Dropped off Plane for Skybolt Cowl Fastener Conversion

Mooney Fan

Cleared for Takeoff
Joined
Sep 17, 2017
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Indian Mound, TN
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Mooney Fan
I'm finally over my worn out cowling Lord mounts. The firewall rubber mounts are swollen, some are played out so I have an assortment of southco fasteners and sheet metal screws. What a PITA

So I broke down and ordered the Skybolt Conversion kit with doublers.

For those who have done the same how do you like them? They look really nice in the pics but did they make life easier?

Also, dropped a couple IMU's at the Avionics Shop as well for a new Garmin GTR-205. My KX-175B was a flying boat anchor so I will be glad to pull it along with the CDI.

I couldn't justify adding the 215 just to keep a second VOR.
 
By the time I retired six years ago the Skybolt stuff had gone through at least three generations trying to fix shortcomings. They used too much aluminum, and galling and wear were a problem. The aluminum bits in the rubber shockmount would act up, and getting them adjusted and getting them to stay adjusted was a pain. The aluminum mounting base on that shockmount was way too thin and would crack and break off at the mounting holes.

I hope they've overcome all that. The Southcos had their issues, but they did last a lot longer than those earlier Skybolts.
 
By the time I retired six years ago the Skybolt stuff had gone through at least three generations trying to fix shortcomings. They used too much aluminum, and galling and wear were a problem. The aluminum bits in the rubber shockmount would act up, and getting them adjusted and getting them to stay adjusted was a pain. The aluminum mounting base on that shockmount was way too thin and would crack and break off at the mounting holes.

I hope they've overcome all that. The Southcos had their issues, but they did last a lot longer than those earlier Skybolts.
Thanks. Yea, I have read up on the revisions over the years. Hopefully they have those issues resolved. There are some good comments on the RV forums etc. They are pricey so again, hopefully I get what I paid for.
 
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