Flaps Not Holding Position In Flight

[MrRodgers]

Hi everyone,

New Mooney owner Here with limited experience in maintenance on the plane.

Had a situation develop the other day and I'd like some input from the group.

During pre-flight my flaps on my 67 M20F are secure and have no unwanted movement issues.

In flight however is a different story.  When setting up for landing they do not lock in place during flight.  Needless to say this is adding to the workload.

Has anyone else experienced this and if so, what might be the cause?  Any suggestions or shared experience will be appreciated.

Thanks so much,

Michael Rodgers

KSMO

[N201MKTurbo]

You have a leaky flap pump. It is the ball that the pin unseats when you move the lever. If cleaning it doesn't get it to seat, then you need to re-coin the seat by putting the body in a vice putting the ball on the seat, putting a punch on the ball and giving it a firm whack with a big hammer. This will form a perfect gas tight seal on the ball. after 50 years the aluminum seat can become slightly corroded and leak.

In the mean time, just let it be for a while. If it is dirt, it might get flushed away.

[RobertGary1]

I assume you have the hydraulic flags?

 

-Robert