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I am going through annual hell. We (AME) found missing rivets at the wing root just ahead of the drain. There appears to be a small burn make there and my AME (very experienced) has seen this before. He thinks my airplane suffered a lightning ground strike. All else is well. I will jump ahead here, I have stripped the sealant from the tank. This is one of the must unpleasant tasks I have ever had to do. We have found corrosion to the T shaped extrusion of the rib. This would have never been visible had we not removed rivets allowing us to pull the skin down. I am fortunate to have a very experienced aviation sheet metal man. I'm assisting him. He feels this is repairable. Does anyone have a part number? Can I get this from Mooney?

Hi Folks, I have a couple of fuel tank access panel screws that are weeping. I know that trying to tighten them will make it worse. I am planning to reseal the screws with Permatex#3. What is the best way to remove the fuel stains? The areas are not large, but the dye is sticky and concentrated. Avgas does not seem to work great (and I dislike working with it as a solvent).

Hi All, I have come across some nice Stainless storage tanks that I need to sell. They each have a really nice dolley assembly, painted white, mutiple threaded fittings, drains, and hatches. Canvas covers. I believe they have .25" walls. I have 4 units. All are in like new condition. They came off a yacht, the owner wanted below deck storage instead of above deck. They would be a great addition to a grass strip or remote operation where you'd need fuel. Bulk fuel rates are super cheap compaired to FBO prices. $3,500 each or Best offer. Let me know. Thanks!! -Matt

At the risk of committing a faux pas by starting another thread on this topic, I’m looking for advice – what would you do – on resolving a pretty bad fuel leak in the M20J I’m buying. PPI is finished and was done by Joey Cole everything is great except for the tank. I was made aware of a weep by the owner, but this is worse than originally anticipated (SURPRISE!). I’ve searched and read a bunch of threads debating the pros/cons of bladders vs strip/reseal, but I’m interested in thoughts from the brain trust on my situation. I’m not looking for advice on how to negotiate the financial aspect with the seller – just the best/most practical solution and we’ll work out the finances. The right tank has been completely filled and is without leaks. The left tank appears to be leaking mostly from the outboard fuel bay, which is out of compliance with SB M20-230 as fuel isn’t properly flowing from that bay into the others. The leak is so bad that fuel is pooling all the way down in the fuselage under the cabin. Option A – Patch – Joey can attempt to patch the leak ‘enough’ to make it airworthy and resolve the flow between the fuel bays, thus resolving the SB and possibly solving the leak problems. This is a short-term fix, and might buy me a couple years – or it might just get me across the country to do a reseal. Option B – Patch + Reseal – I can do Option A and take the plane straight to Advanced Aircraft in Portland where they’ll do a complete strip/reseal for about $4k per tank and have them just do the left tank. They provide a 5 year warranty (same as bladders, though bladders seem to last much longer). Option C – Bladders – I can order the O&N Bladders (I’d want the 64 gallon to retain the same capacity) and have Joey install them, which saves having the patch before flying, probably eliminates any future fuel problems, but costs 40 lbs useful load and about $13,000 ($8k for the bladders and $5k for install). (edited to add) Option D – Single Tank Ferry – Joey has also suggested that I could fly the aircraft back with 10 gallons in the left tank (just enough for emergency) without it leaking and take it directly to be stripped/resealed. Obviously this will require more fuel stops and some awkward imbalanced flying. Originally, when I thought it was a weep, my plan was to have the reseal done on the weeping tank for $4k and I was prepared for that cost as part of the acquisition. Now that it could be $5k + future problems, it is starting to make some sense to consider just having Joey do the bladders and put that planned money towards that project. The last consideration is time. Bladders will be 3 weeks. The strip/reseal will be 3 weeks, or maybe 4 weeks for both wings. If he patches, that’s a week, plus the 3 or 4 weeks after that for the strip/reseal. There’s a certain elegance of having Joey do the bladders and then pick up a near-perfect airplane that doesn’t need any immediate work. OTOH, the delta of $8k is a big downside for me. Sorry for the epic novel. What would you choose?