FloridaMan

Always a good idea to ask the seller if he would be ok with Don doing a prepurchase inspection; even if you're bluffing, the seller may show his cards on that. From the interior photos, I would be suspicious that the plane may have sat for an extended period.

It's a '67F. I picked them up from the hardware store -- per advice from another Mooney owner. I was alarmed when the FBO said there was nosewheel damage as well. The consensus is that they're junk and if OEM rings were distorted like this, then there would be cause for concern. I kindof like putting them in each time when I need them. Are the OEM rings like that as well? One thing another owner, having not seen the types of ring that I was using, was that someone with a damaged ring might have swapped with me on the ramp. It made me think that when I do get something better that it may be a good idea to mark them.

I made the trip last month and stopped at KGGG, KPVW, KLBB, KABQ and KVGT. I stopped in ABQ at night and continued to KVGT the next day. The folks at KABQ were very nice. If you go to Lubbock, go to Lubbock Aero. I ran into SEVERE clear air turbulence crosses new mexico at 11,000 ft. It came out of nowhere, lasted about 10-15 seconds and was at least 3Gs and took a lot of work to maintain a safe airspeed. The cab ride to the strip was just under $40 and the cab ride back was around $30. The arrival cab driver gave me the scenic trip through downtown which I kindof wanted to see. Parking at KVGT was $10/night with the first night waived with fuel. If I remember, I paid $6.09 for 100LL. KLAS is $40/night (I can't remember which FBO, one is $40 and the other is $80). If you're staying two or fewer nights and are staying at the strip, it might be cheaper to stay at KLAS after you factor in transportation. The guy I bought my plane from recommended Henderson. ATC dropped me in to KVGT -- around 7000 ft in just a few miles it seemed to keep me separated from other traffic in the busy airspace. The folks at KVGT were very nice and hospitable and are not allowed to accept tips.

I went to take off this evening after leaving my airplane at an FBO in western NC and found my tie down ring bent like this. It was around sunset and, though I needed to get back to Tampa tonight, it would be dark by the time I inspected the rest of the aircraft. I was not about to take off at night, in the mountains with the extent of damage unknown. The tie downs are the generic loops that I picked up from Lowe's or Home Depot and I only insert them when I'm going to be tied down on the ramp somewhere. I spoke with the previous owner and a(n) MSC and both stated that the tie down is not connected directly to the spar and if it were intact and could be removed, that there was likely not any wing damage. My concern is what could have caused it and if there's anywhere I should look for additional damage. The lady at the front desk said that the line guy wanted to note that there was nosewheel damage as well. The back of the tubular structure has always had some roughness to it, but I've never noticed it being bent -- nor tonight did it seem that way. It was dark when I went back out to look at the nosewheel and perhaps he was being overly observant -- or maybe they tried towing the plane and forgot to remove a tie down and wanted to cover their asses. The damage thus far is that I elected to not take off and got a hotel room and all that I've discovered is a bent tie down ring, which may be the extent of it all. The FBO here is part of a large chain and, from my experience, is one of the better ones. What do I need to do before taking off? Should I pressure them to cover my hotel room for the night? Is there some sort of incident report that I should request from these guys?

That is exactly what happened to me. AIC came back clear and the bank used Aerospace. The bank would not waiver or move without a clear document showing a release of a lien, in spite of the aircraft being repossessed and sold by the lien-holder in 1970, with a statement in the repossession certificate stating that the title was theirs, free and clear. Come hell or high water I was going to get that airplane. I took out a title insurance policy from AIC for peace of mind and figured out a way to come up with the cash for the plane.

Even a well-maintained airplane, if it's subject to SB208B and it has not been complied with, can have extensive corrosion of the tubular frame. My airplane, a southwest airplane with no corrosion found in the MSC's inspection, has a 337 on file from nearly 30 years ago for tubular members being replaced near the pilot's left knee. Supposedly you want somebody to scope the insides of the tubular structure.

I believe the serial numbers from that era of Mooney consisted of the first two digits being the year, followed by the production sequence number, so this would have been the 69th plane made in 1970. Was the engine IRANed following the gear up?

I also use 0.032 for the filter. If you want to piss someone who is not familiar with safety wire and does not have the tools to cut it, 0.041 will certainly get the job done.

I know it's a bit off topic and related more to Hank's post, if you want to silence your gear warning and keep your power pulled back, finger your johnson's hole.

Numerous aircraft, such as the Extra 300 with a 1500hr engine TBO have no air filter and run with the equivalent of a ram air open all the time.

AIC only goes back 10 years, as a title search should. After that, I believe statutes of limitations in all states are over with. The previous owner did an AIC search as well. I think Aerospace-reports were overly vigilant on the matter.

AIC's search came back clean. Aerospace-reports did not.

I was under the impression that the extended electrode plugs give you a slight bump in combustion...ummm...advance, similar to running a little more timing advance.

^ What he said. Those siamese mags have killed a lot of people. It's usually the plastic gear not being properly inspected and serviced as it should be.

Not having the 201 glass actually has some advantages. For one, if you need to get behind the panel it'll be a lot easier.

The type certificate for the IO360-A1A referred me to the Lycoming document that I linked to above. It's an M20F and I believe it has the standard plugs.

Did you see the photos? From the air, I bet that looked fine, but what an unpleasant place to have to set down an airplane. It looks like another planet.

According to this document: http://www.aircrafts...paceCatalog.pdf I have a few options. One of the plugs is designated BY, which I assume means twin electrode with a projected nose core. Would these be the extended electrode plugs that it's been recommended that I try? Here's a little more: http://www.lycoming.com/support/publications/service-instructions/pdfs/SI1042Z.pdf There are two things: You have extended reach plugs and extended electrodes. The reach is the length of the overall plug and is defined by yellow paint on the taint between the plugs and rocker covers (see the document).

My right mag always seems to run rough on runup unless I let it sit at 1700 RPM, back the mixture off until I see a 75 deg increase in EGT and then do the mag check. The first thing I'm trying to eliminate the problem is replace the spark plugs. It's been suggested to me that extended electrode plugs may increase power a little, but I cannot find any references to these items. Is there a different name that's commonly used to describe the plugs with extended electrodes? It's also been suggested that I try the fine wire plugs, but there's lately been some controversy over their quality.

Mine was that way. It was a company that had been purchased by a company, et cetera. There was a certificate of repossession from the lien holder in 1970 or whenever it was; the certificate of respossession said that by repossessing it that they had clear title as if it had been settled in a court of law. It was a financing issue and the bank refused to accept that without a full release document in the FAA's file in addition to the repossession document. I ended up paying cash and insuring over it. BTW, paying for something outright feels better. "Now a promise made is a debt unpaid and the trail has its own stern code"

I wasn't aware people pulled banners with them.

How old is the lien? From my understanding, and there's a chart somewhere on the net that shows statutes of limitations, these things can be resolved. I just spent a few hundred dollars and insured over the lien on the title. AIC was willing to do it since it was 40+ years old and was likely due to someone failing to submit a piece of paperwork.

Ha! I flew down there yesterday and got cheap gas at the self-serve pumps and had no idea this was going on.

Well, I made it back and put nearly 30 hours on the tach during the trip and had zero issues with the airplane. I tried to mitigate my risks by having fuel stops at Longview on each trip. If I was gonna get stuck with mx problems, Don Maxwell's home base would be the place to be. KABQ at night was the most challenging to get the airplane under control and to the runway because of the 9000 feet of altitude I had to lose in just a few miles to get to the airport when approaching from the east. I had to do a 360 out over the city to bleed off altitude. I had that sinking feeling in my stomach in the flare that I'd left my gear up. Fortunately, redundancy in my routine ensured that it didn't happen, I just didn't check across the threshold because my hand was on the throttle because I thought I wasn't at idle. The combination of DA and the slight quartering tailwind I had on landing on the assigned runway gave me a higher ground speed than I was used to seeing. Normally I reach down and lift and twist on my johnson right as I cross the numbers, but my right hand was still messing with the throttle. The redundancy is that I will never allow the gear warning to go off without taking immediate action, either by dropping the gear, pressing on the warning switch inside the gear retention, or adding power. The next day, crossing New Mexico, there was a moderate turbulence airmet. I caught about 10-15 seconds of SEVERE clear air turbulence and then it was gone. If you've never experienced this, it will get your attention and it was absolutely terrifying.

The WnB Pro App is excellent. I've done my "F" in this as well.