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Considering Mooney purchase NE Oklahoma


CapnKirk

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Hi all. I’m new to the group. Never flown a Mooney. Lusted over them for a while. I’m a low time pilot with about 120 hours total time and 20 or so complex. I feel like a J model would make a good cross country machine and something to finish my instrument and commercial in. I had considered an Arrow since I’m familiar with them but every one of them seems to be a high time flight school reject. 

Anyone want to weigh in?  Too much airplane or good fit?  If anyone around KMIO wants to stop by, I’ll buy you some gas for a ride. 

Edited by CapnKirk
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Long term purchase or short? 

Went from an Archer to a Mooney 3 years ago and won’t ever look back. Archer is a great all around plane but no match for the Mooney.  Just finished my instrument a month ago.  If your gonna fly a Mooney long term I would finish the rating in the plane you’ll be flying in.   

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Probably long term if it’s something I’m comfortable flying. I’ve got a family of 5 but the youngest is only a couple of months old.  The others are 4 and 9. If they end up going lots of places with us, I’ll probably need a twin anyway. Heard rumors of 3 person back seats but don’t know how feasible that would be. 

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Hey CapnKirk, I did about the same thing.  I had slightly more hours TT but I did all my IR training and check ride in the Mooney.  8 years later I'm super happy with the plane and the fact that I did the training in the actual plane I've been flying all these years.  Go for it! 

Btw, where are you based?  (Never mind just saw your at KMIO)

-Kris

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15 minutes ago, CapnKirk said:

I feel like a J model would make a good cross country machine YES and something to finish my instrument YES and commercial in YES

 

The J might be one of the best cross country machines ever made. It is a rock solid instrument platform. And a good plane to learn the commercial maneuvers in.

If you're ever in the Austin area, there are a lot of us with a lot of different models to try out.

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1 hour ago, INA201 said:

Long term purchase or short? 

Went from an Archer to a Mooney 3 years ago and won’t ever look back. Archer is a great all around plane but no match for the Mooney.  Just finished my instrument a month ago.  If your gonna fly a Mooney long term I would finish the rating in the plane you’ll be flying in.   

I’d like to get something like a C310 or Saratoga at some point but I don’t feel like that’s a cost effective way to finish ratings.

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The most cost effective way to finish ratings is a Piper Cherokee 140 with the IR instruments already attached.  You only need 10 hours of the complex for your commercial, you don't even have to take the check ride in one.  If its training and time building I'd get the cheapest airplane I can.  Cherokee airframe only has 1200 parts (Mooney has 7K).  And it even has a back seat if you want to take a yard ape or two.

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Welcome aboard Capn.

If trying to decide between a Mooney and purchasing NE Oklahoma ...I’d go with the plane.  ;)

To parse between models I think J or F model would work well for ratings completion and traveling with part of your family but in most all Mooneys you are starting with -1 seats so an A36 or Cherokee 6/Saratoga would probably serve better. The PA32-300, if I recall was about 13-15 GPH and served my family  well on a lot of long trips when I was growing up.

Im at KROG for a couple of weeks a month and may be able to make it over your way at some point this summer.

 

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If I were in your shoes, I'd treat this as a temporary plane since your family will soon outgrow it.  Your kids are small enough that they will fit in the back of any of the Mooney models, so I wouldn't go with the J, it's overkill.  I think a C or E would be best, but I wouldn't rule out a G or F if it is priced right and has the panel you want for your instrument training.  When taking the whole family, have the two younger kids share a seatbelt, that is still allowed.  When that is no longer feasible, sell this plane and move up to something with 5+ actual seats.

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I would skip the temporary plane and find your “forever” plane (6 seater, you may not need the 6th seat, but you’ll need the useful load that goes with it), probably a twin. If I had 3 kids, that’s what I would do. I would upgrade it so it’s fully capable of handling any IFR conditions: WAAS GPS, stormscope, capable autopilot and engine monitor of course.

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Any of the M20 models especially the C, E, F, and J would suit you well to train and get hours and ratings. You might get away with 3 in the back seat under perfect circumstances but I wouldn't consider that, but I have traveled with 4 adults many times. None of these are practical to haul your entire family of 5. 

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Hello and welcome!  I really think you need a 6 seat aircraft like an A36, Cherokee 6 or Saratoga but would wait on the twin as you still need to get your instrument ticket.  If you want to use your aircraft a lot  I think it is important that you family is comfortable.  Aviation wise I was almost exactly in your spot when I bought my J 8 years ago, I had around 120TT and no instrument ticket however I was single and did not need the seats, I don't think a J is too much plane for your experience.  The J has served me very well over the last 1100hrs, I got my instrument ticket in it and will be starting my commercial soon, it is a great aircraft to build your time and ratings in while having an awesome economical cross country machine.  The other side of the coin is now that I have only 1 baby I find I don't have enough room in the J for all the stuff that comes with a child, sure I could cram it all in but the wife is uncomfortable and cramped back there so she hasn't flown with me for almost a year, something to keep in mind since you have a family of 5.  I am shopping for a 310R and hope to have one in the next year.  Good luck with your search.

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A lot of people followed similar paths.  I had 150ish hours in a 172/cherokee before buying my mooney.  Got my instrument rating in it.  I learned lots about the mooney while getting my IR.  It's a great platform, and a J is an excellent model.  

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