Flight school trying to talk me out of a Mooney.

[gsengle]

I've owned Piper and Mooney. The build quality and strength is night and day.


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[carusoam]

She must have had an extra half hour in the day and needed a conversation.

Go fly a Mooney.

An M20C will be spry and agile enough to make you want to do your own research.

Then try to pick the one that Best meets your mission.

 

Best regards,

-a-

[gitmo234]

I'd suspect that most flight schools will talk you out of buying if they can. Mine tried to talk me out of buying a 172. They never took me seriously and either laughed me off or tried to talk me out of it until I had begun the pre-purchase inspection. Then it switched to them looking forward to my business for parking, maintenance, etc. By then I had already made a decision to move on.

[NotarPilot]

I've owned my 78 J for over 5 years now and never had an issue with parts. I mainly deal with LASAR and they've never told me they didn't have a part I needed in stock. Some parts are actually quite reasonably priced too. Others, not so much. 

[PTK]

Pure and unadulterated BS!

I don't know her variety but it's very possible she may have had a blonde moment! She doesn't necessarily have to be blonde either. It can be very tricky to the observer. Brunettes and redheads have blonde moments too.

 

 

[MBDiagMan]

10 hours ago, ragedracer1977 said:

I'm a renter at the school where I learned how to fly.  I was in today renting a 172 and mentioned to the office lady that I was looking at Mooneys.  She spent the next 30 minutes trying to talk me out of it.  

Be honest, is any of what she said valid?

She said that Mooney parts are difficult to come by when something breaks - either you have to scour junkyards and hope to find it or go aftermarket.  If you're on a XC and have problems, you'll have trouble finding a mechanic who knows how to work on it.  Maintenance is very expensive.

I guess what I'm asking is, what are the concerns about buying and maintaining a Mooney M20 C-F models, vs. say a Cessna 210?

I have owned and flown a Cessna for seven years before adding my Mooney to the fleet.  When I get out of my excellent condition Cessna into the Mooney it is akin to getting out of an SUV with worn shocks and steering linkage and getting into a Ferrari.  No comparison.

In my experience, when you start asking the Mooney naysayers how much first hand Mooney experience they have, it is usually none, they know someone, they rode in one or very little first hand experience.

Also, factor in the ladies position in the matter.  She is faced with losing a renter.

If you are considering buying a plane of ANY brand, the key is finding and buying the right example.  There is no shortage of Money Pits for sale out there.  Get one in proper condition with no corrosion or leaking fuel tanks.  If you do your due diligence you can find a plane in good condition that, if maintained, will serve you well for many years.

[Yetti]

Oh and ya you can get parts for Cessna.  They go find the drawing, then send someone out to make it, or wait for another run to happen.  Then they send you a $1,400.00 heater air box.  That has about $8.00 alum and some rivets in it. But ya they have parts for your plane.

[jlunseth]

It is true that some Mooney parts can be a chore to find, but in practice, the ones that are likely to ground you during a long XC such as mags, vacuum pumps, etc., are the same for Mooneys as other aircraft.  We just had a thread on that topic.  I have had a handful of things go wrong on XCs and the parts in all cases were either available on the field or were overnighted by my mechanic.  Airframe parts are the ones that can be harder to find.  Have been waiting a month for a gas filler neck from Mooney that needed to be replaced during the annual.  But its here now and the plane will be done this week.  The parts issue is much better now that Mooney is back in business.

[mike20papa]

10 hours ago, gsengle said:

I've owned Piper and Mooney. The build quality and strength is night and day.


All you have to do is look at an early designed Al Mooney AC - like a Culver - the thing is built like a tank.  Especially the control linkages, hinges, gear, etc.

 

[orionflt]

As a mechanic and pilot and Mooney owner I can say that I hate working on the Mooney compared to a Cessna or Piper trainer, but once you move out of the trainer class aircraft they all become harder to work on. in fact i feel the turbo bonanza probably has less room to work in the engine compartment then the Mooney,

As previously stated, jumping into the Mooney is like a sports car vs a SUV, both have their uses you just have to decide what best fits your needs. also, do not let people tell you that there is no room in a Mooney, especially the back seats. my family fly's with me all over the place, they are average size and fit comfortably in the back seat. actually both my wife and daughter have told me that the Mooney is more comfortable on longer trips then my friends Cessna 172 that I will some use when my plane is down for maintenance. Truth is they said they would rather drive then fly in the back of the 172 on a long trip.

in the end the choice is your, just get all the facts and do some test drives so you know what you are comparing, opinions are like @$$hole every bodies got one ....... and as a Mooney guy mine favor the Mooney.

Brian

 

[KSMooniac]

Go price a landing gear casting for a retract Cessna, or ask your FBO owner to do so. Or a replacement firewall to fix a hard landing...sometimes those take a year to deliver.

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[neonbjb]

The first few posts on this thread insulting the poor lady for offering advice are pretty out of line. Lets be fair - it is difficult/expensive to find parts and labor for the Mooney-specific parts in our plane. I was turned down by a couple of A&P's while trying to find someone to work on my plane at my home airport and I'm currently living with a number of small problems which cannot be fixed because of parts availability concerns. For example, my pitch trim indicator cable is frozen up. It's basically a bike cable with a custom screwed end fitting. I called my local MSC for a replacement quote and they gave me 6 months and over $1000. Are you kidding me? Another example is the prop cable - $800 for a Mooney where you can buy the Piper/Cessna variant for $250. And don't forget the fact that if you miss some corrosion spots during the pre-buy (or just get unlucky..) you can pretty much expect to scrap the entire airframe. I don't have first hand experience here but I have heard similar corrosion repairs in simple non-retractable pipers and cessnas are affordable enough to consider.

That being said the really important wear items like the engine and prop are easy to repair and work on and parts are easy to find. Similarly, I've had no problem finding parts for landing gear components. It's just the obscure stuff like switch covers, push-pull cables, brackets, etc that can get difficult.

Let me be clear: I really like my Mooney. I don't think you're going to find a certified 4-seat plane that's as fast and efficient in the $40k-$80k price range as a C/E/F. That should be your deciding factor, not parts availability. If you can really live with flying at 110kts to save some money on part and labor then you may want to think about it. I know that wasn't a hard choice for me. 

Edited April 10, 2017 by neonbjb

[rbridges]

Keep in mind you are asking a mooney board if a mooney is a bad airplane to own.  I honestly don't think it's any worse than any other plane.  As long as the size and speed fits your mission, it's a great choice.  If you're wanting to carry a 4 full size adults with luggage, maybe not so much.

[gsengle]

The first few posts on this thread insulting the poor lady for offering advice are pretty out of line. Lets be fair - it is difficult/expensive to find parts and labor for the Mooney-specific parts in our plane. I was turned down by a couple of A&P's while trying to find someone to work on my plane at my home airport and I'm currently living with a number of small problems which cannot be fixed because of parts availability concerns. For example, my pitch trim indicator cable is frozen up. It's basically a bike cable with a custom screwed end fitting. I called my local MSC for a replacement quote and they gave me 6 months and over $1000. Are you kidding me? Another example is the prop cable - $800 for a Mooney where you can buy the Piper/Cessna variant for $250. And don't forget the fact that if you miss some corrosion spots during the pre-buy (or just get unlucky..) you can pretty much expect to scrap the entire airframe. I don't have first hand experience here but I have heard similar corrosion repairs in simple non-retractable pipers and cessnas are affordable enough to consider.
That being said the really important wear items like the engine and prop are easy to repair and work on and parts are easy to find. Similarly, I've had no problem finding parts for landing gear components. It's just the obscure stuff like switch covers, push-pull cables, brackets, etc that can get difficult.
Let me be clear: I really like my Mooney. I don't think you're going to find a certified 4-seat plane that's as fast and efficient in the $40k-$80k price range as a C/E/F. That should be your deciding factor, not parts availability. If you can really live with flying at 110kts to save some money on part and labor then you may want to think about it. I know that wasn't a hard choice for me. 

Have you owned an airplane of similar vintage of another manufacturer? Unless it's a 172 or Cherokee, same deal. This isn't a Mooney specific problem. Second I don't think anyone insulted her. My guess however is that she never was a Mooney owner, and thus was just passing along the same ole rumor mill. Which is fine, it's hangar talk. But it's not really helpful.


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[KLRDMD]

13 hours ago, ragedracer1977 said:

I'm in the Phoenix area.  I've already received an offer from another member to take me up in his M20.  I'm heading to Hawaii this week, so when I get back, I'm going to hopefully meet up with him. When the time actually comes to start the purchase, I'll be reaching out to you guys.  

I'm in Tucson, happy to show you around a 231.

[SantosDumont]

Just had my landing gear discs replaced, I think they were $150-200 each, 4 per gear. Just an example of expensive Mooney specific parts. Don't really care though. I don't fly to save money, I fly to save time. 

[gsengle]

Actually I think beech sundowners and musketeers use the same donuts...


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[Ned Gravel]

11 hours ago, gsengle said:

Actually I think beech sundowners and musketeers use the same donuts...


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Really?  I can't see them here.  Am I missing something?

 

 

[Browncbr1]

I can't believe someone tried to claim a C210 is cheaper to maintain and operate than a mooney... 

obviously someone who doesn't have experience in a mooney

[gsengle]

Maybe just on fixed gear ones? Trying to find a picture


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[gsengle]

You can buy em here not sure are same as Mooney...

http://www.aec-inc.com/products/cart.pl?DT=1


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[Skates97]

The flight school where I took my lessons has a M20B that they instruct in and also rent. When I was talking about buying a Mooney I was advised by someone from the school (not my CFI) that I should first buy a Cherokee or a similar basic trainer and fly it for a few years to get more experience before moving up to something like a Mooney. After more research and talking with other Mooney owners I decided that I could fly a Mooney as a low time (58.6 total hours), newly minted PPL. I bought mine, got my transition training, and have been having a great time, almost 40 hours in it since mid December. It is not some mythical beast that is hard to fly. There are a few more things to pay attention to (gear/prop), you have to make sure you hit the right speeds on approach, and everything happens faster, but it is much more responsive with the direct linkage to the control surfaces and not "difficult" to fly.

[KLRDMD]

13 hours ago, gsengle said:

Actually I think beech sundowners and musketeers use the same donuts...

 

1 hour ago, Ned Gravel said:

Really?  I can't see them here.  Am I missing something?

That appears to be a Beech Sierra not a Sundowner or Musketeer.

[DrBill]

15 hours ago, gsengle said:

Actually I think beech sundowners and musketeers use the same donuts...


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my 76 sundowner used donuts just like my Mooney, don't know if they were same part tho.

harder to change than the mooney.

Bill

 

[MBDiagMan]

2 hours ago, KLRDMD said:

 

That appears to be a Beech Sierra not a Sundowner or Musketeer.

Yes, the Musketeer is fixed gear.  That picture could easily be a Sierra.