Jeff_S

Hello all, For those folks who are going to make it to Jekyll Island this weekend, the informal cocktail hour for Friday evening has now been moved to the Lobby Bar at 5:30. They have decided to close The Pub due to noise complaints from guests...and to think, the truly unruly Mooney Pilots haven't even arrived yet! I look forward to meeting folks there. Cheers.

This has been addressed a few times but always bears repeating. For the best treatise on this, go to this webpage and download the Target EGT presentation from Advanced Pilot Seminars. It will tell you how to measure it for yourself. I haven't done this at sea level yet for my Mooney but I may try this weekend at Jekyll Island. In the meantime, since I have a JPI-700, I will typically start to lean above 3500' and just lean until I'm keeping about one bar visible for CHT on each cylinder. This generally keeps EGTs in the low-mid 1200's and keeps CHTs well below 350 so while I might could lean more aggressively I think it's a decent trade-off.

AMU = Aviation Monetary Unit, or any variation of acronym that implies the same thing. Since they don't circulate poor Grover Cleveland's face anymore, you're left with 10 Ben Franklins to represent the $1000 that is equivalent to one AMU. Pilots invented that term since it seems just about anything related to an airplane costs at least that much, so it lessens the emotional pain of having to talk about it.

Quote: jlunseth I have an item on my checklist to return the trim to takeoff position after landing, so my tail is always in the correct Mooney-looking position when the plane sits on the ramp. Wouldn't want someone to mistake it for a Cherokee or such like.

I've searched the site here and no one has addressed this exactly, so I thought I'd open up the question. My interior was redone by the prior owner with an Airtex product that is overall quite nice. But in doing my first annual inspection this year, the IA noted that a few of the required placards were never replaced, so to comply with the strict letter of the regs he suggested I do this. I've already contacted Higher Graphics and Steve is going to give me a good price to print just the few I need. But two of them will need to go directly on the cloth-covered interior panel area, and I suspect the standard laminated sheet I get from HigherGraphics won't quite cut the mustard. The other placards that ARE in place look like they were put onto some sort of thin sheet metal and then glued more securely onto the fabric. So, does anybody have experience with this, or suggestions for how to do it so that it looks nice and will be durable? Thanks!

D'oh! Of course that's the answer. I hadn't factored in how trim changes the whole attitude of the tail section, and in cruise flight it will be angled backward to reduce downward force from the elevator. Makes perfect sense...thanks!

Hey all, I'm hoping y'all can help me solve a question that I've had recently. It has to do with the characteristic shape and look of the Mooney tail. I've always associated the Mooney with a vertical stab that goes straight up from the empennage and then straight back, for a nice square look. But lately I've seen photos, especially of some later-model Acclaims and such (see Andy Smith's gallery: http://www.mooneyspace.com/index.cfm?action=gallery&userGallery=388) where it looks as though the angle of the stab and top are tilted slightly backward. I could swear I've even seen this on some J model pics as well. So, is this just an optical illusion, or maybe the result of the the plane being in a tail-down attitude? Or was this a slight design change at some point? I know, it's probably a silly question but I'm curious. Jeff

There will be no one right answer. From what you've said about the pre-buy inspection, there doesn't seem to be anything catastrophically wrong with the plane that can't be fixed up. The engine and prop are low flight time since overhaul, but what about actual calendar time? That's always a consideration, because if it hasn't been flown a decent amount then you have some risk of corrosion and leaky seals. When I was buying my first plane, the best advice I got was to really consider two things: Corrosion in the wings or airframe, and condition "firewall forward." Any significant corrosion in the main frame or wings was a deal-killer, as would be any significant problems with the engine. It doesn't sound like this plane has either of those. So if you can buy this for $50K, budget for $9K to reseal tanks, $9K for an exterior refinish and corrosion clean-up, and a miscellaneous $5K for engine repair (leaks and things), you've got a pretty airworthy machine for $73K. Then you decide whether you want to spruce up the interior ($8-10K), put in modern avionics ($25-50K depending on what you want) and do anything else that will make it more enjoyable. You could easily have a $150K machine but it would be pretty nice. Compare that to what you can get on the market today in something similar, and decide whether you want to "buy and fly" or "buy and fix". That will make your decision for you.

I've never heard the spider called a "transducer" before. That seems to be a pretty poor use of terminology, as the spider is what transfers fuel to the injectors. By definition, a "transducer" will transfer rate of flow information from one format to another. The most common one is the one you stated in the original post: the rate of physical fuel flow is transformed into an electrical signal which feeds the fuel-flow indicator. Similarly, there is a transducer that converts the actual oil pressure into an electrical signal which drives the oil pressure gauge.

I have a Garmin 480 tied to an S-TEC55 A/P with the GPSS system. Flying pretty much any approach can be a nearly hands-off affair. When flying an RNAV approach with GPSS all you need to do is maintain your speed...and remember to hit the APR button on the S-TEC unit outside the FAF. If you don't do that, it won't capture the glideslope and you'll wonder why you aren't descending! (Learned that one by experience of course.) When flying an ILS, the only difference is that once you are on or approach the final approach path, you need to be sure to hit the NAV button on the STEC so it will track the ILS signal instead of trying to follow GPS. (This is because the G480 will have automatically switched the CDI output to NAV, its software being much smarter than the wetware between the pilot's ears.) Otherwise you'll find yourself continuing on past the approach path and wondering why your plane isn't turning. (Learned that one from experience too!)

I wasn't familiar with SkyCharts but I'll give it a look. Also, I have been following WingX for some time and downloaded that to give it a try, but to even experiment with the moving map functionality you had to pay the $99 app fee which I thought was a bit of a rip-off so I didn't do it.

Very nice look, Parker. You're getting that AT all fixed up. As a fellow AT owner I am following your exploits closely. Mind if I ask how much the AeroComfort installation cost?

I thought I'd resurrect this thread just to give people who may still be looking for iPhone/iPad apps a feel for how awesome ForeFlight is (IMHO, of course). Today was an exercise in the type of flexibility that this app provides when plans need to change. I went out to the airport expecting an easy VFR day and short hop to get some gas and stretch the engine's legs. From the time of my weather briefing to the time I turned over the engine, a low cloud deck and haze had set in unexpectedly on my route. I didn't even realize this until I called Tower to get a VFR departure and got the icy response "the airport is IFR right now." Whoops (I said to myself, sheepishly...it moved in really fast!). I quickly opened ForeFlight on the iPhone and filed an IFR flight plan to my gas stop, and in less than 4 minutes called back to Tower who had already received my plan and gave me my IFR clearance. And I needed it, too, as the cloud deck in fact extended past my destination and I had to fly an RNAV to get in. ForeFlight on the iPad came in quite handy to help me pick which of the two approaches was best given my general location, and the iPad makes a wonderful full-size plate reader to keep it handy. Same thing getting home. File via ForeFlight on the iPhone, call in less than 5 minutes to Approach who already had my clearance, take off and head home. I have to admit, I haven't actually called Flight Service in probably two years, and yes, FF gives all the weather and briefing info you need as well to be legal and safe (briefings come from DUATS and are delivered right to the phone). People who use ForeFlight will read this and say "yeah, I already know this" but if you haven't tried it yet, and you have an iPhone or iPad, I highly recommend it. And no, this isn't a paid blog post!

What's LORAN?

So, was it the "YGBSM" that was the heart of that response? I have to admit I had to look that one up...wasn't familiar with the Wild Weasel motto. I hope my prior post was not seen as harsh or uncaring. I do realize that 3.5% of the working population is still 5 million people or so. But my point was that even in this "worst economy since the Great Depression" somehow we don't have soup lines everywhere, and Apple is still able to sell more than 2 million iPhone 4s in less than a month. So it hasn't created the sort of total, widespread economic hardship that would bring the country together and stop the petty sniping that was the OP's gripe.

America has a long history of competing interest groups sniping at each other. This goes back to the Revolution and follows through to this day. It's the natural tendency in a society that has freedom of speech and freedom of expression. (OpEd: While ours seems to be getting less and less lately, we still enjoy these freedoms more than anyone else in the world.) Yet amazingly, when times get really tough and we have to band together, we always do. Wars are good for this, as are economic difficulties. So one would think that since we are in both a war AND a recession we should be coming together. The problem is that the war is too far away, and out of the public eye. And the recession is bad but not THAT bad for all but the 3.5% of folks who can't find a job (remember, the NATURAL rate of unemployment is about 6% so only the balance of those are really looking). So while I admit the petty sniping is obnoxious, I also see it as a sign that things are pretty much normal. We go on defending our own interests like we must.

Nice video and well-written script. Looked like that first landing was a greaser! Although a technical and scientific question: can you actually fly THROUGH a rainbow? I believe the rainbow sort of goes away as you get closer and the refractive patterns of the light change, doesn't it? Of course, other people can see you fly through a rainbow...that would be an awesome pic to have!

I figure we can decide on Friday night about further activities, based on who actually shows up. We're planning on a pretty relaxing stay, haven't even rented a vehicle at this point, so will probably be dining at the Club. Sunday Brunch, as delicious as that sounds, may be a bit more problematical for us as my wife is still a bit of a nervous flyer and typically doesn't each much before getting in the plane. But she's getting better so we'll see!

Hello Everyone, I just spoke with Patty at the Jekyll Island Club and we decided that the best place to get together on Friday evening would be The Pub. It sounds like a nice, casual place, pilots generally like pubs, and it opens to a courtyard so there's plenty of room. So they will be expecting a group of Mooney Pilots at 5:30pm at The Pub on Friday, August 13. I'll send out a note to the SE Mooniacs group and posting it on that Facebook page as well. If I'm really on the ball I'll even try to get some nametags so we could look official! I look forward to meeting everyone there. Jeff

So, I tested on my work PC and had no trouble uploading an image into my Gallery. Hmm...still would like to know if anybody using a Mac has been able to upload images.

I can't seem to upload any images into my photo gallery. I select a few pics and then click on Upload and nothing happens. I'm running on Mac with Safari 5.0....are there any known issues here?

Quote: ILXLR8 I drove past OSH yesterday evening. I saw the water, then my focus went to the flags, markings and cones. I smiled and felt the power and excitement. Some storms during the week. I hope these pics help....Just come prepaired. IT IS GOING TO BE GREAT!!!

Quote: RJBrown The black on your cloth is not gunk. It is aluminum oxide. Bare aluminum will continue to oxidise. Once polished it should be sealed. I have never needed to polish my spinner as it has a clear coat on it so I have no suggestion as to how to seal it.

Quote: scottfromiowa Heed Mitch's statement on taxi off of taxi-way hardball to grass. A prop strike happened to a fellow Mooney driver another year (I was attending the MAPA Mooney Maint. class)...The drops can appear slight, but taken with anything but a creep can ruin your day...Be slow and deliberate and have fun...I'd rather get stuck (going slow...lot's of help available) than have a prop strike and related nightmare...Don't forget those grass tie-down's too...note to get mine out as they are needed in Appleton too.