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Sun 'n Fun Report
From: Paul
Subject: Sun 'n Fun Report
Best in Show! Move over David Clark, here's the real
deal… noise attenuating headsets for dogs. The show special price is
available through April 17, even if you weren't at Sun 'n Fun. Check it
out! I bought a pair for Elmo, pirep, or rather, dogrep coming soon! www.muttmuffs.com
Superior moves ahead; they were showing the angle valve cylinders for our
IO360A1B6/D engines at the show (Finally!) They expect certification by
September. Even if you choose to buy new Lycoming cylinders, availability
of a competing cylinder should bring prices down, maybe by $300/cylinder or
so. In addition, Superior is beginning to make counterweighted crankshafts
for all Cardinal engines (availability date as yet unknown). They've also
built a bored and stroked (?) version of our IO360 engine, an IO400;
experimental only at this point, but 8.5:1 compression ratio and rated at
210 HP on premium mogas. Now there's a solution for a shortage of leaded
avgas! With higher compression pistons and unleaded avgas, perhaps, this
engine could make quite a bit more power. www.superiorairparts.com and
www.millenniumcylinders.com
Spent some time chatting with Roy Scott of AvPro. They make nitrided, heat
treated brake discs for the Cardinal, and claim theirs are the only ones
that are heat treated. They're a lovely black color, and combined with
their Kevlar brake pads, should last a very long time indeed; Avpro claims
30% longer. www.avprobrakes.com Avpro directs us to Aviall or AERO,
www.aeroinstock.com for their products. But their literature lists an
"Avpro Owner Price" that's nearly 40% off list
Cee Bailey was there, touting their windshields, etc. www.ceebaileys.com
Had a nice long chat with Randy Knuteson of Kelly Aerospace. He's Director
of Product Support, and a specialist in the fuel injection / carburetion
field. He explained how the RG "seeping mixture control" that leaves oily
good on the floor under your airplane can be repaired, maybe.
There are two
discs that rub against each other in the stack of goodies at the front of
the throttle body. The mixture adjusting discs have historically been one
brass and one stainless.
By removing the stack from the throttle body, with
it still on the airplane, it's possible to smooth out imperfections in the
discs' mating surfaces by burnishing them in a figure 8 with rubbing
compound.
Reassembling the stack requires four fluorocarbon (blue) o-rings,
which Kelly is happy to supply. The newer design from Precision uses an
anodized aluminum disc against the brass disc. The aluminum disc cannot be
burnished, as the anodizing is only skin deep; the part must instead be
replaced.
In addition, we discussed jetting of throttle bodies for turbo'd
engines. I asked Randy why the turbo runs out of power during test stand
runs above 33" of manifold pressure (don't try this at home, folks!)
Randy
explained that the disk and diaphragm pack has a set of shims and two sets
of springs that adjust the fuel flow response to air flow. He suspects that
either that adjustment (Kelly makes 8 strengths of each of the two types of
springs, and a wide variety of shim packs are possible) or the size of the
main jet are limiting fuel flow at 33" and above. This is fixable, but of
course creates a certification opportunity.
Randy promised us an exploded
parts list with part numbers for the throttle body, so that we could all
know how to order these parts; as yet, the fax has not arrived. Stay tuned!
Randy also discussed the 1500 RPM or so "stumble" that carb'd engines
sometimes encounter. Possibly, it comes from fouling of the idle jets, of
which there are three that he handily showed us in the cutaway carburetor
they have on hand. But more likely it's either fouling of the accelerator
pump jet passage, since it takes suction at the bottom of the fuel bowl,
and can easily pick up trash or corrosion product, or in appropriate
accelerator pump piston or spring.
He explained that the accelerator pump
comes in many different piston variants, some with bleed-back holes in the
piston to reduce the amount of fuel being pumped. He also explained that
the spring behind the piston compresses as the throttle is opened, so that
with weaker springs, the instantaneous fuel flow is less.
He suggests
diagnosing whether it's lean stumble or rich stumble by accelerating the
engine with carb heat on (don't actually try to take off that way!) Since
carb heat makes the mixture richer, it should reduce lean stumble, but
aggravate rich stumble. Once you know which kind of stumble you have,
you'll know which direction to go on pump piston and spring - richer or
leaner.
Firewall Forward's tent included a brochure on their Cardinal RG high
compression piston mod. The advertising fails to mention the manifold
pressure redline, and of course there are pilots that ignore that as well,
since it's a certification artifact designed to avoid the difficulty of
approving a horsepower increase. Instead, the engine is "flat rated" to
26.5" MP or so, 200 horse, and you supposedly never see the 225 horse the
engine is capable of. That may make the FAA happy, but pilots routinely
ignore the limitation, and apparently deploy 225 HP without ill effect. In
any case, the tables of numbers in the brochure don't make any sense to me.
Bottom line is that this is a nice mod, with some caveats on cylinder
cooling. But you'd never know that from the brochure.
www.firewallforward.com
Turtle Pac of Australia was showing off their heavy fabric auxiliary fuel
tanks… from 10.5 gallons that straps into a passenger seat for $765
including pump, hose, filter, and filler neck, to 529 gallon bladders you
can store on the floor of your 727. Interesting idea if you don't mind too
much sharing the cabin with a millions of BTUs. Not FAA approved, so you'll
need a ferry permit to use one in a certified airplane. 37, 66, 160, 238,
300, 400, 500, and 529 gallons, from $675 to $2400 www.turtlepac.com
Lycoming was bragging about the choice of the IO580 (beefed up IO540) for
the Commander 114 conversion, about their new customized engine program,
primarily for experimentals, and about their collaboration with third party
engine shops to build up experimental Lycoming variants - to compete with
the similar efforts Superior has made. They're still showing their roller
tappets of course, as is Superior their own variety; they've liberalized
the exchange engine core policy; they'll sell engine kits to experimental
builders; and they have an Advanced Technology Center to provide high-end
customized engine services. www.lycoming.textron.com
Honeywell Bendix/King announced that the Silver Crown series is being
re-engineering with LED displays instead of the gas discharge displays
we've all come to know and love (and occasionally clean the contacts of or
replace) over the years. At least initially, they don't appear to be
offering retrofits for older Silver Crown units. www.bendixking/silvercrown
for more details, and look for an update there soon on retrofits or not.
Kelly Aerospace has a new line of Ford-clone lightweight alternators, with
60 and 70 amps at 14 or 28 volts, and 100 amps at 28 volts. The 60 amp
equivalent to our Cardinal alternators only saves a pound over the Ford
design. Experimental only for now. The heavier high output alternators are
STC'd and PMA's (but not as yet for the Cardinal) and can deliver 100 amps
at 14 volts, 160 amps at 28 volts, or 115 amps at 70 volts if you've fixing
to electrically de-ice your airplane. Interestingly, they share that the 14
volt alternators are 75% efficient, and the 28 volt alternators are 88%
efficient. For the lightweight alternators, see www.kellyaerospace.com For
the high output alternators, see www.airplanedeice.com
Butch, the Quality Control Manager at Hartwig Fuel Cell, the new
manufacturers of Monarch caps, reports that indeed, the raised inlet hole
continues to be an essential feature of their offering. If anyone has come
across a fuel door without the rise, he wants to hear about it. But he
thinks it's extremely unlikely, as the same large press that molds the fuel
door (the plate that mounts in the wing) also crimps the fuel cap thread
assembly into place. So it would be pretty close to impossible to have an
assembled fuel door that didn't have the raised inlet feature. Butch
reminds us that Cessna flush caps leak water into fuel tanks, and that even
Cessna's solution, the red umbrella cap, have an indentation around the cap
that allows water to rest against the cap o-ring, inviting a similar fate.
www.hartwig-fuelcell.com
Precise Flight announced the A5 oxygen flow meter/control to replace their
existing line. With dual ranges, the A5 can handle flow rates appropriate
to conserving cannulae, as well as masks up to 25,000 feet (where pressure
masks are required). Unfortunately, the calibration is only in altitude, no
liter per minute scale like the old scale had. A disadvantage to the
scientists among us, but simplification for other users I suspect. Precise
Flight was also showing off their HID (high intensity discharge)
landing/taxi light. CFO is working with Precise Flight to offer a group buy
later this year, after their installation STC is granted.
www.preciseflight.com
Zaon was touting their traffic detection portable that gives broad
direction (by quadrant), range, and relative altitude of threat aircraft
for only $1795. They also have a range/altitude only version for $499.
www.zaonflight.com
Panther electronics was showing off a wireless in-the-ear headset, using
cellphone technology. The Jabra headset uses Bluetooth technology.
www.pantherelectronics.com
Sky-Tec wants Cardinal owners to know that they decided to build inventory
(and limit cost increases by buying large lots of parts). So the
recommended High-Torque Inline NL starter is now stocked in depth. The
starter generates 140 foot lbs of torque compared to less than 100 foot lbs
of older designs, only weights 9.4 lbs versus the 18 lbs of Prestolite
starters, only pulls 135 amps compared to the nearly 200 amp draw of
certain other lightweight starters, and lists for only $525. Sky-Tec is
considering whether they can logistically offer a CFO group buy at a
discounted price. www.skytecair.com
Garmin announced the MX200 to replace the MX20 multi-function display. The
MX200 has a much faster processor, and improved software, so panning,
zooming, and other display processing intensive tasks happen noticeably
quicker… less than a second versus four seconds. The new unit can also zoom
out to a 1500 mile range, much greater than the 200 mile range of the MX20.
Already MX20's are being remaindered off…Eastern Avionics is selling
"deluxe" MX20 "10" versions which listed at $8,500 for $5,995.
www.avionix.com
Tempest has added to their vacuum pump line. In addition to making the low
restriction fittings you SHOULD be using on your vacuum pump (and that
Airborne charges about $50 each for) they now also make an extensive
feature set governor gasket at a lower price. www.tempestplus.com
Subscribe to a Belvoir publication like Aviation Consumer, Light Plane
Maintenance, IFR, or Kitplanes? They're offering new subscriptions or
renewals at two-years-for-one pricing, which is unusual for them. Good for
the duration of Sun 'n Fun (Monday the 10th of April). The rep thought that
perhaps the same offer might be made at Oshkosh this year, so check your
renewal dates! www.avweb.com
Plane-Power shares geography and resources with
starter manufacturer Sky-Tec. Plane Power is focusing on alternators. They
have a small, lightweight (10 pounds) 70 amp replacement for the Cardinal
alternator. Of course, you can't really use the 70 amps unless you replace
the wire, noise filter, and alternator breaker, but it's a step in that
direction. www.plane-power.com
Xerion Avionix has a 4.5" high by 6.25" wide engine monitor that's of
interest. It replaces all engine instrumentation, and is already TSO'd; STC
approval is expected before summer. The color display is compelling, and
the thoughtful logic is encouraging. There's even backup alarm lights in
case the display were to go dark (an FAA certification feature). In
addition to CHTs and EGTs, there oil temperature and pressure, vacuum,
manifold pressure and tach, fuel flow, fuel pressure, amps, AOT, TIT, carb
temp, and GPS position for every two second data logging (automated logbook
time!) It's daylight readable, and favored by the GAMI folks it seems...
perhaps a PRISM connection on the back panel come the next step? You can
configure your box on the web, and download the config file to a USB drive
which is then plugged into the unit's front panel. That same USB can
capture the data for transfer to your home computer. $2495 for the JPI
plug-compatible replacement, more for probes of course. You probably don't
have room in the radio stack for this today, but if you re-arrange your
panel to take advantage of all those other gages not being there, it should
fit to the right of the radio stack, eh? www.xerionavionix.com
See you next year at Sun 'n Fun!
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