Marauder

LOL Oscar! Waiting for things to get cheaper in aviation is like buying the winning lottery ticket every drawing. My STEC 60-2 in 1997 was $11k installed (without a flight director). That same system today with the single cue FD (just added it to mine to work with the Aspen) will run you over $20k. Don't know, tough call for you. If you are flying IFR a bit, the full integrated AP functionality with auto trim is nice. Good luck with the decision!

So, based on the last two posts, would you buy one again? The reason I ask is that I am considering an 830 to replace my old but still working like a champ Insight 602. It sound like the glitches at a minimum are annoyances.

I'm pretty sure Oscar's plane is WAAS equipped. If he is able to get the version I think he can ( with autotrim) it probably is a good deal. The installed price can easily run $18k+ for an STEC 60-2. I have flown behind my 60-2 for 16 years and absolutely find it a major asset while flying. Before the STEC, I had just the wing leveler and did fine for the 7 years I flew with it - it just wasn't an integral part of my IFR flying. I find that a full blown AP is a real benefit in many ways. Whether it is something simple as being George while on long legs so I can take a nature break or letting it fly an approach while I monitor the situation. I do hope cheaper alternatives become available.

Look up service bulletin 208 for the cage, main spar in between front and rear seats and engine mounting frame are the just a few of the places you can being to look. I also look for corrosion onHeim joints and any exposed metal. The good news is that much of the aluminum has zinc paint on it.

Oscar - is that with them keeping your 30?

I received an email from them saying I will be getting the first demo plane off of the new production line. And free AvGas for the 1 year demo I signed up for. And they told me if I liked the plane, I can buy the first one off of the line for 1 penny with life time maintenance thrown in. Just awesome!

The 2100 to 2350 is red in my POH. On the EI tach I had installed, I have red bulbs in those zones.

Oscar - I think you may find that Cobham (the new owners of STEC) will require you to pay for the STC for that unit I your make and model. I remember reading a thread where someone bought some sort of used upgrade (like altitude hold) and Cobham made them pay for the required STC paperwork.

Since the good dentist is not here to defend himself... So, did you trade in the parrot for an inflatable doll? or a case of CamGuard?

Check the pocket in front of the seat, everytime I "lose" something I always find it in there!

PIREP: I owe you, my fine esteemed colleagues, a PIREP on my decision and final outcome of this thread. Don't you just hate it when someone starts one and disappears into the hinterlands, never to be be seen again, sort of like Amelia? Anyways, after listening to your thoughts on this, I made a decision and am here to report on the findings. Quick summary: During my avionics upgrade in December, the avionics shop noted some rust on my tachometer cable. I had them replace the cable only to find out later that their knowledge of how to properly replace a cable amounted to about the same knowledge as the Skipper on reading weather reports for his three hour tour... Once the cable was installed, the needle bounced and eventually stopped hitting 2700. In short, I got good at flying by sound of the engine. Upon picking your brains, I made the decision to go with the EI tachometer. Not only because you provided great experience and insight, but because I have owned an EI fuel totalizer for close to 20 years in this plane -- without a glitch. My IA suggested as well to clean up things, to replace the manifold gauge with an EI unit and to move my fuel totalizer over to the right side with the tach and manifold gauge form EI. This would require everything to mounted in smaller holes. He said he would rebuild the right most side of the panel including the breaker area. I think this is a good move since the breakers are located in a bunch of different areas today. This will be done at my annual. So... for the PIREP. I love the EI tach. My top end RPM is 2670, it is very stable and the lights make it easy to see if you are in the non red zones. There were some questions/concerns over how this units records stuff. So here are some of the details: I think it was Parker that talked about different RPMs and times before it would record. Bingo, we have a winner. There is a section in the manual that talks about the recorded times. It does record time over 1300 RPMs as "tach time". As well, there is a section about how the flight timer works. From the manual: Tach Time: The tach timer keeps a running total of time the engine is above 1300 RPM. The time is stored in memory for life. There are no internal batteries and bus power is not required to keep the memory alive. Flight Timer and Peak RPM: This instrument includes an automatic flight timer. When the RPM meets or exceeds 2000 RPM for 10 seconds (as would occur on takeoff), the flight timer will reset to "00.00" and start timing in one-minute increments. The peak RPM register will also be reset to "0000". The flight timer will continue to count until the RPM drops below 1200 RPM for 10 seconds (as would occur on the landing roll-out). At this point the flight time and peak RPM will be stored in memory. There are no internal batteries and bus power is not required to keep the memory alive. Your last flight time and peak RPM will always be available even if the power is turned off. Summary: I have a couple of flights with the units and am impressed with it. The analog display is very readable in direct sunlight (you have the option of not using the backlight on all the time). The flight time recording is pretty cool. If you are interested in true flight time, this works. The LED row is a nice feature. You can tell quickly if you are on the green zone and confirm almost as fast by reading the number on the digital display. In closing, I appreciate you responding to my request. And for anyone seeking more details on the EI version, ask away... thanks guys...!

Thanks for the inputs. I will see where the prices shake out. I bought the remote phone thingy (sorry forgot the name at the moment), so calling it and ordering up heat shouldn't be an issue locally. When I do go up north, things get pretty cold. And the quicker heating is of interest since I will either be running my small Honda generator or paying the FBO to plug in.

I never suspected that parallax could be an issue with the stuff sitting right in front of you. But you are right. When I got my plane back after the avionics upgrade, I found a new knob labelled "FD Parallax". My STEC FD when installed, came with this requirement. Sure enough, playing with it, I can see how parallax can impact things.

That is exactly how my mechanic determined the level issue.

Before you begin bending anything, make sure nothing else was changed. I recently had a "ball out of the cage" issue after some extensive work on the avionics. Turns out my TC was pulled and put back in without leveling it. For some reason I never noticed it on the ground (probably because the ball is always moving while taxiing). It was my mechanic who saw the plane after the avionics work and was able to figure it out cheaply. Since they did some work on my flight controls during the AP integration, I was assuming that it was a flight control issue.

Aaron - I suspect the reason the mechanic recommended just the sump heater was he knows we are cheap bunch My concern is that I do fly places where it is colder and I do stay for a bit (like hunting season up north). For the few hundred bucks, it might make it easier to get it all done. Did you ever have anymore problems with your cylinder heaters? I think you were the one that mentioned it.

I have decided to install a Rieff system during my annual in April. My mechanic says that our area (the mid Atlantic) won't require the full system, just the sump pads. Anyone ever hear and do this recommendation?

So true. I'm like a hoarder when it comes to my Mooney parts. "You never know when you are going to need this!"

Well, the test results are in... Quick summary; I noticed some altitude differences between my iPad running ForeFlight & Garmin Pilot and my Nexus 7 running Garmin Pilot. On the Nexus, using the internal GPS antennae, I was seeing between 400 to 500 feet difference the altitude it reported versus what the iPad running Garmin Pilot with an external XGPS150 antennae. I also suspected there were some issues with the GPS position reports as I saw on the georeferencing on both devices. To get to somewhat accurate answer to both of these concerns, I set up both units to determine what the differences were for both. For the location tests, I set up the Nexus 7 with the internal GPS using Pilot and recorded the lat/long for the position I was at (stationary, on the ground). I did the same with XGPS150 antennae connected first to the Nexus and then to the iPad. I recorded results for the Nexus using Pilot with internal antennae, external antennae and using a GPS app for the Nexus (reports internal GPS function) and with the iPad running the XGPS150 with ForeFlight & Pilot. End result? The positions were the same. The second round of location tests were done in motion, comparing my actual position to the georeferenced using the same combinations of devices, antennae and apps. Again, all reported the same information (essentially). I did notice a little bit of a difference with the Nexus running the internal antennae. Altitude tests. I did a check on the ground at a known fixed point (airport reference). I did the same comparison using the different combination of devices, antennaes and apps. The result? The Nexus using it's internal antennae reported a ~150' difference (lower) than the other two device combinations -- both of which were within 20 feet of the known elevation (strange but true). The tests were repeated at 2500', 4500' and 6500' feet. What I noticed was a significant difference at altitude. The higher I went with the Nexus using the internal antennae, the more deviation there was between what the other combinations reported. The Nexus with XGPS150 and the iPad with the XGPS150 were essentially the same using either ForeFlight or Pilot. At 6,500, the difference was almost 600'.

It's clear, you're infected...

I have a 1975 F as well. As was explained to me by a couple of MSCs when I noticed the weeping, our original sealant had some issues. My one tank was weeping into the wheel well and I smelled fuel inside. The bigger issue was I began finding red streamers in the fuel tanks. I was told that this was a coating put over our original sealant to protect the sealant and it was failing. Are you seeing these particles? I decided to go the bladder route. They were installed in 1992 and have been solid since.

I wonder if they will keep the ATIS on in some form. Perhaps to instruct which freq to use.

Just make sure you don't mention us knuckleheads and our discussion with you about landing speeds! Good luck!

There is also a bunch of time interfacing with the Nav hardware.

Can some of you who had AeroComfort do the work post some pictures? Trying to get an idea if I can tackle any of this myself or just leave my wallet with them...