Lots of mooneys for sale?!?

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Garbagefailkids@reddit

The M20 series has always been a value for people who are OK with its idiosyncrasies.

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Flying_4fun@reddit

I'm new to GA and window shopping for when I win the lottery. Mind sharing those idiosyncrasies? I'm curious.

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Garbagefailkids@reddit

They are narrow. Staggering the seats helps, especially on the F model, which is longer, but they're narrow planes.

The landing gear are quite firm (no oleo struts), and you sit quite close to the ground, so landings require some finesse.

Some C models have manually actuated landing gear and a simple but unusual flap actuation system.

Some people don't like the handling, it uses push-pull tubes instead of cables and may have higher effort than say, a Bonanza.

That's most of what I can think of off the top of my head.

Ask literally any Mooney owner for a ride; they're an extremely devoted group.

As for me, I am a fan and after working on them for a few years, would not hesitate to own one if they fit my needs.

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They’re not really narrow. They seem narrow compared to Cessnas because the high wings are a box, the low wing Mooney is a cylinder, so look narrow above your head where it doesn’t matter. I’m 6’2”, broad shouldered, fit fine in my M20E even sitting next to comparably large friends.

They’re fast, and very efficient. I routinely see 145 kias burning less than 8gph.

Push rods mean the handling is taut. They’re very responsive. The analogy I saw frequently before flying a Mooney was sports car handling. I used to race formula cars and after buying my Mooney I can confirm the analogy is valid.

Low wing, one door is a trait shared by Pipers, not an idiosyncrasy really.

The reason Mooney owners are so devoted is that their planes really are that good.

The Johnson bar manual gear is an idiosyncrasy. I happen to like it. Very fast cycle time, not dependent on electrical or hydraulics. Maybe the only retract with no emergency gear extension procedure. It just works.

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Flying_4fun@reddit

Thanks for sharing your experience. I love learning about different aircraft types.

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Flying_4fun@reddit

Thanks for taking the time to share your Mooney experience. I appreciate it.

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FridayMcNight@reddit

I have a J. It’s a fantastic plane, but…

Low wing, 1 door. A little tight to get into; especially compared to something like a 182 or 210.
Fairly narrow cabin cross section. Can be cramped in the shoulder area with two adult men of the same height.
Shock disk landing gear suspension; makes landing ever so slightly more challenging.
Some folks are put off by retractable landing gear. It’s slightly more expensive to insure and maintain.
On some specific planes, the usable isn’t that great. I’ve seen some as low as 850 usable, 385 of which is gas when full. (Mine is 935 or something like that).
While they are pretty easy to maintain, the small cross-section design means that the engine and panel are very tight spaces; mechanics hate them.

On the plus side, they’re fast and efficient for the fuel burn, they’re quite reliable, and are a good stable IR platform. They’re easy to fly, and kind of a great balance of speed/cost/space. Comfort is subjective. I’ve got Oregon Aero comfort seats in mine, and have done many 5-6 hour legs with no comfort issues at all.

The baggage area isn’t amazing, but it’ll hold a few suitcases no problem. And my rear seats fold down to make a flat floor. I’ve brought along mountain bikes, inflatable SUP boards, and all sort of other shit. Overall it’s a pretty versatile plane that does a lot of things good enough for a reasonable price.

All that said… if you win the lottery, you’re probably not buying a Mooney. :-)

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Flying_4fun@reddit

Thank you so much for taking the time to explain. There's a highly rated Mooney maintenance shop at my home field, and I see many coming from near and far for work. I'll try to hitch a ride in one.

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Vengenz666@reddit

Sold my Mooney 3 weeks ago. Bought my new one 5 weeks ago lol.

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lctalbot@reddit

Deets !

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Vengenz666@reddit

Upgraded from a C model to a J

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Flyer_73@reddit

I miss my Mooney, they are such great planes.

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KawarthaDairyLover@reddit

Medicaid and Medicare cuts means health care cuts means unemployed doctors means selling Mooneys.

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MNSoaring@reddit (OP)

I thought it was bonanza’s that were the v-tailed doctor killers ?

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Granite_burner@reddit

You’re right. Mooneys aren’t killers. Thats why they’re on the market instead of totaled.

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gimp2x@reddit

Go sit in one, to me, they’re incredibly uncomfortable

The leg position is cramped, no thanks

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Granite_burner@reddit

I’m 6’2” 225 pounds. Am very comfortable in my M20E short body. Don’t even have the seat all the way back. Plenty of shoulder room even with a comparably sized friend in the right seat.

I think it’s psychological for some folks. High wing Cessnas have the same shoulder room, but the interior is a box while the Mooney is a cylinder. So above your head looks narrower, but that’s unusablecsoacecanyway.

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bhalter80@reddit

I'm 6'4 and the m20f is perfectly comfortable

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Just-a-waffle_@reddit

Flying club has an M20J and I fit in it quite comfortably at 6’4”

A big reason is that the seats can go all the way back, so with just me and my wife, she can have the seat all the way back, offsetting our shoulders and giving her endless legroom

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jeremyfsu@reddit

Short, mid or long body Mooney? I’m not tall (5’9”) but my Mooney is very comfortable on long trips, it’s a long body (M20M)

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MNSoaring@reddit (OP)

I sat in one once with a pilot bigger than me and it was a tight squeeze indeed

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gimp2x@reddit

It’s the legs laying completely flat and offset from centerline that I disliked

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PlanetMcFly@reddit

There are also a lot of Bonanzas and Cirruses on the market, up significantly from 6 months ago, like 20-30% more. Majority are still asking f.u. money, but there are a few on the market that indicate prices are falling, priced aggressively to sell.

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lctalbot@reddit

Majority are still asking f.u. money

No shit!

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tabasco44@reddit

So you’re saying there’s a chance…

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x4457@reddit

Nope, you're seeing increased industry that's not unique to Mooneys. We started seeing it in the jets about 6 months ago, and as usual, the piston world is following 6 months later. Slowly.

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prex10@reddit

Any reason as to why? All the boomers that hoarded up planes and tried to sell them for 500% markup finally realizing they don't know what they got?

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x4457@reddit

If I knew the answer to that, I'd make a lot more money than I do :P

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kernpanic@reddit

Im going to say: its a leading indicator for the usa economy. The price of toys. Sports Cars, boats, planes etc. They'll start dropping in price because the demand for them drops.

Companies are cutting back investment and employment all over the place. Money and jobs are drying up.

However they are still up massively on precovid.

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ClearGoal2468@reddit

Sorry, this might be a stupid question, but could you clarify what you mean by 'increased industry' for my understanding? Is the whole market slowing (reduced demand), or is new aircraft production crowding out used airplane sales and therefore creating a glut in the secondary market (increased new supply)? TIA

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x4457@reddit

That was a typo. Inventory.

New aircraft production is not a factor.

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Did I miss an article somewhere about Mooney?

Seems odd to see glass panel retrofitted planes going for sub-$200k

…or are all the boomers finally selling their planes?

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