wrote:
The most critical (and perhaps
counter-intuitive) thing to remember is that the mixture needs to be in full
LEAN (i.e. cutoff) position while cranking. You need to keep your right
hand on the mixture while you turn the key with your left hand so that you
can quickly move the mixture to full rich as soon as the engine begins to
fire.


Over the years, a lot of people have recommended this procedure (mostly
CFIs), but no one has explained to my satisfaction WHY this would work.
Why are you leaning the mixture at exactly the time an extra-rich
mixture is needed? After all, that is why we prime and crank with the
throttle mostly closed. I have come to believe it is one of those old
wives tails that CFIs propagate to make it appear to students that they
are "fixing" a bad start.

Since I have been working on my instrument rating through the fall and
winter, I have been doing a lot more cold weather (well, California
cold) starts than I have in past years. My starts improved immensely after
I started doing one thing: after priming about 150% of my usual
warm-weather cold-start procedure, WAIT for 30-60 sec. before cranking.
This gives the primer fuel time to evaporate in the cylinders and form a
combustible mixture. Works every time, with no pumping of the mixture
control.


Ross Oliver