IO-360-A3B6D?

I've been planning for an IO-360-M1B, and expected to order by Oshkosh, but I have an opportunity to purchase a certified engine from a Mooney (IO-360 A3B6D(double mags, fuel injected, variable prop pitch crankshaft)) with 1400 SMOH engine. I received a quote from a local engine shop to do a rebuild which will save about 10K compared to the new 180hp engine.

Thoughts on taking this route? I'm a bigger guy and had planned for a lighter prop and parallel valve engine to help move the CG aft. It's my first build and it seems sticking with the VANs plan keeps things a little more simple. How much more head scratching will there be stepping outside the Van's recipe for FWF?

I have the factory M1B and the FWF kit. It is still a head scratcher. If you build the plane instead of getting the quickbuild kit, the skills gained during the build will probably result in the skillset to modifying the FWF for your engine.

Getting the engine rebuilt for 10K less than the M1B with all the accessories that come with the M1B is quite a feat.

That was exactly my setup in my -8. IO-360-A3B6D, Catto 3 blade prop, and an Odyssey PC-625 in the back. I am 6'3" and north of 300 lbs. Never had a CG issue at all. Super smooth engine and I never had any issues with the mag setup. Two buddies in my EAA chapter now own the aircraft and fly the heck out of it.

Do a Google search on C-GURV and you'll see the setup.

IIRC the -A3B6D variant is essentially the same as the -A1B6; 200HP, 20° Spark Advance, Angle Valve, 8.7:1 Comp. Ratio. The difference is the propellor clocking, governor location, and the magneto setup (1 dual, instead of 2 singles)

The -8 Baffle kit for the IO-360-A1 (200HP) should fit like a glove (slight exaggeration)...

Thank you, I feel better about it being a viable choice. It seems that I spend more time searching how others accomplish tasks than I do actually building so the closer to "normal" the better, but if it saves a bunch of money and I'm not at the mercy of the continuing post COVID delays to receive new stuff it seems like a good option.

How much of a show discount typically happens at Osh for engine orders?