Andrew T Posted February 6 Report Posted February 6 Hello all: Just Rescued this Mooney that has been sitting outside for over 10 years. When the snow melts, I will take it apart and mover it for restoration. Step 1 is the separate the fuselage from wing and get it on a truck. Any tips would be welcomed 1
Hank Posted February 6 Report Posted February 6 Separating the wing from the fuselage is a huge chore! The typical approach is to separate the aft fuselage by drilling out the rivet line behind the baggage door, leaving the fuselage standing in its gear. Good luck with your project, and keep us posted! Someone here can recommend shops that are experienced with dismantling and transporting Mooneys.
Jim Peace Posted February 6 Report Posted February 6 35 minutes ago, Hank said: Someone here can recommend shops that are experienced with dismantling and transporting Mooneys. I can recommend a shop that can remove the entire carb heat system during an oil change and sign the plane off as airworthy... 2 1
LANCECASPER Posted February 6 Report Posted February 6 14 hours ago, Andrew T said: Hello all: Just Rescued this Mooney that has been sitting outside for over 10 years. When the snow melts, I will take it apart and mover it for restoration. Step 1 is the separate the fuselage from wing and get it on a truck. Any tips would be welcomed Before you put any money into it, including taking it apart and moving it, inspect it carefully for corrosion on the spar. In the long run it’s always less money to buy a flying airplane than to restore one. This could be one of those deals where if you got it Free it would be too expensive. 5
Fly Boomer Posted February 6 Report Posted February 6 59 minutes ago, Andrew T said: Step 1 is the separate the fuselage from wing and get it on a truck. As @LANCECASPER suggested above, don't spend any money or time until you have verified with a qualified mechanic that there is no terminal corrosion. Once it gets started, there is usually no financially realistic way to correct it. If you get past that step, do what the Mooney experts do: remove the tail. Here is how Don Maxwell moved the M20T Predator prototype when they were bidding on a government contract to build military flight training airplanes: 5
Andrew T Posted February 7 Author Report Posted February 7 11 hours ago, Fly Boomer said: As @LANCECASPER suggested above, don't spend any money or time until you have verified with a qualified mechanic that there is no terminal corrosion. Once it gets started, there is usually no financially realistic way to correct it. If you get past that step, do what the Mooney experts do: remove the tail. Here is how Don Maxwell moved the M20T Predator prototype when they were bidding on a government contract to build military flight training airplanes: Thanks for this, lots of rivets.
Hank Posted February 7 Report Posted February 7 30 minutes ago, Andrew T said: Thanks for this, lots of rivets. Much less work than removing the wing and building a cradle for the fuselage.
Sabremech Posted February 7 Report Posted February 7 Moved an M20 recently. Removing the tail section isn’t that bad. You’ll have some bolts holding it on to the steel cage structure, then the rivets on the skin. 1 1
CL605 Posted February 7 Report Posted February 7 On 2/6/2026 at 7:13 AM, LANCECASPER said: Before you put any money into it, including taking it apart and moving it, inspect it carefully for corrosion on the spar. In the long run it’s always less money to buy a flying airplane than to restore one. This could be one of those deals where if you got it Free it would be too expensive. What he said. Even if the spar is OK the cost to return this aircraft to a safe flying status is likely to be eye watering. You might get lucky, but the odds are against you. 1
Bob E Posted February 7 Report Posted February 7 Lancecasper and CL605 are absolutely right. An older aircraft that has been sitting on a ramp (other than in the desert) and neglected for years is unlikely to be a candidate for restoration. Example: There was a Mooney sitting on the ramp at KOSU for probably 5-7 years; the owner had been a well-known pilot and instructor, and had maintained the aircraft well. But after he died the aircraft wasn't sold but was more or less abandoned. See photos below. It was finally purchased by someone who was hoping to restore it, but the cost of restoration would have exceeded the cost of buying a newer aircraft in airworthy condition. It ended up getting parted out..
Hank Posted February 7 Report Posted February 7 57 minutes ago, Bob E said: There was a Mooney sitting on the ramp at KOSU for probably 5-7 years ... more or less abandoned ... It ended up getting parted out.. A sad end for a noble airplane! 1
Jim Peace Posted Monday at 09:49 PM Report Posted Monday at 09:49 PM saw this rotting away at key west today......line guy said has not moved in a long time... 1
Bob E Posted Thursday at 08:54 AM Report Posted Thursday at 08:54 AM Jim, N74777 might be somewhat taken care of? There's air in the tires, the paint looks fairly new, and the exterior doesn't have those telltale dirty vertical drip lines. FlightAware says it was flown as recently as three years ago. Maybe there's hope is someone takes an active interest in it soon.
phxcobraz Posted Thursday at 05:06 PM Report Posted Thursday at 05:06 PM Once you dig into it, you very well may end up spending more than just buying a very nice airworthy aircraft, especially if there is any corrosion(and sitting in the snow like that is horrible for it year after year). You would be better off parting it out, and I wouldn't think of parting out as a bad thing with these old birds. There are so many parts that are hard to find or next to impossible to find. So parting it out means another Mooney gets to stay flying. Places like BAS will buy the old parts. Even Lasar may purchase some of them and refurbish them where possible to be used again. 1
Jim Peace Posted yesterday at 11:58 AM Report Posted yesterday at 11:58 AM On 2/12/2026 at 3:54 AM, Bob E said: Jim, N74777 might be somewhat taken care of? There's air in the tires, the paint looks fairly new, and the exterior doesn't have those telltale dirty vertical drip lines. FlightAware says it was flown as recently as three years ago. Maybe there's hope is someone takes an active interest in it soon. The paint in person is awful. And the air in tires may be an FBO requirement. I doubt anything else has been done. 1
skykrawler Posted yesterday at 01:15 PM Report Posted yesterday at 01:15 PM The sad thing is, I see rat airplanes like those sitting on ramps that somebody will come out and fly twice a year. It's no wonder there are so many 'engine failure' off field landings and crashes.
SoccerCA Posted 22 hours ago Report Posted 22 hours ago 2 hours ago, Jim Peace said: The paint in person is awful. And the air in tires may be an FBO requirement. I doubt anything else has been done. The tiedown fees paid over the last three years down there probably exceed the price of a new airplane. 1
Justin Schmidt Posted 10 hours ago Report Posted 10 hours ago On 2/7/2026 at 11:34 AM, Bob E said: There was a Mooney sitting on the ramp at KOSU for probably 5-7 years; That is 3 that I know of in Oh. That one, 1 at PMH, 1 next to me that has birds that crap on mine at I69.
Hank Posted 9 hours ago Report Posted 9 hours ago 45 minutes ago, Justin Schmidt said: That is 3 that I know of in Oh. That one, 1 at PMH, 1 next to me that has birds that crap on mine at I69. That's sad. I used to fly to Portsmouth in my C. Their breakfast is pretty good, and the blueberry pancakes were a favorite! There were no planes left abandoned then. 1
Justin Schmidt Posted 9 hours ago Report Posted 9 hours ago 6 minutes ago, Hank said: That's sad. I used to fly to Portsmouth in my C. Their breakfast is pretty good, and the blueberry pancakes were a favorite! There were no planes left abandoned then. I was told it was a gear up just before I moved back to Ohio few years ago, like a week after they resurfaced
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