HRM

Some thoughts: How important is the prop to a single-engine aircraft? This should guide your decision time on action. The value of an honest prop-shop cannot be overestimated. Period. Find one, expend what is necessary to do so. Not only honest, but knowledge of your prop model and manufacturer. Don't fly alone.

Sooooo nice!

There is a recent, extremely long thread on "Do I need a PPI" or some such. Read it. Return and check out this E based on what you learn.

This E is being given away.

I for one have only heard good things out of LASAR--I even put their Wiser-Visors in the Mistress--remember, she only gets the best

Of course, that was the year I had no life (I graduated a year later). That was also the year a CS buddy called me to tell me they had a Mac at the Creative Computing store in Las Cruces, NM. We all ran down to look at it. Stared in awe. "How many programs can it run?" -- "Two: MacPaint and MacWrite." "How do you program it?" -- "You don't."

Would you allow your son to ride in your car sans a seat belt? How about on a boat out in the gulf without a life preserver? Sorry to be harsh, but the damage from noise is insidious and long term, as well as irreversible. Just because it does not cause pain does not mean it is not causing damage. Wear A20's to drown out his yells until he realizes that you are not backing down.

Something flaky this way comes...

I still say "it depends". Buying a near 50 year old aircraft is a risk no matter how you slice it. In my case, the first three annuals after I bought the plane were squawk-free and she flies far better than I do. The fourth annual some squawks appeared that were just old age. I guess I could have insisted that every part on the plane be new when I bought her, but think about how ridiculous that is. Also, don't ignore the pilot side of a purchase. If the pilot/owner is willing to compromise then those compromises will rear up and bite you later. This is a tough thing to detect and this is where if you have no knowledge of the guy flying the plane that you are thinking of buying, then you had best have a thorough and very competent PPI. This pretty much says volumes: ...for me at the time, the litmus test was that the term of the deal was that he would fly it 4 hours to my home...

To answer the thread question I am going to use my infamous general purpose answer that students hate: it depends. As others have stated, the PPI reduces uncertainty and mitigates risk. What is that uncertainty and risk? It clearly has to do with the condition of the machine. It is fairly easy to cover the condition of an aircraft with a paint job, or poor or missing records. Poor condition may also be occluded by a 'fresh annual'. I did not do a PPI when I purchased The Mistress. When I first saw her I was smitten by her beautiful paint job, but somewhat repelled by her ragged, original interior. I was intrigued by the fact that the PO had rebuilt the engine himself along with an A&P. He kept copious records and was a fellow engineer. I felt I could trust him. The PO had to sell the plane for medical reasons. It was clear to me that I was getting a bargain. When I flew her I knew I had to have her. She flew as if God had turned a bird into a machine. When I learned that her annuals for over a decade had been done at an MSC in Longview, I decided to call the owner of the shop and get his opinion. "It's a good aircraft" was all I needed to hear. I have not looked back and I fly one of the best E's in the fleet--truly Super. So, no you do not need a PPI, it just depends...

Let he who is without sin cast the first plug gasket.

Landing Cessnas always remind me of this:

Alas, the wife will not fly with us--bad experience years ago in a 152. The whole point of a French mistress is that it isn't cheating ...and yes, the innuendos and double entendres between a Mooney and her owner abound (cockpit, Johnson bar, tight squeeze, pinched, pulled, ....).

Comment.

My E is called The Mistress because she is like a French mistress, the ones that co-exist in an eternal stand-off with the wife. She lives apart from the family and I pay her living expenses. The wife begrudgingly accepts her existence. She gets all sorts of expensive baubles and attention and when we go out together, she might as well be sipping champagne. The kids love her, they even put together a photo album about her. Did I mention that she's super?

What? No one is going to intone the old saw?

Frankly, you did good (I am an engineer and a pilot) and you illuminated, no pun intended, a very interesting issue that many will profit from. I was just being tongue-in-cheek about the course, but my smart-aleck (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, no?) molecular biologist son took it and declared himself an EE--so enjoy!

...and I'll bet you didn't even take the EDx course like I suggested. The LED is a diode, the 'D' in LED. Back in the 60's, no one would have imagined an LED capable of replacing a filament bulb in this application. After earlier discussion in the prior thread one must consider mods that might affect critical systems. Recall "Butterfly Effect" and "Rule and Context Regression"? {critical systems : landing gear}

The most Super of the Super 21s.

Not weird at all. Locate schematic. Take this course. Problem solved. Hint: the fun part about LEDs is that they are not resistors

The simple reality is that the notion of a certified aircraft was created to protect life and property. You cannot separate the notion of a certified aircraft from that of a licensed pilot. As technology advanced, the idea of an idiot taking a ton or more of metal into the air and then having it come down at high speed pretty much anywhere is not an idea that I subscribe to. At some point, they realized that the rules had to be partitioned to accommodate different aviation uses. Always understand that the they is us. Non-aviators did not write the rules (they influenced them, yes). As Pogo famously said: we have met the enemy and he is us. Since this is federally managed, nothing moves quickly. Just ask a physician about the FDA, or a telecom engineer about the FCC. Don't bother asking an attorney about the law in general, they will take a long time in responding and then bill you for their opinion. The fact that attorneys dominate the regulatory space in general is predominantly why the problem exists. Can we do without them? Regrettably, no. We realized, as Americans, that we did not want to stifle ingenuity and personal invention. That is what the homebuilt space is for. If you want to play in that space, go there. Lastly, we still ask incredulously: Why can't we just stick a better, cheaper product in our <certified> plane? The answer lies with the way the bureaucratic machine works. There is a concept at work here called rule and context regression. It affects how one rule change can have a devastating impact on other rules. Not unlike the so-called Butterfly Effect. It is too complex to go into here, just suffice it to say that one way around it is just do what you want to do and take your chances. Myler's law of insignificance comes into play and states that the more incredulously ridiculous and penny-ante the law is applied to your situation, the more likely you are to get away with infracting it.

Well said. Forget about the maintenance, etc.--the plane is just a joy to fly. Of course, the assumption is that your Mooney is in good shape maintenance -wise

I just think they ought to require you to list your Mooney's N-number. If you don't have one, then you get the label: I have no Mooney, hence I have no life. Lastly, if your Mooney is Super you get to bounce people off the list.

Thanks, that scared me for a moment. I have the sturdy A1A workhorse.

Well, I hate to sound like the Dowager, but What's a A3B6D? For that matter, What's a C/E? Sounds like an abomination. Can't be Super, can it?