M20J Landing Gear actuator motor

[NotarPilot]

Well, after a long and loyal life it seems my original 1978 landing gear actuator motor has decided to retire. I ordered its replacement which should be here within two days. The A&P looked at the job (Belly panel removed) and thinks it might be a little tricky because the entire actuator may have to come out with the motor in order to replace it. Does anyone have any experience with replacing this or have any idea how many hours of labor this should take? I have the smaller electric motor C145-200 and not the Dukes one. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[kortopates]

I R&R'd my actuator last fall to comply with the no clutch back spring replacement. Its very straight forward except for the usual tight clearances to work around. I recall it was about an hour to get it off, with the trickiest part just taking the gear load off the actuator and it actually went back in easier than it came out. Once out, complying with the clutch back spring SB was the bigger job - which is probably pretty similar to what he'll need to do to swap out the motor.

 

Suggest you take advantage of the opportunity to practice the emergency gear down procedure while it's still on jacks after your mechanic gets it all back together - if time permits.

[N201MKTurbo]

It takes about an hour to get my dukes out. havn't done the other one.

[jetdriven]

I have removed the Dukes, it takes about an hour to get out, and perhaps two to get it in and adjusted right. If you bump the gear out of down and locked it takes the load off the actuator and its easy to R+R.  The Mooney SMM says to double check the landing gear preload again after you reinstall it.

[NotarPilot]

Thanks, that's a bit of a relief.

[jetdriven]

Also, Mooney SB M20-190B shows the correct washer stacking for the actuator where it mounts to the retraction truss.

[bumper]

Anyone know a source for purchasing the no-back clutch spring kit for the Eaton actuator?

 

thanks,

 

bumper

[KSMooniac]

Good luck... you'll have to try an MSC or Mooney.

[bumper]

LASAR has them,  but only for sale along with installation.

 

Top Gun in Stockton has a few of the kits for $718 and will cheerfully ship them out.

 

Can't remember being so happy to spend the better part of a grand on a wee little spring!

 

I will be carefully inspecting and retaining my old spring if it passes the go-no go test. It's original '87, with almost 2500 hours and no indication of impending failure.

 

bumper

[Marauder]

Definitely hold on to your original. I have a high time '78 J model. The original no back clutch spring was replaced at 3,500 hours according to the logs. Then I replaced that one in 2007 at 10,000 hours. I'm sure that the one that I took out with 6,500 hours in service is still good. I kept it as a spare. If I had known then what I know now I would have left it in service. I got my kit from Dugosh for something around $500.

Jim

 So true. I'm like a hoarder when it comes to my Mooney parts. "You never know when you are going to need this!"

[KSMooniac]

 So true. I'm like a hoarder when it comes to my Mooney parts. "You never know when you are going to need this!"

 

Me too!  So much so I even bought another J just to hoard.     Last weekend I bought a 6-shelf unit that is 6' wide, 7' tall and 3' deep so that I can store things a little better.

[NotarPilot]

Does the entire actuator have to come out too or can you replace the motor without removing the actuator?

[DaV8or]

I'm reviving this old thread because I'm considering proactively removing my Dukes actuator and getting it rebuilt along with the motor and having the 40:1 gears put in while I'm doing the annual. I'm looking for any tips or pointers that anyone here that has done this before can provide. Neither I, nor my IA have done this before. I do have the factory manual and have gone over it, but as usual, what it does say on the subject is almost as much as what they don't say. Nothing beats actual experience.

Thanks for any help on the subject! 

[Yetti]

The trickyist part is having a socket with ground down sidewall to get to the nut through the center frame. Lots of spacers and such to keep straight.   Call Areomotors and see if they will do the motor. Like said above you don't want the gear down and locked since the actuator is in tension at that point.   Take lots of pictures before you pull it, label all the wires.   There are some shims in the emergency gear disconnect that you want in the proper order. 

I used an action cam to check everything before buttoning it back up.

 

[DaV8or]

1 hour ago, Yetti said:

The trickyist part is having a socket with ground down sidewall to get to the nut through the center frame. Lots of spacers and such to keep straight.   Call Areomotors and see if they will do the motor. Like said above you don't want the gear down and locked since the actuator is in tension at that point.   Take lots of pictures before you pull it, label all the wires.   There are some shims in the emergency gear disconnect that you want in the proper order. 

I used an action cam to check everything before buttoning it back up.

 

Thanks for the tips! My biggest concern that I'm not 100% clear on yet is the procedure for getting the actuator back in and rigged right. I've read the manual but I'm still kinda fuzzy on a few points. How did you do it?