what is the biggest engine installed on a Mite?

[nels]

A Moomey rarely discussed but certainly interesting is the Mooney Mite. More curiosity than anything but what is the largest power plant installed on those planes and what is its final top speed and cruise potential? How about fuel burn? Are they easy to fly and could they ever realistically be used for a personal cross country airplanes? Any extended tank capacity? I bet they are fun to fly but wonder if they would beat you up on a long trip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Andy95W]

1 hour ago, nels said:

 I bet they are fun to fly but wonder if they would beat you up on a long trip.

 

Beat you up on a long trip? Nah.  

Just look at this fine gentleman using his to go to business meetings.  

[Guest]

Here are a few listed on the Mite Site.  There are some with a C-85 and a metal prop.

Al Mooney flew one with extended tank 1300 sm.

 

http://www.mooneymite.com/sales.htm

Clarence 

[Mooneymite]

Mites are very easy to fly.  Unlike the M-20, the M-18 has a control stick.

Once they are modified from the original configuration, they're hard to keep within certified weight limits.  The ones I'm familiar with are routinely flown overweight.

While tall pilots fit just fine, the 1955's provide a bit more headroom.  Fat pilots will push the max weight limit.

A few Mites were factory equipped with the Continental A-65-12 with generator, starter and lights.  These are rare finds.  Other Mites have been modified, but most Mites do not have electrics.

If you ever get a chance to fly a Mite, do it.  They are fun.

[rbridges]

28 minutes ago, Mooneymite said:

Mites are very easy to fly.  Unlike the M-20, the M-18 has a control stick.

Once they are modified from the original configuration, they're hard to keep within certified weight limits.  The ones I'm familiar with are routinely flown overweight.

While tall pilots fit just fine, the 1955's provide a bit more headroom.  Fat pilots will push the max weight limit.

A few Mites were factory equipped with the Continental A-65-12 with generator, starter and lights.  These are rare finds.  Other Mites have been modified, but most Mites do not have electrics.

If you ever get a chance to fly a Mite, do it.  They are fun.

that's interesting about the non-electric.  How long did you own yours?

[carusoam]

Sounds like riding a no-frills motorcycle...

Under the right conditions, you can go pretty far...

Under the wrong conditions, you can get stuck where you are... or have a really tiring experience...

a Modernized version would be great....

• aluminum and composites 
• fuel injected/diesel 100+hp
• LED lights
• Digital radios
• lighter weight and more electrically efficient
• IFR at a minimum
• Isn’t This the M10J, narrowed for a fast cross-sectional area?

Any more than that, you end up with a single seat Ovation... not very efficient for one person.

Any less, you end up leaving it home or watching the weather instead of focusing on working/playing/visiting....

PP thoughts only, a great cognitive exercise...

Best regards,

-a-

[Mooneymite]

3 hours ago, rbridges said:

that's interesting about the non-electric.  How long did you own yours?

2003-2005.  Mine had the factory electrics.  N70DV.  I sold it to a United pilot who lives in Casa de Aero near Chicago, but I see that someone in IA now owns it.  Lucky guy.

http://mooneymite.com/articles-monthmites/monthmite2003-10.htm

[Ron McBride]

What is the maintenance aspects with the wood wing and tail.   Who can really safely inspect and repair these?

[kerry]

I keep my eye on mites for sale all the time.  I think it would be a perfect fit for me as a 2nd plane.  80% of the time I fly solo and 4 GPH seems a lot better than 9 GPH.  I have a 2nd plane now that is open cockpit but burns 8 GPH.  With the mite having the option of flying open cockpit I think it would be a great plane to replace my 2nd plane I have now.  I think my best option would be to have a mite as my 3rd plane but sadly my wife won't allow it.  As far as a wood plane goes I would love to find a project mite and rebuild it so I'm sure rot doesn't exists in the airframe.  I think it would be fun to rebuild a mite vs. building a kit plane. 

[Mooneymite]

1 hour ago, N803RM said:

What is the maintenance aspects with the wood wing and tail.   Who can really safely inspect and repair these?

The Mite actually has an onerous AD on inspecting the wing and tail structures.  Most Mite owners comply through an AMOC by installing inspection ports.  However, a Mite which has aged outdoors is probably not something you want to take on unless you know someone who is really good with wood.

If the wood structure is in good shape, the Mite is a strong little airplane, but who really knows what the life of glue is?  These things are pushing on 70 years old now.

[Mooneymite]

50 minutes ago, bluehighwayflyer said:

I really like the Mite but I think I would prefer a Culver Cadet....

I think if you flew a Mite, you'd understand that it is really in a different class than the Culver Cadet.  Both are great little Mooney designs, but before you buy either, fly a Mite.

[Mooneymite]

1 hour ago, kerry said:

I think it would be a perfect fit for me as a 2nd plane.  80% of the time I fly solo and 4 GPH seems a lot better than 9 GPH.  

Yep.  I flew mine all over the southeast and had a ball doing it.  My wife and I enjoy our 4 place Mooney,  but sometimes it's really nice to fly places with no excuse needed for going by yourself.  

You'll find that every time you stop somewhere you'll empty out the FBO and meet all sorts of new friends curious about who is flying the "model airplane".

[Mooneymite]

1 hour ago, kerry said:

 I think my best option would be to have a mite as my 3rd plane but sadly my wife won't allow it.

Your wife is a wise woman.  I had three planes for a short time, but it seemed like annuals came three times a year instead of just once!

Two is enough unless you have an "on-staff" IA!

[nels]

8 hours ago, M20Doc said:

Here are a few listed on the Mite Site.  There are some with a C-85 and a metal prop.

Al Mooney flew one with extended tank 1300 sm.

 

http://www.mooneymite.com/sales.htm

Clarence 

Clarence, I just checked out the Mite Site...pretty neat. I noticed a Joe Harris had an original Mooney/Crosley engine available. Is Joe on this forum? My curiosity again, but the Crosley engine on an airplane is intriguing. Supposedly the engine has two plugs per cylinder but I only count four. I guess the other four are on the other side of the cylinder? Also wondering if the Crosley engine used in the Mite has a cast iron or the forged steel crank available later in Crosley's life cycle. I had heard the prop was geared down from the engine crank as the Crosley was happy well north of 5000 rpm. 

[Mooneymite]

5 hours ago, nels said:

Clarence, I just checked out the Mite Site...pretty neat. I noticed a Joe Harris had an original Mooney/Crosley engine available. Is Joe on this forum? My curiosity again, but the Crosley engine on an airplane is intriguing. Supposedly the engine has two plugs per cylinder but I only count four. I guess the other four are on the other side of the cylinder? Also wondering if the Crosley engine used in the Mite has a cast iron or the forged steel crank available later in Crosley's life cycle. I had heard the prop was geared down from the engine crank as the Crosley was happy well north of 5000 rpm. 

There weren't many Mites built with the Crosley engine.  It was sadly under-powered and was plagued with "technical problems".  While finding one would be neat from an historical perspective, flying one might be challenging.

Subsequent Mites were equipped with either Continental 65's, or Lycoming 65's.  You can tell the difference from a distance since the exhausts exit on opposite sides.  (Continentals on the right, Lycomings on the left.)

[Mjknick@gmail.com]

A Moomey rarely discussed but certainly interesting is the Mooney Mite. More curiosity than anything but what is the largest power plant installed on those planes and what is its final top speed and cruise potential? How about fuel burn? Are they easy to fly and could they ever realistically be used for a personal cross country airplanes? Any extended tank capacity? I bet they are fun to fly but wonder if they would beat you up on a long trip.
 
 
 
 
 
 

I’d put a turbo prop say 600 hp


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[EricJ]

1 hour ago, Mjknick@gmail.com said:

I’d put a turbo prop say 600 hp


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I was just thinking that.   I ran across a vid a while back of a guy putting a turbine engine in a BD-5.   A turbine Mite would be a hoot. 
 

 

[BKlott]

5 hours ago, Mooneymite said:

There weren't many Mites built with the Crosley engine.  It was sadly under-powered and was plagued with "technical problems".  While finding one would be neat from an historical perspective, flying one might be challenging.

Subsequent Mites were equipped with either Continental 65's, or Lycoming 65's.  You can tell the difference from a distance since the exhausts exits on opposite sides.  (Continentals on the right, Lycomings on the left.)

If I remember reading correctly, when the Crosley powered Mites started having problems, Mooney found, upon inspection, that the delivered engines did not conform to the design specifications. Thus the move to Continental and Lycoming variants.

[kerry]

I don't think the mites wood airframe could handle the same airspeed of a BD5 with a turbine.  Also think of the high fuel burn.  I think a turbine is a good fit in a BD5 because the weight of the engine.  The only other engine that works in a BD5 is a 2 cycle snowmobile engine like the Rotax type.

[nels]

Any comment on cruise speed also glide ratio, stall speed and fuel capacity?

[EricJ]

2 hours ago, kerry said:

I don't think the mites wood airframe could handle the same airspeed of a BD5 with a turbine.  Also think of the high fuel burn.  I think a turbine is a good fit in a BD5 because the weight of the engine.  The only other engine that works in a BD5 is a 2 cycle snowmobile engine like the Rotax type.

The snowmobile engines were the original suggestion, IIRC, when Bede first started selling the kits.   It seems like BD-5s these days have been getting all kinds of crazy engines installed.   I'd found another vid with one with a Honda four-cylinder which looked like it worked quite well.   This one was built by a friend's uncle and had a MiG-ish nose to accommodate a radiator for a water-cooled four-cylinder.
 

 

 

[Raptor05121]

I would pay some DAMN good money to get some time in a Mite.

[Mooneymite]

9 hours ago, nels said:

Any comment on cruise speed also glide ratio, stall speed and fuel capacity?

Visit www.mooneymite.com. for info.

Just as on Mooneyspace, "cruisespeed" was somewhat controversial with some owners reporting unbelieveable numbers.  As I recall, mine indicated about 115 mph at cruise rpm.  

Mine was not equipped with the aux tank due to gross weight concerns.  I planned a very conservative 2 hours between fuel stops.  

I don't remember what the glide ratio was.  

[Mooneymite]

6 hours ago, Raptor05121 said:

I would pay some DAMN good money to get some time in a Mite.

And worth every penny in terms of fun-to-fly.  

The dual check-out for a rental is problematic.  

[Andy95W]

To answer @nels original question, the largest engine ever put into a Mite was the Continental C-90 in the short lived M-19 that was developed for the US Army.  I got all this information from The Al Mooney Story written by Gordon Baxter (as told to him by Al himself).

In 1951, the US Army realized it needed a small tactical support aircraft, and the M-18 was thought to be a good starting point.  It was redesigned for two .30 caliber machine guns and two rocket mounts or small napalm bombs.  It was equipped with a 90 HP Continental with adjustable propeller.  Al designated it the M-19, which makes it the last plane he designed before he made the M-20.

The Army loved the plane when they tested it, and it was an effective ground attack aircraft.  At the time, however, the Air Force was just beginning, and there were "turf wars" about who could fly what types of aircraft.  The powers-that-be decided a light attack winged aircraft was the purview of the Air Force, while the Army was allowed helicopters.  Because of this, the M-19 was scratched.

The one-of-a-kind M-19 became Al Mooney's personal aircraft.  Baxter said, "it was his favorite of all the airplanes he ever designed and built."

When he sold the company and went to work for Lockheed, the M-19 was one of the assets transferred to the new owners.  One of the new owners (Hal Rachal) attempted a takeoff from Love Field with a concrete tie-down block still attached which wrecked the plane.  The wings were cut off and the remaining pieces traded hands a few times.  It doesn't mention if anyone restored it, but I think it unlikely since it was only ever certified in the Experimental category.