First Time Buyer

[FlyingVAce]

My world is checklists. The home, the car, the weedeaters........ so my natural inclination is to create a checklist of things to look for in purchasing my first Mooney. I'm thinking I early model electric gear. That's about a far as I'm come. Not much right? I got the money, the hanger, insurance, .... 

Can you all provide items I should include on my checklist. Ultimately I will have the plane go thru a pre purchase inspection at a certified Mooney facility. There's one near me in Longview, Texas. 

Thanks and safe flying

 

[neilpilot]

8 minutes ago, FlyingVAce said:

early model electric gear

Funny that I've owned 2 mid-60s Mooneys, both with manual gear, and I used to joke that I'd love a new Mooney if I could get one with manual gear.  The manual gear is very easy to operate if it's adjusted and maintained properly.  Cheaper to maintain, and a very simple and reliable system.

To answer your question, much depends on how you expect to use the aircraft.  If instrument rated or planning to go for the IR, look for avionics that include a WAAS GPS.  If you plan to travel much and fly relatively long distances, an autopilot would make life much easier, and safer if IFR.  There's much more I can add, but I'm sure others will chime in. 

[GeeBee]

Sales contract. What is the form and conditions.  Under what state's laws will you place the contract under, yours or the sellers. 

Title search who you going to use

Escrow and title transfer. When will you be satisfied to close and how will you title the airplane.

[carusoam]

The selection process... is this included in the checklist..?

Or just the buying process..?

Buying process may have steps like...

• find plane for sale (pics and logs... see note from GSXR below on getting logs read...)
• first visit
• earnest money
• draft purchase agreement
• timeline
• down payment
• right of first refusal (?), blocking other buyers while you are in the process.
• PPI
• order of the PPI... 
• PPI failure, what happens then...
• AW issues fixed
• updates added
• Second visit
• documents, insurance, registration
• Transition Training
• Delivery flight

How does that sound?

Check lists are good... flow and checklists are better...   keys, wallet, mask, phone... one in each Levi pocket.   
 

PP thoughts only, not a lawyer or sales guy...

Best regards,

-a-

[Brian E.]

@neilpilot stole my #1 checklist item -- johnson bar gear. #2 hydraulic flaps. #3 (which is not compatible is #1 and #2) would be a 252 Encore.  Ahhhh--what to do?  Good luck.  It will be a great journey  Have fun!

 

[Hank]

Electric gear is great. Our early electric planes don't have the expensive "no back spring" issue that mire recent models do. And the electric flaps that accompany factory electric gear eliminate many pesky hydraulic issues . . . I deal with enough of that at work, but we are upgrading our molding machines from hydraulic to hybrid to all-electric.

Happy hunting!

General advice can be fou d all over MooneySpace, just search for "PPI" here or with google. And that "certified Mooney facility" near you in Longview, KGGG, is Don Maxwell, one of the best! He may know of some planes for sale that aren't being advertised just yet, too.

[spistora]

I purchased my first plane about a year ago.  Once I decided it would be a Mooney, I went to All American Aircraft in Spring Branch Tx and looked at all the differnt models that Jimmy had at the time.  It really helped me narrow down what I wanted and what I could live without.  Seeing all the equpment and options first hand was very helpful in my process. Of course I had only been in two Mooney's before that so if you are already pretty familiar with them it may not be as helpful. He has since teamed up with Maxwell so they may have inventory in Longview also.

[gsxrpilot]

My first Mooney wish list...

M20E or M20C

No corrosion

Engine < 1000 SMOH

Regularly flown

IFR Certified

Autopilot/altitude hold

WAAS GPS

Standard 6-pack panel

HSI

2nd Nav/Comm

no AD prop

1 piece windshield

Tank bladders or sealed tanks

Engine monitor

Exterior paint

Interior condition

2 blade prop

[MikeOH]

#1 On my list was recent flight time; don't buy a plane that hasn't flown much in the last year, or not at all.

[toto]

I'm not the first person on MS to raise this, but somewhere on your checklist should be the condition of the hangar. 

This is far from an exact science, but I have definitely seen a correlation between hangar condition and aircraft maintenance. If you can eat off the hangar floor, chances are that the owner doesn't defer maintenance in other areas of aviation life.

[rpcc]

Lots and lots of info here on this topic!   One thing I would add is how you arrange the pre purchase inspection with your mechanic.   Make a no go list with him so those items are checked first and if they are ok proceed with the rest of the inspection- that saved me a bunch.  Good luck! 

[gsxrpilot]

The checklist helps you find the right candidate. I always make a spreadsheet with N numbers across the top and the wishlist along with price and other items down the left side. Then put every single available Mooney (by model) on the sheet. That helps you compare apples to apples. It also helps you get a good picture of the current market.

Once a candidate is found, but before starting the pre-buy, get copies of the logs and send them to Laura at SWTA along with $250. Her detailed inspection of the logs and subsequent report, will help you know if it's worth spending the additional money and time on a full pre-buy inspection by a qualified shop.

[LANCECASPER]

On 12/5/2020 at 10:11 AM, FlyingVAce said:

My world is checklists. The home, the car, the weedeaters........ so my natural inclination is to create a checklist of things to look for in purchasing my first Mooney. I'm thinking I early model electric gear. That's about a far as I'm come. Not much right? I got the money, the hanger, insurance, .... 

Can you all provide items I should include on my checklist. Ultimately I will have the plane go thru a pre purchase inspection at a certified Mooney facility. There's one near me in Longview, Texas. 

Thanks and safe flying

 

Here's a start: https://lasar.com/prebuy-check-list

[Pinecone]

On 12/6/2020 at 7:02 PM, gsxrpilot said:

Once a candidate is found, but before starting the pre-buy, get copies of the logs and send them to Laura at SWTA along with $250. Her detailed inspection of the logs and subsequent report, will help you know if it's worth spending the additional money and time on a full pre-buy inspection by a qualified shop.

 

I used Byron of Fly RPM here on MS.  Nice guy.  A lot of good advice, and looked at logs for the first couple of candidates for free.