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Let’s see if the @Speed Merchant is around... Last I checked into it decades ago... the cost was similar to a new small car... Since everyone’s golden geese are different sizes... this may not be a challenge for you... People have also modified their existing planes to become Missiles and Rockets... those kits cost a bit more... I can invite doc John @M20F-1968 he updated his M20F with every upgrade possible including the Lopresti cowl... Best regards, -a-

How many planes did Al call the M22? Briefly, The twin was called an M22... The Mustang was an M22... The Lasa seems to have acquired the appellation as well... Hmmmm.... interesting... Best regards, -a-

Check out this inventory list... If you see something you like... Discuss trading in what you have... Are you anywhere close to TX? Do you want to be? Essentially buying and selling planes are two separate, big, projects... Cutting it down to one big project has value... There can be some sales tax advantage with this as well... in NJ you have a set period of time to complete the sale/purchase... to avoid paying a huge sales tax burden... I went about a year between selling the M20C, and getting the M20R... that’s a hassle... the C had to go... and we were in the front of the Great Recession... and weren’t quite ready for the next plane... Best regards, -a- https://www.gmaxamericanaircraft.com/inventory/?/listings/for-sale/aircraft/13?dscompanyid=6946&dlr=1&settingscrmid=614667

Jesse, Did you acquire the STC to go with the cowl? I could invite one of the Lopresti kids to help you... He probably knows a lot of detail... PP thoughts only, not the STC police... Best regards, -a-

Dude, Take this with a grain of salt... or two... or a whole shaker... You either have a really good idea... Or one of us is missing something... Or.... you didn’t get the wing leveler... Fuel level is constantly changing... it is the only thing changing weight in the plane... unless the kids are moving around in the back... All it would take is a piece of tube and a pump.... so simple, yet nobody will take the risk of doing it... See everybody’s methodology above on how to burn and balance... at the same time... Go Long Body... or add the rudder trim yourself... Rudder trim lifts the heavy wing, no need to balance the load with a complex, leak producing, system... Flying the magenta line in my M20C... can be done by balancing the fuel... burn a little more from this side or that side... Go find a bunch of other things to work on... there’s no meat on this bone... PP thoughts only, electric rudder trim and speed brakes... expensive... probably not worth paying for... but great, when they come with the plane... If going with the new Big G autopilot... get the rudder trim too... It has to be an incredibly smooth day to ever notice the difference... Best regards, -a-

While in there... Look to see what you have for an alternator... might be a good time to check the logs for it’s age/hours... Two birds, one maintenance stone... Plastic gears in a starter? Must be there for a reason... shear protection...(?) Nylon gears in Mags are known to strip teeth... but that is an O3 ozone issue, along with a lot of heat... Looking forward to the pirep on the new starter... Best regards, -a-

Interesting... Hmmmm..... One awesome resource for all things Mooney.... The original records are still in Kerrville, TX... You might try getting somebody @mooney.com to look these up for you... If you make it interesting... they will want to help you out... Got any pics of your project you can share? Best regards, -a-

Ron, Make the decision for yourself.... https://bandc.com Is the preferred supplier for back-up alternators around here... Skytec has been used by dozens, hundreds(?) of MSers... B&C probably makes a really good starter... but, you may be leading the charge...(?) +1 for getting the seals correct... We have a seals guy that is familiar with this challenge... @ bee-gee PP thoughts only, stuff I read around here... Best regards, -a-

Great follow-up jml! Thanks for the closure... Best regards, -a-

Welcome aboard Christian! There are a few ways to get color data for a plane... Looks like you have three colors/codes there... What are you trying to do? Do you have access to the plane’s original logs? if you are looking for touch up paints... taking an access panel to an auto paint store can get a really good match... PP thoughts only, not a mechanic... Best regards, -a-

While on BT... Seek out Trek Lawler... @TrekLawler He is the Big G guy in charge of connecting the internet to Big G... He is soooo busy,people have to go to him... unfortunately... Best regards, -a-

Cue the video... 100 year old guys flying Mooneys... We have one already... Might I offer you the chicken sandwich..? It keeps the cholesterol a bit lower... -a-

Andrew, You might want to post a few pics of that if you have them... different angles... HD if available... I saw the doc around here earlier... He knows IO550s in several varieties... He may have some insight to share... @M20Doc (question about shimming an IO550 in an M20R, 1” sag kind of challenge) PP thoughts only, Not a mechanic... Best regards, -a-

Chris’ pic... with some gravity added... -a-

Rich, I’m glad you did the math... Some people have said they don’t want to live that long... I’ve got news... I want to be there with you guys... We have never been able to judge the future based on looking back at the past 50years... We did learn a lot of what to avoid going forwards... In the 70s we talked about magical carburetors that would get 50mpg... expected that to take a century... All it took was a decent computer controlled fuel injection system and some curvy equi-length intake tubes... In the 80s people would say, I don’t own a computer... I will never need one... that guy now carries a Samsung in his pocket every where he goes... Something about Steve Jobs and limiting access to video file technology... If you don’t like the world today... wait a month... it will be significantly different then... The cool thing... Learning the laws of physics... is hard... but, it is worth doing once, because they never change... Embrace change! (?) PP thoughts about the future only, not much of a forward looking person... Best regards, -a-

Guy, Do you see anything on the horizon to improve on the single-use V-band clamps used on turbo exhausts? That first section of pipe in turbos is under pressure, and very hot... The erosion on the pipes is relatively high, leading to pipe thinning over the years... We have had some owners report wall thicknesses so thin they could poke a tool through it easily... We have had owners not know their v-bands were getting torqued more than recommended... Exhaust leaks before the turbo can be very dangerous... from CO leaks to cutting torches... It would be interesting if Ti or changes in clamps can improve maintenance for turbo owners... PP thoughts only, not a mechanic... Best regards, -a-

Cleaning up some key words.... A-E short bodies... F-K mid bodies... L-V long bodies... There are three different lengths of fuselages for Mooneys... Some of the mid-bodies got beautiful long noses to cover an extra pair of cylinders... and hide some turbo related equipment... UL... Useful Load... the amount of fuel and people that can be loaded into the plane with near complete knowledge of how the plane is expected to perform... The least amount of HP available... 180hp... The most amount of HP available... 310hp... The G is known as Mooney’s Turtle... It has the lowest hp/wt ratio of the fleet... but it is way better than the other brands best four seaters... the extra HP, is most useful in the T/O and climb... a 10% increase in HP can cut the T/O run by a 1/3... This becomes extra important when expecting to use some short fields... or loading your plane up to MGTW... There are no bad Mooney models... Just, some individual planes have lived tougher lives than others... (true for Brand C and P as well, or even worse) The PPI is the one chance you get to not accidentally buy somebody else’s problem... some problems aren’t usually known to the seller either... very few Mooneys have serious challenges... most parts can be swapped out... Planes that have been sitting idle... can easily develop challenges... Planes that have been sitting out doors... have a much higher chance of developing challenges... A PPI on a 50 year old M20C that has been sitting idle outdoors in NJ for two years... should get a really good PPI... A PPI on a 20 year old LB that has been MSC cared for and lives in doors... has really short log books, and fewer owners... and the PPI probably doesn’t need to be overly important... Example A: 1965 M20C... cost to buy 34amu... flown for a decade... sold completely run-out for around 18amu... loss of value... 16 amu... 1.6 amu per year... More was spent on fuel... More was spent on insurance... Almost as much was spent on the tie down outside... 1.2 amu My M20C was an experiment... does GA fit into my life... Example B: GA fit into my life really well... We went and got an M20R... it’s a big M20C... with a little more room... and a little more speed... it’s just more Mooney... When the Mooney costs as much as your house... the PPI is more serious... In NJ... PPIs for houses are mandatory... so an unknowing owner doesn’t accidentally buy something he can’t afford to fix... Go Mooney! Best regards, -a-

Welcome aboard MF! Great first post too! Best regards, -a-

Way to go sf! The Brand new Bravo is looking fantastic! Perfect for when memory becomes more of a challenge... Best regards, -a-

Welcome aboard JFY! I’ll let @Steelstring know you stopped by... M20Cs make great retirement planes. Partnerships can be extra good at controlling costs... Best regards, -a-

Glad to hear you are staying... We have some MSers that have been here since the beginning... but never post anything publicly... until the sale. One thing to consider... when selling one Mooney to get another... There is one company that is really good at killing one stone with two birds... Find Jimmy at GMax... aka AAA... Jimmy specializes in buying and selling Mooneys... also known as a straight shooter... Could work out well from the logistics point of view... PP thoughts only, not a plane sales guy... Best regards, -a-

Great pirep for the MaxDim Norman! Best regards, -a-

I used armorall a lot... Things that you will notice... On car tires... it makes the tire shine, but rain makes it go away pretty quickly.... Putting it on the tires, leaves plenty of overspray, everywhere... slippery surface to walk on... Putting it on the tread... is a bad idea, as it lubricates the frictional surface... (not good for braking) So... you get that show car appearance, and accidentally give up the high performance expected from the tire.... When taking this idea to my M20C’s tires.... I immediately noticed a difference.... there is no shiny-ness to be improved upon... The tire essentially absorbed the armorall like a coarse sponge... I have a neighbor... That has dark oily spots in front of his house on the street... He parks a car in the same spot, solely for the application of Armorall.... I haven’t seen the car... it must only come out for the monthly Armorall... -a-

Great document Tahir! Thanks for sharing that... It is often tucked in with the ship’s logs... but not always recognized as the important document that it is... Best regards, -a-

Russ / Cruiser shared a pic of his TopProp above.... With its diminutive spinner... -a-