Pre-Buy in Seattle, WA area

[Need4Speed]

Hi, this is my first post.Thanks for letting me join your forum.  I am interested in a Mooney M20 in the Seattle, WA area, but i live in SW Michigan. Trey  @ MAPA (who is very helpful) gave me the name of Viajet which was at one time a Mooney Service Center. Unfortunately, that company is out of business. I have owned a C172, C210, and C310, so i am pretty familiar with Cessnas, but this will be my first Mooney. I would like to find a Mooney expert within a reasonable distance from Seattle if possible. As far as i can tell there are no more Mooney Service Centers in WA state. I think someone who is an expert wil be much more likely to find important corrosion and other deal breakers quickly and competently. If the pre-buy inspector makes a mistake or overlooks an important item like a crankcase crack or corroded spar, it is still my issue, not the mechanic's, so i want the best i can find. The owner still flies and the plane is in annual. AOPA will have the Title Search for me in 2 days. I am in a flying club with a C172  and Beech BE-24 Sierra at the moment. I usually fly solo or with one so i think this E model will work fine for me currently.

Clear Skies,

 gomer

[OR75]

If Troutdale OR is not too far for you , I would recommend advanced aircraft . Honest shop and they know mooneys. Pm me if you want details

[drbob]

A MS poster Taraka,

      is close IIRC  A&P IA so try him, close  to Seattle.

[rbuck]

I just moved out of the Seattle area, and I was pretty adamant about a Mooney expert, too. 

I would highly recommend the folks at Vertex Aviation. I went to them for my plane, and they did an amazing job. The head mechanic, Lynn, was a mechanic at a Mooney Center before it closed. They will go so far out of their way to accommodate you, too. 

 

They are based at Skagit Airport, just north of Seattle. I honestly and truly can't recommend those guys enough. 

Here's there phone number:

(360) 757-4876

 

Let me know what you think! 

[piperpainter]

You need someone to ferry it!?  Also can you post anything about the aircraft? Some of us might be able to find some info for you, or make sure that you aren't getting a lemon. Unless you like lemonade! 

[Bob - S50]

We've used a couple mechanics the past couple years.  However, next year I think we are going to use Mike Boaz at our home base of S50 (Auburn).  He already does the annual on a couple other Mooneys on the field and seems to know them well.  Location and a reasonable shop rate are a plus for us too.

 

Bob

[mike28w]

If Troutdale OR is not too far for you , I would recommend advanced aircraft . Honest shop and they know mooneys. Pm me if you want details

 

   I agree,   Advanced Aircraft   would be a good choice, imo...

 

  The guy really knows his Mooneys !   

 

  Whoever you get......get someone who knows Mooneys for your prebuy !   mike

[Need4Speed]

Hi RBuck, thanks for recommending Lyn. I had actually already called him on Thursday to see about a prebuy after Viajet turned out to be a dead end.  Viajet had been on the same field.Lyn sounded very nice. He told me the head mechanic @ Viajet took a lot of clients with him when he changed positions over to Bellingham which may have had something to do with the company closing. Lyn said he calls directly to LASAR when he has any unusual questions. Sorry I'm getting back late. I have been fighting with both my iMac and PC this weekend. Firefox will not connect on my PC. For a while it wouldn't on my iMac, but that is fixed. Now every time i open Internet Explorer 11 in Win 7 on my PC it immediately closes. I had everyone playing together well in XP. I finally upgraded to Win 7 3 wks ago...What a mess!.. grr~

gomer

[Need4Speed]

Hi PiperPainter, Thanks for the ferry offer. I thought i would get some hours in a Mooney in my neck of the woods, then maybe take a Mooney course at Advanced in Troutdale in the actual plane, mostly for the avionics. Maybe it would be easier just to do it all at Troutdale. I plan to fly home myself. The plane is N607WC in Trade a Plane. The owner is a really intelligent, nice fellow. He has been very straight forward and helpful. He is an engineer and is detail oriented. He provided good photos. He does a lot of owner assisted maintenance, so he knows the plane well. In my opinion : The panel/avionics are exceptional. The paint is average or a little lower, but is better than the paint on both the C172 and C210 I once owned. (I had the C310 painted and it was gorgeous).  The interior is recent leather. Both the foam and fabric have burn entries.  The engine has had a few issues, my only real concern other than corrosion (which should appear at inspection if it by chance were present).  At overhaul in 1990 the crank was ground 0.01, which i think is first oversize. I think it was the original engine, but not sure. There was a remote probable gear up, so could be a different engine. In 2000 the oil pump failed and the case was damaged ( 794 SMOH). A lower end rebuild was done.Both the crank and the camshaft were ground. In 2008 all 4 CermiChrome cylinders were replaced with 4 Cerminil rebuilt cylinders (1027 SMOH) after an exhaust valve problem. The Cerichrome cyclinders never really broke in based on oil useage. The Cerminil's have been doing very well w/ decent oil consumption. I thought the IO360 was a pretty bullet-proof engine, but i suppose any engine can go bad. Makes one think twice about flying across Lake Michigan in the winter in a single~!! I don't know if they make new Cerminil cylinders or if they are all rebuilt. I think the engine is around 1300 SMOH now. If all the parts are feeling groovy , the engine should make it to TBO, which would be at least 5 years from now for my flying. If they are feeling extra groovy, the engine might go longer than TBO. I am wondering if the crank and cam will be re-useable in the future. I would appreciate any advice you might have since this is my first Mooney.

gomer

[Need4Speed]

Hi Bob S50, Thanks for the referral to Mike Boaz. Would you post or send me his info? It's always good to have personal testomony when it comes to mechnics. There are some are really excellent ones out there, just like in any profession. I didn't realize Auburn is so close to Seattle.

gomer

[Need4Speed]

Hi Mike 28W, Thanks for the second on Advanced. I looked at their website. The link to Mooney is nice. Sounds I could get some good training there to so I can learn to slow down properly. The owner also mentioned Crown Aviation in Everett as an option.

Clear Skies,

gomer

[mooneygirl]

I highly recommend Advanced in Troutdale. They are a Mooney Service Center.  We have taken both our E model and our Ovation there for fuel tank sealing. They are honest, friendly and competent.  http://www.advancedaircraftpdx.com/airplane-inspection-services

[N601RX]

  At overhaul in 1990 the crank was ground 0.01, which i think is first oversize.---. I am wondering if the crank and cam will be re-useable in the future. I would appreciate any advice you might have since this is my first Mooney.

gomer

.010 is the most a crank can be ground.  The options are .003, .006, and.010.

[kortopates]

In the Seattle area I'd highly recommend Craig Scamehorn at Command Aviation in Bellingham KBLI. He was the former head mechanic at the now closed MSC in WA that Trey recommended. There is no better engine guru in WA, he is really good and his shop at Bellingham is quite good and very reasonable.