Just bought M20B/mark21, a few questions...

[nm1]

My father just purchased a 1961 M20B-mark21. He got it at a great price and the girl has been well maintained and is in great condition.

He just checked me out in it recently, handles great. Flies heavy and stable which I like, and the manual gear is a real kick in the pants.

I have been scrounging the Internet for resources on the M20B, and have found a couple of old POH's that are unfortunately rather brief. I am trying to put together a couple of complete checklists for the airplane, but most of what I've found have been for the C model or later.

A couple of questions to any M20B owners out there:

1) the original owners manual mentions nothing about using the carb heat on approach, but the manual for the C model does. Which is correct?

2) are there any checklists floating around specifically for the M20B?

3) is there a more updated owners manual available?

4) what are some general guidelines for climb/cruise settings? The manual I have gives very little guidance.

5) in the manual I have, the shutdown check calls for advancing to 1000 rpm, pulling the mixture, then pulling the throttle back out as it stops firing. Is this standard practice? What's the purpose?

Forgive my ignorance for many of my questions. I have been flying the 737 and part 121 only for 14 years, so getting back into GA has been a reeducation to say the least.

Thanks all!

[TTaylor]

My father just purchased a 1961 M20B-mark21. He got it at a great price and the girl has been well maintained and is in great condition.

He just checked me out in it recently, handles great. Flies heavy and stable which I like, and the manual gear is a real kick in the pants.

I have been scrounging the Internet for resources on the M20B, and have found a couple of old POH's that are unfortunately rather brief. I am trying to put together a couple of complete checklists for the airplane, but most of what I've found have been for the C model or later.

A couple of questions to any M20B owners out there:

1) the original owners manual mentions nothing about using the carb heat on approach, but the manual for the C model does. Which is correct?

2) are there any checklists floating around specifically for the M20B?

3) is there a more updated owners manual available?

4) what are some general guidelines for climb/cruise settings? The manual I have gives very little guidance.

5) in the manual I have, the shutdown check calls for advancing to 1000 rpm, pulling the mixture, then pulling the throttle back out as it stops firing. Is this standard practice? What's the purpose?

Forgive my ignorance for many of my questions. I have been flying the 737 and part 121 only for 14 years, so getting back into GA has been a reeducation to say the least.

Thanks all!

 

Welcome to the board and flying a "vintage" Mooney.  I can't answer your questions directly about the B having only one flight in one, but will try to answer some things in general.

 

Early Mooney manuals are notoriously terse, until about 1980 or later most manuals give very little information.  My 1975 F manual is still lacking compared to what is considered common information by today's standards.  Also, manuals do not seem to have been updated with time so remember you are reading a time capsule of the time and stage of the company. 

 

From what I can tell the B was very similar to the C and most things in the later manual can be used as a guideline for the B.  Remember the B was only built for a very short period of time while the C had a very long history so much more has evolved and been refined for them.

 

1. Carb heat is your call based on conditions.  It is safer to use it if you are in atmospheric conditions that would be likely to cause carb ice. 

 

2. Check with a few of the B owners here (try kurtsnyder in the members section).  The premade ones (Checkmate, etc.) are likely for C because there are just so few B's out there.

 

3. See above, a good C manual will be a good resource. 

 

4. The C values will be nearly identical.

 

5. Welcome to vintage flying, much has been learned since these manuals were written and you will have to decide what works best for you.  When flying my C, once at idle the throttle was left where it was and just mixture was used at shut down. No reason that I know of to pull the throttle back as well. 

 

You are PIC, not an old manual; use your judgment on what to do.

 

Tim

[Hank]

Congratulations! Our friendly Squirrel may come along soon with advice from his B.

1) Manuals from that era are slim. Apparently the expectations were higher for pilot knowledge. I almost never use carb heat except right after engine start per the checklist. Our engines are very ice resistant, with the carb air intake coming up from the bottom against the oil pan. A tight cowling also keeps things warm.

2) Good luck! Your best bets are Google and other owners.

3) Probably not.

4) In my C, I climb full throttle, 2700 to altitude. Research the Target EGT method. No need to reduce power for climb, just watch your temperatures and reduce climb/increase speed to keep them good.

5) That's how I do it, too. You should see ~50-100 RPM rise as the engine stops.

I'll have to look in my MAPA PPP book for correct numbers for your B. For my C, MP + RPM/100 = 47 yields 65% under standard conditions; every 3 more/less is another 10%, I think. I have an O-360-A1D, but I think you have a different version of the O-360, but this should be fairly close anyway.

You should hear Dave Morris talk about his typewritten Manual for his A-model.

Enjoy flying your Mooney!

[animalmover]

Welcome to the B club! I've had mine for 4 yrs now.

All advice above is great. Feel free to contact me anytime.

Chris

407-421-7797

[1964-M20E]

Congrats and enjoy the simplest complex airplane you will ever fly 

[Alan Fox]

I had a b for years , they operate identical to the C except for gross weight , and crosswind component......there are no real poh s  to speak of , use the procedures and speeds for a C model.....

[sleepingsquirrel]

Welcome, you couldn't have picked a more reliable bullet proof performer! I''m still enjoying mine and with a little TLC it will outlast me.

 

Here are some manuals . I will have a parts manual scanned soon.

mark20b operating manual.pdf

Mooney M20B S-MM.pdf

MOONEY MARK 21 OWNER'S MANUAL (2).pdf

[nm1]

Thanks all for the timely and friendly responses. This forum has already been a great resource in familiarizing myself with Mooney maintenance and best practices, and I can tell I will be back here often with more questions.

After getting a bit more time in the old girl, planning on a cross country from Phx down to Guaymas; I think the wife will be pleased:)

Take care all, onwards and upwards