M20F-1968

The Mooney part you pictured is expensive and poorly made. When I bought my Ovation interior from a salvage yard, that panel came with it, but it never worked as the electroluminescent was cracked. Why was it cracked? The backplate on the factory part is plastic and it will heat up and warp. Gravity allows the warm plastic to stretch. I made a new part using the original switches and mounting box, but made the mounting plate fir the Electroluminescent display out of aluminum. It is insulated, and will never warp. Looks sharp at night. I'll send pics. The switches are marked, but the same marking in on the Electroluminescent display. Further, there are only 6 switches, and they are all lights. It is not a 737 overhead panel. John Breda

With the Ovation panels it is pretty easy. John Breda

The wires are run behind the fiberglass that runs between the windshield and the door. It is small enough the that it makes one harness that is spiral wrapped together. Really no big deal. John Breda

Well I have a partial answer: Specmat 10-900-59/1 and 10-900-60/1 it seems will both work. The 60/1 I think is the 4" version. There is also a TSO DD-1W which apparently is a replacement, but I have seen it listed for non-certified aircraft. Anyone know more than that to advise the best replacement for the least money? John Breda

I have the 4" Specmat Technologies Discharge Wicks on my airplane. I am not at the hangar. Can anyone get me the proper part number? Are there any others that would work. I changing shirts at the hanger, put my arm in a sleeve, mildly hit the base of the wick on the rudder and it broke in half in a millisecond. Really do not want to pay $55 bucks for this problem. John Breda

Don, Too bad we don't live closer. We could have some fun doing this kind of stuff. John Breda

The washers you point out are Cool. Good to know about. John Breda

Does that mean there is no change in impedance with two mics plugged in? John Breda

Don, I have the Rosens and had difficulty getting the right friction on the side mount screws, until I added some nylon washers. The Nylon has enough give that you can tighten it down, but it will still move. I am thinking that can be done making a seat for the ball in the articulated joint. Tougher to do without a milling machine, but I guess it could be done with a milling machine bolted down to a drill press since you would only be making round holes with say a 90-degree end mill. John Breda

I have the panel mounted David Clark powered headsets and also have a Bose powered LEMO plug and the standard two jack system. Obviously I can only plug in one headset in rach station at a time, but have a choice of what I can use. The DC plug provides power to the headset and connects the mic to the radios. What I was thinking of is a Y-cable connected between the airplane DC powered jack and each of the two mics that has a switch to change the mic connection from the headset mic to the mask mic, or a cable that is hard wired connecting the DC powered jack on one end and the headset and mask mic into each end of the "Y" which eliminates the headset mic. It may be something I will have to build. John Breda

It has been about 5 years since I have used Corrosion X. The plane is in a heated hangar in Massachusetts, but I do need to do it again. Can anyone describe the process. I assume I can do it in sections. I know the autopilot servos need to be protected. I am told the avionics do not need to be, buy the thought of spraying that stuff into or onto expensive avionics does not sound right. How much do you need and at what location and entry site? John Breda

This is not specifically on point, but I am in the Boston area and there are some great locations for a day or weekend fly-in. Nantucket, MA, Martha's Vinyard, MA, Block Island, RI, East Hampton, NY, other NE airports along the coast, Rockport, ME, Chatham, MA etc... Once the Covid thing passes, it would be good to arrange something. John Breda

I have not used the Precise Flight System as MH posted some research data that suggested that their system was more reliable. I do not recall the details just now as it was 4 years or more since I read it. In any case, when I have the opportunity I will try it. I too have a MH back-up O2 rescue bottle sold by MH called Co-pilot. I do not see it any longer on their site which makes me wonder if the bottles are still available. I also have a small 10" or so high medical bottle with regulator which I also have not used. I guess I have some homework to do to compare these. Back to me posted question, when using a mask with a microphone, what cable is used to make the connection to the mask microphone and bypass the headset microphone? John Breda

What do you guys use as a electrical cable to connect to the mask microphone (and bypass the headset microphone? I use DC headsets with in panel power jacks (But I also have Bose Connectors installed). The cable I use must disconnect the microphone from the circuit and connect the mask microphone (either by switch or hard wiring). John Breda

I have both the O2D2 system and the Precise Flight. I started using to O2D2 and found it so easy to use that I never have used the Precise Flight system. Do you recommend the Precise Flight over the O2D2. If so, perhaps I will give it a try. John Breda

I retrofitted an Ovation interior into my F model. I have attached some pictures. The center ceiling panel that has the switches is held in the ceiling with only two screws in the center portion of the long panel. I would not buy the factory electroluminescent panel as it is too expensive and is made with a plastic backing. You can use the factory switches and mounting box. I made an aluminum backplate and sent it out to make a more durable electroluminescent panel which is a functional copy of the Mooney panel (I'll send a picture of this new panel). The switches only need to be rocker switches approved for aircraft use (used in any certified aircraft). Wentworth aircraft or other salvage yards could be a good source. The center ceiling console can be gotten from Mooney, from a salvage yard, or you can do a hand lay-up with fiberglass which would be cheaper and can be custom fitted to your ceiling. I have the right and left Ovation fiberglass roof panels which I would be willing to sell. I purchased them from Mooney, and started to fit them into my F. (I then ended up with two sets as I obtained a full Ovation interior from a salvage yard.) They can be retrofitted to your aircraft in a similar manner as what I did. John Breda

I never quantified the svings, but I would not doubt the 40% quoted. The O2D2 is a must have system. John Breda

I think it is a Craftsman

I use a Snap-On 3/8" drive torque wrench that has a hinged head with a 1" standard socket. Fits on the oil filter without a problem. John Breda

Skybolt has fasteners with larger flanges which have greater overlap and can fix some of the problem. Jetdriven's description is accurate. The real fix is to grind out the fiberglass until you his the 1 1/2" or so wide metal strip embedded in the fiberglass. This metal strip needs to be replaced, re-fiberglassed and new holes drilled. Using the Skybolt fasteners would be a plus. The 4000 series are adjustable and the size is appropriate fir the cowling/firewall interface. They have larger flanges. The 2000 series are smaller, can be used between the top and lower cowling, and can also be ordered with a larger flange. This will delay wear of the new holes as well. If you hollow out the inside of the cowling, you will save repainting, but you will need to re-fiberglass and sand to fit the old dimensions. John Breda

The past few months have been devoted to some finishing of projects and routine maintenance. I am thinking more and more about retirement so my flight time should increase.

I have been there, done that in my 68 F. With the turbo normalizer everything is shoehorned into the cowling. The 231 is likely similar. Yes, the baffling can be made, and likely can be made better than the factory version, however the tolerance are tight, which means work goes slowly taking and fitting constantly. Some parts can not be fit tested without the cowling on, so expect to spend a great deal of time on this project. It is not a simple as it looks. John Breda

Any of the seats will fit. I have all 4 seats from a 1998 Ovation. At least in mine, the holes in the rails were 0.050" less deep than in the newer Ovation rails. Nothing a well controlled drill and a 0.250" drill bit couldn't remedy. John Breda

I have a highly modified 1968 F model. Turbo normalized, modern airplane, 90 gallons of fuel, all applicable speed mods, 201 windshield, J model cowling, full flap, aileron, hinge and dorsal gap seals. At 10,000 feet in summer, with everything forward = 168 kts, 10,000 feet at 75% power = 160 kts, 17,000 - 18,000 feet, 75% power 175-178 kts and LOP 170 - 174 kts. John Breda

It would be great if you could post the electronic files of these ads in the download section of Mooneyspace or share a Google drive posting if the files are large. John Breda