Left Mag Dead... After Annual???

"three-eight-hotel" wrote in message
oups.com...
So I just got out of a $1900 annual, and stopped by, on Friday, to gas
the plane up for a flight to happen this week... I tried to start the
plane up (Cessna 172), and it never as much as sputtered. The battery
was well charged and it turned over, and over, and over, and over...
Never fired though!?!? I tried for about 5 minutes, and ended up just
leaving it, for the mechanic to look at.

I called this morning, and they are still looking at it. He said, for
some reason, the left mag is dead. He's supposed to call me this
afternoon, when he has something definitive.

I've never had a problem starting this plane (with the exception of a
low battery), and was quite surprised to encounter something like that,
immediately after an annual... It would have been different, if it had
occured during regular useage, but when you go to pick up your airplane
from annual, you are expecting it to be in as tip-top shape as it can
be.

Has anyone else had a similar problem? The mechanic said the plane was
started and running after annual, so is this just a major coincidence?
Is it true??? Are we all just test pilots, when we pick our planes up
from an annual?

Thanks for any input.

Todd


I make the shop prove to me that everything in the airplane works after
every time they touch it....when I'm satisified that my plane is back to
par, then I'll offer to pay the bill.

I tend to agree, and it only reinforces the three words to live by,
according to Jim... But, assuming you don't do an owner assisted
annual, how much is too little? i.e. Gene's post on plugs not even
being in finger tight... Does everyone remove their cowl cover after
annual and go through, checking for things like that? I assumed
vigilance during preflight and runup was being fairly responsible...

It sounds like popping the cowl cover might not be a bad thing to do
after annual, although I wouldn't have been able to catch a dead mag.
Again... I'm glad it happened on the ground!

What about folks that rent? Does everyone thoroughly check airplane
logs, and if it is noticed that the flight you're about to take is the
first flight out of annual, how much do you do, outside of a thorough
preflight and runup?

Todd

How long does it take to prove it to you?

Who is paying for the mechanics time while he/she is doing this?

Do you make an appointment to pick up your plane, or simply show up and
interrupt whatever is already going on?


"John Doe" wrote in message
news:8GHMf.43236$Dh.21362@dukeread04...

I make the shop prove to me that everything in the airplane works after
every time they touch it....when I'm satisified that my plane is back to
par, then I'll offer to pay the bill.

On 02/27/06 10:43, three-eight-hotel wrote:
I tend to agree, and it only reinforces the three words to live by,
according to Jim... But, assuming you don't do an owner assisted
annual, how much is too little? i.e. Gene's post on plugs not even
being in finger tight... Does everyone remove their cowl cover after
annual and go through, checking for things like that? I assumed
vigilance during preflight and runup was being fairly responsible...

It sounds like popping the cowl cover might not be a bad thing to do
after annual, although I wouldn't have been able to catch a dead mag.
Again... I'm glad it happened on the ground!

What about folks that rent? Does everyone thoroughly check airplane
logs, and if it is noticed that the flight you're about to take is the
first flight out of annual, how much do you do, outside of a thorough
preflight and runup?

Well, I do a thorough preflight and run up each time, regardless of the
maintenance schedule. I certainly cannot remove the cowl and inspect
the security of the spark plugs ;-\

I have thought about it, though. Of course, I'm not launching into IMC
(yet)...


Todd



--
Mark Hansen, PP-ASEL, Instrument Airplane
Cal Aggie Flying Farmers
Sacramento, CA

Well, I do a thorough preflight and run up each time, regardless of the
maintenance schedule. I certainly cannot remove the cowl and inspect
the security of the spark plugs ;-\

I'm pretty thorough about preflight and runup, regularly, as well, but
on the first flight after the plane has come out of annual, is it
overkill to remove the cowl and inspect for something that doesn't look
right? I'm just wondering if it's slightly on the reckless side, not
to go above and beyond our normally thorough preflight and runup?

FWIW, I'm most concerned about mechanical problems immediately after an
annual.

"three-eight-hotel" wrote in message
oups.com...
So I just got out of a $1900 annual, and stopped by, on Friday, to gas
the plane up for a flight to happen this week... I tried to start the
plane up (Cessna 172), and it never as much as sputtered. The battery
was well charged and it turned over, and over, and over, and over...
Never fired though!?!? I tried for about 5 minutes, and ended up just
leaving it, for the mechanic to look at.

I called this morning, and they are still looking at it. He said, for
some reason, the left mag is dead. He's supposed to call me this
afternoon, when he has something definitive.

I've never had a problem starting this plane (with the exception of a
low battery), and was quite surprised to encounter something like that,
immediately after an annual... It would have been different, if it had
occured during regular useage, but when you go to pick up your airplane
from annual, you are expecting it to be in as tip-top shape as it can
be.

Has anyone else had a similar problem? The mechanic said the plane was
started and running after annual, so is this just a major coincidence?
Is it true??? Are we all just test pilots, when we pick our planes up
from an annual?

Thanks for any input.

Todd

Makes sense to me!

John Doe wrote:

I make the shop prove to me that everything in the airplane works after
every time they touch it....when I'm satisified that my plane is back to
par, then I'll offer to pay the bill.

Oh, that's a good idea. That way if there's something wrong that might kill you,
at least you won't have paid for it.

On 02/27/06 11:21, three-eight-hotel wrote:
Well, I do a thorough preflight and run up each time, regardless of the
maintenance schedule. I certainly cannot remove the cowl and inspect
the security of the spark plugs ;-\

I'm pretty thorough about preflight and runup, regularly, as well, but
on the first flight after the plane has come out of annual, is it
overkill to remove the cowl and inspect for something that doesn't look
right? I'm just wondering if it's slightly on the reckless side, not
to go above and beyond our normally thorough preflight and runup?


Well, I was answering from the Renter's point of view. As a renter, I am
not allowed to remove the cowl (as far as I know). If there is a loose plug
wire that isn't noticed during the normal run-up, I wouldn't catch it.

I've always assumed this is one of the compromises I make by not owning my
own plane.

As for my pre-flight, mine is longer than what is recommended by the POH.
Over the years, as I read or hear about horror stories, I add new things
to my check list so as to not experience that problem myself.

For example, from day one I was taught to check the bolts on the aileron
hinges to make sure they are secure. After hearing a story about someone
who had an aileron hinge come apart due to wear, I now always check for
wear.

If I were an owner, I could certainly create my own list of checks to do
after getting an aircraft back from maintenance. But as a renter, I think
I'm limited in what I can reasonably do.

--
Mark Hansen, PP-ASEL, Instrument Airplane
Cal Aggie Flying Farmers
Sacramento, CA

Mark Hansen wrote:
Well, I do a thorough preflight and run up each time, regardless of the
maintenance schedule. I certainly cannot remove the cowl and inspect
the security of the spark plugs ;-\

Why not? The cowl on most types comes off with no tools. When doing
checkouts with new club members, I often pull the cowling and show
them what's underneath.

I certainly wouldn't launch into anything but day-vfr for the first
flight after major maintenance, and even then, I like to circle the
airport a couple of laps while climbing to a good altitude.