@houstonfirefox
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Before installing an Whelen Orion 500 ACL/Position light on my Cheetah, I checked the operation of the strobes and wouldn’t ya know it, they didn’t work. The funny thing is that they worked fine during the previous preflight so something changed!
Since the fuel pump is on the same fuse as the strobes, a quick hit of the fuel pump switch confirmed the fuse was good so what’s up?
Turns out that where the strobe wire was stripped and inserted into the molex connector had become badly corroded, was arcing and finally pulled itself out. Pulling the seat and assuming the “Grumman Position” made it easier to wire in a bypass. We see this a LOT on the beacon wires where they get hot enough to act like a fuse and melt. The amperage draw of the beacon is reason enough to change it over to an LED or remove it altogether by replacing it with an Orion 500. Remember that the beacon was a factory OPTION and was not required equipment to begin with.
Pictures of the bad wire to follow soon…
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It’s amazing what I’ve seen under these consoles, heart-stopping other times! The aileron and elevator pulleys have minimal clearance to the floor so anything substantial falling in there and getting jammed in the pulleys could be a life-altering event (to put it mildly!).
So far I’ve found a 1/4″ ratchet wrench, various instrument screws from the ages, interior trim screws, an old potato chip bag, shop rags, dead spiders, broken pieces of interior plastic trim and dust, lots of dust just to name a few. It’s really important that your shop follow the book and open up these panels at inspection time to not only inspect the cables and pulleys, but to thoroughly clean this area!
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I’m looking forward to the ABS repair tips – should have taken photos when I had the interior of N9683U out for painting. Lord knows there was more than enough cracks to make a video! All fixed now.
While we’re on the subject of instrument panel renovations, I wonder how well a simulated carbon fiber style vinyl wrap would hole up over time if it was placed directly on the cleaned metal overlay? It’s available in a wide variety of textures and colors (camo anyone?) and would be easier and less expensive for an owner than powder coating (which is about as durable as it gets!).
Of the top of my head, I’d guess the vinyl would have about the same durability “index” as rattle-can paint.
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Lou,
I can CNC-machine these from a silver plastic with a black background if you can provide a less-fuzzy, hi-resolution photo of them as close to “level” as you can. If you can put a tape measure next to it during the photography and provide the “depth” as well then that would be a great help.
Alternatively, they can be machined in the correct thickness of aluminum and you can hand-paint them with the correct colors. Otherwise, I’ll keep an eye out for a spare original.
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Steve,
Awesome! Those are definitely not stock decals!
I’m retired and own a large vinyl cutter and would be happy to whip up a set if you can get me several hi-resolution color photos as close to straight-on as you can. If you have the photos then any local automotive car vinyl shops in your area could probably print and cut a set in no time!
Very cool decals!
Tracy Norris
AA5A – N9683U -
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A bit of overkill but nice! Guess you never know when those pesky flap bolts might work themselves out!
Speaking of flap bolts, it makes me cringe every time I see “dimpled” holes in the flap torque tube for the bolts. It’s usually caused by someone not taking time to finger-thread the bolts into the torque tube and instead relying on brute force to “make the bolt line up” – don’t do it! Get a buddy to gentle “wiggle” the flap while you finger-thread the bolt into the torque tube and it’ll find the hole without a ratchet being needed 😉
Nice catch Roscoe!
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Mike,
Congratulations on your purchase and welcome to the forum! I think you made the right decision with regards to handling the engine. Depending on the depth of pitting, etc – it doesn’t get better with continued operation. Once oxidation/pitting has formed on the cam then there is a protective layer that is essentially gone. Getting her overhauled is a great, albeit expensive, option.
If your budget can allow it and Penn Yan will do it, I highly recommend the Centri-Lube camshaft STC (about $500) on your rebuilt engine CentriLube STC. It essentially puts oil on the cam lobes as soon as the oil pressure comes up instead of 3-4 minutes in cold weather. I had this done and it gives me a little extra piece of mind – well worth the cost IMHO.
So long as the rest of the airframe is in good shape then you should have a blast flying her for years to come! I’m based at T41 (LaPorte). Since KSGR is so close to T41 (LaPorte), I look forward to meeting you sometime!
I’m still taking care of small details on N9683U. After waiting four months to get her in the air, I deferred a few things to take care of later (i.e; putting the glove box back in and attaching the copilot trim panel). Right now, just taking a bit of a rest after the marathon hahaha
Again, welcome and feel free to shoot me an email, etc if you have any questions!
Tracy Norris
AA5A – N9683U -
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And a few more pictures to throw into the mix. I have a couple of hundred pictures of the restoration and it takes awhile
First, some sadness showing a few pictures of what she went into the shop looking like – almost ashamed to show them but gives you an idea of what your 40+ year old bird can go from – plus everyone enjoys before and after pictures right?
Corroded Main wing spar during inspection:
http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af186/tracynorris44/N9683U%202015%20Annual-turned-restoration/2015-12-11%20N9683U%20Spar%20Corrosion%20-%20Replacement%20Necessary%204_zpsgieoggg5.jpgAirbox shot to heck:
A bit of cam lobe spalling to add to the fun:
http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af186/tracynorris44/N9683U%202015%20Annual-turned-restoration/Cam%20Lobe%20Wear%201_zpsjsrk08eq.jpgAnd the lifter that was following that cam…
http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af186/tracynorris44/N9683U%202015%20Annual-turned-restoration/Cam%20Follower%20Spalling_zpsv2jbwt29.jpgNew (serviceable) spar installed – a few pictures of the awesome work to insure the spar (and surrounding area) won’t be dealing with these issues again for another 40 years (I hope?)…
Starter and Master solenoids that have seen better days
http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af186/tracynorris44/N9683U%202015%20Annual-turned-restoration/100_3928_zps07epy2mt.jpgCabin Heat inlet that makes me sad looking at it:
http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af186/tracynorris44/N9683U%202015%20Annual-turned-restoration/100_3927_zpsergawd6c.jpgAwesome shots of a firewall that has had its share of modifications and repairs through through the years:
Existing firewall with EDM-830 wires pulled – should have waited until it was painted!
http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af186/tracynorris44/N9683U%202015%20Annual-turned-restoration/100_3925_zpsvigtr7ht.jpgAnd will post more pictures soon, feel like I’m getting a bit off topic (Engine Powder Coating vs full restoration) but will fill in the gaps later. Here is a little of what she looks like now until I can get some free time to post more pictures:
Before I decided the plain-blue powder coated valve covers had already been done:
http://i1006.photobucket.com/albums/af186/tracynorris44/N9683U%202015%20Annual-turned-restoration/100_4073_zpslzezuvdm.jpg-
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Mike,
Interesting! I installed the JPI-optional EDM-830 Carb Temp probe on my O-320-E2G with Zero Modifications. There is a hole with a plug located forward-center and high on the carburetor. I removed the plug and installed the probe – took about 5 minutes. Mine is in the same location as the location Roscoe provided but was tapped with the correct thread, etc.
If anyone is interested in what a carb temp plot looks like, click the following link and select “CARB TEMP” from the pull down menu on the right:
N9683U Flight Record -
John,
That oil temperature seems awfully high for an AA1B (or truth be told, any of our birds). What is the age of your oil cooler lines? They should be date stamped. What type of oil are you using? Have you ever had the oil cooler cleaned/serviced? Are you doing regular oil changes at 50 hour intervals? How long has it been since major/top overhaul?
Here is a link to a recent flight I did in my AA5A with just 9 hours on the overhauled engine. On the right there are pull-downs that say “None” – pull it down and select OIL to see my oil temps. They might be a little higher on a Tiger, but not by much.
Tracy
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