M20F-1968

The important thing is to engage the brain with all checklist activities. Realize what you are checking, know that you have checked it by recognizing that you have performed the mental process required (rather than just going through the motions), and recognizing you have checked all the important items for the stage of flight you are entering. John Breda

Unrivet both of them and replace them with stainless steel. You must buy them new and undrilled so you can match drill to the holes already in the wing. I believe the new ones (which I have) are sufficiently small to deter the introduction of the wrong fuel. John Breda

The manual gear is the only retractable gear that the FAA did not require a back-up system. I am able to retract my J bar with two fingers into the up and locked position. Takes about 3-4 seconds to cycle the gear. No switches to troubleshoot, no unavailable gears. If kept maintained and rigged properly, it is equally as reliable, and perhaps more so, with less weight and less complexity, than electric. The position of the J bar reflects exactly the position of the gear. Pull down on the handle and you know the gear is locked down. John Breda

The buckles are all different. You need to know what make and style buckle you have. This is likely not an Amazon purchase. John Breda

This is a problem you will want to report to your insurance company who will subrogate against the person who did the damage. That person may or may not have insurance that will pay. If you can get the empennage to Beegles I would do so. If you can get the whole plane to Beegles that is even better. I shipped my empennage from Dallas to Kerville by truck. The A&P made a steel fixture which was made to hold the empennage in the same way it is monted to the plane. The fixture was bolted to the floor of the truck. Get the work done right. You insurance will not raise your rates for doing so as you were not at fault and not involved. John Breda

I have a set of the Cessna seat stops which I machined to fit the Mooney seat rails. These are the items in the Aircraft Spruce Catalog: https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/pspages/saftstop.php?clickkey=3375886 I have one each on the inboard seat rail. They can be easily slid against the seat and tightened while sitting. I can post pictures when I get to the hangar. The alterations that were needed was to widen the opening to allow the full thickness of the vertical (stem of the "T") of the seat rail to fit. The remained of the extrusion needed no further alteration. They were worth the cost and labor to make them fit. John Breda

I have a compass from a 1998 Ovation. Can be installed in the edge of the glareshield as in the Ovation are elsewhere. Can send pictures. If interested make an offer. I am not sure what they are worth since I have not checked. John Breda

I contacted aerosheep, provided them measurements and ideas, and heard nothing back. I then got to thinking about how these are typically made and realized that there is very little room between the sides of the seat and the interior side panels. It seemed better to make the faces of the seat cover from sheepskin, and make the sides of the seat cover from the same type of leather the seat itself is made from. Thus the side panels will be thinner, and take up less space. Additionally, the seat back can be made as a slip over (slid on from the top) cover, with the back made to allow access the the seat pockets. There will not be a need for the strap ties typically used. I have Ovation seats, so the seat cover for the seat bottom would be a slip over bag closed with velcro and attached to the seat with velcro as was done by the factory. I will have the advantage of having my seats close by so I can fit them as they are being made. That seems to be the plan now. I have an old Singer 15-91 (The Farmer's Machine) sewing machine that sews the seat weight leather easily. (Apparently it is the most copied machine in history due to its torque and sewing capacity, and does so without a walking foot. Rolls Royce used the other similar Singer potted motor machine to sew their leather seats.) One question I have is do I shave the sheep fur so the bare skins touch each other at the seams? Anyone have any experience in sewing skin with fur? John Breda

Beware of buying such tools on e-bay however. I only but them when they are essentially new and check their settings after purchasing them. For those that have Vintage airplanes, the dial type 3/8 torque wrench (which you will need an adapter female 3/8" to male 1/2" to fit into the Mooney tool) to look for, and which you will need to use with the Mooney gear tools is made by Precision Instruments in the Chicago area. They have been making ther=se fro Snap-On for many years and cost new less than 1/2 the price for the same tool from Snap-On. They can be purchased new on Amazon for about $150.00/ (I just bought two - one 1-150 inch lbs and 1-300 inch pounds for the nose gear and the mains on e-bay - like new and in specification for less than $100 each. Using 2 wrenches keeps you in a range where you have an easier to read scale. John Breda

A local A&P mechanic installed my prop a few months ago and used a Snap-On QC2175 adjustable torque wrench with replaceable open end style heads (a J shank 3/4" open end). These replaceable heads are all functionally 1/2" long so no math is needed to correct the torque. I bought one on e-bay to have for the next time. Seems more reliable than using a crow's foot. I was unaware of the torque wrenches with replaceable heads until then. John Breda

As I recall I had a good one and a cracked one. The handles are more substantial than the ones pictured. I need to look in several boxes. I will try to look this weekend. Very cold here to be picking around in attics but will look. What happens when you tried to message me? John Breda

You need to assess the company. Some just look at the book value and will not go much higher. Old Republic accepted my appraiser's value and insured mine for $250,000. The appraiser said it is the most expensive F model out there. I have not been watching the market but I understand everything is higher. Any sense how much higher. Should I be thinking of increasing? John Breda

Ken Reese in Robbinsville, NJ is about the best there is. He did some work for me a year ago. Very nice. John Breda

Don, Tell me about the 3 beeps on the Alpha System AOA. What are the criteria that triggers the alert? John Breda

Would you sell the thumb lock (J Hook, spring, thumb knob) of the Johnson Bar downlock block? John Breda

I have an assortment of new Klixon switch-breakers (looks like a toggle switch with an internal breaker). Let me know what amp rating you need, I may have one. PM me hear, or call my cell phone at (617) 877-0025, or e-mail me at john.breda@gmail.com John Breda

Buy the individual fasteners. Use the 4000 series between the top cowling and the cowl deck. The smaller 2000 series with the larger flange will fit into the Mooney small receptacles. Talk to Skybolt to confirm what I have said. John Breda

27" MP gets me more than 75% power. Set MP and prop for 75% HP or less, then lean as per engine monitor. I do not see why you need to be married to 24" 2400 RPM? John Breda

I would have your A&P put the airplane up on jacks and really find out what is going on. You want that handle to operate easily and lock without restrictions. It sounds like there may be more to the story. John Breda

I would not try to re-engineer the J baffle. The problem is too complex. Each engine is configured a bit differently. Keep it simple, and stay with what we know works. If you are making it yourself, you spend more time, but if you are skillful, have a better fitting product. I spent a good amount of time working on baffling inside clarinet mouthpieces. (I was a symphonic clarinetist before I went to medical school.) In these, a few thousandths of a mm makes a difference. I went to the Starret Co. in Athol, MA and asked if they could make a 3D precise measuring jig for me. In the conversation they stated that they had made tooling to measure the baffling on GE jet engines. They said a few thousandths of an inch made a big difference. Our cowlings are not that elegant, but it remains a complex problem. You do not want to experiment as this work takes a lot of time. Go with what we already know, and make a product that fits well with improvements in material thickness where appropriate, structure and fit and finish. John Breda

If you have the ability to make the engine baffling yourself, you likely will get a better fit and better result. You can also make certain parts thicker as may be warranted. You will need a good, new machinist's scriber (Starrett or similar), toolmaker's dye, a band saw, jig saw or similar, a good file set, riveting tools, and other assorted tools. Likely a good vernier caliper. That way you can hand fit your new baffling to your own engine. Costs are less, but labor and effort is increased. If it is your first time, you will learn a lot. John Breda

Some F's are essentially J's, with the manual gear upgrade. How much nicer is the F panel? What gear does it have? Are there any J upgrades? Then you have to look into the specifics of the airframe, tanks, etc... and what it will cost to make it into what you want. You will be spending something....plan ahead and know how you want the airplane to look when you are done. John Breda

As I was reading this thread my first thought is why are others engaging the autopilot so close to the ground. When take off I want to be in control of the airplane in as simple and reliable a manner as possible. I think that means hand fling the airplane without concerns of buttons and electronic that can fail, or at a minimum cause unwanted diversions. I would not fuss with the autopilot until I am at least 1000 ft above the ground, or likely more. Am I missing something? John Breda

Don't buy a screw "kit", buy the individual screws that you need from Aircraft Spruce. Go to Harbor Freight or your favorite cheep tool supplier and buy some storage bins to keep them separated. You will slowly build a collection of hardware that you will need and use. John Breda

I have speed brakes on my 68 F. The gear extend speed = 104 kts and the flap extend speed = 108. The speed brakes make these more manageable without pulling power back so much. I have also landed in windy conditions with speed brakes that allow you to keep the power up without increasing airspeed. The plane feels heavier and loss likely to be blown around. John Breda