rockydoc Posted April 26, 2014 Report Posted April 26, 2014 I am wanting to change my spark plugs on my 1961 M20 B, Lycoming O360-AID engine to the fine wire plugs. Will someone please tell me what is the best brand and what is the part number for that brand. Thanks Quote
isaacpr7 Posted April 26, 2014 Report Posted April 26, 2014 I just recently changed all the plugs in my O360-A1D and did lots of research. I found that Tempest plugs offered me the best bang for the buck. I chose massives over finewires because they were more economic and I don't have a problem with plug fouling. Leaning on the ground will help you avoid fouled plugs; however, if you still have fouling problems I would recommend buying finewires. They run hotter than massives, which is why it helps prevent plug fouling. If your cylinders tend to run on the upper range, then I would opt to go for the massives in order to keep the temperatures down. Below is a link for the massives for the O360-A1D: (Only 23 bucks each. Finewires will be around 69 each but still way more economical than other brands) http://www.aircraftspruce.com/pages/ep/sparkplugs_0ctempest_1massive/temptestplugs1.php Quote
MooneyBob Posted April 26, 2014 Report Posted April 26, 2014 I have replaced my plugs with Tempest Finewire ones. I don't know the part number for your engine. You can find it out on the Tempest website. My engine ran pretty rough while taxiing and sometimes misfired specially during taxiing. Yes, I lean aggressively. Hot start of the engine was almost impossible and embarrassing after every refueling. My engine runs very smooth now in the 800 - 1200 RPM range with any leaning setting. No problems during taxiing at all. Cold start is 1/4 of the prop turn. Instant. For the hot start I follow the procedure that some members described here on the forum. I shut the engine off with the throttle in the 1200 RPM position by cutting the mixture off. Then I don't touch anything ( no boost pump, no mixture, throttle at the 1200 RPM - last position) and I just crank the starter. It takes few turns but the engine smoothly starts and runs at 1200 RPM right away. I very pleased with the Tempest Finewire plugs. Some people suggested that you can get the same results with the new massive plugs too but I am pretty happy with the Finewire. 1 Quote
animalmover Posted April 26, 2014 Report Posted April 26, 2014 Tempest UREM38S. Changed mine at annual and have found that I can lean a bit more aggressively ( I have been getting around .25-.5 gph better than massives ). I have a 61B with O360-A1D and couldn't be happier. Good luck! Quote
animalmover Posted April 26, 2014 Report Posted April 26, 2014 Forgot to mention that you will need a longer than normal deep well socket to fit Tempest plugs. Quote
rockydoc Posted April 26, 2014 Author Report Posted April 26, 2014 Tempest UREM38S. Changed mine at annual and have found that I can lean a bit more aggressively ( I have been getting around .25-.5 gph better than massives ). I have a 61B with O360-A1D and couldn't be happier. Good luck! thanks for the info. It is exactly what I needed. Rocky Quote
MB65E Posted April 26, 2014 Report Posted April 26, 2014 I still like Tempest 37BY's they have the massive electrode but with conventional style "lawn mower" firing points. Their Awesome! I've run them in parallel valve and Angle valve Lycomings Also, I can run an easy 30lop some cylinders hang on until 60lop. (Bendix, 25* timing, ram air) -Matt 1 Quote
Jim Peace Posted September 21, 2014 Report Posted September 21, 2014 Bumping thread to see if any new info... I am going to replace all 8 plugs on my O360-AID in October. Does anyone have brands and specific part numbers for finewire plugs, where to purchase etc? Thank you in advance Quote
Andy95W Posted September 21, 2014 Report Posted September 21, 2014 Tempest UREM-38S from Aircraft Spruce. Quote
stevesm20b Posted September 22, 2014 Report Posted September 22, 2014 Has anyone compared the Tempest fine wire UREM-38s to the Tempest extended tip massive UREM-37BY. Big difference in price. $72 for the 38S and $23 for the 37BY. Thinking about replacing plugs in my O-360A1D. It has the Tempest UREM-40E now. Don't know if the fine wire plugs are worth the extra money over the 37BYs. Quote
Hank Posted September 22, 2014 Report Posted September 22, 2014 I put new massive UREM-38 something's in my O-360-A1D and am very happy. Been 2 or 3 years now, doing great. 1 Quote
BigTex Posted September 22, 2014 Report Posted September 22, 2014 Has anyone compared the Tempest fine wire UREM-38s to the Tempest extended tip massive UREM-37BY. Big difference in price. $72 for the 38S and $23 for the 37BY. Thinking about replacing plugs in my O-360A1D. It has the Tempest UREM-40E now. Don't know if the fine wire plugs are worth the extra money over the 37BYs. For me it was absolutely one of the best investments I've made. My plane has never run better. Quote
Andy95W Posted September 22, 2014 Report Posted September 22, 2014 Has anyone compared the Tempest fine wire UREM-38s to the Tempest extended tip massive UREM-37BY. Big difference in price. $72 for the 38S and $23 for the 37BY. Thinking about replacing plugs in my O-360A1D. It has the Tempest UREM-40E now. Don't know if the fine wire plugs are worth the extra money over the 37BYs. If price is an issue, try replacing only the bottom plugs. This will eliminate 95% of your lead and oil fouling. After that, maybe replace one per year until all done? Thiat is what I did and have been very happy thus far. Quote
carusoam Posted September 22, 2014 Report Posted September 22, 2014 Is there a plug that best handles or eliminates the lead BBs that form in the bottom plugs? My O360A1D was known to manufacture BBs just prior to it's annual. Anyone ever pull the lower plugs to empty BBs out prior to Annual? I averaged about 100hrs per year. Never had a problem caused by the BBs. Just wasn't comfortable knowing they would form and collect in the bottom plugs... Best regards, -a- Quote
Hank Posted September 22, 2014 Report Posted September 22, 2014 I used to get those, but not since getting conscientious about leaning way back on the ground. 1 Quote
philiplane Posted September 26, 2014 Report Posted September 26, 2014 Tempest fine wire plugs virtually eliminate the lead fouling issue. Team them with Bendix mags and your problems are gone. If you still have an issue, your idle mixture is set too rich. Most lead fouling problems have been a result of Champion spark plugs with high internal resistance. People keep cleaning them and use the ridiculously overpowered bench test to declare them "good to go". Then they run like crap in the plane after a few hours, and people blame the lead in the gas rather than the crappy spark plug. Champion has denied this problem for years. Yet suddenly and with no fan fare they changed their internal resistor design to a copy of Tempest's a few months ago. There is no news about this. They simply removed all evidence of the old carbon pile spring loaded resistor from their site, and replace it with a description of the fired-in resistor. It's not noted as a product improvement, or new and improved. If you didn't know better you would assume they've always been made that way. The higher efficiency and lower maintenance, plus the extreme longevity of fine wires make them the best value. They pay for the difference over massives in fuel savings alone in 300-400 hours since you can lean about 1/2 to 1 GPH better with them versus a massive electrode plug. You can see some studies on this by RAM Aircraft. Fine wires generally last about 2000-2500 hours. Massives last about 800-1200 hours if they are carefully rotated to even the wear between negative and positive firing pulses. Quote
carusoam Posted September 26, 2014 Report Posted September 26, 2014 Sounds similar to a page from GM's ignition switch team... Hope they changed the part number with the design change...? Best regards, -a- Quote
The-sky-captain Posted September 26, 2014 Report Posted September 26, 2014 I switched to all fine wires last week since my old champion massives we're pushing 800 hours and looked like footballs. Can't wait to see how the new ones run LOP! Quote
rbridges Posted October 1, 2014 Report Posted October 1, 2014 I switched to all fine wires last week since my old champion massives we're pushing 800 hours and looked like footballs. Can't wait to see how the new ones run LOP! do the fine wires last longer than the massives from champion? Quote
The-sky-captain Posted October 1, 2014 Report Posted October 1, 2014 do the fine wires last longer than the massives from champion? From what I've read they are supposed to last about 3x longer than the massives. Quote
rbridges Posted October 1, 2014 Report Posted October 1, 2014 From what I've read they are supposed to last about 3x longer than the massives. that's pretty much a whole overhaul period. Quote
jetdriven Posted October 2, 2014 Report Posted October 2, 2014 I ran my tempest plugs 250 hours and now they are in Openskies flier's 201, probably 400 hours on them. How do they look and run, Jim? Quote
Hank Posted October 2, 2014 Report Posted October 2, 2014 I ran my tempest plugs 250 hours and now they are in Openskies flier's 201, probably 400 hours on them. How do they look and run, Jim? Byron's quite the supplier. Just took his (former) massives out for a night flight with the wife. Still running great! Still getting used to the flatness down here, but at least the heat has broken now that we are five weeks into College Football. Quote
MARZ Posted October 2, 2014 Report Posted October 2, 2014 I had massives on top and wires on the bottom - I went to all 37BY and couldn't be happier. EGT evened out better across all cylinders as well as an overall lowering of the peak. 1 Quote
rbridges Posted October 3, 2014 Report Posted October 3, 2014 would it be a bad idea to replace the plugs one at a time as they fail? or all top/all bottom at once? Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.