Wing Tips

Welcome to Wing Tips!

IN CELEBRATION OF OUR 20TH YEAR SPECIALIZING IN MOONEY AIRCRAFT; Get your BRAND NEW PRE-PUBLISHED BOOK AVAILABLE FOR YOU NOW! "THOSE MOONEY AIRPLANES" by Richard Zephro; studying the Mooney since 1974; 38 year private pilot/owner of Mooneyland and author of the articles within this website. FLYING IS NOT CHEAP! Within this book we will discuss not only how to save money while owning your own airplane, we will discuss ways to save big bucks on purchase, ownership, maintenance, appearance (lipstick), and upgrades. Further; we will discuss matters of safely operating your prized BIRD, why Mooney is the safest (by far) in its class, and aid in the pure FUN of owning your own airplane. BOOK INCLUDES 25 CHAPTERS OF INFORMATION FOR MOONEY ENTHUSIASTS, OWNERS, AND ASPIRING OWNERS OF MOONEY AIRCRAFT IN PARTICULAR, APPLICABLE TO ALL AIRCRAFT OWNERS IN GENERAL AND INCLUDES 100 HOUR/ANNUAL INSPECTION GUIDE AND ALL ABOUT MOONEY AIRCRAFT; HOW TO KEEP THEM SAFELY FLYING (ON THE CHEAP) DO IT YOURSELF STUFF, WHAT TO WATCH FOR, AND INCLUDES 124 FULL SIZE PAGES OF INFORMATION AND PHOTOS. (Includes some reprints and references from Mooneyland and tons of NEW information at your fingertips) 2 NEW CHAPTERS JUST ADDED: "HOW MUCH DOES IS COST TO OWN AN AIRPLANE" and "MEMOIRS OF A MOONEY BUYER".

GET YOUR PDF COPY IN ADVANCE OF PUBLICATION EMAILED DIRECTLY TO YOU FOR $39.95; A TEN DOLLAR SAVINGS PRIOR TO PUBLICATION. CLICK ON THE "BUY NOW" PAYPAL LINK BELOW, PURCHASE THE BOOK AND I WILL PERSONALLY EMAIL IT TO YOU IMMEDIATELY. (2MB) in size. (this is the first of a series of must have books to come by author; Richard Zephro and you will automatically receive any updates, revisions, & additions to this BOOK).

See our dedicated new website for Mooney information at: www.mooneybooks.com.

Enjoy & learn, learn, and LEARN! Richard "zef" Zephro

OR GO TO:

Please Indicate on your order whether you have Earth/Beige or Grey Tones Interior. Each order my vary in color but this will compliment your Tones.

BE SURE TO GET YOUR COMPLETE MOONEY MAINTENANCE CD and INSPECTION PDF (for Mooney BUYERS and OWNERS)

You need THIS and THIS (Package price available) and THIS

ATTENTION ALL MOONEY OWNERS: see the MOONEYLAND BLOG PAGE for information as to why a majority of Mooney's may not be airworthy and how to simply check for that and the simple remedy you can take care of yourself.

We Now Do mooneyland@gvtc.com

WING TIPS

ARE YOU THINKING OF SELLING YOUR AIRPLANE? click to see our new SELLERS OPTIONS PAGE

Check out the HOW TO and the NEW articles below including:

Your maintenance Wing Tip for the day:

HOW CAN AN AIR COOLED ENGINE BE HARMED BY WATER?!

If you own an engine, then you need this!

Cheap insurance, you can build to help get you engine to its rated TBO

Continental and Lycoming typically rate their engine life from 1600 to 2000 hours of operation between overhauls on most models. However, the only owners likely to achieve that kind of rated performance are those who use their aircraft on a nearly daily basis. Why? The reason is not the flying. It is the parking!

A primary culprit for premature aircraft engine overhaul is corrosion caused by condensation within the engine cavity that occurs after shutdown. Aircraft engines that are used daily frequently reach their rated TBO because liquid condensate is boiled off on a regular basis. Low use rate often results in reduced engine life. As the engine cools and the internal temperature drops below the dew point, liquid moisture condenses out of the vapor and clings to internal engine surfaces. This liquid water then resumes its ongoing process of eating up your engine from the inside out. However, if the dew point can be made sufficiently low, then liquid water will never form. The engine dehumidifier provides a continuous positive pressure injection of extremely dry air (dew point approximately -100°F) on a 24/7 continuous flow basis. It is recovered at the crankcase blow-by vent, returned to the pump, dried again and re-injected in the oil fill port of the engine.

How it works

The dehumidifier is connected the engine as soon after engine shutdown as possible. (Before the engine cools) It is then run on a 24/7 basis. A small aquarium, type air pump forces ambient humid air thru a Plenum bottle containing Silica Gel (This is the stuff used in shipping and storing aircraft engines and electronics.) The Silica Gel has a great ability to suck up moisture and literally sucks it out of the air. The dried air is filtered and injected into the engine crankcase. Any moisture inside the engine vaporizes with the incoming dry air and is moved by the constant positive pressure from the air pump to the crankcase blow-by vent, back to the pump and the Silica Gel dryer. At some point in time, the Silica Gel will absorb all the moisture it can hold. This is oblivious because about 5% of Silica Gel crystals are dyed blue with Cobalt Chloride that changes to a Maroon Pinkish color when saturated with moisture.

When that happens:

Remove the saturated Silica Gel from the bottle. Spread it out on a cookie sheet.

Heat in oven at 275° F until the CoCI dyed silica gel turns blue again .. Cool and return to the plenum bottle.

That's' it!The frequency of this recycle rate will depend up the humidity of the local environment. This may vary from months or more in dry regions down to just a week or so in the deep humid South East. Adding more Silica Gel to the Plenum will extend the service interval. Additional Silica Gel used for drying flowers is available at the national chain of Michaels's Craft Stores

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SERVICE ALERT: MOONEY OWNERS: CHECK YOUR NOSE GEAR

As part of your pre-flight please check your nose gear doors.

While doing an annual on a Mooney I found that there were only 2 of the 9 screws holding the left door hinge and they were at the rear and not tight and there were 4 screws missing from the right door hinge. If the door had come loose prior to takeoff, it is conceivable that the door could have gotten tangled up with the nose gear and prevented it from coming down.

Click on links below to access more Wing Tips.

Richard loves to share with his customers and fellow Mooniacs, the many things he has learned in maintaining his own personal Mooney's. Such knowledge as how and when to save money-- and when not to. His advice has saved many fully pleased customers thousands of dollars. Some tens of thousands!

For example, you should never simply turn your airplane over to a mechanic, giving them carte blanche. Too much hard earned money can be wasted doing so. He will explain how to talk to your mechanic and to draw guide lines in advance of a given repair or annual inspection. He will also suggest to you to learn all you can about your aircraft's systems to the point that you will realize something is amiss before it becomes a major problem.

There are many items the owner of an aircraft can legally accomplish himself without an A&P. You can get a list of legal self repairs at your local GADO office. Not only will the experience of working on your own plane be rewarding, but it will save you a bunch of money over the years. Not only this, but you get to intimately know your beloved Mooney better than you ever imagined. Understanding systems will make a safer pilot out of you by allowing this experience to better understand and recognize something is going wrong even before it breaks.

If you are not used to using mechanical tools, and are not very mechanically inclined, you may opt to do your maintenance items under the guidance of an A&P, even if it's legal to do some particular repair yourself.

Jacking your aircraft can be safe if you follow safeguards. If you don’t have the proper equipment and knowledge, you may want to consult your mechanic for his help and guidance.

If you do not already own a service and parts manual for your aircraft, you should get our CD to help guide you through self maintenance procedures. Follow those guide lines first, should anything contradict what is outlined here.

Now...get ready to learn some neat tricks by clicking on the buttons for items of interest below!

zef

You need THIS and THIS (Package price available) and THIS

Mooneyland highly recommends Tom "TJ" Johnson for any and all AVIATION INSURANCE NEEDS.

www.airpowerinsurance.com *** www.warbirdinsurance.com

Or call Tom Johnson "TJ" direct at: 602 628-2701. Tell TJ to give you the great and personal service he has given so many of our Mooneyland customers. zef said so! CLICK HERE for more information and testimony about TJ.