rdav

I'm a bit confused by the reference to controlled VFR. What do you mean by this? VFR flight in ANY controlled airspace? VFR that is always under air traffic control? VFR within radar coverage with an assigned transponder code? All of my flights are VFR within Canada. The majority begin in a class C or D control zone, transit through class G or E airspace, and typically will end at a class C or D control zone. I'm always on a VFR flight plan. Does that mean that my flight may be on Flightaware and I don't even know it?

I have a 1500W Champion generator that works well when the temperature isn't terribly cold, but have trouble getting it to run smoothly when it dips below 25 Fahrenheit. If I do want to use it for preheat, I generally bring it home with me the night before and keep it indoors for the next morning. I also find that it needs to be running and up to equilibrium temperature in order to support the electrical load. Does anyone else have this problem?

The Namao Flying Club near Edmonton, Alberta rents a 1963 M20D. It was a bit of a trek, but that was the plane that I used for transition training before I bought FXPF.

Any idea what the load rating is for the Lasar tiedowns?

Aerospace Engineer, but lately have been working corporately to refine new product design processes

I suggest the Lasar ones as well. Work like a charm and no more worries about removing them before flight.

I'm now in the same unenviable position. I just flew my M20C on several hops across the country for the holidays, and started noticing that the plane seemed to pull to the left when the nosewheel touches on landing. After reading this thread, I did (what I thought was) a close visual inspection of the nosewheel truss with each walk-around but saw nothing obviously out of the ordinary, so I attributed it to rusty pilot skills. On the most recent landing though, she pulled HARD left when the nosewheel touched, and I had trouble making any tight right turns when taxiing. On closer inspection, there is a definite dent on the aft side of the truss, but I had all sorts of trouble actually seeing the bend. It is very noticeable when I run my finger down the backside of the truss member though. Could the damage have actually gotten worse from a few landings when the nosewheel took a sudden side load? Needless to say, I have no idea where the dent first occurred so I can't recover any of the repair costs. I will be adding a quick "feel" check as part of my preflight inspection now, and am seriously thinking about the indicator idea described on the "Nosewheel truss damage warning device" thread.

Yet another 6'2" pilot here .. and I have plenty of room in my M20C. I slide the seat 2 notches forward so that my feet rest comfortably on the rudder pedals. Much better legroom than the Cessna, but it is true that only a small child can fit in the seat behind me when I'm flying. That has never been a significant limitation for me though.

I haven't heard of this .. but it sounds like a good idea. Do you have a picture of this? What do you tie it to? The pulley, the engine block?

I had a bend in my OEM tie down rings when my plane rolled backwards after I'd tied it down. Had the structure inspected during my recent annual, and there was no problem in my case. Even so, I wanted to replace the original rings with the Lasar tie down/jackpoints and am very happy. The original rings are supposed to be removed for flight, but I was always concerned that I might strip the threads by inserting and removing them so frequently. With the Lasar rings, that problem goes away. I agree with Steve65E-NC, the one that you have installed looks quite a bit longer than the OEM part. I suspect that it wouldn't take much sideways force to bend it like that.

FAA Advisory Circular AC 20-35C recommends tying down the nose gear as well, although I have never seen an airplane tied down like that. It sounds like a sensible suggestion, particularly if the plane will be sitting for any length of time. In the AC they talk about a nose gear tiedown ring .. do we even have one on our aircraft? I used to work for a company that modified Convair 580's and had a fleet of them on the ramp. Whenever the winds would pick up, the ramp crews would scramble to hang these oil barrels from an attachment point on either side of the cockpit and fill them with what I think was water. It would prevent the nose from picking up when the wind gusted, but I was always concerned that the swinging barrels might knock the side of the fuselage.

My M20C reacts in much the same way. I do my runup at 1800 rpm, and notice that it always takes a few seconds longer during the first cycling of the prop. If I recall correctly, there is a noticeable difference on hot vs cold days. I actually use that as a confirmation that the plane is ready to go. If the prop isn't responding relatively quickly on the second or third cycling, I'll add a fourth one to be certain everything is pressurized properly. Might be overkill, but it boosts my confidence.

Congratulations on the new purchase! You're definitely going to enjoy your new baby!

I should mention .. mine is a 1970 M20C

I know that my plane has the drain at the port side wing root, but where is the one under the fuselage? Was it only included on certain model years?

You have my contribution as well. I've learned such an enormous amount from this site, and frequently look forward to checking out the latest posts here!

Seatbelt material degrades over time, so I'd doubt that original equipment belts have much value any more. Have a look at the last section of http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2001/aair/aair200104604.aspx. Manufacturer's date stamped on the pilot's harness was 1973, and when the belt was tested after an accident in 2001, it failed at less than 20 percent of the original rated strength. They surmise that UV exposure, abrasion and contamination contributed to the degradation of the belt. Scary .. I think that my 1970 M20C still has the original belts!

I did some air-to-air shots with a friend in his 182. I was nervous at first as well, but we came up with a system that worked well. The key was good communication, not even approaching each other until we knew where each aircraft was, and keeping each other in clear sight at all times. We pre-planned our flight path over a long, straight river section, which gave us a distinguishable landmark. We also selected an altitude and a frequency, and had a friend in each plane to take pictures while the two pilots manouveured the planes. The 182 launched first, and I launched a couple of minutes later. We contacted each other on radio as I approached from the rear, and kept each other well informed of our position at all times. When I had him in sight, he held altititude and heading fixed as I called out my closing range and which side I was passing on. I reduced throttle so that I passed him at almost a walking pace off of one wing while his friend took shots of my plane. As I passed and he fell behind me, he started calling out the distance. When I was well ahead, I reduced throttle further and he advanced throttle to slowly pass me while my friend snapped photos of his plane. We repeated this a couple of times, alternating shots and position slightly. We flew through Kamloops airspace during this exercise, which was a quiet area at the time. My C182 friend called ATC and advised them of what we were doing, then monitored ATC frequency with one radio while communicating with me on the other. It was reassuring to have ATC watching for traffic while we focussed our attention on our flying. One thing I would do differently .. be sure to discuss just how close you are comfortable getting before you go. When I crept up on my friend's plane the first time, he was a little bit suprised at just how close that first pass was!

These switches are definitely modern looking .. I like that! Some thoughts .. it doesn't look as though the rocking action is more than 20-30 degrees. I would want to know how easy is it to tell at a glance whether a switch is in the on or off position? Do they rely on the LED for that indication? If so, is the LED readable in direct sunlight? How much force do you need to flip the switch. Will an accidental brush against the switch in turbulence toggle it? What happens when they are tested on a vibe table? Do they tend to flip to the on position when shaken due to more mass on one side of the toggle, or worse flip back and forth between on/off positions when there is a hard gust? The company obviously intended that they be used in an aircraft. If they really are designed well then the company would have data for these questions. I would contact the company and ask for more information. What do they mean by "Meets or Exceeds All FAA & EASA Requirements". Which requirements .. there are several different ones depending on the intended purpose of the switch. Were they designed with the experimental market in mind, or part 21 aircraft, or part 25 aircraft, or rotorcraft? What aircraft have they been successfully used on in the past? Better yet, do they have a demonstrator that you can take a ride in so you can judge the useability of the switches in actual flight conditions. Any excuse for a free ride

Does anyone else have a little "wiggle" in their control yoke? I can push/pull the yoke at the edge (around where the hand grips are) and feel a definite click as the yoke rotates around the mounting bolt without moving the shaft fore/aft. The movement in the yoke is scarcely visible though. Is mine the only Mooney with a wobbly yoke, or is that normal? I've been digging through past posts, Mooney Service Bulletins/Instructions and the SMM, but haven't found any description of the allowable play at the control yoke itself, although there are defined vertical free-play limits for the rudder trailing edge. At what point would you be worried about this? Any ideas how I could eliminate this movement?

I had a similar issue trying to decode my weight and balance sheet. I have a few mods on my plane, and the W&B amendments for each one will have some margin of error. That error just accumulates the further you get from factory new. To be certain of the result in the end, I had the shop put the aircraft on scales and give me the true weight and C of G numbers.

They probably get a few cents every time someone clicks on one of the hyperlinks and they successfully redirect a customer to the other website. Users need to be very cautious about where they enter username and password information! Be certain that you're on the right Mooneyspace site before you type any of this data into the browser. My bank offers a free download of software that flags you if you enter one of your passwords on the wrong website .. but you have to be willing to trust that a keystroke monitor is watching you as you browse, and is retaining encrypted copies of the passwords that you want to protect. It's kind of like flight following .. but for web surfers. For those interested, check out the "Provide Free Security Software" tab under http://www.bmo.com/home/about/banking/privacy-security/how-we-protect-you. (By the way, the link above should contain www<dot>bmo<dot>com. If you don't see this, then you may be viewing the Mooneyspace clone webpage!)

My interpretation is that so long as you have the required minimum VFR equipment listed in the POH in operational condition, there is no structural damage as a result of the missing interior (none of what you describe sounds structural to me), and you can complete all of the ground pre-flight checks successfully, then you have an airworthy aircraft that complies with the Type Certificate and can be flown legally in accordance with the regs.

Did you see this Mooney Mite suspended from the rafters? Here is a view from the third level walkway ..

I inflate both the mains and the nose to 30 lbs in my M20C, but it always seems that the nose wheel looks a little flatter than the mains. Does anyone else notice this, or is my imagination playing tricks on me? Has anyone seen a noticeable change in the way the tires look as the aircraft is loaded to forward vs aft C of G? With full tanks and no passengers, my CG sits at 44.6 inches, which is near the middle of the limits.