20F reclining rear seat problem

[bradcarr]

Not sure where to begin.  My searches haven't really explained where I should start.  My right rear seat reclines...... always.  It doesn't matter where i move the lever there is no change.  Heck the left seat will not move no matter where i move the lever either.  So i have a left permanent no recline and a right permanent recline.  Where on earth do i begin trying to solve this problem?

 

its a 1975 mooney 20F Exec 21

[Ragsf15e]

The mechanism is ~55 years old and wasn’t too robust to begin with.

Youll need to remove the seats and the sidewall panels.  The mechanism likely needs cleaning and lubed, but it should be obvious with that opened up.  I did this to my F once.  It frustrating getting the rear seats in and out but not terribly bad.

[bradcarr]

is there a guide on removing the seats? Bolts? Pins? etc?

[1980Mooney]

28 minutes ago, bradcarr said:

is there a guide on removing the seats? Bolts? Pins? etc?

 

[Ragsf15e]

27 minutes ago, bradcarr said:

is there a guide on removing the seats? Bolts? Pins? etc?

Yes, theres a thread here on MS.  Let’s see if we can find it.  The seat backs are pinned at the outside bottom if i recall and are pretty tight.  The seat bottom at least on mine had a thin metal bar wrapped in the seat upholstery pulled underneath it and held by a sharp metal piece under the back of the seat that was sort of accessible from the baggage door.

[Ragsf15e]

Ahh, excellent, @1980Mooney found the threads that should help.

[Shadrach]

The rear seat recliner on the M20F is less complicated that a bicycle brake. Removing the seat back entails pulling a spring loaded pin on one side and “rocking” the seat back away from the boss. The other side of the seat has a fixed pin and can simply be pulled away from its boss after the first side is disconnected.  The long side of the lap belt will come out with the seat.

I mean no offense when I say that given that the above was not obvious from simply looking at the mechanism, it might be a good idea to enlist the help of someone inclined towards mechanics. 

The set up is not complicated, but it can be a pain to reinstall because one must align the lap belt mount with the seat pin and the seat boss all while holding the seat pin in the retracted position. There is not a lot of room to work and it would be easier with three hands.

[Justin Schmidt]

Really it is pretty easy. Like anything once you do it once or see it done you'll go duh. Putting it back on is a little more just because of the belt. I would lube everything as moisture over time does tend to tighten things up. I had to replace one of my plastic lever with metal one, so if you have plastic don't yank it like an after prom. 

[Hank]

1 hour ago, Shadrach said:

The set up is not complicated, but it can be a pain to reinstall because one must align the lap belt mount with the seat pin and the seat boss all while holding the seat pin in the retracted position. There is not a lot of room to work and it would be easier with three hands.

This can be a vocabulary expanding job . .