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Just buying my Mooney C-GPGS, a M20C in Victoria. It is in getting inspected and annual. Great shop that is doing a thorough job. Should have her by the first week of Aug. I have just got back into flying after about 10 years off. (We took our sailboat and circumnavigated the globe for about 10 years and just finished that adventure) This is the first plane I have owned so I'm right into the big learning curb of ownership/maintenance etc. Exciting.

Anyways, I have learned quite a bit from this forum and really appreciate all the participation.

Jordan

jm and mooney.jpg

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Hi Iain

Right now GPGS is at Vic Air Maint. But I have got a tie down arranged on the north side of the field. Hey, if you are willing, I wouldn't mind meeting you at your bird and checking it out. I'm new to Mooneys and so many questions. In particular right now is answering a question about the full range of trim travel. It seems that I don't get a full range in one direction at least according to the indicator needle. I would like to see another mooney with a full trim in that direction and looking at the angle of the elevator and tail and if willing, look behind the tail panels. 

Do you have elec. trim? Johnston bar?

Jordan

tr3jordy@gmail.com

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Any time Jordan. I have a K, but the stuff is all similar, just different lengths.

Electric trim and electric gear on mine though.

 

VAM knows about Mooneys. Mike will treat you well.

i dropped a line to your email and we can schedule something.

 

iain

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5 hours ago, C-GPGS said:

Hi Iain

Right now GPGS is at Vic Air Maint. But I have got a tie down arranged on the north side of the field. Hey, if you are willing, I wouldn't mind meeting you at your bird and checking it out. I'm new to Mooneys and so many questions. In particular right now is answering a question about the full range of trim travel. It seems that I don't get a full range in one direction at least according to the indicator needle. I would like to see another mooney with a full trim in that direction and looking at the angle of the elevator and tail and if willing, look behind the tail panels. 

Do you have elec. trim? Johnston bar?

Jordan

tr3jordy@gmail.com

Your shop will need the correct Mooney travel board and a manual to confirm the travel of the stabilizer and the indicator.

Clarence

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Jordan  G'day to you!

Have you joined the Australian Mooney Pilots Association (AMPA) yet?  

If not do so right away. They offer a lot of good help and info and they have travel boards available to members for maintenance issues. GREAT PEOPLE to be friends with and FRIENDS is what they are. 

I did a couple maintenance seminars for them  a couple years ago and it was the best experience I think I have ever had in aviation maintenance. Those folks are held dear with me and my wife. 

Don't place too much worry on your trim indicator until you can check the actual throws. 

Basically you are going to have to jack the airplane level fore and aft (using the top of the skin splice at the radio rack panel access left side)

Once level you can check LE up and down degrees of the stabilizer with the travel board.  The degrees are serial number specific and as you didn't mention the year of your airplane I can't be more specific 

You will find the required degrees in the Type Certificate Data Sheet  (TCDS) (I tried pasting it but the format got screwed) on page 11 under C models. (Google it)

Once you verify or reset the stabilizer up and down degrees then you will check the elevator trim assist bungee settings 

These "bugees" are the spring assist units at the back of the elevator connection to the push rods. This is why the elevators can be moved up and down a little at the back by compressing those springs and why the elevators always project up when parked. 

In the "zero spring travel" position (that means just letting them seek their balanced position, 2 springs opposing each other) with the elevator stabilizer set for 3 1/2 degrees  Leading Edge down, the elevators stick up at either 19 or 10 degrees DEPENDING again on serial number of the airplane. 

These bungees are adjusted at their forward ends by loosening the jamb nut on the HEIM joint and rotating the bungee in or out of the HEIM joint. Make sure you check the witness hole in the HEIM joint for full thread insertion of the rod and then tighten the jam nut. Your AME will be able to do all of this easily. 

Once you have the stab/elevator setting correct then adjust your trim  indicator

You can't do this without a travel board!

Hope this helps explain the process a little bit for you. As with all things Mooney on rigging, you need to start at the beginning and not just drop in mid-way in the process. Same goes for the other 2 axis of the airplane. 

Again join AMPA if you have not already done so. They're neat people. 

An aside, sailing around the world- I've followed "Gone with the Wynn's" for years now on their voyages through Utube. 

 

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Thank you Cliffy, that is very good description and info that we will use.

If you like following sailors, we did a blog during our circumnav:

www.turtlemail.blogspot.com

 

Jordan

tr3jordy@gmail.com

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8 hours ago, cliffy said:

Jordan  G'day to you!

Have you joined the Australian Mooney Pilots Association (AMPA) yet?  

If not do so right away. They offer a lot of good help and info and they have travel boards available to members for maintenance issues. GREAT PEOPLE to be friends with and FRIENDS is what they are. 

I did a couple maintenance seminars for them  a couple years ago and it was the best experience I think I have ever had in aviation maintenance. Those folks are held dear with me and my wife. 

Don't place too much worry on your trim indicator until you can check the actual throws. 

Basically you are going to have to jack the airplane level fore and aft (using the top of the skin splice at the radio rack panel access left side)

Once level you can check LE up and down degrees of the stabilizer with the travel board.  The degrees are serial number specific and as you didn't mention the year of your airplane I can't be more specific 

You will find the required degrees in the Type Certificate Data Sheet  (TCDS) (I tried pasting it but the format got screwed) on page 11 under C models. (Google it)

Once you verify or reset the stabilizer up and down degrees then you will check the elevator trim assist bungee settings 

These "bugees" are the spring assist units at the back of the elevator connection to the push rods. This is why the elevators can be moved up and down a little at the back by compressing those springs and why the elevators always project up when parked. 

In the "zero spring travel" position (that means just letting them seek their balanced position, 2 springs opposing each other) with the elevator stabilizer set for 3 1/2 degrees  Leading Edge down, the elevators stick up at either 19 or 10 degrees DEPENDING again on serial number of the airplane. 

These bungees are adjusted at their forward ends by loosening the jamb nut on the HEIM joint and rotating the bungee in or out of the HEIM joint. Make sure you check the witness hole in the HEIM joint for full thread insertion of the rod and then tighten the jam nut. Your AME will be able to do all of this easily. 

Once you have the stab/elevator setting correct then adjust your trim  indicator

You can't do this without a travel board!

Hope this helps explain the process a little bit for you. As with all things Mooney on rigging, you need to start at the beginning and not just drop in mid-way in the process. Same goes for the other 2 axis of the airplane. 

Again join AMPA if you have not already done so. They're neat people. 

An aside, sailing around the world- I've followed "Gone with the Wynn's" for years now on their voyages through Utube. 

 

Cliffy,

I think you’re mixing up Victoria BC in Canada with Victoria Australia?

Clarence

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For those who have sailed, want to sail or do sail its an interesting recount of travels Very well done. Thx

To keep with the purpose of the thread though-   you gotta TRIM those sails for best efficiency just as we do in the Mooney  :-)

Watch the tell-tail, pull or loosen the sheets and hold a steady course. We fly around weather and you tack to avoid the terrestrial effects of weather and wind (rounding the cape at Cabo, been there, done that). 

Weather is the common denominator in our ventures! 

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We love to share our sailing experiences. We met so many sailors out there who were pilots also. Adventure and freedom runs in our blood it seems.

RE: Trim: I was surprised to find that a local aircraft maintenance shop had the right boards and was familiar with Mooneys and so we had them do the trim adjustments.

I actually take ownership of GPGS today as the owner has finished getting all the things he said he would do. So, exciting day!

Jordan

 

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Over the years I have had about 14 hours either in left or right seat of Mooneys. Even though I haven't flown much in the last 10 years, I have about 700 total hours, which is not much but it has been 700 hours of great variety. IFR rating; mountain endorsement; night endorsement and have landed in over 125 different airports. So now it's time to get back at it and do some fun x-country flying in my own plane this time.

Maybe next year Oshkosh with the Mooniacs

 

 

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