rex280ia Posted November 18 Report Posted November 18 Apologies up front, new guy post so I probably got a little carried away. Quick background on me: retired naval aviator, but mostly a rotary wing guy. I do have some limited (~250) FW time and have been out of flying for about 10 years, although I've done basic med, my APOA rusty pilot course, and I'm about to get in the air and knock the dust off through some local training facilities. I've been educating myself on various options to get into the game again and have settled on a C/E or G/F. I've sat in a C, but that's about it. I suspect I'll prefer the greater legroom in the G/F, but you don't know what you don't know. I don't have an operating base yet, but I'm on waitlists at about 10 different places around/outside of DFW and hope to have a plane and hangar sometime early '26. I have a bit of a mixed mission set: a good bit of just local personal enjoyment, coupled with some longer cross-country trips on occasion to visit family in Florida, California, and Washington D.C.. I spent a good part of my career flying steam gauges, so the fancy glass is pretty, but I'm totally fine with basic steam gauges. However, a decent engine monitor is a must. I'm not averse to adding that myself if the purchase price accounts for that. Same with the Johnson bar. I like the simplicity, but not against electric gear. I also plan to own the plane for long term, so I figure that I'm going to do an overhaul at some point in its life, so anything under ~1500 with good compressions is fine by me. I'd like to get a couple good years of flying in before climbing that hill, but it's going to have to be climbed at some point. My ask is for anyone who would be willing to share their experiences owning and operating any of these models, and also would be willing to let me climb all over a short and long body to see the differences. Lastly, if any brave soul would be willing to offer a fam flight, I'd be happy to cover your gas and time. Finally, since I've shared pretty much my entire wish list, anyone looking to post their plane in the spring, please keep me in mind. I'll update what model I settle on when the settling is settled. Thanks for sticking with me given the length of this post!
McMooney Posted November 18 Report Posted November 18 (edited) If it's just you and maybe the wife, I'd suggest an E, i'm a bit biased however. F comes with larger tanks, may matter if you fly long distance. oh yeah, legroom only matters to the guys in the back, it's the same across all models for the front passengers. Edited November 18 by McMooney
rex280ia Posted November 18 Author Report Posted November 18 Thanks for the quick reply, McMooney! Crew consists of me, wife, and for the next couple years, my daughter. Just us 2 after that. We're all pretty small folks, 120-175# max. From what I can tell E and C are the same cabin dimensions, correct? Just get an extra 20 horses with the E, which would certainly be nice to have, more is always better! My wife does entertain the idea of participating in Pilots N Paws, so perhaps some furry passengers in the future. And if that gets me a pass to buy a plane, I'm in!
McMooney Posted November 18 Report Posted November 18 Just you 3, or pilots and paws a C or E will do fine you've sat in a mooney, you know, once seats are in flying position, the pb in the back has loads of room. well atleast legroom, it's still a metal tube hehe.
IvanP Posted November 19 Report Posted November 19 I have owned 1970 E with 200HP IO 360 for over 15 years with mission parameters very similar to yours. It was a great machine that carried us in relative comfort to many destinations in US and Mexico. My wife and I loved that plane. Good fuel economy and reatively reasonable maintenance costs. Mine had bladders put in for 54 gal usable and I could take full fuel and reasonable amount of luggage for 2 people for xc trips. That provided enough fuel for 3-4 hr legs when flying xc with reasonable reserves. Changed to Bravo couple of years ago. WHile the Bravo is great when it comes to speed and the ability to climb high over mountains and weather, fuel economy is nowhere near what the E provided and given the amount of fuel I need to carry, it si essentially 2-people plane at best.
hammdo Posted November 19 Report Posted November 19 I’ve taken my wife, daughter in my C. I’m not small but the C has had no problem taking 3 full size adults. Tweak the fuel for the 3 of us and limit baggage and I'm good for 3 to 4 hours with plenty of reserves. 2 people and max is no problem… mine is setup nicely for cross country… -Don
rex280ia Posted November 19 Author Report Posted November 19 Thank you Ivan and Don for the gouge! I think I may be leaning towards the short body. I spoke with the guys at Mesquite Aviation today about E vs. F as well and he feels you lose 10-15kts in the long body. If that is accurate, the short body definitely is in for the win. Getting back in the air with him this weekend if wx holds for the first time in 10 years! Look out below! It sounds from your experience that I should be really considering between the C and E. I wasn't sure about the lower power of the C and my mission set, but sounds like it would fit me just fine. Any gouge on speed differential between E and C? BTW, that's a really nice looking panel Don, love the carbon fiber! As an aside, I have seen some different gauge configurations. Yours looks set up more like what I am accustomed to. I haven't been able to discern a pattern (year, model, etc.) but some have the DG to the right of the AI and the altimeter and VSI are not on top of one another. Any thoughts/gouge on that? I think I would prefer what I know, but I guess you can get used to anything with time and practice, so I'm not calling it a go/no-go criteria, just a preference for now. 1
hammdo Posted November 19 Report Posted November 19 I’m hangered a crossed the way from Mesquite Aviation! Good group and they too know Mooneys. I go to Edge Aviation as I’ve know those folks for several years… I’m in Hanger B-3 at Mesquite… Mine is mechanically in good shape but paint is needed. Overall, you’ll like a C or E. Mine has all the speed mods and flys fast for sure… -Don
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