Some random musings from a long IFR X country

[Guest Mike261]

I flew 46X down to the outer banks (KMQI) for a week. Had my vacation and returned. Arrived home at KLWM yesterday AM.

this was the longest flight so far in the two years I've owned the Mooney, and I have some random musings...

My bladder is 55 years old.

WOT and 2500 gets me 10.4 GPH and 156 true at 29.92 and 20 degrees C. at 9000 feet.

ADS-B weather is comforting but very grainy. had 3 stations sometimes...but mostly one.

stormscope makes me feel better.

My wife can sleep through anything.

The center stack has a sharp corner that digs into my right calf...me no likey.

Must. Have. Altitude preselect.

Yoke mount ident button...greatest thing ever.

KLN 94 is capable, but five reroutes have sealed the decision for a new GPS.

Reroute with 94...direct to, enter new flight plan zero, using all waypoints because kin 94, whilst holding down button because no altitude preselect

Do again in half hour. 

I was extremely busy most of the flight twisting the kin 94.

I was extremely busy most of the flight acting as the GPSS.

Want...no, need GPSS.

First exposure to T route.

Speed brakes make a slam dunk easy.

And since i was slam dunked, i decided to let the kap 150 shoot the approach at the last second...indeed it grabbed the glideslope from above. Nailed it too.

The wife saw the runway before me at 800 feet...head inside ya know.

foreflight track up forward or center turns off as soon as you pan the screen.

checking metars at your destination on the iPad is awesome...except when the ceiling is going down.

I will never get used to that jumping of the pitot static instruments when you enter precip. Seen it a million times, still startles me.

rain is noisy.

My bladder is 55 years old.

JPI 900 display is too small.

What a fabulous cross country machine.

I chose the right airplane.

Mike

 

 

[201er]

Congrats. Now get out there and fly some real cross-the-country.

[Hank]

Just now, 201er said:

Congrats. Now get out there and fly some real cross-the-country.

He did go most of the height . . . I'm not gonna fuss at him, my longest trip was KHTW-->KCOD and back, a shade over 1300 nm each way. I've also been north to Niagara and south to KFXE in different trips. Hope to make it back to Kerrville one year now that I'm back South and it's closer, one tank range I believe.

[carqwik]

Not sure about the problem with reroutes in the KLN 94.  Simply add waypoints as needed and delete those that don't apply...all in FltPlan 0.  Adding waypoints doesn't terminate course guidance from whatever you have in the "direct to."  You don't need to build an entirely new flight plan every time you get a reroute....  The only problem I have with my KLN94 is the small screen. 

[Guest Mike261]

5 hours ago, Hyett6420 said:

In my kln I  do a direct to to the new fix then let flt plan 0 take over from there, ie if they have  decided to cut out a section of the route for me and routed me direct to three waypoints down for example.  Ive never had to reenter a while flight plan.  

Would have been nice if that were the case, but they completely rerouted me...obliterated each route. 

[Guest Mike261]

5 hours ago, Hyett6420 said:

Mine is 52 and has had a bladder internal exam with a camera (ill let you imagine that one  suffice to say the doctor said this "may be a bit uncomfortable" LIAR!!!). So as a consequence my plane can do an endurance of 6 hours plus, my bladder 1.5 hours.  I have found a wonderful product called Restop 

http://restop.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=1&idproduct=2

We use them all the time.   They have the gel from nappies (diapers) in them so convert the water to a gel.  They seal as well and you simply drop them in the bin afterwards.  I use the same bin at my airport and am waiting for someone to say "andrew do you mind awfully not dropping your magic blue bags in the bin". . 

Hope that helps.

Andrew

I think ill try those...used the red jar john thingy from sportys, and had way too much coffee.

[Bob_Belville]

Just now, Mike261 said:

Would have been nice if that were the case, but they completely rerouted me...obliterated each route. 

That's where the GTN 750 really shines. 

[ArtVandelay]

Just now, Mike261 said: Would have been nice if that were the case, but they completely rerouted me...obliterated each route. 

That's where the GTN 750 really shines. 

Or go all out and add the Flightstream 210, do your new flightplan on your iPad, then send it to the GTN650/750 after you've preview it to make sure it's correct.

[flyboy0681]

12 hours ago, Mike261 said:

I flew 46X down to the outer banks (KMQI) for a week. Had my vacation and returned. Arrived home at KLWM yesterday AM.

 

Some points where we are precisely on the same page:

 

My bladder is 55 years old. [same here]

My wife can sleep through anything. [same here]

The center stack has a sharp corner that digs into my right calf...me no likey. [same here]

Must. Have. Altitude preselect. [same here]

Want...no, need GPSS. [worth its weight in gold]

And since i was slam dunked, i decided to let the kap 150 shoot the approach at the last second...indeed it grabbed the glideslope from above. Nailed it too.

checking metars at your destination on the iPad is awesome...except when the ceiling is going down.

rain is noisy.

My bladder is 55 years old.[same here]

What a fabulous cross country machine. [same here]

I chose the right airplane. [same here]

Mike [same here]

[Guest Mike261]

11 hours ago, Hank said:

He did go most of the height . . . I'm not gonna fuss at him, my longest trip was KHTW-->KCOD and back, a shade over 1300 nm each way. I've also been north to Niagara and south to KFXE in different trips. Hope to make it back to Kerrville one year now that I'm back South and it's closer, one tank range I believe.

This was my longest x country in the Mooney. Back in my salad days i flew all over the country...boy how it has changed.

Things I used to do that i don't have to anymore...

situational awareness from paper charts splayed about the cabin, using VOR needles, and maybe DME if i was lucky.

fuel flow guesses.

getting weather from flight service over a VOR...figuring frequencies out.

So much has changed, it almost seems barbaric back then.

Now i just look at a little screen...instantly know whats up and can tend to other stuff, like taking a leak, or twisting my klunker 94 knobs.

 

One thing i did do back then was bring a sammich. Note to self: still need sammiches even with all the fancy technology, i was so hungry when i landed.

Ham and Swiss on a bulkie roll I'm thinking...would have hit the spot.

mike

[Hank]

And a water bottle . . . One per person.

[bradp]

On July 11, 2016 at 10:05 AM, Bob_Belville said:

That's where the GTN 750 really shines. 

when your bladder is full?

[Piloto]

I did the best mod for the bladder problem; a pilot relief tube. No need to worry about bags and bottles. And can drink a six pack of diet coke cans with no worries. The suction in the funnel assures no drops on my boxers. The hose on mine is long enough for the copilot. I store it underneath the pilot seat. Best mod I had on my plane.

José

[jetdriven]

Yep, subtract two knots from cruise speed, and replace the belly skins every 5-7 years from corrosion. Urine is very corrosive.  

Me, I fly dehydrated and if you don't drink a lot, you don't have to have a pee. If you only have a 1.5 hour bladder, why buy a machine that can fly 1000 NM in one shot, just  save that money and buy a Champ or Ercoupe. 

[ArtVandelay]

1 hour ago, jetdriven said:

Yep, subtract two knots from cruise speed, and replace the belly skins every 5-7 years from corrosion. Urine is very corrosive.  

Me, I fly dehydrated and if you don't drink a lot, you don't have to have a pee. If you only have a 1.5 hour bladder, why buy a machine that can fly 1000 NM in one shot, just  save that money and buy a Champ or Ercoupe. 

+1

Between the tube and the marker beacon antenna probably more that 2 knots, my antenna is internal beneath my 1 piece belly. 

And I don't like the idea of sharing my relief tube... I'll stick with a gatorade bottle.

[whiskytango]

5 hours ago, teejayevans said:

+1

Between the tube and the marker beacon antenna probably more that 2 knots, my antenna is internal beneath my 1 piece belly. 

And I don't like the idea of sharing my relief tube... I'll stick with a gatorade bottle.

I prefer an Apple Juice bottle.  It gives you plausible deniability when you dump it out on the ramp.

[jetdriven]

Just don't forget it's not apple juice in there anymore and take a swig. 

[cnoe]

Just don't forget it's not apple juice in there anymore and take a swig. 

I hope you're not speaking from experience.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Marauder]

Just don't forget it's not apple juice in there anymore and take a swig. 

I hope you're not speaking from experience.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

If he was, he won't say. I wouldn't.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[bonal]

We have never had to make an unscheduled stop for relief so a 3 hour bladder except one flight going to Carlsbad we were giving my CFI a ride to visit his folks and he can't make that duration so we planned a stop in rout I think it was Bakersfield when we were getting close and I was going to start my descent he said he was ok to press on. Well a few minutes later the thought of not being able to go got the best of him and as we were passing over Taft at 7500 he needed an emergency stop. Kind of like a C130 doing a combat approach I pull out the AFD cause I've never put down there got squared away but that runway is so dirty it looks like dirt from above he assured me it was paved. Nice landing and taxi to the can. Taft is one of those places makes you wonder why any one would live there. Perhaps some hidden treasure that me being a transient is un aware of.

[Bennett]

Consider adult Depends (or competing brands) for long flights. Not as crazy as it sounds, nor are they bulky or uncomfortable. After landing a small discrete "clean up" kit with an extra set of underwear to bring to the bathroom makes this work. And if you didn't need to use it, all the better. Sure, not very macho, but takes away bladder anxiety.

[Piloto]

23 hours ago, jetdriven said:

Yep, subtract two knots from cruise speed, and replace the belly skins every 5-7 years from corrosion. Urine is very corrosive.  

Me, I fly dehydrated and if you don't drink a lot, you don't have to have a pee. If you only have a 1.5 hour bladder, why buy a machine that can fly 1000 NM in one shot, just  save that money and buy a Champ or Ercoupe. 

I have not seen any speed drop or corrosion. Later Mooneys have composite belly panels, so corrosion is not an issue. The relief tube is common on the B58 Baron. My next door hangar neighbor has a B58 with a relief tube also and have not seen any corrosion on his plane. Aside from unlimited drain capacity the relief funnel assures droplet free due to the suction. No worries about loosing the full bottle cap under the seat. No need to relief before or after flight. No need to find a place to empty the bottle or discard the bags after landing. In fact no need to worry about having enough bags or bottles for that long cross country. Unlike the bottles were you have to tilt them down to fill them you can use the relief funnel horizontally with no risk of you getting wet. And when you use it the joy of relief is priceless.

José

Edited July 15, 2016 by Piloto

[jetdriven]

 

22 minutes ago, Piloto said:

I have not seen any speed drop or corrosion. Later Mooneys have composite belly panels, so corrosion is not an issue. The relief tube is common on the B58 Baron. My next door hangar neighbor has a B58 with a relief tube also and have not seen any corrosion on his plane. Aside from unlimited drain capacity the relief funnel assures droplet free due to the suction. No worries about loosing the full bottle cap under the seat. No need to relief before or after flight. No need to find a place to empty the bottle or discard the bags after landing. In fact no need to worry about having enough bags or bottles for that long cross country. Unlike the bottles were you have to tilt them down to fill them you can use the relief funnel horizontally with no risk of you getting wet. And when you use it the joy of relief is priceless.

José

Piss on your plane all you want, but don't tell me it doesn't corrode aluminum. And composite belly panel aside, the tailcone is aluminum. As any owner can tell you, the grease and stuff from the breather streaks down the belly all the way back to the tie down ring. Here's an AD about pilot relief tubes. Urine is corrosive. http://www.caa.si/fileadmin/user_upload/pageuploads/AD-NOTE/AD-2008/FAA_2008-03-10.pdf

Edited July 15, 2016 by jetdriven

[Piloto]

10 hours ago, jetdriven said:

 

Piss on your plane all you want, but don't tell me it doesn't corrode aluminum. And composite belly panel aside, the tailcone is aluminum. As any owner can tell you, the grease and stuff from the breather streaks down the belly all the way back to the tie down ring. Here's an AD about pilot relief tubes. Urine is corrosive. http://www.caa.si/fileadmin/user_upload/pageuploads/AD-NOTE/AD-2008/FAA_2008-03-10.pdf

There are plenty of aluminum amphibians (Grumman G44) and boats (Striker 44) over 50 years old still floating in salt water with no corrosion on their structure. And back in the 70s and before aluminum boats discharged their waste into the ocean. I don't think a little bit of pissing is comparable to floating on salt water. For corrosion advise check with salt water boaters and amphibian owners. By the way before I installed the relief tube I used an aluminum can for 20 years and never saw any corrosion on it. Maybe my urine is not corrosive. 

José

Edited July 15, 2016 by Piloto

[Skates97]

I haven't made any long cross country flights, but on long car trips cheez-its are great for "water retention." Either that or a slice of Costco Combo Pizza, high sodium content.