A64Pilot

I believe a CD isn’t even keeping up with inflation at this point, they never really do even in good times I don’t think. You have a valid point, but some of us when we have extra money like if possible to buy something in bulk and then eliminate that monthly expense if possible, concept of Solar I think? What I would like and know it’s not happening, but I’d like to pre-buy say 10,000 gls of fuel and then of course what I burn is deducted from the total I have already paid for. Fuel prices are too volatile for anyone to sign up for that thought.

This is the way. Cradle can be 2x4’s or I like angle iron. Last time I had drums we built a run of 1340’ crop dusters. They held I think about 15 gls ea. So a drum for every three airplanes. They use 60W oil which is honestly about like pancake syrup on a cool day. Also get a desiccant filter that screws into the Bung hole on the drum, yeah that really is what it’s called I promise. You want to keep moisture out.

Vx increases and Vy decrease with altitude, when they converge it’s the only airspeed you can fly without descending and of course the highest altitude you can climb to. @PT20J and I are saying the same thing but differently. In my opinion as far as flying is concerned TAS in a sub 250 kt GA airplane is pretty much irrelevant, for instance our 196 kt VNE at 15,000 ft is over 250 true I think without checking, it’s interesting to know true, but all our V airspeeds are in IAS. Fast airplanes are different and I have no personal experience with Mach tuck, compressibility and barber poles etc ‘In my opinion you might want to reconsider how your climbing, Vx is angle, getting over the trees at the end of the runway, or maybe trying to climb out of a box canyon in an uh-oh moment. Vy is rate of course, if your circling in a large area to get over the ridge line, you’ll get higher faster at Vy than any other airspeed, but just as important or maybe moreso the engine will run significantly cooler at the higher airspeed. Personally unless I have to I climb much faster than Vy just for engine cooling, but it’s been a long time since mountains were a concern for me and luckily I’ve never found myself in a box canyon

I beg to differ. The wing only “knows” indicated, not true. For instance on an approach to a high altitude airport the aircraft will stall close to the bottom of the white arc on the indicated A/S even though true airspeed will be much higher. So fly indicated airspeeds in the pattern, ignore TAS on the fancy glass. Roc suffers primarily from lower engine power, but climb angle suffers from the higher ground speed required to get to the indicated Vy airspeed. Vy does come down with DA but at airport altitudes it’s not a whole lot

Tomorrow is Monday, give the Lycoming help desk a call, I bet they have a list of every part required as your not the first. My 2c if you have the option of going roller I certainly would.

To compare one day to the next as in temp differences, pressure etc without using the book charts you need to fly density altitude, charts of course correct for density altitude. Flying 6000 PA today and trying to compare it to 6000 PA tomorrow may give you different results because the DA is significantly different and DA affects drag quite a bit. Humidity isn’t usually taken into account for density altitude and it’s not a large difference, it does effect engine performance more though, but I don’t know how to correct engine power for humidity, I don’t have much experience with determining engine performance in piston engines. None officially actually. Turbo props % power is easy as they have torque meters simply do whatever it takes throttle movement wise until you get the torque that equates to the %power you want, some torque meters even read in %, with a piston engine good luck, because as was stated mixture has a large effect on power, other than possibly best power I don’t see how an engine monitor could compute % power, at best it’s a SWAG, without a dyno or torque meter how do you even know what your engines power output really is? If you’re out just looking into things, try this. Compare 50 ROP at a set RPM and set speed, but a lower MP, one that you can go say 25 LOP keep the RPM the same and adjust MP until airspeed is identical, compare fuel flow. I’ve done it on two different airframes but not a Mooney, I’d be interested in your results. Best done one test right after the other and let it sit for several minutes to make sure A/S is dead stable, you guys with autopilots have a definite advantage here, best to creep to the A/S from a lower one for each test. I know it’s not supposed to make a difference but I swear if your going faster and reduce power and let speed stabilize sometimes you end up faster than if you set a power and let it accelerate until speed stabilizes. I’m not saying the “step” really does exist, just take out all the variables you can when comparing things. Also read up on what a Phugoid is, because ALL aircraft exhibit it, and it does effect A/S if altitude is held exact, not much just take a few readings and average them out. Normally the pilot dampens the Phugoid without even realizing it https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phugoid https://www.pilotscafe.com/glossary/phugoid-oscillations/ You can notice it in dead still air, the airplane will require very minor trim adjustments to maintain level hands off flight, it’s minor but real. If you have an autopilot put it in heading mode but not altitude you’ll notice very slight slow climbs and descents, or with altitude hold on, very slight changes in A/S. You just have to average the reading out.

The two reports sure sound like a gear up landing. Airplane is in the grass though?

I wouldn’t worry too much about changing oil consumption. Check level before every flight of course and keep oil in it, carry extra oil and a funnel, but don’t get worried unless consumption makes a big increase, often a decrease can be attributed to there being more oil in there than realized, hasn’t been long enough for it all to drain down. It can be high if you fill it to 8 qts until it throws out the excess, it can be high flying patterns and short trips too, and it can drop down quite a bit on a longer flight, particularly if not flown at full throttle. Hot weather seems to increase it some too. These things are designed to burn oil, it’s normal and desirable, up to a point of course and that point is a lot of oil. Oh, and it’s not at all uncommon for oil consumption to decrease on an airplane that used to sit a lot once it gets flown frequently again after some number of hours.

Years ago, couple of decades anyway I was told by the then Air Products, now Airgas that the only difference in any O2 was the bottle it was put in, they alluded that medical bottles were sterilized somehow, but I believe he was incorrect. The source of all their O2 was a large Dewer out back that as others have said was liquid O2. I don’t fly O2 anymore but when I did I filled my bottle from welding tanks at the plant with a simple transfer hose. If you fill your own bottles be double sure that not even any kind of hint of oil gets on anything or you can honestly have a bottle explode, one drop is all it takes. Good friend who worked at a cave diving shop burned his hand pretty good, he was eating lunch (fried chicken) and got up to unhook the Haschal from a deco bottle, he wiped his hands off, closed the valve on the tank and the hose, but that leaves a couple inches of hose pressurized, when he turned the hose to bleed that tiny bit off it apparently ignited the little bit of oil on his hand and flash burned him. The first accident I’m real familiar with https://www.luxfercylinders.com/news/cylinder-incident-in-luraville-florida https://komonews.com/news/local/dive-shop-damaged-after-oxygen-tank-explodes https://scubaboard.com/community/threads/oxygen-cylinder-explodes-on-diving-boat-france.504785/page-2 https://www.dansa.org/blog/2023/03/01/kaboom-the-big-oxygen-safety-issue https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6147225/ There are more, but I think that’s enough to make the point, just there are way more divers than pilots refilling their own O2 bottles. An O2 concentrator seems like a good idea, with of course a back-up O2 source. We had an O2 concentrator on the AH-64, it took the O2 and dumped it overboard and filled the fuel tanks with the O2 depleted air, Nitrogen to prevent fuel tank explosions https://www.army-technology.com/news/newscobham-modernise-us-apache-units/ Seems like the Boeing 787 does too?

Do they have clutches?

%Power should be a constant only IF you fly density altitude and not pressure, and of course if the Dynon has it right, I’ve not seen an engine monitor get it right, but then I’ve not used a Dynon either

I thought that was the purpose of the no back spring, to keep the actuator from being back driven in either direction? Never seen a Dukes but assume it may be a worm gear as those can’t be back driven, a chain hoist is an example.

I’ve never seen detonation get a valve, ever. especially not without destroying the piston. As this is a turbo, I’d very carefully inspect the hot end of the turbo, those pieces of valve had to go through it and may have caused FOD Attached photos are of an IO-540 that has detonation damage, they tried cleaning up the cylinder then gave up, this was a N/A IO for those that say you can’t detonate an N/A Lycoming by the way. I can attach full size pics, but downsized these to save the forum space Cant see the piston well in the photo but it’s full of pits like the head is Detonation almost always “sandblasts” the piston and head like the photo @Pinecone posted, I’m sure this 540 woukd have gone just like the one he posted in a short time, but they quit flying pretty quickly after hearing it Detonation rarely manifests itself like we think, that is rattling like it did in 1970’s cars. One case I’m familiar with was my Brother calling me on the radio and saying he thought the gear were thumping the belly and wanted me to come over and look, soon after he lost a cylinder, had a hole in the center of it. N/A IO-520.

I don’t like chrome, I didn’t think it has been done for years, but I guess not. Since it’s done, it’s done. That cylinder will likely use more oil, could be more likely to foul plugs, or not. If you haven’t started break in yet, I’d take off at full throttle, pull it back to 2500 a couple of min after T/O, climb at as high an airspeed as you could and maintain 500 FPM for cooling, no higher than 5,000 if possible and cruise very rich at full throttle for the first several hours, keep an eye on cyl head temp, don’t let it get hot. Climb fast, in my airplane I climb at 130 kts indicated It’s really hard to break in chrome and you have a short window to get it done, but if you get it broken in it’s not that bad. I think a lot of the rep chrome gets is from it never being fully broken in, but eventually, hopefully several years from now the chrome will fail and begin coming off in flakes.

Not trying to beat this to death, but prepare now, go buy everything you think you might need to secure your house, boat whatever you have now and store it, because once you need it, it’s likely you won’t be able to buy it. Good to have a generator, fuel storage and clean up tools too. For when you come back. If you Evacuate, don’t leave anything perishable in the fridge, in fact I’d clean it out, turn it off and leave the door open, because a week or two without electricity and the fridge is like a slaughterhouse or worse.

IF I had to leave one tied down I’d get me some new strong as in at least 2,000 lb or so ratchet straps and use them as opposed to ropes, I’d get the one meant to tie cars down on a trailer and if they wouldn’t fit I’d buy clevises to attach them to the airplane with, new ones not ones that have been in the sun, in fact go buy some now because if you wait until the Hurricane is coming it’s likely there may not be any, same for a generator, chainsaw etc. I’d also pull them snug, I see no logic at all in leaving ropes loose, and I think the cause of failure is often the airplane jerking and snatching against ropes with some slack, think if it as the airplane getting a running start to be suddenly and violently stopped, the snatch loads on the tie down point and the rope are huge. I’d also get good external gust locks for the flight controls, and fit spoilers on the wings, 2x4’s foam cushioned and strapped down on top of the wing about 25% back from the leading edge will spoil almost all lift a wing can produce. Take a look at the spoiler wing covers to get an idea. https://alaskawingcovers.com/aircraft-wing-and-tail-covers/#:~:text=THE SPOILER WING COVERS&text=The vent allows any wind,over at the tie-down. I think an airplane properly tied down and prepped can ride out almost anything, until the ramp tramp beside of you hits your airplane anyway. Other than maybe paying the FBO to park the fuel trucks around you I have no idea how to protect from that. Take a look at wing covers made for bush planes way up North like Alaska for an idea, in fact do some reading how they prepare for Winter storms, they have it figured out, seems most down South just say that’s what insurence is for. I think 90% or better of Fl Hurricane damaged aircraft pretty much nothing was done to prep the airplane, they are left tied with loose rotted ropes, and owners act surprised when it ends up against the fence or on its back, and no one holds them responsible for not properly tying down their aircraft. Odd thing is the Marina’s I’ve rode out Hurricanes in that’s not allowed, if you don’t secure boat 19 ways from Sunday the Marina does and sends you the bill for doing so, assuming your not there. As late as 24 to 48 hours before landfall you usually have very pretty VFR weather to leave in, based of course on size and speed of the Storm, a fast moving one gets here fast. It seems the Storm sucks all the energy from the air, after it’s gone usually there is beautiful Wx and often before the rain bands hit, once they get here your not going anywhere IFR rated or not Lastly as someone who has lived most of his life down South, you really, really, really don’t want to be part of the nightmare that is a Hurricane Evac on Fl highways, if you must land Evac leave EARLY. You really want to be flying and looking down at the 200 mile long parking lot that I-95 and I-75 are. If you have to Evac by car carry at least 10 gls of fuel plus drinking water and food, don’t have to buy anything, because you may not be able to. Fly and head North, by North Ga, Al, Tennessee etc your almost certainly far enough North, actually when you hit the Fl line head West some, Hurricanes seem to follow the East Coast pretty much, so don’t go up the Coast. I think so many stay and ride it out because they did the highway Evac once and decided to never do that again, the argument is if you go early it’s easy, and they are right, but most seem to wait until the highways are packed and then of course it goes down hill FAST. Everything is an opinion, but mine is it’s better to watch the hurricane on TV knowing your airplane is safe, it’s far more likely that your car can ride it out better in the garage than your airplane on the ramp, plus thousands of new cars are built every day.

I used to ask every Mooney driver I met out in the wild if they had changed their NBS and who did they got to do it, because of course I wanted to find out where to either take the airplane, or where to send the actuator. I never met a single one who even knew what I was talking about. I’m going to guess that the majority of springs have never been changed. I think a poll here of how many aircraft that were purchased that had their springs changed prior to purchase as well as was the prior owner a participant of this forum might give as good a data as there is. Knowing how many NBS kits the factory sells a year might give an idea as well. Data that I would like to have is other than pilot’s just forgetting the gear, what are the causes of failure? I’ve heard of several failed actuator tubes and my guess most of those are from hard landings, but how many are from failed actuators of any kind of failure mode, and what’s the most common failure mode? In other words what do we need to inspect for, what needs maintaining? I know follow the manual, not arguing against that, but what needs special attention? Saying everything does isn’t really an answer. Soon after buying my airplane it developed a worrying habit, I would put the gear switch down and nothing would happen, that I could see how it could result in a gear up, and as it was intermittent and usually after some interval they would come down (I never had to manually drop the gear). I could also see how in the gear up landing how the actuator could activate causing damage, and how after the aircraft was recovered how the gear would seem to operate properly. Just saying it’s possible that some of the story’s we hear of “I put the gear down” may be true, not every one of them is pride trying to cover a mistake. FAA issued something not too long ago highlighting that we need to be more attentive to our gear maintenance, but as it wasn’t specific it wasn’t worth much, I couldn’t determine are the primarily worried about manual gear down locks, limit switches in electric gear, relays, gear switches or what? Been nice if they came out and listed in order the top 5 causes of a gear up landing or something.

I’m not saying do or do not do, but testing during Annual only determines it will work that one time it was tested. Now if for some reason the emergency system accumulated any wear then yes it’s a pretty easy case to make that it should be tested at some interval, but what interval? It would seem maybe that the time to test could be if you ever found the manual lever released or tried to actuate the gear with it released? So far as never replacing something until it “needs” it, does anyone wait until the tire busts before replacing it? Tire comment not meant towards the quote, just thrown out there. Maintenance and replacement intervals are tough to determine, but very often preventative maintenance saves huge amounts of money, yes 1K for a spring is overpriced for the item I think, but compared to the expense of a gear up it’s nothing. Depending on the damage and insured amount of the airplane a gear up can well be the death knell of the airplane, but best case your out of an airplane for an extended period, and of course most often it’s not really “as good as new” when you do get it back. So it’s tough to determine what’s the best course of action because there just isn’t any real repeatable data out there. It’s similar to tail wheel springs on the Crop Duster I used to help build, some broke them every few hundred hours, some flew thousands of hours and never broke one. On that I believe how and where they were landed was the difference, but how do you recommend a replacement interval? We had data, so many springs were broken over the years we even fielded a rudder repair kit. But the data was all over the place from a couple hundred hours to probably over ten thousand.

Having a cylinder at 80 does NOT mean no leakage, it means no leakage in excess of the “master orifice” that’s used to adjust the gauge to read 80. The orifice is actually quite a large leak, and if you happen to have the one meant for big radial motors it’s a really big leak, you shouldn’t of course but I have seen it done by mistake. I believe the orifice we use is .040, so a 40 thou hole at 80 PSI is a decent leak, so your cylinder can leak that much and still show 80 I’ve got cylinders that on a good day will measure very close to 80 on my Lycoming, but I’ve not seen a Continental measure 80, but it’s possible I think, especially with some oil in the cylinder. My SWAG is that valve was overheated which can happen from a sloppy valve guide and or poor seating in the valve seat, a valve is cooled of course by transferring heat to the head through those two contact points

I think that it us, but as it’s a pretty oily mess, I’d cover anything like the black boxes, even if it doesn’t hurt them, do you want them an oily mess? Corrosion-X is like a thin weight motor oil, so ideally you want a very thin coat and I’d keep it off of the avionics shelf myself

Yeah, I wish I had better data too, but nobody is collecting data, so you have to go with what data you can get. So far as it being robust, I think it is, it’s designed for a max load of 2,000 lbs and to pull 55 amps. Without looking I’m not sure what our CB is, maybe 15 amps? Whatever it is it’s not 55 amps, so it’s not even possible to come anywhere near its max allowable load the CB will trip way before. I’d assume highest load is retract and that it’s not but a couple hundred lbs max? I think gear extension is actually pulling against it, just the opposite of retract and I guess could be higher based on A/S but an opposite load. Personally I don’t drop gear until the white arc because I really, really want to baby the thing. I think there are NO new ones at any cost? I have a hard time justifying testing the manual extension myself as testing could cause damage and does it guarantee anything as far as continued operation?

Likely it just shakes things a little, like sometimes tapping the solenoid on a starter makes one work. Both the contacts and likely the limit switch have a burnt or dirty contact. If you could get to it likely tapping the switch would work better with just a light tap. Personally I’m in the camp that says use contact cleaner to get home or if you’re feeling lucky until the new switches / relays come in. I’ve just not had good luck with cleaning switches or relay contacts / ignition points etc working well over time, and tapping or rapidly turning off and on doesn’t always work. Contact cleaner helped me diagnose my gear switch, so I’m not against it, just my experience is it’s a temporary fix. What struck me about the post was that @Joe Larussa almost never uses full flaps, why not? Yes I know it will land and takeoff fine with no flaps, but it lands “better” with full flaps. Better being defined as slower requiring less runway and braking and at a more level attitude than with 1/2 or no flap.

I’d have maybe a two hour endurance with that

You should be fine then, once an engine has been properly broken in low power as long as you can get the temps into the green should be fine. In fact in several publications Lycoming says for maximum life run the engine at 65% or lower power. My personal belief is low power AND LOP, but if LOP your % power can be much lower than you might think. For instance I run 23 squared down low and 8GPH, the 8 GPH means I’m making 120 HP and 120 is 60% power. Intuitively you would think 23 squared would be much higher and ROP it is.

People may not understand that, but when I put Flint tip tanks on the 210 it took fuel from 90 gls to 120, which meant I never had to stop for fuel, or it was exceedingly rare if I did. Fuel stops absolutely destroy average speed