Hi,
I'm seriously considering relocating from the Mountain West to South Eastern Florida. I have a 1965 M20C and I've done essentially all of my 300+ hours in the region. I'm wondering how the climate will treat my bird -- I'm used to having a home base at a dry, high elevation (4,217') airport, and the aircraft has spent most of it's life in this sort of environment. I don't need to worry about the weather much, except icing, and even that's only a concern for a few days in Dec-Feb. I have a few specific questions:
How will the weather affect the paint, metal, and other parts of the aircraft structure? Will corrosion be much more rapid / pronounced?
Will I need to touch up the paint in any blemishes to avoid rust?
If I have an engine that likes to run a bit hot when leaned just barely rich of peak for the local density altitude (which can be as high as 8,000), will I have fewer or more problems at sea level?
Does the moisture in the air cause the pitot-static system any specific pain?
Also, any other general feedback you've got about the move and how it might affect my flying and my aircraft will be appreciated. I must say, I am excited about being able to fly below 10,500 (my usual altitude for flying through mountainous terrain in the area) when traveling more than 50 miles. I'm also excited to see my low level climb performance. At about 5,000', I usually see about 900-1,200 FPM depending on load and outside temperature. I assume it'll be better down low!
Thanks,
Matt