Twin Comanche vs. Mooney/other singles

Took my multi training in a sweetheart TwinCo and took my instrument
ride in it also, back when gas was cheap. Oh, to be 18 again and flying
that hotrod....

It's quite a bit heavier on the controls than most Mooneys, but it felt
to me like the TwinCo had a bit more room.

It will fly very well on one engine if it's not loaded out to gross -
sure can't say that about very many of that vintage. Piper took the
Comanche 250 split the power into two engines, but used twin 160s like
it should've been done. On some they even hung turbos... Jeeze those
would rip up the sky in the lower teens.

Never flew the CR model because they came later.

We often didn't feather the props during engine out simulation but used
zero thrust settings instead. This was because of engine shock cooling
and nothing else.

Take-off departure stalls were not fully prosecuted during training
because of the long prop shaft extensions on the front of the engines.
There was a directive from the flight school not to let the stall break
because of the extra stress induced from the high rpm and high
gyroscopic forces that would be exerted on these magnesium alloy (I
think) shaft extensions. I seem to remember them being almost a foot
long.

One of ours had the full set of tanks including tips - that thing would
fly forever in economy cruise. I really think you could exceed crew duty
limits on one flight.

But, like I wrote before...Oh to be 18 and flying that hotrod again...