231Pilot

A lot of people have been showing pictures of their new leather interiors, and they are very beautiful. Since useful load is an important issue to most Mooney owners (including me) I am curious as to the difference in total weight of a leather interior compared to a fabric interior. Let's face it, if the 30+ lbs. difference that a set of bladders can add to the weight of an aircraft can bring about heated exchanges on this board, any significant weight difference in interiors should be information that those who are considering interior refurbishments (possibly me) would want to know. So if you install interiors, or if you have had one installed recently, what, if any difference is there between the two...not between your new leather interior and your old fabric one, but between new installations of each material? Thanks for any and all feedback.

I just sent my '82 201 to Jimmy Garrison at All American. Good plane, but I have moved to a region where the elevation and MEAs really call for a turbo. Watch his web site for N36CE, if our deal works out it will be an excellent plane for someone. Approach certified GNS430 terrain-non-waas (with extra datacard), KX165, 2 glideslopes, MX20, WSI weather, Garmin 327, KMA24, KAP AP coupled to GS, JPI EDM700, King slaved HSI, vertical card compass, 1300hrs on Airframe and engine, good compressions, new shock discs, GAMI injectors, Hoskins FT 101 fuel flow, tires are 3 years old and portable oxygen. Paint and interior are original but still OK. Check my gallery for pictures.

I used Gleim interactive CD-ROM practice exams, and King interactive CD-ROM course....would do DVD or online with King now. If your CFII preps you well, the oral is OK, just don't pretend you know something if you don't, and don't offer anymore information than the examiner asks for (same goes for during the ride too).

I am in the "Lives Here" which comes before the "Won't Leave" category. Fortunately, I do know my gender. Male. :-)

Don't know yet. Am in process of changing airplanes. If all goes as planned, will be transitioning from 201 to 231 (this would be my 3rd Mooney). I don't know what my status will be then. But I would like to be there for at least part of the Homecoming.

Has anyone dealt with Straube's for painting? Most specifically at the Ogden, UT facility. Heard anything really good about them? Really bad? Reports on quality, price, and service? They are close by, and just wanted some feedback from former clients or friends of clients. If you have something to say that you don't want to be a public posting, please PM me. Thanks in advance. Lew

Quote: Mitch Not really. The release mechanism is quite labor intensive so accidentally releasing it is just not in the cards at all. I love that J bar!

Not quite what you are asking for, but KGKT (Sevierville, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, TN) is close to more hiking trails than you could try in a couple of weeks. Maps and guidebooks of the Great Smokey Mountain National Park Hiking Trails are available from the National Park Service, and there are lots of cabins to rent for a weekend. I've been hiking those trails for several years and they are great. Waterfalls, bluffs, caves, mountain peaks and entry to the Appalachian Trail are available. Difficulty level from easy (paved, wheelchair accessible trails) to difficult are available. Not a day trip for you, but a heck of a way to spend a weekend, expecially with the fall colors approaching (usually early to mid October).

Nicely done.

The Mooney and the Bonanza are both excellent aircraft, each with its own particular mission. If you need more room, speed, and quality, the Bonanza may be right for you. If you need more speed, efficiency, quality, and usually fly alone or with just one passenger, then the Mooney is probably your best ride. If you are more inclined to drive a sports roadster than a high performance family car, you are probably going to be in the Mooney. The Mooney fits my mission perfectly, and I don't see myself flying anything else. Should my mission change than my choice of aircraft probably would too. In other words, it's not which plane is better, just which plane is better for you.

Interesting. My Lightspeeds offer great noise reduction, but after 2 hours, they really start to make my head hurt from the pressure. Maybe I should try a pair......

I got my instrument rating in a C and have flown in hard IMC many times in that plane. If you are concerned about ice (he has to be referring to induction icing), have a carb temperature gauge installed. Make it part of your scan, and if the temp gets near the danger zone, add carb heat as needed and lean accordingly. Carb heat works much better proactively than reactively (don't wait for the engine to sputter or stop).

I prefer wet wing (no added weight). The bladders in my J are in the pilot and passengers.

I switched to Mac in 2002 after 10 years of PC use, and have never looked back. use my work PC to handle my Jeppup grades to my Garmin Datacards. I would not contaminate (and slow down) any of my Macs (my laptop, my wife's laptop, our iMac) with Boot Camp or any other emulator software to run Windows.

Once I have a positive rate of climb established, the gear comes up. When the plane is clean, it climbs better, flys faster, puts more distance between me and terra firma.

Once I have a positive rate of climb established, the gear comes up. When the plane is clean, it climbs better, flys faster, puts more distance between me and terra firma.

Nice aircraft. Patience pays off once again!

You doing an Encore conversion Parker?

Quote: M20F I don't know what agreement Mr. K signed but I dug out my Aircraft Purchase Agreement which clearly states "Closing will be within 5 days of the completion of the inspection" followed by "Deposit is refundable with the exception of the expenses paid by Seller during transaction". As agreed by all "And in the end, after four months of non-closure on the aircraft (nearly two months after the annual was completed) we made the decision to move on". If these facts are disputed then there is some room to argue, but they don't appear disputed. I don't know specifically what if any contract Mr. K signed but would have to think it similar to mine. Why do you feel that after two months of failure to close the contract do you feel Mr. K was wronged? As noted funds less the expenses paid by seller were refunded. Would like to understand your position better as to why you feel AAA was unfair to him.

I thought I's point out that when I bought my M20C from AAA, we did a strip and paint, new interior plastics (included but installed locally) and some avionics upgrades. Basically we added about $15K to the original purchase price. Because of weather issues, the plane sat in their hangar for about 3 weeks after it was ready to pick up, and all they had was my deposit and a lot of out of pocket expenses in upgrading the aircraft. Jimmy told me he had two offers for more than $5K over our agreed upon selling price. He honored our agreement and held the aircraft for me. He could have sold it and given me back the deposit because I was almost a month late closing the sale and taking delivery of the plane. He and David are very reasonable men in my experience.

Since I first joined this site (I think December 2009) I have been on record numerous times that Jimmy and David are straight shooters and fair in their business dealings. I have bought not one, but two Mooney aircraft from All American Aircraft. A 1967 M20C (N721LP) in September of 2000, and a 1982 M20J (N36CE) in December 2006. Both have been good machines and I was very happy with my treatment. Could I have purchased cheaper planes? Sure, and I would have gotten what I paid for. Has either plane been perfect? No, but they don't come out of the factory perfect either. Would I buy from them again? You bet I would! I have relocated to the west, and a turbo is more what I need now. Have I looked other places? Sure, but Jimmy knows what I am looking for, and if he runs across it, I am confident he will contact me. I don't know All Smiles, probably never will. I have read his negative posts on AAA, and on avionics manufacturers, and it bothers me to read such vitriol. I do not doubt that he feels he has been wronged, but I do know Jimmy and David (for over 10 years now, have had David and his wife as house guests before) and I have serious doubts and serious resentment when they are trashed in the forums. In short, I teach dentistry, practiced for more than 25 years. I am not "All Smiles" but I teach smiles, and I would recommend All American Aircraft to anyone who is looking for an honest deal on a Mooney.

Interesting that the controller used the phrase "descend at pilot's discretion".....sounded to me like at least one pilot used very little discretion....just saying.

Dang Ned! That's a lot of money to pay after pre-purchase (unless you put it new avionics). My first Mooney had a pre-purchase and cost me about $7,000 in unexpected expenses, but my second one only cost me for the extras I added (MFD, WSI, JPI ED700, Garmin digital transformer, and GAMI injectors) and a couple of grand for autopilot repair. I was a lot luckier the second time around.

OK Parker, today is the 18th, how about a report on the aircraft when picked up yesterday? Pictures too. How does she fly? Enquiring minds want to know. (I'm so jealous...)

Me too. Only the photos I've posted. That's OK, I liked them when I posted them, I still like them.