Dale

When I started flying I was taught to never touch that prop to move the airplane. When I bought this mooney the MSC told me that if I was going to move the airplane by hand to only use the base area of the prop to move the plane. They said the cowling etc was not strong enough, like the prop, to do that. I questioned this with their mechanics and they insisted, said the warnings from the company and prop manufacturers were warnings to avoid prop injury should prop move. Have a good friend who I use to practice law with, has an undergrad degree from Embry-Riddle and does aviation law. I will ask and see if he knows if the warnings were for injury purposes or if they were to prevent damage to the aircraft. I resolved my concerns with the issue by purchasing a robotow to move the plane. I find this to be another thought provoking discussion. Thanks for everyone posting their thoughts on this subject.

I have flown into both and find that for whatever reason that Everglades City seems a little easier. It may be due to the more favorable wind direction or the way the approach ends of the runway sets up at Everglades City. Ultimately, its full flaps and no more than 75 knots on final, anything more and the ground roll may be longer than expected. Here is a photo a friend of mine took of my landing when we both flew to Everglades City a couple of weeks ago. My wife and I brought our bikes and had a great time riding around Everglades City and getting lunch at the seafood restaurants. It really is a nice trip, you just have to make sure you keep your approach speed at 75 knots or less, anything more can be a problem.

You know it's weird. I just had my oil changed by a MSC last week. I ask them to add some camguard to the oil. They changed the oil in the morning and I was picking up the plane that afternoon. When I came out to get the plane they told me I had to wait for a few minutes for them to add the camguard to the oil. I ask them why they didn't do it in the morning after they changed the oil. They mechanic told me it was best to add the camguard right before you start the engine, so it would properly mix with the other oil in the plane and not to add it and let it sit for even a couple of hours without running the plane and bringing up the oil temperatures in the engine. I didn't think much about this until I saw your post. I know wonder if this would apply to putting in fresh oil. Camguard is an additive so maybe that is the real difference. I would be interested in what others say about this also.

The look of the Cirrus is nice, but it still doesn't compare to a Mooney, any Mooney. I also still like it when controllers ask the plane in front of me on an approach to speed up because they have a Mooney behind them or alternatively, ask me to slow down more because I have a Cirrus in front of me. I was flying into Asheville this past summer and a number of planes were converging on the Asheville airport at the same time for the Fourth of July weekend. The controller was asking all the pilots to keep up their airspeed on the approach due to the large amount of traffic. The controller was repeatedly asking the Cirrus in front of me to keep his speed up on the approach and telling him there was a Mooney behind him that was rapidly overtaking him. I don't know, you say you fly a Cirrus, or a Cessna, or a Piper and other pilots say that's nice. You say you fly a Mooney and other pilots take notice. Just my humble opinion. As for the myths, all planes have them, true or untrue. I can remember everytime someone saw a V tailed Bonanza they would say there goes another V Tailed Doctor Killer, etc. Some myths live on for a plane's life, whether true or untrue and it becomes part of the fabric of the brand or model. Mooneys may just have more of them, whether justified or not.

I had the same problem this past year. I took it into the shop and they found that when they checked some of the wiring that one of the wires had worn through the rubber and had been scraping against the metal causing the High Low Volts Annunciator to come on. It was a pain in the butt finding it, but once they did, it fixed the problem.

Do you know if Gayle does the work in a hanger or do you just leave the plane on the ramp at Venice? The price is not bad considering that the cost of removing the yokes and cutting and splicing the wiring that goes along with removing, and then replacing, the yokes is not insignificant. Along with the downtime of the airplane.

Mazerbase, I am based in Florida and I would also like to get the information for the person who does the work at KVNC. Thanks for your help.

In my 262 M20K the POH says for a normal climb use 32" MP and 2500 RPM. For best rate of climb, and best angle of climb, my POH says 36" MP and 2700 RPM. Same numbers for a go around. I generally climb out at 36" MP and 2690 until 1000 feet and then I go to normal climb at 32" MP and lower the RPM from 2700 as per the POH, although i like to keep the RPM higher than the book, so the turbo doesn't have to work as hard. Engine temps all very good on climb out.

This past weekend my wife and I flew into Eveglades Airpark in Everglades City, Florida. We took the folding bikes so that we could bike around the City and try some of the famous seafood restaurants Everglades City is famous for. What a riot. It is a beautiful little airport, runway is not long at 2400 feet, but it is incredibly scenic all around the airport. A friend of ours in the hangar across from us left right before we did for Everglades City in his RV-6A and took a couple of pictures of my landing and our folding bikes for us when we got there. The bikes, once again, worked out perfectly. It was certainly the right buy for my wife and I. As I stated, the little folding bikes really worked out nicely again. They airport had bike rentals, but all their bikes were rented. It was no concern of ours, since we brought our own bikes. We spent about half a day biking around the City and going to some of the seafood resaurants along the waterfront. The seafood was excellent and they were having specials for all you can eat stone crab claws. We intend to come back and perhaps stay at the Rod and Gun club or one of the other quant little resorts located in Everglades City. I understand the Hemingway was a frequent guest of the Rod and Gun Club, and this little town has a lot of history to explore. If you haven't been here, I would highly recommend it. Your can rent bikes for about 6 dollars at the little FBO, or bring your own. If you would prefer to ride, pick out a seafood restaurant and they will pick you up. There are 10,000 pristine islands in Everglades City and you can rent a kayay, canoe, motor boat or charter an airboat or power boat for a guided tour. The fishing is suppose to be spectacular here. You can see why, it is really off the beaten track. I understand that the Airport has a Pancake fly-in ever 2nd or 3rd week of the month. All you can eat pancakes from 10:00 am to noon. You can call the airport at 239-695-2778 for more details. They have mostly grass tie downs and the self serv fuel is very reasonable. The FBO is small but well equiped and comfortable, and the staff is very friendly. When you land the staff make you feel like home. No landing fees or tie down fees for staying the day. If you tie down for a couple of days, I think it is a couple of bucks a day, not much. If you haven't been here, it is well worth the trip and don't forget, bring your bikes, it is a liitle too long to walk to everything.

I got an iPad2 with an external GPS for my WingX program and I got a shirt and key chain with Mooney emblem on them.

I owned my first Mooney, an M20E, N5817Q for about 20 years. In March of this year, I bought an M20K 262, N5810Q, and I have had the plane for 10 months.

Cedar Key is a nice place for a fly in. Runway is a bit shorter than most at around 2300 feet, but no tall obstructions on the approaches. Everglades City Airport, X01, is also a great place for a fly in. Similar to Cedar Key, a short runway, about 2400 feet, but no obstructions on the approach ends and a lot to see and do in the area. I flew into Everglades City this past weekend and biked around the town and went to eat at one of the numerous seafood restaurants. A lot of history at Everglades City, just like Cedar Key. Everyone would have to be use to the shorter runways, but there is a lots to see and do, if you have a bike or don't mind walking.

I measured the bike folded up and its dimensions are approximately 26 inches long x 12 inches wide x 20 inches high. I removed the seat to the bike when putting it in the plane and just placed the seat on top of the bike bag. Again, these are approximate dimensions, I used a tape measure when figuring my dimensions but it may be off by an inch or two. The bike bag makes the bike seem a little larger but keeps everything pretty clean in your plane. if you have a 21 inch long baggage area, you should be able to manuever the bike as the width and height seem to work. You may be able to stand the bike up, even in the bike bag. I hope this helps. Merry Christmas to everyone.

I think it only looks longer because of the way the photos were taken (resolution was not so good and lighting poor) and the fact that I have both of my rear seats reclining in the forward position. It appears to look like a lot more room, but I don't think it is any larger. When the seats are reclined back, the baggage area looks a whole lot smaller.