I didn't know Malibu's were this impressive.
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midcap
Pattern Altitude
that's good to know, I am built a little weird, French acestry and all
those speeds are awesome.
Shepherd
Final Approach
I flew right seat in one a couple of years ago.
There was no position I could bend my body into that was comfortable in that plane.
The cockpit was made for people who are all torso, no legs and very narrow.
Just my opinion.
There was no position I could bend my body into that was comfortable in that plane.
The cockpit was made for people who are all torso, no legs and very narrow.
Just my opinion.
midcap
Pattern Altitude
ChemGuy
Cleared for Takeoff
They seem nice, fast, etc.
For that kind of money I would go 340 or 414 and use the extra $$ for the extra fuel.
For that kind of money I would go 340 or 414 and use the extra $$ for the extra fuel.
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Velocity173
Yeah. I think it was somewhere over Alabama in a Malibu Prop Jet.
midcap
Pattern Altitude
I know this is a malibu thread but are there other single engine piston powered AC that will go this fast? I Imagine the SR22 would be up there.
Grum.Man
En-Route
Is your engine set up to make boost down low or just compensate for altitude? What is your HP rating? What manifold pressure and prop rpm do you use for climb (initial anyway)?
Grum.Man
En-Route
The Mooney Ovation and the Columbia 400 are in the same ballpark though not 6 seats or pressurized.
labbadabba
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Lancair Piston Evo
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Velocity173
Homebuilts- Lancair EVO, Lancair IVP, Glasair III, Questair, White Lightning, Velocity TXL, Berkut, SX-300, E racer.
Production- Mooney Acclaim, SR22T (close), Cessna 400T.
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RudyP
Cleared for Takeoff
My SR22TN will do 217KTAS at 17GPH at FL250 but being unpressurized, most of us (me included) tend not to fly that high. It's a pretty hostile environment up there and the masks are not very comfortable so most prefer to be in the high teens. Mine will do ~200 KTAS at FL180. So thats the biggest difference - while I could technically keep up with a Malibu at my service ceiling, I'm not likely to be that high while the Malibu pilot, being pressurized, has no issue going higher (and thus faster).
ktup-flyer
En-Route
Almost threw up
ktup-flyer
En-Route
Evolution will do 240kts
Theboys
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Theboys
The engine is always making boost. Hp is set at 310 mainly by pulling back max rpm limit. On takeoff I run about 2500 or slightly more and try to keep it at 38 inches it will climb to over 40 if not watching. During climb I pull back to 2400 and 31 inches and try to keep at least 120 indicated. If I am loafing along, which very seldom happens I will run at 2300 and 27 inches. I noticed on those Ntsb reports couple of engine out on descent. I know on mine during descent I run full power and don't lean in descent except to keep my tit under 1650. I have to maintain 21 Inches or better anyway to maintain cabin pressure. If you make mixture rich and pull back power the engine will flood and die. Not usually till your on ground though. It sounds more complicated than it actually is though.
rpadula
En-Route
This dude: http://dealbreaker.com/tag/marcus-schrenker/
(from the days when dealbreaker was an awesome site).
StevieTimes
Line Up and Wait
This post is a rabbit hole of Google.
Wasn't familiar with the Questair until recently, that plane is incredible. 240 knots!!! That's what I thought every plane would be doing by now when I was younger.
The White Lightning, what's not to like? Fast, efficient, seats 4. One of youse guys should revive that kit, make a quickbuild, sell a bunch of them, then maybe I could afford to buy one in 15-20 years.
Berkut, that's a neat looking airplane, looks like a single-seater (or maybe a passenger can sit behind):
...and the SX-300. I guess the dude who did the white lightning heaped praise on Ed Swearingen, the creator of the SX-300, and got advice from him. Sounds like a more difficult airplane to fly.
Thanks, interesting airplanes! I want the white lightning.
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Velocity173
This post is a rabbit hole of Google.
Wasn't familiar with the Questair until recently, that plane is incredible. 240 knots!!! That's what I thought every plane would be doing by now when I was younger.
The White Lightning, what's not to like? Fast, efficient, seats 4. One of youse guys should revive that kit, make a quickbuild, sell a bunch of them, then maybe I could afford to buy one in 15-20 years.
Berkut, that's a neat looking airplane, looks like a single-seater (or maybe a passenger can sit behind):
...and the SX-300. I guess the dude who did the white lightning heaped praise on Ed Swearingen, the creator of the SX-300, and got advice from him. Sounds like a more difficult airplane to fly.
Thanks, interesting airplanes! I want the white lightning.
I've actually flown a White Lightning with the company CEO back when they were still producing kits. We were doing an honest 215 kt average speed. All on only 210 hp. Used to have some world records back in the day for its class. Just another kit that never caught on. Rearward facing seats in the back probably wasn't the best idea.
http://www.studiomoonart.com/whitelightning.htm
They also produced a kit called a Lightning Bug. Little single seat aircraft with a 100 hp engine that went about 200 kts.
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Aztec Flyer
Its not the seats. It's the pressurised hull that is the attraction for Cirrus owners to move up. O2 masks are a PITA and to get the most out of an SR22T you want to be up high - 20k+ ASL. Most of the wives and kids hate the masks.
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Aztec Flyer
Lovely airplanes. Several of them, both piston and turbine, owned by friends and acquaintances at our field.
Front seat room is the big detraction. The seats are ahead of the spar and cannot be moved back enough for taller people like me (6'4" 235 lbs). Piper did not see fit to install adjustable rudder pedals and I simply cannot get my knees out of the way of the control yoke. Headroom is atrocious if you have any torso height. One largish owner I know took out part of the seat padding and reclines the seatback quite a bit to get the headroom. I won't trade my spacious Aztec cockpit for a torture chamber like that. But if I was a foot shorter...
We had one owner in one of the earlier Continental powered ones write it off along with everyone on board when his engine quit over the Rockies when he was inbound IFR one night from Portland.
donjohnston
Pattern Altitude
VERY tight.
I'm longer than the average human (6'5") and getting into either front seat was just about impossible.
Sitting in the back wasn't very comfortable either.
Rockymountain
Pre-takeoff checklist
I don't think the Malibu and Mirage engines work that hard. The airframe is very slick, so the Malibu is going to be running 70-75% with its 310 HP engine in cruise, and the Mirage only 65-75% of its 350 HP engine. Depending on the year and engine type, those engines are quite happy. Felt very comfortable behind the Lycoming, just purrs up there in the rare air. They are also excellent gliders, so if the engine ever were to quit in cruise, first pick what state you want to land in, and then pick an airport that has the best combination of food entertainment and service. Heck, you have 37 minutes to figure all that from FL250, so might as well knock out another chapter in that book you were reading on autopilot.
They can go fast, although 225 would be running that engine really hard WOT ROP. Here is at max cruise and 24,000 feet in a 2011 Mirage. Don't want to run max cruise for engine longevity, but makes for a nice screen shot. Typically I would expect 200 KTAS above 18,000 feet and expect around 205-210 in the twenties with a well running engine and a well tuned air-frame.
Rockymountain
Pre-takeoff checklist
The early Malibus were tight for long, wide and tall pilots. I think Piper has done a lot to fix this with the newer birds. At least to the limit of the airframe. Some of those mods can be done in the legacy birds. The new cockpits are wider, have more head-room and they moved the seat backs over the wing spar giving several inches more legroom. At 6'2, 6'1 at the end of a long day ;-) 200 lbs, I am very comfortable, and actually pull the seat up one click, as having it all the way back is too far from the panel. The seats are also thinner and padded with a denser foam, so they are comfortable but allow more head and leg room. I have also seen people that don't realize the seats adjust in several directions back forth, up down, and recline. If the last person raised the seat, you will have great visibility but no headroom.
I have a friend that had ruled out the PA46 due to reports he had heard on how small the cockpit is. He is a skinny and leggy 6'3. I convinced him to take a flight with me, and he is now loving his new Meridian. If you do like the airframe, there are ways to make the seats work with most pilots. Does take a little technique to get in place, similar to a lot of cabin class aircraft. However, once in the seats, it is a very comfortable cockpit. Once you experience the quieter, pressurized cabin, you won't care about that slightly embarassing Malibu wiggle required to get in place. Plus pax will be more willing to go places wth the increased comfort.
iflyforfun
Pre-takeoff checklist
The Velocity and White Lightning really had an impact on me when I was in college. I clearly remember drooling over both in Kit Planes way back in the days before I could afford my pilots license (hell, I couldn't even afford the magazine and read it cover to cover in the Student Union convenience store). When I do my regular airplane porn craw through Barnstormers, I still check the White Lightning link every time ... appears some LSA like plane uses the same name. Those two, the Midget Mustang, the Defiant and the Breezy and Pietenpol have always had my heart. I've owned a Velocity and it was every bit as amazing as I always thought it would be. Next on the list is either a Pietenpol or a Breezy. This is a great thread.
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Velocity173
Yeah I still look for WLs as well. The one I flew (N444WL), was for sale a couple years ago for 60K. Looked like it needed some TLC but still a great buy.
midcap
Pattern Altitude
I don't think the Malibu and Mirage engines work that hard. The airframe is very slick, so the Malibu is going to be running 70-75% with its 310 HP engine in cruise, and the Mirage only 65-75% of its 350 HP engine. Depending on the year and engine type, those engines are quite happy. Felt very comfortable behind the Lycoming, just purrs up there in the rare air. They are also excellent gliders, so if the engine ever were to quit in cruise, first pick what state you want to land in, and then pick an airport that has the best combination of food entertainment and service. Heck, you have 37 minutes to figure all that from FL250, so might as well knock out another chapter in that book you were reading on autopilot.
They can go fast, although 225 would be running that engine really hard WOT ROP. Here is at max cruise and 24,000 feet in a 2011 Mirage. Don't want to run max cruise for engine longevity, but makes for a nice screen shot. Typically I would expect 200 KTAS above 18,000 feet and expect around 205-210 in the twenties with a well running engine and a well tuned air-frame.
View attachment 52040
200kts still puts me from my home airport to KISM under 3 hours easy.
BarryCooper
Pre-takeoff checklist
I flew right seat in one last summer. Once I got into the seat it was fine (5-10/170), but it was hell getting into and back out.
MassPilot
Cleared for Takeoff
What about having just one piston engine providing pressurization? Does that cause the engine to work harder than on other aircraft?
Rockymountain
Pre-takeoff checklist
Not really. The pressurization comes off the excess bleed from 2 large turbos. Those turbos are just powered by the exhaust from that big engine. That exhaust is departing the engine whether you capture that energy or not. There is obviously some slight degree of back pressure that a turbo puts on the engine, but I would think it has minimal effect.
midcap
Pattern Altitude
With most internal combustion engines, some degree of back pressure is beneficial.
midcap
Pattern Altitude
arkvet
Line Up and Wait
My wife and kids will barely wear a nice ANR headset. Cannulas. Lol
I just stick the tube in my mouth. No mask, nothing in my nose. No problem talking on mic.
midcap
Pattern Altitude
I've had cannulas in my nose and it really didn't bother me at all. That is an interesting idea though.
Let'sgoflying!
Touchdown! Greaser!
The worst part about cannulae is the drying effect of the O2 on the nasal mucosa after a few hours.
midcap
Pattern Altitude
I can see that being uncomfortable.
paflyer
Final Approach
Plus you can do a killer rendition of "Do You Feel Like We Do?"
midcap
Pattern Altitude
@Rockymountain
if you don't mind me asking.
What's an annual for your Malibu normally run and do you set aside a per hour reserve for Mx?
if you don't mind me asking.
What's an annual for your Malibu normally run and do you set aside a per hour reserve for Mx?
Theboys
Line Up and Wait
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Theboys
Don't know if your asking me, but I actually don't set anything aside for that. Not sure if you would believe cost of my last 3 annuals if I told you. But less than one annual on the Columbia I used to have. However if you add in the recurrent training that does add little more. Wish I could say I don't need the recurrent training, but I can tell you that on each one, I have learned some new trick i didn't know before and i fly the Malibu quite a lot.