Kwixdraw

Anyone have an idea how many of these are still hanging around. I heard there were a bunch, maybe the bulk of them that got caught in the hurricane in Florida a few years back. I've got a crazy idea floating around and trying to see how doable it might be.

If the system has been together, unserviced long enough for the fluid to be turning syrupy, you really want to take it apart and see what the internals look like anyway. If you have magnesium brake calipers you could be looking at some really nasty corrosion inside, just waiting to cause a brake failure at the worst possible time. Just went through this myself. Check the dates on your hoses too. I'd bet they need changing.

5606 Is the legal stuff to use and it's still available. A way bad idea to use anything else unless you are really interested in ongoing issues with the FAA in the event of an"incident". Not to mention your insurance carrier will probably introduce you to the joys of subrogation and all the fun that is if they find out you put the other stuff in there.

My wife is not crazy about the idea of flying in a small aircraft but Is willing to go up when I get the Mooney back in action. She had the unfortunate luck to have a Piper PA-32 that shed it's wings in IFR flight crash right in front of her on the UC Irvine campus when she was in college. She was supporting herself as an EMT at the time and there is no way she will get on a motorcycle, not even with me. We were talking about this a few weeks back and she said she had confidence that I was doing everything possible to make the Mooney safe and she was sure I wouldn't do anything stupid and risk wrecking it after all the care put into rebuilding it. I'm lucky to have a wife that thinks things through, for the most part.

Have a look at the leading edge of your prop. I would get a good prop man to take out any little defects and polish that baby(the leading edge, not the whole prop) bright with flitz and wax it too. Check your cooling baffles to make sure they are sealing as well as possible to minimize the need to trail the cowl flaps. You might want to check the prop balance and tracking if it hasn't been done in some time. Remember it's an airfoil too.

Know anyone who turns pens as a hobby? I bet they could knock one out for you real quick.

There is some good info on Continental case cracking in the Sacramento Sky Ranch Engineering Manual. There are a number of problems that are common to all of the Conti 520 and you would probably find out a lot about them on the American Bonanza Society website. Just from what I have read about them it seems that the accessories can be problematic...starter drive adaptors, gear driven alternators and that sort of thing. You have to strictly monitor and service them to avoid having them take out your engine.

I believe I saw one in the Sporty's catalog recently.

I'd want to see the work order on that sudden stoppage inspection. I don'r know why anyone would take an engine down that far and not put new rod and main bearings in it, especially considering that they did case work. You may just be looking at top end issues.

Adding Carosome's comments. Continental engines take a knowing touch to get good compression readings. You can work the prop a bit to help pressurize and seat the rings and get a pretty fair fluctuation in the numbers. They also depend somewhat on the equipment that the A&P is using too. Continental specifies that they want a differential compression tester with a "master orfice" which evens out the readings and makes them fall more in line with Lycoming numbers. You may find some mechanics that don't have that type tester and will have different figures than someone else who tests it. You may want to consider what the readings are on cylinders that are opposite each other on the crankcase. Lycoming specifies a max differential from opposing cylinders but Continental does not, to my knowledge. Still not a bad thing to consider IMO.

There are a number of good reasons not to go with the Echelon STC. $3000.00 cylinders is one. According to sources who might not like to be named (a Lycoming service center) The 390 is a result of boring a 360 jug to the max. It's not being approved to recondition or chrome the cylinders and there are none in the system anyway since very few of these engines are in service. I'm told that 210 HP is not hard to get out of an IO-360 with good valve machining techniques and a very light touch in the ports. An O-360 in an experimental configuration is claimed to be easier to get up past 210 hp and is more reliable in that application because the flat topped pistons don't have the valve pockets that can get hot at the edges and cause detonation-pre-ignition.

Might be a good time for a thorough inspection of the flap hinges and bellcrank. The hinge mounts get corrosion in them and the flaps sometimes get damaged by people stepping on the right one entering and exiting the aircraft. The jack screw is on the left side of the fuselage and when the right flap gets stepped on there is a lot of torque being applied to the bellcrank and operating mechanism. I might not be so concerned if the flaps are even right to left. lower them slightly and look for equal deflection from centerline under the tail. Check for unequal play in them too.

Well aware of the useful load issue. Thats why I want to go with two thin layers to kill the resonance between the skins and the interior panels. I'm just looking to do it smarter not crazier. Since I'm rebuilding engine baffling too, I think I'm going to go with the McFarland low friction baffle seal to see if I can cut out some drumming vibration there too. If nothing else it might make the cowl flaps and hardware last a little longer. I'm told that with sound energy a small change makes a big difference.

Don't forget your oil hoses. They need replacement every five years anyway so this might be the perfect time.

Thanks. Since my J is a major resto project I've been seriously thinking of doing some unusual things to help with the interior comfort. I read the soundproofing books you usually see and thought I might go with a thin layer on the skin and a thin layer on the interior panel to end up with a "dead zone" between them. Hopefully this would give better performance for the amount of insulation installed. My plastic is pretty trashed so I am redoing some of the panel pieces in composites and others in aluminum, depending on which is needed for it's particular traits. All done according to FARs just trying to get a better end result. I'm in the clean and paint/corrosion proof stage right now so no pics unless you love to see gutted Mooneys.

Has anyone done any soundproofing to their aircraft and what products do you recommend.

There is always an unknown factor too, like Lycoming introducing the new roller tappets. How bad do you want those if at all? I don't hink we will know for a while yet if they are really better or just a marketing point. One thing is for sure they do run up the price of a prop strike or overhaul since the tappets are on the mandatory replacement list. How long will the old configuration be available? Dual mags are history for right now so will it become necessary to convert to two single mags or not? Hard to know what will come along. Changes in fuel could mean big changes in cylinder head configurations and serviceability.

There is a lot to be considered in this. Do you like to run your engine at max power or pull it back and go for endurance at LOP settings. Your engine have the doweled cases? If you like to fly it like you stole it you are more likely to need to have some case surfacing done. At a certain point this will get more complicated as the machining changes the spacing and therefore the backlash of the accessory case gears. Lycon has an STC to install a strip of O-ring material on the case flange to seal it. They claim that this is better for long term engine life as the flanges don't have to be machined as much to allow for the silk thread and non hardening sealer to function. That also cuts down of having to line bore the main and camshaft bearing bosses to maintain tolerances. Running past TBO can be a factor too as running things with loose tolerances can speed up wear at some points and just invites running until something breaks.

Quote: eldeano I was going to ask if a small stage and a brass pole in the corner would be inappropriate.

Second the A&P advice. You need someone to look at your logs and check to see what service has been done and needs to be done. Mags need someone who has the equipment and knowledge to do the job correctly. Just using the wrong grease is enough to really screw up a mag overhaul.

If Don could buy Mooney it would be a good thing for us as he knows what makes 'em tick.

Politely asking the Feds to leave is a pretty sure guarantee they are going to give you full Federal Services.(Imagine that) Remember their motto,"We're from the FAA and we're not happy until you're unhappy."

Quote: Kwixdraw Don't go gorilla on those case bolts, and do it with a torque wrench. 50 in./lbs. if my memory is correct. It's not all that much but there is only a thread and non hardening sealer in there for a gasket.

For lighting you also want an LED or florescent trouble light that you can use in close quarters and not get burned on a hot bulb or wire guard. Also a good vise is a handy thing to have on your bench. You'll want access to a service manual, AMT/FARS, and an AC 43.13 1b/2b if you are going to do preventative maintenence on your aircraft. If the Feds drop in while you are working on your aircraft they may get unpleasant if you don't have these to guide your work.

So you're saying the sleazy place in Florida contracted with AirMod in Ohio to do the work that they installed? AirMod in Ohio is packin' a pretty good reputation and has done quite a few of the AOPA's sweepstake airplanes because of the quality of their work. Are any of you Danes 'cause this is starting to fail the sniff test for me.