... Lobstaaah If you are visiting the New England coast, you might consider Hyannis (HYA) on Cape Cod. The airport is pretty close to the downtown area. Lobstaaah is always available. You may need a taxi at least for the return trip to the airport, that's alot of passengers to meet TomK's suggested requirement. Best regards, -a-

Russ, That was awfully close.... Timothy Leary , Psychologist / Writer / Outlaw Born: 22 October 1920... Thankfully, I have a November day. -a-

All, John Winston Ono Lennon - date of birth : October 9, 1940 Mitch, Congrats on sharing talent and a birthday with one of the world's greatest musicians. I have to check to see what great chemical engineers I share a birthday with....any help? Enjoy the Mapa event. I always wanted to go, but have not made that one yet........ -a-

There isn't much to the supply side of the generator based electrical system. Battery, generator and controller all available from Spruce. No STC required. Can all be changed in an afternoon. Appropriate mechanic involvement, of course. Sounds like you want the alternator system anyway. The only other advantage of the generator system is that you can hand prop with a dead battery. I have never, and I don't think I will ever, hand prop that monster. I did use the jump start with another battery a few times while gaining great knowledge of charging systems. Either way, don't waste too much time thinking about it. Either solution is a good one. Get it done so you can get back to reliable, trustworthy flying...... -a-

Sven's point is that M20Ds were converted to M20Cs years ago (low cost / high value factory mod). They still exist on the registry as M20D but have fold up legs and are essentially M20Cs. The M20D that was at Princeton was beige and brown. Sven, Is your M20D a fixed pitch prop or is it the same CS as an M20C? -a-

John Lennon and I have something in common.