484.2 tach hours - oil change

484.2 tach hours

oil change

a shot of the routine inspection of the old filter... cut it open, remove the filter media and inspect for any debris.

451.4 tach hours - oil change

451.4 Tach hours

oil change

402.8 tach hours - oil change

402.8 Tach hours

Oil change

360.5 tach hours - Oil change

360.5 Tach hours

After a great cross country trip covering nearly 7,000 miles... another oil change ;)

another oil change

very clean filter

made a change to try out Phillips cross country

pretty clean change ;)

321.7 tach hours - Oil change

321.7 Tach hours

Auto plug testing in the Pmag

I have been testing plugs along with long reach adapters. I started with an RPM drop of 120 with the standard NGK plugs... switching to Iridium Denso brought that down to 60 or so... the same Denso plugs in long reach form have the drop down to 40. All of the plugs seemed to work well with the exception of a single NGK installed in the bottom of #4 that accumulated quite a bit of debris.

The long reach adapters that I found are from http://www.sparkplugadapters.com/services.html (they focus on farm tractor performance). The adaptors were cheap (6 each including shipping). They are machined anticipating a taper seat but will accommodate a gasket seat which is how it works out to be longer...

long reach auto plug compared with the long reach massive aviation plug

these adapters are not ideal since they are cut to accommodate a tapered seal or a gasket seal... I added some high temp RTV on the threads to fill the void from the tapper cut

after several hours plug color is looking very nice

Pmag wrap up and testing

I completed the Pmag installation and tested the system, put everything away and did a test run.  The first start took a bit more effort to fire than expected but I attribute that to having plugs out, new plugs first fire, having turned the prop quite a bit during the install... after the first try it started with a couple of blades and ran very smooth.  I did a run up and checked out the operation of the Pmag generator and observed operation on the single magneto and with the Pmag alone.  The Pmag runs smooth at all RPMs and is notably smooth at low RPM.

The Pmag provides a tach signal continuously so only a single source is needed but I left the tach signal from the magneto installed and replaced the wiring from the switch from the old mag with the signal from the Pmag.  On run-up it was obvious that the RPM reading on the SkyView was twice actual and I had to poke around the menus a bit to find the pulse counter and change it from 1 per revolution to 2.

Most of the time doing the installation was spent on routing and securing everything.  One interesting item to note is that the wires are not shielded and must be separated from each other to prevent signal coupling... not a big deal but it does add a bit of extra time to keep everything tidy and functional while ensuring that good access is maintained for everything else.

Pmag wiring to the top of #1 and #3

Pmag routing from the bottom plugs on #2 and #4

One of the most challenging connection and routing issues turned out to be getting the manifold pressure to the Pmag.  I have a standard Vans -4 braided hose from a restrictor fitting on the #3 primer port to a firewall fitting with a hose to the manifold pressure gauge in the cabin.  So... I needed to come up with a way to tap the line where I can easily access the Pmag tap to initialize the timing mode.  After a bit of puzzling out a plan I ended up using a 1/8" pipe thread T with a couple of -4 fittings and a quick connect 1/4" tube connection using left over static line.  I have an extra quick connect T that I plan to use if/when I change the other magneto over.  I decided to use the existing -4 braided hose and figure out a location where I could use some hard pipe from the T to the firewall.  It worked out great.  I might end up replacing the hard pipe with a braided line but there is no relative movement between T and the firewall fitting so it can stay.

manifold pressure tap for the Pmag

Pmag engine wiring complete

Pmag electronic ignition

I have been looking to move to an electronic ignition for a long time... even before ordering the engine.  Initially, the credit offered to delete magnetos with the engine order were pretty modest so I decided to simply take them and get flying then evaluate options later.  After 320 hours on the tach and much research I decided to replace the standard magneto on the right side with a Pmag unit using auto plugs.

The Pmag uses the existing drive gear on the magneto to gain crank position information and is mostly a drop in replacement with some minor wiring changes.

One outstanding issue in using auto plugs is the reach into the heads.  My engine uses long reach heads that are about 1/4" deeper.  Pmag reports good success with standard length plug adapters and plugs but other systems specifically call for long reach adapters and plugs so I am looking to find longer adapters and test for myself.

Pmag installed on the right side

standard auto plug and insert compared with a long reach aviation plug

long reach auto plug with a standard reach insert... looking for long reach adapters

removed magneto ignition harness

removed standard magneto Model 4370

removed magneto drive gear to be used with the Pmag

I used a 3" gear puller to remove the gear from the shaft

looking into the case and the idler gear from the main crankshaft to the magneto

imprints from closing up Adel clamps in tight spaces... ouch!

new hat!

Oil line chaffing with oil cooler mounting flange

Inspecting the engine in anticipation of adding a Pmag I noticed some chaffing of an oil line feeding the oil cooler with one of the unused mounting flanges.  I had contemplated this interference when I initially routed the line during the installation but never addressed it.  Fortunately I caught it before it became an issue.

I was able to get a hacksaw blade into position to cut away a section of the flange slowly working it with my hands.  With a bit of emery cloth the cut was finished and I bedded the hose in some RTV where it could rub against the housing.  Much better now.

oil line cutting into the cooler flange

cutting away the flange to relieve interference with the oil line 

interference removed and oil line bedded in RTV

much better :)

While I was in a maintenance frame of mind I followed up on an intermittent connection for the boost pump from my last engine start.  I used insulated fast on connections and the power side was not fully seated.  After getting it engaged a bit more I secured it with a zip tie to the pump.

boost pump and wiring

Gear leg stiffeners

I don't really have much of an issue with gear leg movement but there is just a bit of oscillation that gets introduced right around 20 knots.  The idea of adding a wooden dampener to the metal gear leg to dampen out any induced oscillation is introduced with the plans but is not specifically required.

After reading a number of enthusiastic stories about gear leg stiffeners on VAF I contacted a fellow from Florida who makes them up but he did not have any on hand and only made them up in batches once in a while.... it's only wood... how hard can it be?

I looked at the racks of base molding at Lowe's and settled on an 8' stick of tapered pine.  I back cut the stick with a 30 degree angle so the joined halves would nest the gear leg.  The back side of the base has some raised ridges that need to be knocked off so that they can be glued back together.  I used a my vixen file to remove the ridge and finished it with a sander.

raised ridge on the back side of the base before and after sanding it off

glued halves back to back together

ready for finishing

I used a wooden dowel about the size of the gear leg and wrapped some sand paper to shape the join.

sanding the stiffener to match the gear leg

testing the fit of the finished piece

The plans suggest bonding the stiffener to the gear leg with an extensive glass and resin wrap but I was not committed to the idea or the position of the stiffener and wanted a more flexible solution.  I tried some long zip ties and found that the ones that I had were not strong enough to stand up to my efforts to tighten them hard... it turns out that the small lock tab on a zip tie is where the pull strength is from and the higher rated ties have a more stout tab.  I found some stronger ties and used them to bind the stiffener to the leg.  

It is a better solution than wrapping it in glass.

ready to put back together

So, how do they work?  They give a bit more solid feel to the gear when taxiing and have knocked down the last bit of oscillation.  I am keeping them on!

Dynabeads

I don't really have any particular problems lately, but I like to tinker.  As it turns out this is one of the great joys of experimental aviation.  This past weekend I installed new HID landing lights in my ductworks leading edge units, put together a wing jack, and loaded up my tubes with an ounce of Dynabeads in each tire.

The Dynabeads are very small ceramic beads that are inserted into your tire or tube and dynamically balance the wheel assembly while it is rotating.  I initially ran into these on a motorcycle forum some time ago and have had it on a fuzzy list to give a try with the airplane.

a two ounce package of dynabeads

It takes some patience and persistence to coerce the beads through the valve but eventually I was able to get an ounce into each tube.

feeding the dynabeads into the tube throughout the valve

they recommend replacing the stems with new ones with filters

Wing stand

I have been looking for a better solution to jacking up the wing for some time and have been using a jack arm arrangement that slips into the axle but it is really a marginal solution; it is a bit pricey, takes way too much effort just to lift a wheel, and is in the way during maintenance.  So, for a while I contemplated ordering a commercial wing stand... while they are pretty nice, they run well north of 200 dollars plus shipping.  Doing a bit searching on VAF there are several scattered examples of an inexpensive solution that I mined for ideas.

Parts that I used:

• From Harbor Freight, a 3 ton super heavy duty long ram hydraulic flat bottom jack for a whopping 40 dollars (I even had a coupon for 10% to level off the tax).
• From Lowe's, a 3/8-16 x 3" carriage bolt, lock nut, a 3-1/2" hose clamp, 1" steel pipe cap, and a single 10' stick of 1/2" emc for about 5 bucks.
• I had a good piece of plywood in the hangar to make a 18"x18" base, and I just used some #10 cs screws that were left over from the build.

Set the jack in the center of the board oriented so that the pump arm is easy to access.  Measure the desired length for the conduit support legs.  Cut them and squeeze the ends in a vice, bend the ends to sit flat.  Drill the base and supports, attach hardware... I used some gorilla tape at the top to cover any rough edges.

Ta Da!

wing jack ready for action 

very easy to lift the gear and nothing is in the way

I made up a receiver to thread into the wing tie-down and capture the jack ram 

this works GREAT

HID lighting retrofit

With the plunging price of HID retrofit systems I researched on VAF and ordered a 55 watt system from DDM Tuning for a whooping 50 dollars plus shipping.  For that price I selected the low profile 'slim' lighter weight ballast 55 watt unit with 5000k H3 bulbs.

It shipped via USPS directly from Shanghai China and included all the pieces and fittings to directly plug into my existing Ductworks lights.  After verifying operation and getting a bit hypnotized from the lights I spent a bit of time deciding on how I would mount everything.

The first light on the left side is a 100 watt halogen.  Take note of the fade in and out for wig wag operation as the light dims and brightens. On the right side the electronic ballast provides complete cut out and on making the operation very strobe like.  The output and visibility from these lights is just amazing!

HID landing light retrofit

Finally removed the panel mounted transponder

After flying for some time with the new remote transponder I finally decided to remove the Garmin GTX 327 panel mounted transponder after coming up with a plan to fabricate a plate from some of the original panel cut outs.  It came out quite nice.  I have had a fuzzy plan to fill the space with a certified GPS unit but given the rising initial cost and the direction the FAA is going with user fees and increased currency requirements I am abandoning the plan in favor of something more modest like a second SL40 radio.

removed panel mounted transponder

removed GTX 327

all back together... looks pretty good!