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Sad to say that I'm selling my F. Life priorities changing and I'm just not flying it enough anymore. 1968 MOONEY M20F • $59,900 • FOR SALE • 1968 Mooney M20F - 3,186 TT, 362 SMOH, Garmin 430W, Garmin SL-40. Narco AT-50. Includes Dynon Pocket Panel. 1003lb useful load. Exhaust, prop governor, fuel pumps (both), vacuum pump, alternator, wing leveler boots, 406 Mhz ELT all recent. Gear rebuilt with bushings, 40:1 gearbox, and jackscrew. IO-360 is strong and the airplane flies published numbers. Prop hub is the B series so no A/D to deal with. I plan at 145kts and 11.5 GPH. Paint and interior are original and in fair condition. • Contact Patrick Brannan, Owner - located St Louis, MO USA • Telephone: 314-472-5003 https://www.barnstormers.com/classified_1273129_1968+Mooney+M20F.html

I would just offer this: My ugly, unmodified '68 F runs extremely close to book speeds and fuel consumption up high when TAS is properly measured. I've never checked down low. So I'm not so sure that those who say you can't hit book speeds are correct. The book numbers in my experience are reliable.

Outermarker, PLEASE READ! It sounds like you have the same problem I had and I don't think I ever posted the full resolution. Matt, at Midwest Mooney, cycled the gear and noticed that it was not running smoothly. When you operate the gear, at least with the 40:1 gearbox, the gear should run up and down smoothly. You should not hear the motor change speeds as loads vary. The load should not vary. Just a steady whir as the gear moves. As it turned out my jackscrew had a dimple in the end and the recirculating balls inside were jamming up. If these balls jam up thoroughly enough, you will not be able to operate the gear electrically or by hand. So make absolutely certain that the jack screw is operating smoothly. My problems had nothing to do with the motor. Matt found a replacement jackscrew and the gear has never had an issue since. The dimple was probably caused by being run for 40 years with the 20:1 gearbox slamming the gear against the limits. For reasons I do not understand, civilian pilots are taught to cycle the gear for every touch and go. Every civilian CFI I've ever flown with makes you cycle the gear. This adds to the wear and tear on the gear and is usually pointless.

Vince, That’s what I’m hoping. I’m going to take it to my Mooney mech in Flora, gear down, and have the gear swung. I just want to make sure it isn't a mechanical problem before I try to operate it airborne. My jamming jack screw issue got my attention and I don’t want a repeat of anything like that. This plane originally had the 20:1 gearbox. The 20:1 gearboxes were really violent. Now it has the 40:1. I think those old 20:1 gearboxes just beat the hell out of everything and 40 years of that beating caused many of my issues. Patrick

The gear had a major overhaul, all sorts of worn bushings etc were replaced, when we purchased the plane about 4 years ago. About a year after that we replaced a jack screw that had gone bad. The jack screw was a real eye opener. It was worn at one end and the recirculating balls were jamming the screw. It could have prevented the gear from being lowered either electrically or manually. During the gear overhaul we replaced the gear drive with a 40 : 1 gear drive. I believe it requires annual lube with some sort of special grease. The airframe has about 3100 hours on it now. No recent maintenance that I would think would affect the gear, but it has had a terrible year otherwise: New exhaust, rebuilt prop governor, rebuilt injector servo, new vacuum pump, rebuilt boost pump, and cracked spark plugs.

Hello, I have a 68F model. I went flying this weekend after a couple of touch and goes I raised the gear handle and the gear did not come up. It turns out that the landing gear circuit breaker was popped. I put the gear handle back down and reset the circuit breaker. Rather than cycling the gear I full stopped figuring that it's better to think through the problem on the ground. Has anyone had this issue before? It seems odd that the gear would get down and safe and then pop the breaker, but maybe that's because the breaker is old and weak. Or maybe a limit switch has gone out. Or maybe the motor is tired. Or maybe... Any thoughts or suggestions are appreciated.