Ragsf15e

A top overhaul isn’t the end of the world. If it’s sat a long time and might need s full overhaul, that’s a different stoty.

It’s relatively easy with a digital volt meter and some wires with alligator clips to check the field wire with with the engine running and to check the alternator output with the engine running. Mine looked similar to yours, but when I finally checked alternator output, it was steady at 14v. Then I just went downstream from there until I found out where it went bad. Edit: just do it carefully with a friend holding the brakes. That big spinning thing on front is dangerous!

I’d also start where @PT20J pointed. It’s also worth looking back a few flights to see if it was previously “rock solid” at 14.0. If it’s been solid, something changed more quickly, like a wire to the alternator came loose or something is loose. If it’s been slowly getting worse over time you could have a corroded connection. Im scarred for life after my 2 year electrical issue, so I’ll give this advice. Troubleshoot the heck out of it before throwing parts at it. You should be able to narrow it down to the exact cause.

This seems to be one of those unobtainable but required parts that wear out. We’re lucky there are some methods of repair or we’d be in trouble.

Actually not many. After pilot training you have about 225 hours between the T-6 and T-38. If you go to F-35s or A-10s, your next flight is solo in that airplane with an IP in a chase airplane. In the other fighters there are 2 seaters (except f-22) and you get about 5 flights with an instructor before being sent off on your own. They aren’t hard to fly, but it takes another 6 months and 100 hours to figure out how to fly it relatively well and what to do with all the buttons.

No pusher, no shaker. Did have AOA warning tone which is very helpful. Also it had robust enough gear that all of this was moot… just slam it down in a crab and it will be ok!

I agree about the front side of the power curve, and the aoa being the key. However lowering the nose doesn’t change your aoa except while you’re lowering it. In a stable final (steady airspeed/g) the aoa is basically the same no matter where the nose is pointing. If you actively unload, sure you’ll lower the aoa for that time you’re pushing, but as soon as you stabilize, aoa and airspeed become close enough to work as indicators for each other.

Yes, I’m well aware that you can stall at any attitude or airspeed. I’ve got a reasonable amount of time in all attitudes and from zero to 900+ kts. Putting your nose down isn’t going to save you. As I said, you’ll need to add power to maintain airspeed if you’re planning on maintaining a 3 degree glide path. If you lower the nose, that’s another way to maintain airspeed (they are both ways to maintain airspeed), however you will be on a steeper glide path. If you have static ports on both sides, they average out pretty close to actual static pressure. If only on one side you may get slightly erroneous airspeed in a forward slip. According to aopa, “Most modern airplanes have very little airspeed error associated with sideslip”. However, that’s why you have some safety margin. It’s exactly the same as slipping to a landing that we all did on our checkride, however, there you generally leave the power out and take the steeper descent, so in that case you will have a lower attitude to maintain the same speed. However, that lower nose attitude doesn’t change your stall speed. https://www.aopa.org/news-and-media/all-news/1999/january/flight-training-magazine/no-dumb-questions

Ha! We all have our own technique on that one. First to @rbp, you can’t stall cross controlled if you maintain appropriate airspeed. Typically 1.3 vso plus half a gust factor. I like to set up my cross control about 1 mile final. RAP in that order. Rudder to maintain pointed down the runway, Aileron to stop any lateral motion, then Power to maintain airspeed. You are correct, more power is needed to maintain airspeed but not a lower nose down attitude. I like this method to get stable and asses the xw longer. Also, the USAF had us teach it this way in primary training in the T6 which is like a Meridian size airplane. I find it works well for me, but nothing wrong with the other way.

On many models there’s a tiny button under the forward, left wing root to drain the pitot lines. Theres one under the ~battery area near the back to drain the static lines. They are nondescript. Pitot heat likely had nothing to do with your problem. It’s designed to be left on.

Were you possibly downwind of a good size mtn range? Like 50-100nm east of the Sierras, rockies, Smokies, etc?

Beegles in Colorado. Our own @Alan Fox too…. What parts do you need??

Yeah, I saw that. My thought is to take the ap servos completely out of the equation though and see if the fd acts any different. Maybe it gives the same commands, maybe not. It would be interesting to know

Did you try climbing out in IAS mode but without the AP engaged (hand fly) and then see what the flight director does, especially with minor airspeed deviation? No way you should see 10 degrees, but if the Fd is all over the place, that would narrow down the problem.

Thanks for looking that up! It sounds like the reason you didn’t get it when you tried with the g3x off is because your audio comes from the g3x. If a setup just has g5s, audio comes from the gfc500 controller, which isn’t documented as having the altitude alerts, but might actually have it as indicated by the folks above. As you mentioned before, the documentation isn’t perfect…

Agreed about the g5 not having audio output… does the gfc500 controller have audio output?

Sometimes, but what else are you gonna do with your time and money? It takes a lot of both, but I can’t think of what I’d do with them that would give me as much satisfaction.

I know we discussed lubing the control column earlier, but @donkayehad a similar problem with porpoising that was resolved with fixing “stickyness” in pitch controls. Might be worth reading his thread.

And that’s why I nearly failed EE in college and had to settle for being a simple Mechanical Engineer…

It looks awesome! Very similar to what I have in my F, except for the autopilot (I have everything else just like yours). Quick question, do you get the altitude “beep” alert as you get to within 1000’ and 200’ of your selected altitude or do you need a g3x to get that? I have the G5s and do not get tgat alert even if I select an altitude, but not sure if adding the autopilot changes that? Maybe I should ask @PT20J because he seems to know more about Garmin than Garmin does…

Also, @M20Doc may have to help us interpret this, but I think this lyc chart details the torque. Disregard my red circle as that’s for something else. I think you’re in the “flexible connection”section?

If there’s a pipe thread (npt) fitting coming out of the cooler, are you sure there’s appropriate thread seal in there? Not required on the flared fittings, but it is on the npt fittings…

I’d heard the same thing about adding the snubber closer to the source, but there was no way I was going to try to fit one in immediately after the lycoming restrictor coming out of the servo. It was bad enough getting to where my transducer was accessible.

Yes, where mine is mounted, low on the copilot side of tge firewall, I can see it, but I have to remove the heater ducting and it’s associated adel clamps to work on it. Much swearing ensues.

I have no idea why, but my fuel pressure problem has self corrected for now. Yeah, I realize it will be back to fluctuating next time out since I posted this, but it is what it is... So after T-ing in another gage and checking that my aircraft gage worked (above posts), I added a snubber immediately before the JPI pressure sensor. The snubber was for light oil. The other option was one for air. 100LL has a viscosity between those and the snubber did not help the fluctuations at all. Further, the snubber is an npt fitting and so required an adapter to the 37degree jic on either side. I couldn't tell exactly where, but one of them was slightly leaking. So two weeks ago, I took all of that back apart, removed the snubber, and put it all back together just as it has been for the last 10 years. Last week I flew it and the fuel pressure was stable. I didn't say anything because I didn't want to jinx myself. Flew it again today. Stable still. What the heck?! Both of these are about a half hour section in cruise. Before it was 22-30psi constantly. Now it's 27psi almost the entire flight. Green line is fuel pressure. Before: Now: