TWinter

I did it last year..Been nice having it for the Aspens and FlyQ. -Tom

I just had two locker rooms done at my business..I know what that runs typically a sq ft. in this area. You BETTER hope she never finds the receipt... lol

They are just getting finished with the new hangers at Jack Edwards. I was hoping to have mine done down there...Don't know the locals well enough yet, but hope to get my hanger epoxied before we bring the plane down. Looks very sharp and much easier to keep clean. Good job, looks great! -Tom

Two ways of doing this: 1 Using your existing shaft will need to be drilled to accommodate the thicker yokes because the holes will be positioned in the wrong location. or 2 Change out the shaft to 201 or newer and you can use thicker yokes with the new shaft, but the WHOLE linkage, connecting rods and hardware under the dash will also need to be changed out to do it correctly.. A lot of money and labor. Older birds C, E, Fs all have a certain shaft drilled one way. The J started with a different shaft and had holes drilled the opposite way. They also look similar, however, the connecting tabs are at a different angle on each. It's a big expensive project, but the outcome is nice. Having Hector cover your existing would be the easiest way to upgrade, but you still have the thinner grip. I prefer the thicker grip of the new yokes. Good luck, -Tom

This is funny and true. I just shared the observation about me seeing a lot of Mooney tails at a particular shop ( I thought that it was great to see so many Mooney's in the area). Then I thought I would share what I thought was good pricing and service. Next thing you know the thread takes a turn to, "well they must be skipping items" etc.. Is it really impossible they might be a good shop (they have been around long time) and impossible the experience was a good one, great customer service and good pricing. Sometimes I wonder if the keyboard sometimes takes some fun out of our camaraderie....If I was sharing a lunch and telling the same story about my annual and what it cost, would the person sitting across from me really say, "Wow..$1240, they can't be doing a good job, must have skipped some items, there is no way they are doing a thorough job at that price"..If so I would probably move to another table. I guess the bottle of beer is either half full or half empty depending on how you look at things. -Tom

Not sure they are skipping. They might just have more hands involved, so maybe it evens out. My other shop did a great job and was averaging $2000, consumables and fluids were extra. At the other shop there were only two guys working with one being the primary. My other shop says he has a hard time getting a Mooney annual done in 40 hrs. Jewell had six guys keeping busy. This is also the airport that is well known for cheapest fuel in the area. Bottom line, I was pleased, price was great and timely. Never hurts to have a new set of eyes look things over. These will also be the guys doing my major when the time comes. Good work, good reputation and 45 minutes from my home..the fact I saw several Mooney tails in there made me feel good knowing this is not their first rodeo working on Mooney aircraft. We don't have a local MSC, but I do feel good about the annual they just completed. -Tom

To think I just thought of it as the "Boomerang" antenna.

Maybe a silly question, but I've only followed the news. Is Key West and Marathon up and going with business as usual (as much as it can be considering)?. We were thinking about doing something different this year for Thanksgiving and thought about Key West. Didn't know how well the recovery had gone. Anybody been to either recently? -Tom

That one was still there, but not one of the three I was talking about. They have it in a separate hanger, and have a LONG way to go before it's ready.

Flat rate, but you are charged for fluids, filters, etc.. By the time I was done I was all in at $1240. A few gaskets, ELT battery etc.. -Tom

Picked my plane up from annual at Jewell Aviation in Kennett, MO yesterday. Wow, looked like a Mooney Service Center. Saw three Mooney birds in the shop, mine was done and parked in a separate hanger since they were done with it and waiting for pick-up. Good to see that many Mooneys in the shop. Looks like Sam and David and getting very good with our brand. I knew they were good, but surprised to see so many other backwards tails in the shop. Not sure if they belonged to MS guys, but it looked busy in there. By the way a PIREP on the annual..I was pleased with the annual. I've been going to another shop for the last 5 yrs and thought maybe this year a new set of eyes for this one might not be a bad idea. Pricing was good, work timely, no surprises and even fixed a few little items that were non-issue, but took care of them no charge. Very pleased. -Tom

Thought I had a picture of the plane and bike. The car is parked in the taxi area, so close enough?. When the weather is cloudy these were option 2. This is why we love our Mooney.. It's all about the speed -Tom

Stealth Mode. Makes you invisible to radar, ground attacks, angry controllers and FAA big brother when cruising class Bravo when you just have to get there and don't have time to re-route. -Tom

Thanks for all the replies..I agree with what you all are saying. I don't think he has done one prior, not going to pay for his learning curve. He called and told me he researched it and said from what he can tell he is seeing hours all over the place from 15-25 hrs, plus the tool rental of $150. He priced the donuts at $125 each. Don't think he will be doing it for me. These guys are great with avionics and very thorough, but sometimes I think get overly thorough when it comes to mechanical. I did check with another local shop and they said they could do it, but really after looking at mine they thought mine were in very good shape and said unless I just really wanted to have them changed my current ones would be good for several more years. I like it when a shop gives opinions of what you really need and not just what you think you might need. Not to mention I've been following thread about trading from a C to a 231..There is a 231 I'm watching coming out of resurrection from the ugly to modern. I'm watching pros/cons and learning from the replies. Don't want to put un-necessary work in on my E if the 231 turns into a option for me when it's finally complete in spring.

Getting close to annual and thinking of having the gear pucks replaced while it's there. I think mine are dated 96. Anybody recently had them done (replaced) and remember, or have a number of labor hours they were billed for?. Not talking about owner assisted etc.. I know the donuts are $100 +/- each. Looking for a rough labor number, or hours you were charged? Thanks, -Tom

Shop took care of all of it..I had a lot of other work done so they kept the old unit and hardware and applied $ toward my bill. -Tom

I had the 830 then to the 930. JPI makes a great monitor. -Tom

Glad all are okay.. I'm thinking a conversation could be, " Honey, look what I bought, but it won't fit in the garage".. Just a little Sunday humor..Remember, they are all okay. -Tom

Interested in hearing where the best deal is now a days. If I make my normal annual time frame I might go ahead and have mine replaced. I think mine are 90s era, don't remember the stamp date of top of my head. -Tom

I've had the Aeroleds Pulse Taxi/Landing light for a few years. I actually did a fair amount of night flight this year and have been very pleased so far. This was a quick still picture and a video I did a while back. Video takes a minute to load, but shows well. -Tom Aeroled_Movie.MOV

This is so true..I just went on a quick 2.5 hr trip and by the time I got there I had to totally regroup for the return home. It looked like a chimp was set free in the backseat for the 2.5 hr trip. I'm not sure I was meant to be organized