Hartley,
Could you elaborate a bit on this explanation?
I would think that a leak would lead to a reduced response in all
modes - showing a reading closer to zero than should be, whether
going up or going down. I wouldn't expect a consistent up
indication - but maybe I'm not thinking about it correctly.
Thanks.
Incidentally, regarding the alternative explanations, my plane is
a 1966 era Libelle H301. The loss of flourescent paint seems
possible on a 40 year old plane, but I'm surprised to find the
effect so marked in just one year out of 40.
Alan
"HL Falbaum" wrote in message
news
Mine--(57mm) reads zero on the ground, but about 2 kt high in the air, compared to a
S-Nav. Yes I understand the "relative netto" thing, but this occurs while thermaling at
48-52 kt in a DG800B, with the pneumatic switch on "TE probe".
In addition, the Winter is faster in response than the S-Nav with the Cambridge set on
"fast" (1 sec). The DG factory installation has very short leads off a "Y" to the S-Nav
and Winter, but they are on separate flasks--both 0.45l, with fairly long leads.
I'm guessing a very small leak in the Winter. I have just removed it and will test
tomorrow.
I thought it was just me!
--
Hartley Falbaum
"Alan Meyer" wrote in message
...
Last year my Winter mechanical variometer may have read a bit
high, but not very much. Today however, on my first flight of
the year, the vario appeared to read 400 feet high in the air and
about 75 feet high on the ground. With the vario reading 400
feet per minute up, the altimiter wasn't doing anything and the
Cambridge electric vario was reading zero sink.
I've searched the r.a.s. archives and found the advice about
zeroing the needle using the adjustment under the faceplate and
putting a trace of nail polish on the needle to weigh it down.
Do these seem like appropriate repairs for this problem?
Can anyone speculate on why the vario might read so much higher
in the air than on the ground? Is there a plumbing problem I
should look for to explain this?
Thanks for any ideas.
Alan