harrispa

Have been on many flights in a friends Columbia 400. I found it to be about the most comfortable plane I have been in. It has the waas G1000 avionics and A/C making for a very nice IFR platform, but it is not very fun to hand fly. With a capable pilot I have witness it handle very bad crosswind landings. The engine is a TSIO550 and should have about the same maintenance issues as other 550 turbo engines. There have been issues with the gear attach bolts. Having said that my Mooney is much faster down low on less fuel and I don't have 400K invested like my friend. I have replaced 2 cylinders, fuel pump overhaul, and had to have a complete tank reseal this year (all at under 700TT), so I cannot say my maintenance has been less than his. I still love the Mooney!

I could be wrong, but that sure looks like a fuel pressure gauge calibrated to fuel flow

Search Ebay for "Mooney T Shirt" . Jeff401 has them for sale for $12. I think if you contact him he can get different colors also. He also has a web site "customvinylcreations.net".

I am headed to Wetwingoligists on Wed Apr 30. In 40 years of ownership and flying this is the most costly non-scheduled expense I have had -- and I bought the Mooney thinking it would be less Maintenance than other brands. Having one wing done less than 700TT

Some planes come with no fuel flow or pressure gauge at all, others come with just a fuel pressure gauge, others a pressure gauge calibrated in fuel flow, and still others come with the fuel flow gauge driven by a flow transducer in the fuel line. We could go on forever naming the different planes and the particular gauge they have.

Yet to see an O3 from the factory with the IO 550 N engine. The N engine is an option on the Midwest 310HP STC. If you go to this website: www.deltaaviationllc.com you will find different files and pictures of O3's that show in the logs the IO550G is modified by the factory using the Midwest STC. Yes, for the 310HP the plane must have the approved prop, but many O1's and O2's already have this. The Governor is modified to allow 2700rpm, and approved tach showing 2700rpm is required. Judging from this info, I conclude the O3 does not have an IO550N engine, but has the same IO550G* (modified governor and data plate) as all M20S and M20R. Paul

The engine in the M20SEagle, the Ovation 1,2,and 3are all the same engine! the IO 550G. The data plate on the M20s Eagle even says 280hp at 2500 rpm, same as O1,O2. The factory uses the Midwest stc for the O3 to make it legal for 310hp @2700 rpm. The data plate is then replaced to reflect the change. Using the Midwest stc, you could install the IO550N (cirrus engine), your choice. Paul

Looking for a leak repair in Central Florida. Anyone know of a good place to take it to? Thanks Paul

The IO550 engine in our mooney Ovations and Eagles is rated for full continuous power, there is no reduction needed.

A little off subject--What are you guys with the 280hp 2500 rpm using for fuel flow on takeoff (sea level)? Paul

Just a heads up, anyone with an IO550 might want to check their engine fuel pump next time you have the cowl off. I found (just by chance) my fuel pump leaking at the rear near the shaft of the mixture control. I was told my Dave at Great Planes Fuel in Tulsa this is a common problem and just needs repair, o rings and such. The problem is this will not be found unless the engine is running or you turn on your boost pump while looking at the engine driven pump, and you don't usually look at the pump with the engine running and the cowl off. We were setting the idle fuel pressure with the engine running ( I know its dangerous) and found the leak. 690Total time. You will see black stains on the bottom rear of the pump if it has been leaking. Paul

I checked the pictures of Ovations for sale on Controller. Most look just like mine with the spinner below the cowl by about 1/2" or so. The Part numbers listed in the Mooney parts manual are Lord mounts. However, as I noted before, my friends Columbia has much stiffer rubbers than the Ovation with about the same engine, so my conclusion which may be wrong is that the Mooney Ovation mounts are softer and probably sag quicker due to this. Paul

I would also be interested in hearing about experiences with the IO550 mounts. Mine has sagged some and I am trying to decide what to do if anything. 2001 only 13yrs old and visually the rubbers look fine, but you can see they flex some when lifting the engine by hand via the prop. Tried to do this lift test on friends Columbia and no give at all. I did check the torque. Paul

If you really want to read about others experiences with the big Continentals, Beechtalk under "engine" forum has much on the subject. I just had to have 2 cylinders removed and repaired at 690 hours. The valve guides were found to be worn significantly. Much has been written about Continental's valve guide problems. Other than that the cylinders were in great shape. Continental has an extensive SB on how to do a compression and Borescope test. Compression leaking past the rings is not as significant as leaking past the valves. I believe many are factoring in cylinder work about mid time, but if you make it to TBO without it consider yourself one of the lucky ones. Paul.

I will be out flying most of today, but attached is a picture of what I have. It is Garmin MD41-424, and has an 8130 attached dated from 2004. Sorry, the one I have is for a Garmin 155/165 Paul