tomn

There have been several threads about these plugs - one recently. Seems the champions are not favored and do fail resistance checks sooner.

This discussion led me to give something a try. I have just ordered some 1-3/4" diameter black heat shrink tubing. This will be large enough to fit over the entire johnson bar easily. It is a heavy duty version and comes in 4 ft. lengths. I should get it within a week or so and then will see how it works out and post. Since I don't yet have a pair of jacks, working on that too, I plan to take her up and slide it over the bar then land and finish the heat shrinking etc. It has too look better than what it looks like now. We'll see. Tom

I have been working on a design for a small light duty tug. It should be fine for regular use on reasonably level ground. It might be a month or two before I can get it done but will post info if I'm happy with it. The idea is for it to be low cost to build and simple to use. We'll see how it goes...

I have considered it but have not done one yet. Can someone who has give us a report?

Your IR is probably the single most important training you can get after your private in my opinion. It will make you a much safer pilot even if you don't use it that much. I think the accelerated method would be fine if thats what it will take. It will be much easier with the written out of the way. I used the King videos to get that done and recommend them highly. I was traveling a lot and would listen to them while driving. The comments above are correct - your IR, like your private, is a license to learn. You will need to gain experience over time to expand your personal envelope. I file IFR every where I go cross country - never VFR. Its good to work within the system and increases the level of safety. Practice is the key. Bottom line is that it is very much worth the effort. You'll enjoy the benefits and the accomplishment. I think the Cub idea is great - except get one in addition to the Mooney for Saturday morning fun!

John, thanks for the offer for the panels. Those would not fit my E without some serious work - not going that far with it at this point, Tom

Thanks for the responses. I can install a new left panel that has the same angle bend as the original so it would not affect the AI. I don't anticipate any serious wring changes at this point but will look much deeper into it before starting. My right panel is OK for now, I just want to get the instruments on the left side arranged correctly - my scan pattern is ridiculous... Dan, could you go ahead and email me the .dxf - I'll see if it matches what I have now. tnalle@nalleautomation.com Tom

I am thinking about reworking the left panel on my 66 E. It has the original instrument layout with primary instruments not next to one another and I'd like to change it to the conventional layout. My question: is this something that I can do with the supervison/signoff of an AP or IA?

I gave this a try twice yesterday - I have had many issues with hot starts the past few years, some of them fuel system related (all fixed now). I think the E model is one of the worst to hot start from what I have read with the dog house trapping the heat on the top of the engine. It did not work for me first try although the engine did try to catch almost immediately which I have never had happen before. On the first start, the plane had been sitting for about three hours. After it almost started twice using the new method, I switched to the slowly pushing the mixture in method while cranking - it caught quickly. The second hot start was later after a shutting down to fuel. It was only off for about 10 minutes. I tried the new method again and it almost caught immediately but would not keep running. I went straight to the slowly pushing the mixture in method and it caught after about 15-20 baldes. Restart after shutdown for only a few minutes has always been the worst for me - this worked much better. I have used the method Bob outlined for the past year or two with success but it sometimes takes a while. I'm going to keep experimenting with this. I'll try leaving the mixture full longer next to see if that helps release the vapor locking that I think is a big part of the problem. Tom

I can't stress enough about the importance of learning what to look for and then looking for it each and every time anyone works on your plane. I have had numerous issues that were the result of mistakes made by mechanics working on the plane - some very serious. No good mechanic will be offended if you check behind him at least enough to be sure things look buttoned up properly. These are great people and we need them, but they are human and....

Jerry Manthey in his maintenance trianing seminars recommends placing a couple of drops of non-detergent oil on the shaft of the fuel selector each year at annual or shorter timeframe - not sure right now as I write this. This is supposed to keed the shaft lubricated as it wicks down.

The entertainment value alone on this site is worth the price of admission! I'd have felt sorry for him if it was a blue knob....just sayin...

I just read this in Aviation Safety this evening. Seems this issue keeps showing up.

Stefan, the mechanics I have talked with since mine broke all say they should never go past 8 years of age - one said 6 years. They are not that expensive and the downside is not good. Something to think about. Tom

I have mine set to about 14" - that seems to work well for me. You need to be sure it is set so that it will always come on with your particular procedure with enough time left to go around in case you don't always pull the throttle back all the way before landing. I always check it before putting the gear down by pulling throttle back until it sounds.

I used to really enjoy flying at night. Now days I avoid flying at night if possible but will do it when needed. Loosing the engine changes your attitude about night flying. Riding above a low overcast is somewhat of the same situation but at least there would be a short period of time to pick a spot...

If yours is like mine, there is a small switch mounted to your throttle cable housing on the back side of the panel. It rides on the throttle cable to trigger the gear warning. It is adjusted by loosening two screws and sliding it either way to change the trigger point. You would slide it towards the panel to make it switch at a lower MP. Tom

I'm pretty sure Enterprise now owns National...