rturbett

Looks like I will be there on Monday evening through Thursday morning. N3513H

Great advice-Thank you. Earlier this year, I went to a 3000 foot grass strip. Even though there was a good pirep on field condition, the grass was taller and wetter than I expected. Takeoff roll was much longer than expected- I nearly aborted. I had much more fuel on board than needed. It was a great teaching moment, hence all my questions. Rob

I'm imagining the responses already- But, there is a grass strip I would like to visit- 2200 listed, 2400 actual usable. I've often been told to RTFM, so I've made a point of studying before posting. I was surprised to see that in my POH, there is no chart in the performance section for taking off or landing on grass. The POH issued 12-28-78, and based on the weight and balance data, has been with the plane since day 1. (1980 M20J) I've seen other high performance take off and landing posted online (scanned, difficult to interpret). I have very little concern on landing, but would love a definitive source for calculating take off, especially considering the increased density altitudes. I have excellent data on runway condition before arrival. Any source for calculating high performance take offs on grass would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Rob

Thank you for the time and effort you put into educating me! This is exactly the information I was looking for!!!

My mechanical tach was placarded as being 100rpm off, so we had it overhauled at last annual. I checked it with an optical rpm (device placed on the dash), and now see it has improved, but is still off by 80 rpm. I'm curious on the accuracy of the digital tachs- do they get their information the same way, but display it nicer? Thanks, Rob

heres a little late follow up- this twitching has persisted. we rebuilt the alternator with no change. I do feel better about the new brushes and diode though, so not wasted- But, I tracked the ground and when I touched it, Black wire/ pink cover it fell off the bus... cleaned it, squeezed it, reattached. Seems to have fixed it. I did impress my local mechanic.... I told him any time I had an electrical problem with a car, it was always a ground issue... I have a nice vid of the ammeter before and after, but don't know how to load it here Rob

Just waiting to hear the responses.. this has nothing to do with altimeters and dirt.... Is there a list of all the grounds and their locations on a 1980 m20 J? I'd love to clean each location. I've gone through the service and parts manual, but can't find what I hoped would be there. Thanks, Rob

All great advice- Thank you! Rob

So- as I build up my experience and start stretching some of my comfort zones- I'm used to adding 1/2 the gust factor to my approaches. Usually not a problem, as there is usually part of the wind component coming down the runway. Last flight, the wind was 90 degrees to the runway. I accepted that I would have some extra speed, and touched down further down the runway. (no other runway options) Any tidbits on what you do when presented with this situation? Thanks Rob

I've been very impressed by the electronic magneto installed on mine. The surefly has almost zero drop in rpm when its tested in runup.

working on the same issue- turned off strobes, etc with no change. Pulled the alternator breaker and it completely went away with the clearest radio communication imaginable. Working with the mechanic to check all wiring, and likely put an inline filter. The alternator was just rebuilt, ( new brushes and a diode) but the problem existed before. Rob

To heck with the trim switch- tell me about the cup holder!

Nice write up!

If the covers are good, the foam inside can be replaced for about $150 in foam / materials and and two hours work.

I was gifted a plug in timer that would turn the engine heater on every morning and off every evening. Sounded like a great idea to me, but when I discussed it with my mechanic he said DON'T DO IT. He's said he has seen multiple engines ruined by people who have done this. Apparently the daily repetitive cycles causes a significant layer of condensation on the top inside of the engine. So now I am trying to find out who has extended wifi on the field already. Reception in the hangar is a challenge, so I will work on a boost antennae. Previous owner left the plane plugged in all the time with no issues. Happy holidays from 26 degree KSDC! Rob