Atlas is down...

Had my A&P install my new whiz-bang Iridium fine wire plugs yesterday,

Why did you go to the f w plugs?

Cuz my old ones had/have 700 hours on them, and needed to be replaced.

Everyone says fine wire plugs will outlast the engine, so cost-wise it's a
no-brainer.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

be glad he found that bad muffler.. could have been CO2 in the cabin..
BT

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:efwsf.439971$084.168955@attbi_s22...
No, not *that* down...

Had my A&P install my new whiz-bang Iridium fine wire plugs yesterday, and
sent him on a chase for that pesky oil leak.

So what did he find? A cracked exhaust pipe, right at the weld in the
"gatherer" (where the three pipes come together).

Then, when we pulled the thing off, we found the inside of the muffler
rotted away.

Damn. Of course, the good news is that my plane didn't become a
blow-torch in flight, as it very well could have on our next flight.
Nothing like 1500 degree gases 4 inches from gas and oil lines.

Oh well -- the best news is that (with the exhaust system off) he was able
to get at the bottom of the engine and tighten up some loose fittings that
should help alleviate my oil drips. That, and we're replacing the valve
cover gaskets with neoprene.

It's always *something*, ain't it? Now I get to DRIVE to Wisconsin today.
5.5 hours with two kids asking "are we there yet?"

Luckily, Dawley Aviation (the exhaust repair station) is on my way to
Racine, and I'll be able to swap out my old exhaust system for a "new" one
without going very far out of my way. Atlas should be back up and running
Friday.

:-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

BT wrote:
be glad he found that bad muffler.. could have been CO2 in the cabin..

Huh? how?

oopss.. sorry.. not CO2 (dioxide).. but Monoxide.. a slip of the key
strokes.. dang..

well.. depending on the design.. most mufflers are heat exchangers on single
engine aircraft for cabin heat..

BT

"Flyingmonk" wrote in message
oups.com...
BT wrote:
be glad he found that bad muffler.. could have been CO2 in the cabin..

Huh? how?

be glad he found that bad muffler.. could have been CO2 in the cabin..

Actually, this bad muffler was on the carb heat side of the engine.

Interestingly, Mary *had* commented recently on how it seemed like were
weren't getting as much of an RPM drop during the carb heat test as usual...
The guys at Dawley confirmed that this would be a symptom of a bad muffler.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

It's always *something*, ain't it? Now I get to DRIVE to Wisconsin today.
5.5 hours with two kids asking "are we there yet?"

Jay, when I was a young T.A., the prof with whom I shared an office
told me how to cure that.

Give each kid a few dimes (this was in 1958; you might need to use
dollar bills). Every time a kid asks "Are we there yet? " he has to
give you back a dime (or dollar).

Worked like a charm for me.

vince norris

By the time my kids were about 5, I could give each one of them a road
map. "You tell me where we are and how long before we get there!" I had
to do some explaining at first, but they got into it.