Bob - S50

What date is it?

We had similar indications and it was an injector too. Ours was in fact crud from the fuel side. Bob

Pinerunner, There are primary replacement gauges for just about any function you wish. Except for MP and the Tachometer, they will most likely not fit in the same spot as the stock gauges. If you are looking for a particular function, post a topic on the forum and I'm sure many will give you there opinion and experience. The only primary we've replaced on our J is the fuel gauge. Bob

If the '77 is like our '78, there are bolts on each side that are hard to reach, have numerous washers, and as you said are a PITA to remove. Bob

No clue, but something to think about. What is different between climb and cruise? Cowl flaps for one. Open for cooling during the climb, closed for cruise. Maybe cooling air coming out the cowl flaps contains the CO, is directed toward a spot where it gets into the cabin. Since we have a higher angle of attack at a slower speed for the climb, maybe the airflow is up and around the cowl and into the ram air intakes (or some other point). With the gear down, the turbulence created by the gear may have changed the airflow and prevented the problem. Just thinking. Bob

Look at my post above. The link I provided lists numerous airports separated by commas. You can modify the list to include any airports you want, however, they need to be an airport that includes a TAF or they will not show up in the results. You can then save the link as a favorite. You don't need to be signed in to use it, just click on the link. Once there, rest your cursor over the airport ID and any condition less than VFR will display. If you want to see the full TAF hour by hour, click on the airport ID. I'd call that pretty darn easy for checking the local weather... as long as you are talking TAF and METAR not ASOS reports. Bob

A long, long, time ago when I was in the AF (25 years ago) some military aircraft had both VHF and UHF. Others had only UHF. It was mostly fighters and trainers that had only UHF because of limited space. Bob

The website was also mentioned on another forum I look at and it listed what I think is a pretty cool feature. Look at this link: http://new.aviationweather.gov/trafficflowmgmt/tafboard?area=kalw,kbdn,kbfi,kbil,kbjc,kbli,kboi,kcec,keug,kgeg,khio,khln,klmt,klws,kmfr,kogd,kolm,koth,kpae,kpsc,krdd,ksff,ksfo,ksjc,ktcm,kttd,ktvl If you click on it you'll go to a page that shows the METARS for all the listed airports. Green for VFR yellow for MVFR, red for IFR, and Magenta for YGBSM. You can customize the link to show whatever airports you want. The one above is the list I made. I think you can list up to 35 airports, but only those with METAR's will show up. If you rest your cursor over an airport ID on that page it will pop up a box that lists any conditions (by time of day) that make the airport less than VFR. That is, if the ceiling is the only factor, only the ceilings will be shown. If you click on the airport name it will take you to a page that shows the weather hour by hour including ceiling, vis, WX, winds, crosswinds, and tailwinds. Makes it pretty easy to get a quick glance at the airports you use most often. Give it a try. Bob

Whatever works. What RPM is that? 2700/20" is more power than 2400/20" is more than 2000/20". However, if you fly LOP, then fuel flow will be a pretty good indication of power. It isn't important that we set exactly 55%, 65%, or 75%. 2345/22.8" and 63.364% is just as valid for cruise. The idea is to get us in the ballpark and then adjust it as the mission dictates. For me, since I'll usually cruise at 7500' or above, setting WOT and 2400 RPM will keep me at about 65% or less. If your POH shows a different number then you should definitely use that number to get you in the ballpark. However, whatever we do, we should have fun! Bob

Paul, According to the MAPA Safety Foundation manual, for a C the numbers are: 75% = 49 65% = 46 55% = 43 Was that what you wanted? Bob

I'm guessing the current draw is higher than you expected because of the glass. Any glass instrument has to generate light so you can see it. Old equipment did not, they only needed light at night. The new equipment should draw less power for the functionality, but draw extra power for the lighting every time you use it. If you compared an old transponder or comm radio to new ones, I think you'd find lower power consumption by the new ones. Anything with a glass display though.... Bob

Yes, you'll want the engine monitor first. At a minimum you'll need the ability to read the EGT for each cylinder and fuel flow. If you don't have and don't plan to get an accurate fuel flow indication then don't worry about the GAMI test. If all you have is EGT for each cylinder, just watch the EGT's as you lean. if they all peak and start to drop, you are LOP. If you can get LOP on all 4 cylinders and the engine is still running smoothly, you probably don't need new injectors. If you cannot get LOP without engine roughness, then GAMI injectors will probably make the difference. teejayevans posted a link above to a page that explains three ways to do a GAMI test. You won't save installation cost by doing the injectors at the same time as the monitor so you might as well have the monitor installed, learn how to use it, then run the GAMI test. Bob

I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong but... I believe CHT is the best indicator of ICP we have in the cockpit regardless of the OAT. However, a specific CHT does not mean you have a specific ICP. By that I mean a CHT of 380F does not always mean an ICP of 700 psi (or whatever number). However, I believe peak ICP will occur at peak CHT, or close to it, regardless of the OAT. In the summer you may reach peak ICP at 390F. In the winter with the same power settings you may reach the same ICP with a CHT of 360F (just picking numbers out of the air, not reality). Bob

Bob, Be sure to do a GAMI test before you buy new injectors. Our stock injectors gave me a spread of 0.1 GPH last time I checked. No sense buying new ones if the ones you have are good. On the other hand, if it turns out they aren't, GAMI injectors will probably pay for themselves in a few years. Best of luck, Bob

Our '78 J has an IO360 A3B6D, and according to the MAPA safety foundation booklet about flying 'by the numbers' we use the target number. For our J and engine if we add the MP to RPM/100: 50 = 75% 47 = 65% 44 = 55% For example 2400 RPM/100 = 24 + 23" MP = 47 = 65% For an E they list the numbers as: 48 = 75% 45 = 65% 42 = 55% Comparing that with the performance section of our POH it is right on the money. Might be different for your E. Bob

There is actually a procedure in the maintenance manual for adjusting it. It goes something like: take the top off the annunciator box, using a voltmeter, set an engine RPM to produce 12.6 volts, adjust the trim pot until the light goes out, then adjust it up until the light just comes on (or vice versa). Can't remember exactly. Bob

It may or may not be the alternator. We occasionally get the flashing volts light too but in our case we are convinced it is the annunciator. When the light flashes our JPI shows 13.9 volts. Just haven't taken the time to adjust the annunciator yet. Bob

Byron, We didn't use CJ's and we did not do an exchange. We pulled ours out, sent it to AeroMotors in Wisconsin, they overhauled it in about 2 days and shipped it back. The pump was out of the plane for about a week. If I remember right it cost us something between $600 and $800 for the overhaul. Bob

We had ours overhauled for about half that cost at the company I referenced above. Bob

I agree, do not assume it is the pump. However, if you need to have the pump overhauled try these guys: http://www.aeromotorsllc.com/aeromotorsllc/ Their price is good and their turn around time is quick. They did our pump in December. Bob

Cruiser, I think it is always safest to have an up to date database and that is what our partnership does. However... "..I must have a current database loaded in the unit or verify that the approach data is current.." Notice the word 'or'. To me that means if I look at the approach plate to find when it was last changed, and that date is prior to the date of my database, then I can fly the approach. How do I find the approach plate date? I need to look two places. Bottom left and upper right. It won't always have both. In some cases it may have a plain date like 25DEC12. In other cases it may have a 5 digit number like 13255. That means the 255th day of 2013. That would be some time in September. Whichever of the two dates (upper right or lower left) is most recent, that is the one I have to compare my database with. "..an approved instrument approach procedure that is loaded from the 400W series unit database.." To me that means (and I think the AIM addresses this) I have to be able to select the approach from the database. For example, it would have to list the RNAV(GPS) RWY 17 at KTIW as one of the approaches that I can select if I want to fly that approach. If that approach is not selectable, I can't fly the approach. I may ...not... build the approach by entering all the names of all the fixes that make up the approach. With that said, we initially delayed buying a subscription, figuring we could do just what I detailed above. However, it became such a PITA if you wanted to go cross country. You would have to check the date of every approach at every airport you might want/need to use. Just took too long. At that point we just decided (4 or us) to suck it up and buy the subscription. Depending on how you use your plane, you might make a different decision. Bob

Except when you have a fuel leak. That won't show up in your calculations but it will show up on the gauge. If the leak is between the tank and the fuel flow sensor it won't show up on the fuel used indicator either I check the tanks before every flight. We bought a Fuel Stick Master and calibrated it for our '78 J. Does not show any fuel until the wing has 11 gallons (due to design of the stick). We calibrated it to 25 gallons in one gallon increments. I use the measured amount to set the fuel on board in the JPI EDM 730, we have a digital fuel gauge that shows fuel to the nearest 0.1 gallon (and I've confirmed it is within a gallon during level flight), and if I'm going cross country I print out a flight plan from DUAT. So I know what I had to start and I have 3 ways to track fuel used. If any of them show I might be running low I can stop to check and get more if need be. I do not plan to fill the tanks for every flight. I plan to put enough in to land with 12 or 13 gallons. That gives me enough to use 2 or 3 gallons for winds or other delays and still land with an hour of fuel on board. Bob

Glad to hear you can afford the plane yourself. I wish I could justify that for me. The plane will in fact accumulate time faster, but that could actually be good. Too many planes do not fly enough or often enough. Having a partner helps fix that problem. And it is true that you will get to overhaul sooner, but you'll have someone to split the cost so $/hour will be the same. Of course, just like your beautiful wife, you have to find the right partner. Take care, Bob

Hey... the man has to golf and its tough to find a white ball in the snow up north! Bob

We sometimes forget where the 'red box' came from. Bottom line is it was defined as power settings and mixtures that resulted in CHT over 400 degrees, not an area that will cause immediate detonation. The example we see on the internet is based on a specific engine, an IO540 if I remember right. Your mileage may differ. From what I've seen, the odds of detonation happening at power settings of 75% or less are just about zero so passing through the red box is not going to make the engine blow up when we lean for cruise. Since CHT is the best indicator we have of internal pressures, as long as we keep the CHT in check without extraordinary measures, all should be well. In the case of our Mooneys, I take that to mean not needing to keep the cowl flaps open at cruise to keep the engine cool. We can do that by reducing power or running LOP or ROP. Personally, I'd rather run LOP and burn all the fuel I dump in the engine rather than blow a lot of it out the exhaust pipe. I hate the idea of leaving a trail of dollar bills behind the plane. Bob