kortopates

How about two high end 29er Mountain bikes plus a bike rack to boot for the rental car on arrival! I put the frames in there own nylon bags and wheels in wheel bags that hold a pair. Keeps the interior clean. Everything is secured with ties down straps rear seat belts. We like to travel on mountain biking vacations. Our 252 does have folding rear bucket seats which is probably like cheating on early models that have bench rear seat. It take less than 3 minutes to reconfigure my rear seat for cargo. But there are options for folding rear bench seats which are much more practical in planes that don't already have that.

You can certainly easily do this in 252, one of my longest legs was KMYF (San Diego)-KERV (Kerville) at 939 mi, But frankly I hate long legs like that and could only pull that off flying solo, not because of weight but for pax comfort. Even a 633 nm leg from KMYF-MMLP Lap Paz is about our limit for comfort at 3:34 in the air. The 252 is ideal for trips like this to SE Alaska and beyond. Couldn't of made it without the Turbo or without a long weather delay, as we had to climb to FL200 to get above the weather (icing) and fly in the sunshine from Bellingham to Ketchikan. And that was only a 3 hr flight. But since we were there for the beautiful scenery on subsequent leg from Sitka to Homer we flew low from 6-10K hoping to find an altitude we could at least be between layers and spent all but the start and end of that in solid rainy IMC at a cost of an extra 1/2 hr of flight time from staying low and never did get any scenery till abeam Anchorage,area but we headed for Homer on that leg. Those three legs with approx distances, and actual times and fuel are below to give an idea of 252 capabilities for Southern Alaska. So really no need to do 4-5 hr legs flying to SE Alaska. BLI-PAKT 520nm 3:00 48 Gal PAKT-PKSI 160 nm 1:27 22 Gal PKSI-PAHO 564nm 3:30 48 Gal As I am sure you are aware, the turbo gives you lots of options over a NA aircraft and the 252 excels at this with a critical altitude of 23K, service ceiling of 28K powered with the complete turbo system of the MB that runs very efficiently in the flight levels and includes dual alternators, electric standby vacuum, built-in O2, speed brakes etc.

I'd suggest the following: 0) Before flight, pick 2 or 3 power setting you want to collect data for, begin conservatively with 55% power and go up from there consecutively as long as TIT allows, such as adding another 5-10% so that you go to 60% or 65% then another 5% or 10% for a 3rd power level etc.. I would add 5% at a time. Ultimately you're looking to learn how much power % you can operate within temperature constraints you are comfortable with as well as what the specific numbers are for that power setting. Not just CHT and TIT but how many degrees LOP you are are for EACH cylinder; thus while you're collecting data you'll be looking at EGTs too. CHT is not an issue, but EGT & TIT will be in 2 possible ways. Eventually with enough power you will likely find that either that i) your TIT exceeds your comfort threshold (that could be redline or it could be a more conservative 1550-1580F) or ii) you are not able to get EACH cylinder sufficiently LOP before the engine begins to run rough (that could be 10-20F LOP for each cylinder at lower power settings to 60-80F LOP at higher power settings approaching max cruise power. Don't pull these numbers out of hat, but read Deakin's Pelican Perch (see avweb) articles and allow your self to make an informed decisions. Or better yet, take the APS online (or in person) class when you can. But I personally would not recommend following Mike Busch's simplified approach - at least not initially - to forget about EGT and just look at TIT. Instead first educate yourself about the process and your engine and then with proven experience in both you can elect to simplify just using TIT as your guide. But this should be only AFTER you have collected the data to prove to yourself that all your cylinders are sufficiently LOP for the given power setting configuration you intend to use. If you don't want to do this, then just stick to lower power settings such as around 60% to keep your engine out of trouble. This is only a real concern for us turbo guys since the NA aircraft can't operate at high power settings LOP unless they're flying real low to begin with. With a turbo we can get into trouble real quick. So you are ready to begin your flight once you have i) calculated fuel flows and ii) pre-planned temperature limits for TIT (single limit for all pwr settings) and a minimum target degrees LOP for each cylinder based on power setting. Additionally for optimum data collection results, I would recommend i) changing the data sampling rate to 1 sec from the default of 6 (e.g. JPI) if your unit allows, and ii) know how to put your engine analyzer into LOP mode rather than ROP mode when you press the lean button. In flight, the following is just one way to do this that allow accurate data collection. But if possible take a safety pilot up with you to help with data collection and/or traffic watching. 1) climb at max power to altitude typically ~36" with an intercooled 231 or 252 (but whatever your intercooler documentation suggest), max rpm (2700 GB/LB/MB or 2600 SB), full rich. You should find that it runs cooler (CHT and TIT) at max power with full rich than it does using the POH cruise climb power setting in your POH. 2) level off and set power to your first power setting, suggest 55% ROP per your POH, using the prop RPM you customarily use for cruise flight. Configure cowl flaps as required (hopefully closed) 3) allow plane to stabilize in temps and speed. If desired, also write down Indicated air speed and fly 3 GPS tracks at 120 degrees apart to calculate True air speed later at both ROP and LOP for each power setting to allow for comparison later. 4) Begin the lean test, set your engine analyzer into LOP mode. Then slowly lean the mixture to your pre-calculated fuel flow for the desired power level (e.g., 55% = 9.5 gph). Once at target fuel flow, start raising MP slowly to continue leaning the mixture. While doing this, you are watching lean find operation in LOP mode on your engine analyzer. It will inform you when the first cylinder peaks, and as you continue leaning it will indicate each cylinder as it peaks. When the last cylinder peaks it will then indicate how many degrees LOP the last cylinder is as you continue to add air (i.e. continue to lean by adding air). Stop leaning when either you reach your target number of degrees LOP or get roughness that would make a back seat pax nervous (that's not very much). At 55%, even running at peak is safe, but you want to ensure all cylinders are running LOP, including the last to peak with at least your targeted number of degrees LOP before going to a higher power setting. After familiarizing yourself with the literature (e.g., Deakin's articles) you'll see at 55% you are fine just running at 10 LOP. At 55% power this should be an easy exercise and useful learning experience. In performing this, you will have learned you may or may not have a large variety of variation in degrees LOP between your cylinders. For example, your last to peak may be only 10F LOP while your first to peak may now be 60-80F or even more LOP. This variation is what leads to the engine roughness we often get with continued leaning and stems in part from how well balanced our injectors are but can also vary significantly due to potential issues in your induction system or ignition system. I am only making these points to underline the importance of collecting the data at the cylinder level before you begin to lean solely based on TIT; especially at high power levels. But once you've convinced yourself every cylinder is running sufficiently LOP for any given documented power level settings then you should be comfortable moving on to quickly leaning to your documented power setting (FF, MP & RPM) and just using TIT to tell you your engine is running as expected. Many skip this important data collection stage, but given the cost of our engine's I personally think that's unwise. If one doesn't have a modern engine analyzer with the data collection capabilities to do this then your next safest bet is to use the TIT only method while sticking to lower power settings (<65%) till you have the proper data to support higher power settings. Without data recording capabilities you're really operating blind. Note when leaning, for the purpose of collecting this data, don't be concerned about exceeding your target TIT or even redline TIT momentarily for upto approx 30 seconds as you go back down the LOP side, but avoid a transient deviation of more than 1700F as your POH advises. Should you find you encounter roughness before you achieve your desired degree LOP for your last cylinder to peak, then there are few things you can do to help. You can first try again with a different RPM (such as going from 2400 to 2500 cruise rpm), and you can also try going from massive plus to fine wire plugs. All of this assumes you already are free of induction leaks and your ignition system including magnetos, wires and plugs are all in good shape and timing is correct but these are also reasons that can lead to engine roughness that manifest itself when LOP. So if you are encountering roughness LOP, a good diagnostic is to perform a magneto test in the air while LOP, but preferably with a low enough power setting that you have a smooth running engine and be below 12K when you perform the test. (if the engine quits on one mag, before you go back to both, pull the mixture to idle to avoid backfire and then slowly push the mixture in with both mags on till it re-lites - an unlikely event but be prepared) After the above you should feel comfortable operating LOP with a high degree of confidence based on the data you collected - not blind faith. But its a very good practice to periodically re-check your data as well as periodically perform the airborne ignition test while LOP to check the health of your ignition system. Way more than I intended to write, but hopes that helps a few folks get started with LOP ops.

Your comparing the blending of a small amount of gas into large amount of oil in radial to pouring a gallon of gas into an essentially empty crankcase? I suspect the prime candidates for an ignition source would be the same ones dictating we don't add gas from plastic gerry cans into our tanks; especially inside the hangar and why we properly ground the fuel source to the plane while refueling. Unlikely? Of course, but it has happened plenty enough to a number of people that saw their plane go up in flames from static electricity buildup while pouring gas from plastic fuel cans; especially in cold dry winter conditions. In your radial engine example, its a closed grounded system, unlike the ungrounded probably plastic gas can you're holding. Surely not meaning to pick on anyone for doing this, but its important to be aware of the risk so anyone seriously takes precautions if doing this, at least for your hangar neighbors that could include many of us!

For what its worth, the factory if of course your best up to date source for all documentation. If you take your maintenance responsibilities seriously you'll want to refer to the most current approved documentation as required by the FARs when doing any maintenance. They provide digital and paper versions. They just released an update to the digital version on many of the maint manuals that they emailed to owners of record just about a month or so ago, including the K, M, R, S & TN. The updates are for Section 5 Time Life components; thus pretty benign unless your bird is affected. They said they would be following up with the paper version this fall. For the K the proper manual is now MAN134 Rev B, yet Rev A can be updated to B with just a few change pages very easily.

Yes, you can get LED versions of the bulb from Spruce or any of the big electronic outlets (Mouser, Digikey, Newark etc). I use an LED bulb in my yoke light. Often the map light stops working when the bulb is still good. The base of the bulb can get a little corroded; especially within a loose socket that just needs a little finger tightening. Sometimes the entire bulb and screw in circular metal retainer both fall out together onto the floor and become lost. Plus its not unusual for the pilot to have no idea what the little retainer found on the floor belongs too and then it never finds its way back before becoming permanently lost and forgotten. So if you don't see a bulb, and just an open whole, look all around the cockpit floor carefully and you might get lucky.

Yes its adjustable and covered in the TCM maintenance manual.

I had a similar experience flying into a frequent destination but our first time at night. After talking to the Airport Manager it turns out I was clicking just the right number of clicks to turn OFF the lights! which was only 5 if I recall correctly and one click past high. Now I make a habit of checking in the AFD to avoid that again. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Mooneymite nailed it. In order for a FAA licensed radio repair station to fix a particular avionics unit, they have to be able to procure the documentation from the manufacturer to do so. Yet manufacturers are very different in what documentation they provide beyond installation and checkout documentation. For example, Garmin provides nothing for repair since they prefer to repair all their own equipment. Honeywell Bendix-King is an example of manufacturer that does provide repair documentation and in fact ranks repair stations at 3 levels - those that can diagnose at the major component level (such as auto-pilot components), or at the board level or IC on part the board. All boils down to availability of a manufacturer approved documentation which is no different than a Mooney factory Maintenance manual being required to perform maintenance on a Mooney.

I personally would re-think the far left quadrant. I really don't think the engine monitor deserves the important area its currently getting - this should be for your partial panel instruments which is your Quattro unit. Placed where it is, your partial panel scan is from the far left lower corner and up to the right WAAS GPS for NAV. Just my opinion but I wouldn't like that high workload in IFR conditions. Instead, I'd move that engine monitor over to the right. With all the programmable alarm capabilities in our engine monitors I really don't see the need to be able to stare at it through the flight and I fly a more complex turbo 6. But ease of scanning the backup instruments is key if you intend to fly much IFR. I understand when people are trying to get by with minimal panel cutting but it looks like you're already doing a major overhaul of it as it is. I understand your goal to have "all" your instruments on the left in easy view, but I would amend that to have all the "flight critical instruments" in view on the left and IMO neither the engine monitor nor iPad are in the flight critical domain. The Quattro is a great unit but have you been able to verify that its approved to replace your otherwise required 3 backup gauges by Aspen? Some of the manufacturers are very specific about what they approve. But maybe Aspen doesn't and allows you to use anything TSO'd for them in which case you should be good.

I am sure it was just a bit of anxiety. 92% is fine. But a mask will it make it easier to maintain saturation.You may very well have been hearing the engine missing though since our turbo aircraft use pressurized mags, but then again 17K is not at all uncommon for an Ovation with out pressurized magnetos - so really shouldn't be an issue till in the FL's.

They're usually pretty obvious by the trail of leaking oil. Doesn't usually take long before the belly is covered from oil.

Confused - what fuel totalizer is interfaced to your Garmin that only includes fuel flow and not fuel remaining like the JPI? At least that's what I assume you are saying. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

http://www.kathrynsreport.com/2014/11/accident-occurred-november-12-2014-in.html Registration suggest just a few months of ownership. Flightaware info suggest a long day of VFR flying in less than good weather. Its shows 2 flights which actually appear to be the same flight with a change to a closer destination. An initial altitude of 2500 then later at 6500 - perhaps staying below low ceilings in the departure area?

With the cost to upgrade to the new larger color 830 at 1 amu why spend $300 to fix it. I'd instead move the GPSS elsewhere if possible to make room for the larger display that enables you to read all parameters at the same time and download data via USB device - a far superior unit. If the fuel flow above is not a required primary I'd remove that to integrate into the new JPI display and move the GPSS there. Just my thoughts. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

In the Seattle area I'd highly recommend Craig Scamehorn at Command Aviation in Bellingham KBLI. He was the former head mechanic at the now closed MSC in WA that Trey recommended. There is no better engine guru in WA, he is really good and his shop at Bellingham is quite good and very reasonable.

Definitely not normal. The only time I've seen this is when the oil pump began cavitating, i.e. getting air in the suction tube inlet just as M201MKTurbo said above , from the oil level getting dangerously low. With otherwise steady normal oil pressure indications, fluctuations such as what you describe that accompany increasingly lower oil pressure are sign that the oil level is dropping to the oil suction inlet tube. They're really your last warning that the turbo is pumping oil overboard from its seal going bad. Missing that warning will allow the oil pressure to drop enough that the turbo can rapidly fail. The higher your flying the faster oil can leak past the seal; down low the leak is minimal at first. I personally would not accept it. I personally have not seen a faulty oil pressure regulator cause this but that seems like a possibility in addition to air in the system. I'd want to drop the oil pan to see what could be causing this, since it really suggest something may have fallen down into the oil pan interfering with the oil inlet at the screen. Since dropping the pan is big job, and your past mechanics have not been very helpful, I'd start with calling Bill Ross at the TCM factory ( http://www.continentalmotors.aero/Meet_the_Team/) and relay your symptoms and see what he suggests for next steps. Hopefully he may suggest some less drastic steps that can be done first, such as maybe the pressure regulator (?). But with 2 independent oil pressure indications showing the same thing I'd expect the indications to be real and you need to find the cause and get it resolved with peace of mind. I am sure you'll find TCM over the phone to be very helpful. I don't buy the turbocontroller theory since when you're not changing the power in cruise (MP, prop, fuel) and not changing the altitude the controller and wategate will have achieved pretty near homeostasis such that oil pressure changes to the wategate should be near negligible - yet you report the symptom continuously.

Exactly right Dave, you have to wonder with a dewpoint spread down to 1C in the metars we're shown before the fog rolled in with the temp only able to go lower, why wasn't the pilot already considering his plan B out? This could be an example reminder to continue risk management in the air after launching to be considering the Consequences of what is changing (e.g. narrow dew point spread, temperature dropping approaching sunset or past sunset etc); considering Alternatives - diverting; other landing options; the Reality of the conditions when getting there finding fog and asking himself/herself if his/her External Pressures to land at the planned destinations and perhaps avoid undesirable fees are interfering with his/her judgement? How about another quick review after the first failed landing attempt. Try again - really? The CARE checklist is just one way to walk oneself through the evaluation and decision making process that we should be considering whenever something changes.

Yes, the original same Lever Arm you have now is available from Mooney for the price I listed a year ago. But like you and most people in this predicament the roll pin holes had grown in size from being loose. So I ordered a new Lever Arm from Mooney before I realized my motor coming back from Globe would have bigger roll pin holes in the shaft. The larger roll pin holes was good news in that it enabled me to re-drill the my old lever arm holes to the new size and return it to "like new" condition saving the cost of the new Lever Arm. Its very unlikely that your current lever arm holes would be so enlarged that the same fix won't return your existing one to like new as well. But if I am wrong, keep in mind the new matching lever arm part is not listed in our IPC, nor had Mooney manufactured the first one as of a year ago. They just spec'd out the new motor (-513) at the time the Encore went out of production and have been using it for spares ever since so I assume the lack of demand for the new lever arm part has been pretty non-existent. So I really doubt you'll have any problem with yours either. You can get the drawing for the new spec'd lever arm from Mooney to tell you the proper size hole or just measure the new pin holes on the motor shaft when you get it back ( or I can find my copy of the drawing and email it to you). I had mine drilled by a friend in a machine shop so I wouldn't risk damage given the two holes have to be aligned up with the motor shaft, but access to a good drill press should be adequate too. Make sure both of the new roll pins are properly secured with safety wire to so that they never are allowed to work there way out. Given your description, I am sure your pin shaft holes are enlarged and you will need a new shaft. So I am sure Bobby will have a new motor out to you within a week. They're great but they can't sell them outright, only overhaul them due their relationship with Mooney.

I personally think they oversell the mounting compatibility. The truth is there is no slide in tray like your avionics tray up front and they all more or less share a compatible footprint. Mounting the unit is the smallest part of the install. All the units require a new 406 antenna to be installed as well as remote cockpit switch. If you want to include a GPS interface, then a wire will be pulled for that from your GPS along with the remote cockpit switch wire. The ONLY approved 406 antenna for under the fiberglass dorsal fin is the Artex unit using the Mooney supplied Artex antenna install kit (see SI M20-116 from Mooney for details) If your plane already has a Ameri-King remote switch that you can re-use, then you can save significant install time for that which is more meaningful in install cost than the tray mounting IMO. Depending on your Avionics guy, pulling the additional wire for the GPS interface can be significant as well. But in my case, I was already pulling the cable for the remote switch so it didn't add that much time. Given an Amer-King with GPS interface capability cost 2x the ACK E04 cost, I'd really have a good talk with your favorite avionics guy about what a full install for you will cost before paying double to save a few hours - unless you don't value the GPS interface which makes the cost delta a wash. Note that the unit that has a built in GPS certainly eliminates the install time for a GPS interface cable, but it doesn't also broadcast on 121.5 which I personally view as a very significant limitation.

That would have to be local chapter requirement. Angel Flight West, that I am a member of us, has many VFR only pilots. So it can't be a national requirement, if such a thing exist. AFW requires 250 hrs total, 75 x-county and 25 in type and 50 PIC in the last 12 months or a flight review/wings completion in the last 3 months. Really very little experience is required to donate your plane time flying for them.

Exactly, I've flown my 252 into Mulege many times over the years and other worse strips as well and never had a problem dinging my prop. In addition to the good advice above I would also suggest being careful in picking a place to turn around for departure where you neither have excessive amount of rocks or may need excessive amount of power (e.g., softer dirt/sand). If you get into trouble turning around, rather than add more and more power just shutdown and pull it around. Not such an issue at Mulege as much as some other places like Laguna San Ignacio. There are almost always other folks to help, especially if you are going down with the Flying Sam's etc.. I will also walk the strip whenever I can to pick my turn around point. Really no different piloting techniques than just being zealous with the soft field techniques for your prop's sake. The big difference that you will probably most notice going into Mulege in a low wing Mooney compared to your prior high wing Cessna experience though will be the close proximity of your wingtips to the fence on the narrow runway - it will really have your attention. Because of this hazard, I delay touch down till I am well past the pad at the threshold and right where the road is coming in from the left that runs along the other side of the fence along the runway -- i.e. a few hundred feet past the pad. By this point two things are in my favor, first the strip has widened appreciably by then and secondly any x-wind is greatly diminished by the hillside on the right starting to block x-winds at that point. You'll still have plenty of runway to roll out even if you are a little hot. Enjoy your trip down. Yeah, I've flown all over Baja and the mainland and into Central America and never gotten any bad gas, but these stories still persist.

ACK E-04 is a great deal and the provides a GPS interface from your installed panel mounted GPS - very worthwhile if you'd like SAR to know your coordinates should the worse happen. The only downside is that they do not have a certified antenna that can be installed hidden in the fiberglass where your OEM antenna is. If you want that you'd have to go with the AIRTEX unit that Mooney worked with the manufacturer to enable such an installation under the fiberglass dorsal fin and get Mooney's antenna or mounting bracket. There is a Mooney Service letter on Mooney's web site with the details but it's more than twice as expensive. Strongly recommend against getting any 406 ELT that does not also have 121.5. 121.5 is still what the local responders (e.g., CAP, etc) use for searching for the plane, not 406Mh. The 121.5 freq also provides the benefit of verifying the unit is working properly at annual without special equipment or through a service with additional fees - keeps it easy to maintain. In addition to the 406, a 496 PLB is also great added insurance. You just can't count on being able to get to it and activate it after a crash so its not a substitute for an installed ELT IMO. Realistically, my waterproof/floating ACR PLB takes two hands to open the unit and extend the antenna whereas my ACK E04 has a button that can be pushed in the cockpit to activate in the unlikely scenario you know in advance you're going down and have a second to activate it.

Your description is confusing only in that there are no ty-wraps used to secure the motor. Its secured by 4 screws & nuts to firmly attach it and tie wraps are used only to secure the wiring. Something must be amiss with your installation if a tie wrap is needed to secure the motor? I'd get it checked out by your A&P.

They are not interchangeable since the -513 has larger holes for the attaching drift pins than your older -505. That said, this is an improvement and essentially an upgrade to the original -505 motor, yet it will require drilling out the attaching the 2 lever arm pin holes to accommodate the larger drift pins (or roll pins) and installation of the larger pins. The exact affected part numbers are listed in my earlier post (that you commented on as well). See my earlier post and Lance's about whom to contact at Globe at http://mooneyspace.com/topic/8315-m20k-252-cowl-flap-motor/