BillC

I hadn’t heard. I can see why. Hardly anyone on the train. I thought it might be enjoyable to see the countryside out the big windows....NOT. The train stops quite often and continually blows the horn at crossings every few minutes. Not very restful. 70 years old and still learning..lol At least I can say it’s one more adventure I’ve done.

Hi Mitch, I decided to strip and reseal both tanks because there was a seep in the right wing. Just started a few days ago. Edison gives a 7 year warranty on all strip and reseals. And it’s transferable to a new owner. My Ovation is a 97. At that age it’s only a matter of time before it would develop a seep or worse in the left tank.

Thank you David. The return trip should be easy.. Fingers crossed. There is an early morning flight from Tampa to FLL. for about $38.00 US. Then a quick taxi to FXE. but thanks for the offer.

Well it seemed like a simple choice to let Amtrak do the driving and Uber home from Tampa but it didn’t work out that way. No Wi-fi on the train although they advertise they have it. It made the trip much more difficult to take with no entertainment on my iPad. I also had to walk to a Publix supermarket to use their Wi-fi to order a Uber ride because Amtrak has no Wi-fi even in the terminal. Next purchase is a smart phone and get rid of the old ‘ pay as you go’ flip phone I use for emergencies. Also, Amtrak requires all riders on Amtrak property to wear face masks. The seating is spread out so you have no riders near you. All in all it would have been better to rent a car and drive home. Lesson learned.

Flew my Ovation to KFXE for a wing seep in right wing. Spoke with Edison. Nice guy. Made the trip from KBKV (Brooksville, Fl) to KFXE (Fort Lauderdale, Fl) in 1:11 at 9000’! ATC moved a twin Cessna out of my way...lol. It took 11 hours to get home by train and taxi. No flights to Tampa until late night. Man, I love my Ovation.

This reminds me of a time several annuals ago. With all the seats removed I decided to see if I could egress my Ovation through the baggage door. I’m 6’2” and 215lbs. I could do it with quite a bit of difficulty. I can’t imagine being able to do it with the seats back in. Especially if you or your rear seat passengers are hurt. My good friend, who is a fireman at KBOS (Boston,MA) told me that no fireman would try to open a small baggage door (17” or 43.2cm X 20.5” or 52.1cm) to access passengers. They go through the windows or cut open the airframe. I lock mine.

I did call them Culver. They have a waiting list with no movement too. BTW, they are not shy with the hangar rent. $425.00. That would make it almost twice what I have paid at my old location in Maine.

Thanks Oldguy. I’m going to ZPH tomorrow to check it out.

Hi, I’m looking for a hangar near KBKV. (Brooksville, Fl). My Ovation is currently on a tie down and would like to get it out of the sun. Any airport within a reasonable driving distance would be great. Thanks, Bill

PJ, it looks like one I replaced a while ago. It was a Whelen A610.

If you buy a batteryMinder, you need to specify if your using a Gill or Concorde. I had mine converted to a Concorde unit after I replaced the Gills. Check the website and you will see there is a difference.

Peter, I don’t know if the M is the same as the 1997 Ovation but I had a similar problem. I accidentally hit the baggage light switch while removing cargo from the baggage area. It was daytime and I didn’t see the light come on. It killed both batteries. The newer Ovations have a timer on the light switch that turns it off after a few minutes. Mine does not. The avionics shop checked the system and found the switch had drained BOTH batteries. I thought only one battery would be drained but it turns out it WILL drain both batteries. I removed the bulb so it would never happen again. I had to replace both Concordes because they could not be saved. Needless to say, that was an expensive lesson.

Udo Clarence is right. This happened to me in my previous Mooney.

I have Michelin tires and air stop tubes on all three gear. They still lose a few pounds over time, regardless of the temperature. It always amazed me that my vehicles, which do not have tubes, can go year round without needing air. (no radical summer/winter temp changes). I even use nitrogen.

There was a guy on the board a while ago asking a lot of questions about how a Mooney could have crashed if you all remember. I wonder if it is the same guy?

I bought a battery operated skateboard for my nephew. He says it goes over 20mph and will go all day without a charge. The hills around his house are no problem. It’s pretty light weight and has a wireless remote that includes a brake. Of course he only weighs about 60 lbs. Your mileage may vary.

Thanks for that Mark. I just signed up with Parker Woodruff. Considerable savings over Avemco’s quote.

Thanks for all your input. Much appreciated. Bill

I’m searching for insurance. I was quoted $4127.00 USD for 182k value including $453.00 bodily injury/ liability for my Ovation in Florida by Avemco. The rate would be $2689.00 USD per year while hangared in Maine. They would prorate the 6 months spent at each location. Would any owners be willing to tell me what insurance company you have? Does this quote seem right for an ATP with 16,432 hours mostly in heavy jets with 4000+ in complex propeller airplanes, 1267 hours in Mooney’s and 256 hrs in my Ovation? Finally, are you happy with your insurance company? Thanks, Bill

George, Listen to GEE-BEE. I had the exact problem. It is caused by aluminum rubbing together producing the black dust. The silicone seal will fix your problem.

As Awful Charlie pointed out, the baggage light may drain BOTH batteries. I’m here to say that this is what happened to me. As some of you may remember, I accidentally hit the switch on my baggage compartment (1997, serial # 29-0106) while off loading during the day. It killed both of my new Concorde batteries. This Ovation was manufactured before the timer switch were added to the newer Mooney’s. That was an expensive lesson. Now I know why the original owner had taken out the bulb. During annual, my IA reinstalled the bulb and didn’t mention it. Not his fault for being thorough.

I need to speak to Don Maxwell. As I said in my previous post I replaced my mounts two years ago and although they were fine for a while I have the same sag as before. Lord mounts were the correct ones for my Ovation (also as specified by George). I did shim my 201 and it worked great. It seems there must be a similar fix for sagging Ovations. Any other Ovation drivers finding the same problem?

Mine as well, although I have the original McCauley three blade. I replaced the mounts two years ago and it was fine for a while. Now the sag is back.

Yeah, I'm pre 2005. Good to know. Thanks.