markeg1964

Mine looks like it is made of cardboard or something that has been covered in fiberglass and painted flat black. It is held in place with Velcro. It works very well. I did not realize it was home built until I removed it and saw the rough edges that are out of sight.

I have a M20B and my A&P recommended P/N 77852. He preferred not to use a remote mount and said this adapted works well on Mooneys with limited space behind the motor. I thought it would be hard to change the filter without making a mess but it is not hard at all. I’ve been really happy.

What is the vicks vapor inhaler for?

I’m a low time pilot who learned in a Cessna 170 that I flew for five years and then traded it for a M20B. At the time of the trade, I had 278 hours. The transaction was a non event as I think the M20B is easier to land than the 170. The 170/172 is a MUCH better training aircraft but the transaction is not hard - just more to pay attention to. I’m just finishing my first annual with the M20B and aside from a prop overhaul (something I was planning on), the cost of the annual is similar to that of the 170. The Mooney has cost me more during this first year as I’m spending more money on avionics. I think the Mooney lends itself to spender upgrades. For example, I installed a fuel flow computer last year in the M20B. I would not have even thought of it in the 170. I also added a CDI for the GPS. A handheld was all that the 170 needed. All that to say I don’t think the Mooney is that much more expensive to maintain, however, I do think you will spend more maintaining it. I do love flying 40mph faster on the same fuel or even faster on just a little more.

I don’t have much night time but I really enjoy flying my M20B at night. Something about the Mooney makes it much more enjoyable than the Cessna I learned in. To build confidence I started flying at sunset staying out a little later each time. Following is a video I took while becoming comfortable in the Mooney at night. http://www.youtube.com/user/markgunnison#p/u/10/DDmIIeEsdfU No hickups so far though!

I traded a C-170 for my M20B about a year ago. I’m about your size – 5’11” with broad shoulders. I measured both planes and believe the M20B is the same size or even an inch wider. The M20 does feel smaller though. There is less headroom in the M20B and because it has one door and you sit low it feels smaller. It is harder to climb into and out of the M20B which also makes it feel smaller. I’ve noticed most first time passengers comment on how small it feels when they get in but then realize once we start flying that is it actually roomy. I think people think of Mooney’s as being a tight fitting airplane is due more too how you get into the plane then its actual size. There is a real size issue though for people with short legs. I have a friend with short legs who can’t apply full rudder even with the seat on the first stop.

I hope to fly from the Portland Oregon area (7S3) to a grass strip south of Seattle (49WA). I also hope to make a sightseeing flight probably south of the Portland area.

My home airport has a 2465ft runway. In my M20B is it not an issue. Following is a video I took last winter landing at the strip shortly after getting the Mooney: http://www.youtube.com/user/markgunnison#p/u/0/1_hOuEY2z6Q Looks like my shortest is a 2350ft

My plane is a M20B which uses a 100W bulb. I believe yours uses a 250W. However to answer your question, my bulb is a GE 4537. Yes, you just remove the screws and the lamp pulls out. Check your aim before putting the screws back in.

A little off topic but last night I realized my landing light is out and I hope to make a night flight this evening. To my surprise Napa has a replacement bulb for my M20B in stock. Same part number but listed for a Sport Aircraft on the Napa label. It was about $5 more than what Chief sells it for so not a great deal but good to know I can get one on short notice.

I transitioned from a Cessna 170A with springy gear – the plane I learned to fly in – so I find my M20B easy to land. I do find it hard to hold the nose wheel off as long as I would like and I have not had many greasers. My only real bounce was while practicing night landings which surprised me. I was practicing power out landings last month and was surprised how LITTLE glide I had with the gear down. After two failed attempts to reach the runway from my normal power off glide point I tried it with the gear up and made the runway with no problem. This was an eye opener I agree - fly the numbers listed above.

I don’t know of an online W&B for another model of the Mooney. It would be fairly simple to copy the code from my web page and modify it for another plane. Just be sure to give the original author credit for his code. He gave permission to copy and modify it although last time I checked his web site was not up. As far as putting it on a thumb drive, it should run just fine if the HTML, JPG and GIF files are in the same directory. Feel free to copy and modify them. Following is a great list of design changes from the B to the C: http://www.mooneyevents.com/cmodel.htm I think the weight increase was a paperwork change based on experiance.

I'm a member of all three. I probably perfer the EAA mag over the other two but enjoy reading all three mags cover to cover most months. I agree that the mags are worth the membership fees. I also really like the AOPA flight planner.

I had one installed in my Mooney shorthly after purchasing it. The fuel guage is not accurate and my A&P recommended the fuel flow meter instead of spending money troubleshooting the fuel guage. The EI guage is much more useful than I thought it would be. I will not own another plane without some type of fuel flow meter.

Following is a W&B calculator I made for my M20B. When I fly with friends who weigh 250lbs (I'm just over 200) I should have issues flairing due to a to forward CG yet the plane flies just fine. I have a feeling the C nuumbers work for the B although I'm sure my insiurance company and the FAA would not agree if something bad happened. http://www.mgcpa.com/mark/flying/m20/wab/wandb.html

Here is my advice: A little over five years ago I purchased a Cessna 170A for just under $30,000. During the first three years of ownership I spent around $20,000 in repairs and improvements. Then about six months ago I traded the 170A for a M20B. We put a value on the trade of just under $30,000 based on the Vref value of each plane. The Mooney is really nice for a B model with an updated panel, paint, avionics along with some nice mods. The bad news is it will need the engine overhauled in a year or two – another $20,000. It didn’t bother me to spend the $20,000 on repairing and upgrading the Cessna because I ended up with a really nice plane. I’m also happy to spend another $20,000 on the overhaul on my M20B because it is a really nice plane. However… If I was to add everything up I have $50,000 invested in my M20B and will end up with $70,000 once the engine is overhauled. This for a plane that would sell for around $30,000 today (if I was lucky), and maybe in the upper 30s once the engine is overhauled. I could be flying a nice E or an average F for the same money. With all that in mind, I would do it all over again. I did it without any loans. Had I started with a $50,000 plane I would have needed to finance part of the purchase. I’m also sure I would not have started with a Mooney as my need for speed prompted the trade. So, if your budget is $25,000 because that is all you want to spend, I would recommend a Cessna 150. However, if you don’t mind spending $5,000+ per year and hate debt, you might consider an early C or B. If I were starting with an early C, I would spend at a minimum around $35,000 because a plane in the 20s would scare me.

The attached photo will probably not help much but I had a spin on filter installed two weeks ago. This was taken after the install.

Congratulations! I’m working on mine but have a long ways to go still.

My budget was around a third or a quarter of yours. But I traded a Cessna 170A for an M20B and love my Mooney. I miss the tail wheel and find I don’t enjoy teaching friends how to fly the Mooney like I did the Cessna but I really like flying faster. I’m also using less fuel. I also plan on getting my IFR in the Mooney. See if you can't find someone to give you a ride in a Mooney and I think you will be sold.

I’m a relatively low time pilot with just over 300 hours. Several months ago I transitioned form a Cessna 170A to a M20B – I’m having a blast with the Mooney. On my second flight with my CFI we practiced stalls. Following are my thoughts when compared with the Cessna: The Mooney took more effort to stall. As the Mooney slowed down it felt much like the Cessna becoming mushy and then the stall horn would start to sound. A little slower and the nose would start to buck warning of the stall. But instead of stalling it would continue to buck until I pulled harder on the yoke. If a partial stall was initiated all that was needed to break it was releasing back pressure or adding power. If I held back pressure until a full stall was entered (windshield full of earth) it always dropped a wing – just like the Cessna. Opposite rudder, releasing back pressure and applying power would pull us out. I felt more comfortable stalling the Mooney just because it gave so much warning. The Mooney did pick up a lot more speed with the nose pointed down. On my first full stall I used the same inputs I had used in my Cessna which included a push on the yoke. The push caused a negative G which surprised both of us! I quickly learned stalls in the Mooney are easier to recover from due to the larger engine and slipperier airframe. The only area I felt the Cessna was easier to fly stalls in was its larger rudder made holding up a wing easier. I doubt I will practice full stalls much as aside from being kind of fun I can’t see accidently entering a full stall. However, I do plan on practicing partial stalls regularly so I can recognize when they are near and avoid getting caught.

I made one for myself: http://www.mgcpa.com/mark/flying/m20/wab/wandb.html Back when I had a Blackberry I used the following for my Cessna 170A: http://www.mgcpa.com/mobile/wab/wandb.html

I recently traded a Cessna 170A for a Mooney M20B and have started training for my IFR. I’m a CPA with a tax practice so I’m not expecting to get too much done until after April 15th but I have managed to do some hood work, fly some holding patterns, flew one VOR approach, and tracked some VORs. I’m hoping to fly once every other week until after tax season when I will try to fly as often as I can – probably two or three times per week. I purchased the King’s IFR course and am about 20% through it. I have also been reading when I can find time. My goal is to finish everything this year. It took over a year and a half to get my private in the 170A due to work, family and scheduling so there is a good chance it may take longer. I’m having a lot of fun!

I just acquired this Mooney a month ago.

I just traded a Cessna 170A for a M20B so much of my experience is based on the Cessna although I did a fair amount of research on the cost of the Mooney before the trade. I had expected the retractable gear Mooney to cost quite a bit more to operate than the old Cessna. What I found is insurance for the Mooney is $100 less per year with the same hull value – I’m a low time pilot with no complex time. Annuals are supposed to be within $500 of that I was paying for the Cessna. So far fuel burn has been slightly less – and I’m flying much faster! For me the two expensive parts of owning a plane are repairs and hangar space. Hangar space where I keep my plans is $250 per month. It is probably not that bad as I keep a car and tons of junk in the hangar and of course it is a fun place to hang out and work on things. But it still adds quite a bit to the cost of flying. I have also spent almost as much on repairs as what I paid for the Cessna over the six years I owned it. Most of the repairs improved the plane such as a new windscreen, shoulder harnesses, or re-skinning the rudder, but they were not cheap. Although the average cost of an annual was under $1,200 per year, the repairs that went along with the annual averaged over $2,000 per year. I don’t remember ever being upset with a repair bill but they have cost me more than I thought they would. If I were to do it all over again I think I would look for a partner.