Immelman

Nice! Did you request it or was it just given? I did once in a turboprop Beech going into Show Low. I think the ultimate ultimate clearance is "cruise through" for a short stop. Never managed to score that one.

The airplane -- structurally -- doesn't know its attitude. It knows angle of attack, airspeed, load factor. So with that in mind you can do things without hurting an airplane that is defined as aerobatic by the FAR. Tex Johnson demonstrated this famously in the 707 back in the day. I would have serious reservations about whether a mooney could do a vertical maneuver (loop/split s/cuban) without damaging it. But consider the consequences. A small screw up can easily put the airplane into a state where the AoA, airspeed, load factor, are easily exceeded. We fly slick airplanes. It will not take much of a vertical deviation to exceed limits. We also fly airplanes that don't spin well. Do yourself a favor, if interested, and get some instruction in an aerobatic aircraft from a good instructor. You'll take away a lot from it. Without fucking up your plane or killing yourself. I would hope you'd come away realizing that there is nothing magical about bank angle. About how to recover from upsets. About how quickly things can change, and how you should not be doing this in a Mooney. CFI/ATP/did a bunch of basic aerobatics many years ago in Citabrias

I can't help but just wanted to chime in to jump on and say the FAA sucks and is wrong with this one (when they changed how slow slow flight should be). Done the right way, stall horn blaring, an occasional buffet, right on the edge, the induced drag is sufficient to avoid the red RPM arc. And I agree about the 99 knots thing. I mean a vintage mooney cruises in the yellow if you want to. What is "slow". Sorry. Ranting!

Can't help you on the proper lengths (but sometimes the parts catalog offers a clue). If its qty 2 of the same part.... they should be equal length. What I can tell you is that people do screw it up replacing parts. I just changed my hoses between engine and oil cooler. It was a good thing I went with the numbers in the parts catalog and what precision hose had on file... the prior (replaced) hoses had one that was 3" off, and the installer routed it strangely to accomodate, creating rub and wear and other issues.

I used pick to remove the sealant that fills the little channel between wing skin and top of access panel. Then a putty knife. Its not that hard to remove. But I say that after having done it a few times. Go slow. Patience is a virtue. The panel under the wing walk is a lot more difficult due to fuel tank sealant holding it in (Because it is stepped on) vs access panel sealant. The cleaning and prep work to re-install the panel properly is substantial. It is easy to have the knife go too far and nick some sealant in the tank, past the edge of the panel. be careful of that.

Ok interesting thanks. Late last year both my governor and oil hoses started leaking, and those were creating a big mess like you describe. The sump gasket - FOR NOW - makes enough to have some oil on the bottom of the sump after 2-4 hours flying, without much of that beginning to drip down to the bottom of the cowl. It sounds like its a lot less than you are dealing with. Of course it won't get better...

Vance - my engine has 17 yrs/almost 1800 hours. Same situation, bottom end good, cylinders look good, but soft seals giving out. This year I've chased down a bunch of oil leaks. But I've got one pesky leak in the same area (sump gasket). Have already done: Rocker covers done a long time ago, induction, oil drainback, prop governor OH recently, oil hoses to the cooler.... We haven't touched the oil pan yet. That seems like the last one. Just curious, have you tried anything? Re-torquing, exterior sealants (I'm assuming nothing along that gasket is pressurized)??

OK with me, but to be fair, gotta call that 1918 pandemic the Kansas flu. ... As for me: Sign me up for the shot! But at age 40, it will be a while. "Essential" (transportation) job.... sounds like that stuff may be brushed aside in favor of going by age, which is probably better.

Have your buddy make sure the tapes are pulled/saved. Based on the information provided, the controller screwed up. Now if the clearance was, say, cleared xyz approach runway 9, circle runway 18, that would be different....

I can think of one airline captain I've worked with who was an IA, and further had a side-hustle doing pitot-static inspections. As for me.... ATP, no A&P, no IA - but looking down the road, I am thinking building an RV is likely. Enough has been done to the 'vintage' Mooney to make me comfortable taking that step, and it would be a multi-year project but would end with a new airframe and the ability to legally sign for my own work, not to mention the better / lower cost avionics.

3m strip caulk... dirty hands... no leaks.

Welcome! M20E was my first airplane. Still have it, 13+ years later. Old machines and not getting any younger. They are a lot of fun, but time consuming. gsxr.... I respectfully disagree about the Arrow in one key aspect: Altitude performance. The normally aspirated arrow is an absolute dog at any significant density altitude. Our Mooneys have wonderful wings for flying high...

They're in the QRH under "unreliable airspeed indication"... and a good training program will go through scenarios that have you use that and practice, as well as giving some easy pitch/power/altitude #s to use as a starting point. I am newer to the bus and did not touch it until well after AF went into the drink, so I cannot comment on how the manuals were prior to that incident... but it is there now.

Boy that reminds me of another option... the MD80 magnetic compass. In back of the cockpit, seen with a rear view mirror. If its good enough for Douglas why not for us mounted in the hat rack?

I experienced no issues just kicking out the crab. Works great. Very little need for any roll input unless it was near limits. Given that its been nearly a year since I've flown Fifi I have trouble remembering exactly where I'd kick it out, but I seem to recall it was after the round-out began... quite late, so I must have been in the flare pitch law, or whatever they call it.... but I am an FO with 2500hrs on the bus, sounds impressive to GA pilots but as you know that is not all that much time in line flying, so take my comments with a grain of salt Some folks liked to use a little sidestick input to help grease their landings.... one MLG down, delaying full ground spoilers, and all that. Cheaters

Wants vs needs. How much utility do you need? If you can fly direct fix /G and shoot an ILS you are more than well enough equipped for training. If your home field, or a frequent destination, has low IFR frequently and an approach where WAAS gets you in, but no ILS or other suitable approach with low minimums, then there utility. Will you be flying in conditions like that often? Wants vs needs. What would that money do invested? How much is each approach worth??? Get your training done, get some real IFR flying, in see how much you'll really do, and then decide. How about this equation: Panel upgrade cost / # of approaches flown with new equipment that you could not do with your existing equipment / year. Is it $100 per approach? $1000? $10,000? I am going to take a wild ass guess that it is somewhere north of $1000 per approach. You can decide if its worth it to you. And I think the optimal sequence would probably be avionics, interior, paint. Avionics will require removing interior. Avionics may require antenna replacement.

Dan I should have clarified - the liability insurance still seems somewhat reasonable. I was questioning what determines someone's resistance point to dropping hull coverage and going liability only.

Check this out: https://www.gen-aircraft-hardware.com/ They have detailed PDF files showing the dimensions of the fasteners they sell. Very useful for identifying parts.

It raises the question again...how much is too much? When does one choose to self-insure and drop hull? How many hours a year... How many $ / hr for that hull coverage...

To #1, yes a few times over.

Another variable.. how does the fatality rate vary with flying experience? See "the killing zone" book See the FARs and how much time is required for 135 IFR PIC, for an ATP, etc..

I'd like to finish -- or get close to finishing -- my goal of landing at all public airports in California. I figure I've already done more than half (and most of the fun ones, but a few cool ones remain), why not collect them all? 4 trips ought to do it, but there is a seasonal element to it. We'll see how it works out with this covid situation for this winter. 138 down, 110 to go....maybe more than 4 trips.

I have hiked near where he went in. I have flown around there, too, taking photos of some of my favorite alpine lakes and mountain terrain. On a nice calm day with sufficient altitude one could glide to a number of safe landing sites. Then that gear might come in handy. But around the rocks, next to them, with some wind, and you are like a leaf getting tossed where ever, which is what sounds like what happened to Steve.

I don't understand the fixation on IFR flying over the mountains in a piston single..... unless its the I Follow Roads variety. I40 from ABQ, hang a left around the meteor crater, or Show Low., or Flagstaff (hey, Sedona area looks really cool from the air). But there are lots of ways to do it. Philosophically I am with @KLRDMD... VFR is better. If IFR is used as a traffic avoidance technique, then file from some fix near PHX and pickup in the air after most of your trip is behind you...

About the only good thing (These days) about a vacuum AI is that the R&R is pretty easy and should not be time consuming. If you do keep it, it might be wise to consider replacing the vacuum system's filters as well, if they weren't done recently. Those were more effort to change because of the other junk nearby back there. Also have a good look at your hoses... one vacuum line to my gauge was turning itself into rubber swiss cheese a number of years ago.... who knows, maybe that would solve your problem?