DXB

Kinda sad data, and I have IO390 envy now. I probably wouldn't have put on that Powerflow exhaust if I'd known this innate limitation of the O-360 a few years back, and I ought to get around to setting my Surefly to fixed timing mode, despite this setup approaching stock E model performance. As a Mooney pilot, I have a hard time pulling the power back and just enjoying the efficiency dividend.

Great analysis - this is exactly the kind of fleet that is suited to do well-controlled trials for all kinds of things in aviation; the problem is who's gonna fund it. I can attest to the significant cooling issues with parallel valve lycomings BTW - will take the heat on that.

It doesn't mitigate this tragedy in any way, but that's still good to hear. I'm still a bit surprised the spar snapped before loss of consciousness led to letting go of the back pressure on the controls.

It's a fair point - my comment wasn't really meant as a rebuttal of yours, though in retrospect I realize it comes off that way. Dinging up people's planes probably correlates well with carelessness in other domains.

Like it or not, the market and margins from piston aircraft maintenance do not allow them to operate like the service department of a high end exotic sportscar dealer, even though the price point of the vehicle is similar. And frankly I need the handful of honest, trustworthy, and capable shops out there more than they need me, so I find it counterproductive to antagonize by sweating the small stuff. My list of priorities in aviation maintenance: (1) Please don't do anything that might kill or maim me when the plane returns to service (2) Please don't break anything major that works, including totaling my airframe in a freak shop accident (3) Actually do the work (and related paperwork) I request in a quality manner (4) Be honest and accountable when I find things that went wrong under items 1-3 (5) Listen to me and engage me in thoughtful discussion regarding problems found by me or the shop before "fixing" anything (6) Charge me a fair amount for the work done (7) Complete the work in a reasonable time frame. ............. (99) Don't return my plane substantially filthier than you found it (100) Don't put a paint scratch on my 56 year old plane. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> A previously reliable shop for me suddenly flunked #1 #,3, #4, #5, and #7 all at once a few years ago during annual, causing me to switch. Right now I'm ecstatic to have been working with a shop that has done #1-7 pretty reliably since then. I wouldn't care if they put a little scratch on it. My main concern if it became a common occurrence would be that their efforts under items #1-3 might also be suffering - in your situation I might switch, but not because of the scratch itself.

If there are large fields vs. a busy roadway I think I'd take the former every time and probably put it in gear up unless surface is very hospitable. Not only is there less ethical quandary but also I'm still likely to walk away if I keep my head and have better chance of avoiding obstructions and cars. If only alternative is the tree tops of a hardwood forest, I might pick the road in an effort to improve my chances (unless it's rush hour). A desolate road without many obstructions might tempt me to also try to save the plane. This plane was a Lancair 360 - I think these approach and stall about 10kt faster than a typical Mooney, adding further challenge. Good job by the pilot here it seems.

I agree - I think the dual ports are interconnected in the tubing in the tail, so what transducers read out is an average, which might be handy with a crosswind component across the nose or yaw. And it could save your bacon if one side gets blocked. I suppose if flow over one were reduced or turbulent due to a popped door that could also create some artifact, but I have no clue if this happens to any meaningful extent.

This makes little sense to me right now, but if your statement is true, it's certainly worth resolving my ignorance on this topic. Could the popped door could create an artifactual reading at the static port behind? I have no clue. All I would expect is a slight increase in parasitic drag. I can't imagine how it would change AOA directly. FWIW my door has popped many times (long painful door mechanics story), but I've never noted the slightest difference in aircraft handling. A 10kt increase in when it stalls is dramatic when landing and would have led to a surprise when lifting the nose once over the runway to land.

The engine: Lycoming O-360 in a '68 M20C. Running well, happily blowing 1qt/4hrs, and the oil turns black fast, but consumption been stable recently with no clear single offending cylinder, so I feel no rush to do anything. The history: Three years ago my A&P did the Loc-tite + vacuum trick on my leaking lower case seam, and it seemed to work very well. At the same time I had him change my 17 year old Curtis quick drain valve, which always seemed to have a drop of oil hanging off of it, replacing it with one of the SAF-AIR ones: https://www.aircraftspruce.com/pages/ep/oilsystems_oildrain/safOilDrainValves_07-00879.php The new problem: Increasing oil leakage over the last year. After it sits several days, there's enough oil leak to drip a fair amount on my front tire. Last time that happened, a nut was about to fall off a mag, so I take the new leakage pretty seriously. On exam of engine, the accessory case and fire wall are bone dry. The case seam looks pretty dry except at the very front. In that area, there's also oil on the Powerflow heat exchanger, the base of jug #1, the oil line to the prop hub, the back of the alternator, and on top of the air box. There's a bit of oil at the base of jug #2 and also around the top seam for the oil sump and on the bottom of the oil sump. The O-ring seals on the pushrod tubes seem dry along with the rest of the top of the engine and around the front crank shaft seal. My amateurish diagnosis attempt: I clean everything up, add florescent dye to the oil, and ground run it- I then see nothing leaking directly or by UV illumination. I then go fly a couple laps in the pattern. Again it's bone dry when I get back, including the quick drain valve. Figuring I should get the non-FAA blessed dye out of the oil (which has 25 hrs on it and is black), I do a quick oil change without changing the filter, not spilling a drop in the process. I still wipe everything down again. I then come back two weeks later to fly, and there's now CLEAN oil in my bottom cowl and on my front tire . The rest of the engine still looks dry. My question: Could this all be from an imperceptibly slow leak out the SAF-AIR quick drain valve?? Any other thoughts?? I'm wishing I stayed with a Curtis valve.

@bcgI love the resourcefulness and innovation here - a low cost design that has no risk of chewing up the front tire (like the Sidewinder and Robotow) would be very desirable.

Reviving this thread as I consider engine overhaul - I think probably will order a Lycoming factory rebuilt or overhaul for my O-360-A1D, exchanging the core. I'm heading into annual this year soon and would hope to do the swap at annual next year. My question is, do any of the other major shops provide similar service (i.e. provide an overhauled engine with core swap)? At first glance, places like Western Skyways, Signature, Poplar Grove? I'm just trying to gather a bit more info before I start calling around... @Alan Fox @jetdriven

My Aspen Pro Max has always been too sluggish in initiating turns in GPSS mode when driving my STEC-30 autopilot. It it anticipates the turn per instruction from the GTN-650 but still overshoots and then turns back to re-intercept the course. My internet “research” indicates there’s a GPSS gain setting that can be adjusted on the Aspen in “maintenance mode.” Supposedly the gain scale is 1.0 to 2.0, with 1.0 being the default but 1.5 to 1.75 being recommended for STEC autopilots. Does anyone here have any guidance on this issue and how to accomplish this adjustment? Thank you in advance!

Interesting discussion. We clearly need eLORAN technology. Unfortunately, a world where bad actors successfully render GPS useless will probably not be all that conducive to my continuing to fly as a fun hobby either.

Definitely left - the added ease of starting if you put it on that side is spectacular.