M20F-1968

I have been down this road. I would expect that the $100,000 limit is probably off by a factor or 2 to 3, or perhaps more. This is a project that only has value if you turn the airplane into something exceptional. It represents alot of work and EVERYTHING on this airframe needs to be taken off, cleaned, primed, rebuilt or replaced, naturally including the engine. There will be parts you have not even though of that will need to be replaced. Consider this to be the start of a kitplane, except with a DER and IA it can be completed as a certified airplane. Lots of work and time and not to be taken lightly. Hayward is on the ocean. It takes quite alot to corrode the chromed yoke shafts. I would be concerned about the condition of steel elsewhere. The nose gear is also corroded. The structural cage would need to be looked at closely. Everything can be fixed, with enough time, expertise, workspace and money. John Breda

I did not separate the tailcone from the rest of the airplane. That is the weakest part of the airframe and I did not want to mess with it. I took the engine off and empennage off, collapsed the nose gear and set it with the wings aligned with the length of a flat bed trailer, firewall down and tailcone up. This is fine for short distances but would be difficult for any long moves. For long distance moves, take the wing off and move it in 4 pieces, fuselage, wing, empennage and tailcone. John Breda

When I did my project F model it cost me $2000 to move it 20 minutes by highway across Dallas. John Breda

Agree that consistency is important. GUMPS out loud abeam numbers, base and final or at IAF and final. I grab the J bar and pull down at least 1 time to insure the thumb lack is engaged. I also installed the P2 warning system a yer ago. It is a good back-up to the afore mentioned. If gear is down, a male voice says, "Gear is down for landing." If gear is not down, a female voice says repeatedly "Gear! Gear! Gear!" until you fix the problem. The P2 unit talks to me at 85 kts airspeed. Well worth the $2000. John Breda

Remember to fly the airplane first. Get some altitude and fuss with the J bar later if it is giving you problems. Don't be distracted close to the ground. My F model climbs quite nicely with the gear extended. In fact, it will climb with full flaps and gear extended such as in a go around. It will still climb, but less well with gear, flaps and speed brakes extended. John Breda

David, Yes, the J model size inlets will work fine. There is no cooling issues with a J model cowling, however cowling modifications to the J model cowling include side louvers and a center fixed cowl outlet just in front of the nose gear. Those could be put on after the fact if anyone was doing the conversion. John Breda

Be safe: Find a set of used Meyers jacks and an engine hoist from Harbor Freight. You will not regret it. John Breda

Dave, I might make a suggestion: You might make the air inlets larger which would accommodate at turbonormalizer. The inlet could be then decreased with a fiberglass insert wet mounted so it is properly bonded when customer is not interested in a turbo. With RayJay back in business, there may be turbonormalized options on the horizon. The air intakes on the Lopresti cowling are too small to accommodate a turbo (think Acclaim v. Ovation inlets). Just a thought which might leave options open to give some unexpected utility to the fleet. I like the shape of the cowling. Hope the silhouette is as streamlined. John Breda

Shops do not have the technical data to perform a full overhaul, but rather perform "repairs." It would be helpful to get the technical data on overhauls out to the accessory shops so that there are choices on who can perform the work. Having one facility providing overhaul scavenge pumps as occurs now is insufficient and does not provide the necessary competition in the markeplace. Cores are also hard to come by, so overhaul shops are needed. John Breda

I know nothing about this since I do not have a shuttle valve in my system, but some Mooneys have a shuttle valve that separates the left and rgt brakes. I do not know if you have dual brakes either, but if you do, it might be worth considering if there is a shuttle valve in place. John Breda

This is likely flyable, but you may need a ferry permit to be legal. Skin needs to be changed. When apart the underlying structure will be assessed. I would do what you need to do in order to bring it to Beegles Aircraft, Greeley, CO. They do this type of work regularly and do it as well as anyone, if not better. John Breda

Thanks for your reply. My persistence is both a virtue and a curse. In the end, I had to see this one through. Thanks for your offer and will be in touch. The next few weeks a pretty busy but I look forward to talking again. John Breda

Shadrach, I would be interested in engaging in similar discussions with you as well. I have tested LOP and the plane flies well with that configuration, but have been running 100 ROP until I am sure I have learned proper procedures to run LOP along with any warnings. John Breda

I do not recall the chemicals used, and I think I used Lexan as opposed to plexiglass, however I did not use glues to make the laminated slider ends. I used a chemical that looked and had the consistency of water. It was a solvent and softened the plastic layers and bonded them together when clamped together. I did some homework and found the solvent which was appropriate, then assembled the pasts and clamped them together overnight. A standard nut-plate between the 2 pieces provides the threads for the machine screw. John Breda

See attached picture. I made new sliders from plexiglass (maybe it was lexan) and imbedded a nut plate between two sheets of the material glued together. The screw captures an eyelet on the end if the cable. No way it can come apart. John Breda