Thank you, it means a lot!

@@AverageAviator I'm thinking about starting my own channel at one point and I found this video pretty instructive. Maybe you'll get some use out of it too: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/sJp_o9Wi3arXpmg.html

@@fillywinks I'm only 40 seconds into the video and I already vehemently disagree with the premise "Friends don't let friends make bad videos". My view is that friends should encourage other friends to be creative and make whatever makes them happy, whether its viewed as good or bad. If I felt I couldn't make a video unless I made a "good" one, I would have made 0 videos. Let's face it, all our first attempts are going to be bad and they are never going to get better if we don't start, and more so keep making bad attempts. I have started and stopped creating many times because I felt it wasn't worth it if I wasn't making something that was of a certain quality. But the point is to keep going and to keep improving with each attempt, and I still probably won't ever be "good" like cinema or Trent Palmer style videos. But that shouldn't matter because my goal is to share my knowledge and passion of aviation, not just make good videos.

@@fillywinks So I guess the short answer is DO IT! Don't care at first as to how bad it is, just make it. It's a lot of work as I have realized. But I do it because I like it and I want to share my experience, not because I want to become big. So if you are wanting to start, think about what you want to share, focus on that, and then do what you can to do it in the best and most practical way that works for you. If that's not cinema quality, well then who cares, keep improving! Good Luck!

Sorry for the rant, he does have some good tips! Thanks for sharing!

Feel free to shoot me an email with contact info and I'll definitely share some information!

It's all push tubes

The last thing I'd want to do, is blow the oil out of the filter back in to the engine. Well, at least the filter analysis will never show debris again...

Thanks for the kind words! I think the scat you ware talking about is for cabin heat, so the hole, while not ideal, wasn't necessarily a problem. That whole airplane could have used all new scat tubing, but everything is a tradeoff. If I make everything on the plane look really good and new before I flew, I wouldn't have any money to actually fly it!

I've used a couple setups, the one you are referring to is the most efficient. Its basically a kerosene jet heater with dryer tubing attached to the front. You can even take it one step further and make some cowl plugs out of insulation and aluminum tape. Another method I've used is just two small ceramic heaters on full blast propped up by ladders and in extreme cold I used blankets to try to help trap the heat. That method is a little less effective but is better than nothing. In my current hangar I use the two ceramic heater method but I place them in the cowling under the panels.

I did that when I put it back on, being by myself, I figured I would just shove my hand in as far as I could instead of trying to hold the cowl with one hand and blindly fumble with the screwdriver with the other when the cowl is detached.

@@AverageAviator Yeah, it is a very tight fit!

Interesting, I have removed mine more times than I would like. 2 or 3 times to replace the starter (the used ones I got kept dying on me), once to fix the muffler, and once to replace the generator. I think I also have done it at least once or twice more for other reasons. I got good at it from all those times but its still a pain.

@@AverageAviator My A&P did remove mine a few years ago when I had an engine overhaul :-(

Oof. At least you have low time engine now.

I used to own a 1967 M20F. Due to a bunch of factors, I forgot to schedule my annual one year with the nearby Mooney expert. I was told they didn't have any openings for 4 to 5 months, so I took it to a large shop instead. It was a mess. Cost twice as much, they messed up a fuel cap (I had O&N bladders) and fuel poured out during flight. The right tank emptied in less than 30 minutes . They did not bleed the flaps correctly (older Mooney's have a unique manual hydraulic flap system). When I went to raise the flaps, they just popped up to fully retracted instantly - not good. Less then a year later, performance problems turned out to be a cracked block at 800 hours. I would seriously suggest using a expert (are any left?) for the annual. If you're an A&P, get some model-specific training.

I don’t think you had to mention the first part, kinda a loser move

It's fine, and you are correct, I'm not a professional mechanic in any sense, but I've been teaching myself how to work on things since I graduated high school, and I'm learning more every day. Growing up, I never had anyone show me how to do anything mechanical and I just accepted that for a while. But then I got a motorcycle and learned I really liked wrenching on it, and I've come a long way since then. I've also had to make do with what I've had on hand for a long time. I appreciate the critique, I'm definitely always wanting to learn more from those with more experience.