Mechanic in Boston area

[bradp]

Hi all,

 

I am currently looking for a mechanic to care for a '77 J in the Boston metro area.  There is a mechanic outfit on airport.  However, I am a bit apprehensive about bringing the plane there at the recommendation of about every based pilot at the airport that I've spoken with.  I don't want to make any comment about the local outfit as I have no experience with them whatsoever except that they've been totally helpful with finding me lightbulbs, oil filters, etc on short notice.  Seems most of the local pilots had used a different shop on airport until a roof collapsed in a snowstorm and abruptly ended that business.

 

Any recommendations?  Either on forum or PM would be appreciated.  Thanks much.

[carusoam]

Norwood KOWD used to have an MSC. I have not used them though...

Best regards,

-a-

[eldeano]

I used Mike DuPont at American Aero Services in Taunton MA for my prebuy and annual a couple of years ago, he was awesome! He went above and beyond for us. His number is 508-824-5681

[marks]

I use Ed Novak at Shoreline Aviation in Marshfield and he's great. I think there's one important distinction you need to understand, no matter who you use. You can maintain your plane according to the FAA requirements for annuals etc. - This standard requires that everything work as intended. The other standard is to maintain the airplane according to the recommendations of the manufacturer and carry out the annual maintenance acoording to Mooney. The former always costs less than the latter. If you have your airplane serviced at a Mooney Service Center that place will follow the recommendations of Mooney and you will have a well maintained bird. Shoreline Aviation will show you everything they check and take apart for maintenance as recommended by Mooney, but many mechanics will charge less and skip a number of small steps and do them only every few years. Some guys find an inexpensive mechanic and bring the plane to a MSC only every few years in order to save money. Talk to your prospective mechanic and when you ask about annual inspections, ask if he follows every recommendation of the manufacturer. It helps to have the entire list of everything that Mooney recommends for your model. If you want to just check that the gear goes up and down, instead of looking to see how worn the jack screw is, you might one day get the gear stuck up, and all the pulling on the emergency cable won't help if there's a burr on the big screw that stops you. Good, honest and reasonably priced maintenance could still cost big money if the recommendations of Mooney are skipped over. Determine the mindset of whomever you pick. (If you want to skip some of Mooney's maintenance recommendations, Ed Novak will have you sign a waiver.) Good luck!

[bd32322]

<p>Hi all,</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I am currently looking for a mechanic to care for a '77 J in the Boston metro area.  There is a mechanic outfit on airport.  However, I am a bit apprehensive about bringing the plane there at the recommendation of about every based pilot at the airport that I've spoken with.  I don't want to make any comment about the local outfit as I have no experience with them whatsoever except that they've been totally helpful with finding me lightbulbs, oil filters, etc on short notice.  Seems most of the local pilots had used a different shop on airport until a roof collapsed in a snowstorm and abruptly ended that business.</p>

.

<p> </p>

<p>Any recommendations?  Either on forum or PM would be appreciated.  Thanks much.</p>

Where are you based? if you are looking for owner assisted annuals to learn about maintenance and also save some money - i did mine at autumn air in fitchburg KFIT. You have to book in advance because he is usually booked for 3 months or so. Not sure if the major MSC in norwood will let you do that. I had a pre-buy there too and was very impressed with their work too actually. Didnt end up upgrading to a 252 because of all the stuff they found.

Have you also considered www.savvymx.com? Take a look at what they have to offer..They can recommend the good shops across the country and negotiate prices for you. I am not a member yet, becuase i am a new owner and i heard of them only recently, but i plan on becoming a member