keithmiller Posted February 26, 2023 Report Posted February 26, 2023 Looking for Mooney responses on what your experience was with your annual at the mooney plant in Kerrville. I’m flying a 2009 Acclaim. thanks Quote
Brandt Posted February 26, 2023 Report Posted February 26, 2023 They have done great work for me in the past and I am headed back down for my annual next week. Good folks. 1 Quote
mike_elliott Posted February 26, 2023 Report Posted February 26, 2023 I have a couple clients that use the factory on their acclaims and are highly satisfied Quote
glbtrottr Posted February 26, 2023 Report Posted February 26, 2023 Some years back I had an annual at the factory. I was guaranteed my airplane returned after 3 weeks in writing. It took almost two years. A used part was sold to me as new. The experience was hit and Miss. Some great people worked there but management and oversight back then was all over the map. Engineering was super competent. The avionics guys were good. Some of the mechanics were green. The guy in charge of the service center back then was a weenie.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote
LANCECASPER Posted February 26, 2023 Report Posted February 26, 2023 On 2/26/2023 at 6:43 PM, glbtrottr said: Some years back I had an annual at the factory. I was guaranteed my airplane returned after 3 weeks in writing. It took almost two years. A used part was sold to me as new. The experience was hit and Miss. Some great people worked there but management and oversight back then was all over the map. Engineering was super competent. The avionics guys were good. Some of the mechanics were green. The guy in charge of the service center back then was a weenie. Expand Completely different now. They know what they are doing. Quote
Schllc Posted February 26, 2023 Report Posted February 26, 2023 1000 thumbs up for the Mooney service center. well worth the trip. I will be bringing mine there for annual in may. Quote
glbtrottr Posted February 26, 2023 Report Posted February 26, 2023 Whats the flat rate annual cost?Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote
M20F Posted February 27, 2023 Report Posted February 27, 2023 If the factory goes under your plane is going to more than likely get stuck. I have no idea the current state of affairs but given Maxwell and numerous other great options in the area, I would go that route. Opinions were asked and mine is thus offered. 1 Quote
LANCECASPER Posted February 28, 2023 Report Posted February 28, 2023 On 2/27/2023 at 10:30 PM, M20F said: If the factory goes under your plane is going to more than likely get stuck. I have no idea the current state of affairs but given Maxwell and numerous other great options in the area, I would go that route. Opinions were asked and mine is thus offered. Expand Even with the ups and downs that Mooney has had over the past 7 decades that has never happened where a customer has lost their airplane. Look at it from the flip side, if we don't give them our business, we are ensuring that they will go under. Why not support them or at least encourage people to support them? 5 Quote
M20F Posted February 28, 2023 Report Posted February 28, 2023 On 2/28/2023 at 2:09 AM, LANCECASPER said: Look at it from the flip side, if we don't give them our business, we are ensuring that they will go under. Why not support them or at least encourage people to support them? Expand How about they focus on making desperately needed parts which I would be happy to buy from them. As I said my opinion, I like Mooney but that doesn’t mean I am looking to contribute to charity. They need to get the right business model, for me that isn’t an annual which I can get a lot of other places with a lot less worry. Quote
hammdo Posted February 28, 2023 Report Posted February 28, 2023 I believe for vintage models, I thought I read the factory suggested MSCs like Maxwells since the factory had more experience in Modern Mooneys… But, parts are a concern and I’m sure folks are wanting to address that… -Don Quote
LANCECASPER Posted February 28, 2023 Report Posted February 28, 2023 On 2/28/2023 at 7:22 PM, M20F said: How about they focus on making desperately needed parts which I would be happy to buy from them. As I said my opinion, I like Mooney but that doesn’t mean I am looking to contribute to charity. They need to get the right business model, for me that isn’t an annual which I can get a lot of other places with a lot less worry. Expand They are making desperately needed parts. They make and ship parts every day of the week, Monday - Friday. There are thousands of parts that go into nearly 70 years of production. Intelligently they prioritize parts which help aircraft on the ground first. Criticizing them is not helpful, especially when you are admitting that you have no intention of supporting them. That street goes both ways. 1 Quote
LANCECASPER Posted February 28, 2023 Report Posted February 28, 2023 On 2/28/2023 at 7:27 PM, hammdo said: I believe for vintage models, I thought I read the factory suggested MSCs like Maxwells since the factory had more experience in Modern Mooneys… But, parts are a concern and I’m sure folks are wanting to address that… -Don Expand The staff they have currently helped make the newer airplanes, so that makes a lot of sense, but I have seen a few older Mooneys in there as well. If people are happy with who they are using for maintenance, keep using them. But if you want some of the best eyes on a later model Mooney, the Factory Service should be in the top few considerations. 1 Quote
M20F Posted February 28, 2023 Report Posted February 28, 2023 On 2/28/2023 at 7:34 PM, LANCECASPER said: They are making desperately needed parts. They make and ship parts every day of the week, Monday - Friday. There are thousands of parts that go into nearly 70 years of production. Intelligently they prioritize parts which keep aircraft on the ground first. Criticizing them is not helpful, especially when you are admitting that you have no intention of supporting them. That street goes both ways. Expand I support the factory I just bought a part from them. I don’t advise getting an annual from the factory and I don’t advise making decisions based on emotion. I am going to exit the conversation now, be good. Quote
Tommooney Posted February 28, 2023 Report Posted February 28, 2023 I last had an annual at the factory in 2019. Probably the third annual there since I bought the plane in 2003. Always had a good experience. It has always been more $$$ than MSCs but worth it to me. The factory log entry looks nice. Stacy Ellis was always my contact there since I bought the plane until that 2019 annual. Great guy. I saw he moved on since. I don't go every year but once in a long while seems good for me. I hope I can go one more time before I hang up my headphones. I really enjoy when they let me walk around the factory. Its like a church to me. Very quiet when I've been. Brings back good memories of when I bought the plane there. I just had an annual at Chandler AZ MSC, done in one week. Good experience there too. Good luck! 2 Quote
Tommooney Posted March 1, 2023 Report Posted March 1, 2023 Here is an example of factory annual log entry if any are interested i have more. They are very thorough. I also have an ugly entry hand written from a local shop during the 2009 recession when I was saving money. The difference is night and day. Good luck! factory annual.pdfFetching info... 1 Quote
carusoam Posted March 1, 2023 Report Posted March 1, 2023 A Stacey Ellis original signature!!! Stacey is a great employee! He soldiered on through tough times at the factory… kept communications alive with MSers… Moved across the field working at another company… (avionics?) The factory is alive and well… making parts and performing services as promised… An annual only takes a week of work… There has to be some level of consumer protection for the owner, when a company goes out of business… in other places… getting the doors opened to remove your property has been a challenge… If you have any concerns… Ask Jonny! He wants your business… Is more than capable to provide the service… And can probably send a copy of his D&B report… If you have the opportunity to walk the shop… talk to the employees… Best regards, -a- Quote
A64Pilot Posted March 1, 2023 Report Posted March 1, 2023 Having been the Accountable Manager of a factory service center, I can tell you that most likely the desire of newer aircraft is very likely because some older aircraft are a mess, if you try to hold high standards to an older aircraft, often the owner gets mad because the Annual takes longer and is way more expensive than they expected. Its a no win, unless the rare instance of an owner that knows the Annual will take longer and be way more expensive, but often taking an older aircraft means you have two choices, lower your standards or make an enemy, neither is good. However I can tell you that performing an Annual at the place that stocks and manufacturers the parts is an advantage that no one can equal, instead of ordering parts it’s a simple walk to the stockroom, or if a part has to be made odds are you can expedite that part. However expect that if your really after high standards that it’s not going to be cheap or fast, whether you go to the factory or not. I don’t mean to beat on older aircraft, all I can afford is older aircraft myself, but things that are airworthy, but not right accumulate over time, repaired parts, improper and incorrectly installed hardware etc. take time and money to correct, whether it’s at the factory or not 1 Quote
Pinecone Posted March 1, 2023 Report Posted March 1, 2023 On 3/1/2023 at 6:00 AM, Tommooney said: Here is an example of factory annual log entry if any are interested i have more. They are very thorough. I also have an ugly entry hand written from a local shop during the 2009 recession when I was saving money. The difference is night and day. Expand The logbook entry from my latest annual looks similar. And it was not at the factory. While I see reasons to do one every so often at the factory, the log book entry being typed isn't one of them. If every Mooney owner did ONE annual at the factory, it would go a long way to keeping Mooney company alive. But they do need to deal with the parts situation, not only the ones they stock, but the ones they source. Such as no-back springs. Either order and get some in, or release the manufacturer to sell direct. Quote
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