dav8or

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Everything posted by dav8or



  1. dav8or added a post in a topic Insurance requirments   

    I am pretty sure Texas does not have that requirement but I am also not sure how often you would get ramp checked for insurance. I am not sure how much liability is but I do have full coverage on my Avid taildragger with hull value set at $20k. I pay just under $1100 for that with a $0 deductible. It pays to shop as rates seem to vary wildly. My agent just found a company that saved me $90 on my Grumman Yankee from $540/yr to $450/yr for same $20k hull value and even higher medical limits.
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  2. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    Mine has worked all of its bubbles out. I have about 10 hours on it since replacing the RV seals and it is running great. Looks like it was the water pump seals leaking that caused my initial problem. I know there is not a true pumping of the RV oil through the system although the action between the gears would almost certainly be pumping oil around in the bath. There should still be a natural convective flow caused by the heating of the oil in the engine side bath.
    Dan
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  3. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    Looks like a small air bubble worked its way out over night. Refilled to the line and ran it for 30 minutes. Only a slight rise in oil level on shutdown. I will check it tomorrow but I think the seal change has solved my problem and it is ready to fly again.
    Thanks,
    Dan
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  4. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    Thank you for checking. I will probably just save up for a new one.
    Dan
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  5. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    That is the one. I need to replace one that has visible cracking on a bottom corner.
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  6. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    Just a thought - how would you get the air out that would be trapped just above the hose fitting in the case? That area is above the bleed screw.
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  7. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    Not sure how many times I should check for air but I get only oil coming out of the bleed plug each of the 3 times I have checked so far. Might be a little less than 1/2 inch rise. I didn't have a measure at the time. I will run it some more. Any small bubbles of air should work themselves out if there are any. I will be monitoring it closely for the next several runs.
    This is not the first time I have done this oil change. I did it several times when I had the 532 on this plane. Every time I had to remove the engine to reset points and then once once this 582 when I put in on to replace the 532. I just never paid attention to the oil levels right after shutdown before.
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  8. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    I understood it as a possibility and was just trying to think it through. At the moment I don't think that is the problem.
    I think I have the answer. It has taken a long time but something is settling out of the oil in the bottle that I used when I removed the RV shaft for seal change. I will give it more time to see how much clearer it gets.
    I was wrong about the tube in the rotary valve oil tank. It goes all the way to the top of the tank inside. My guess now is for bleeding air that might get into the system. I swapped the lines on my tank and refilled like Jim suggested from the lower line until it flowed over the top of that internal tube then filled the tank to the fill line. BTW the tank that came in my Avid does not have the arrows indicating flow like the newer one does but it does have the tubing inside.
    I ran it again for about 20 minutes after the hose swap on the tank and the level did rise about 1/2 inch in the tank when I checked immediately after shut down. After 5 minutes or so it was back down close to the cold mark. I will check it again tomorrow when it is completely cold again to see if it is exactly on the fill line where I started today.
    Thanks, Dan
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  9. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    Jim, The O-rings you are talking about are preventing pressure from entering RV gear area or keeping the oil from leaking out of the housing? Do we have that much positive pressure below the piston? I was thinking it would be more likely to leak RV oil into the crankcase if the o-rings were bad. I think I read that in a Rotax advisory somewhere.
    The 2 bottles I am looking at have one connection away from the fill cap that has a tube projecting up into the bottle to almost the fill line. The connection that is directly under the cap is open to the hose at the bottom of the tank. That should create a very slight convective flow through the bottle if they are connected properly at the engine.
    Dan
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  10. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    I really doubt it is fuel/oil from the crankcase. With the speed that it was rising, from half full to full tank in an hour, I would expect to see it in the egt's. There was also no fuel odor at all in the oil. There did not appear to be any contamination at all. I will keep it in mind though. The engine is running very smooth and the egt's are nearly matched
    There is a possibility that the reservoir may be plumbed backwards. I never noticed the tube projecting from one of the hose connections before. I looked at another old tank sitting in the hangar and noticed the in and out markings. I cannot see markings on the tank that is mounted due to the bracket. I am going to pull it out to have a look which means I will have to drain it again. If it is backwards, it has been that way for a long time (probably around 100 hours running time on this engine and a couple hundred on the 532 before it).
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  11. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    The oil level was back down this morning to where I think I started Saturday morning. I didn't see any air come out of the bleed plug this morning so I ran it for about 20 minutes with some high speed taxis and some full throttle crow hops to make sure I covered the full rpm range that I can get on the ground. I think what I saw on Saturday was simply thermal expansion causing the oil level to rise slightly. I never really paid attention to how much higher the level is right after shutdown because I don't usually pull the cowling off after a flight until I had this issue pop up. Hopefully the seal change has corrected the problem.
    Has anyone else ever noted how much the oil rises in the reservoir from cold to right after shutdown? Also does anyone know of a reasonable place to buy a new rotary valve reservoir? Seems like it is such a special part that Rotax has them marked way up because they know you can't get anything like it anywhere else. Looks like $80 for that little plastic tank which kind of feels like highway robbery.
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  12. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    I did bleed the air from the case using the plug that is at the bottom of the case or, since the engine is inverted in this aircraft, the highest point on the case besides the hose going to the reservoir. I will check in the morning to see if there is air at the bleed plug.
    BTW, I did smell the oil after draining to see if there was any hint of fuel in it and I did not smell any traces of gas.
    Thanks, Dan
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  13. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotary valve oil overflow   

    Yes, the pin hole vent in the top of the cap is where the oil eventually comes out and ends up getting into the cockpit and all over the floor, back side of panel etc. I have the oil that I drained a few days ago in a bottle to see if any water separates but so far it looks just like the 2 stroke oil that has always been in there. After running today I pulled out enough oil to bring the level back to half full in the reservoir. I will get some run time on the ground tomorrow morning to see what happens.
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  14. dav8or added a topic in Rotax and other engines   

    Rotary valve oil overflow
    Hi All,
    My rotary valve oil reservoir started to over flow a couple of weeks ago when I was flying. I have an Avid with the inverted 582. I removed some oil and tried it again. It was overflowing after an hour or so of flying. There was no sign of water but I decided to replace the water pump and rotary shaft seals anyway to be sure. There was no sign of water in the oil that was drained out of the rotary valve and no grooving of the shaft under the seals. My coolant and passages were super clean. I put everything back together and started it today. It seems to run smoother than ever although there should not have been a difference with the seal change. After running for 15 minutes or so it appears that the rotary valve oil was rising again in the reservoir.
    Does anybody have any ideas about what else could be causing this? I have probably flown around 40 hours in this Avid over the past 3 months with no problems until I was pushing a little hard to catch up with a friend and running at 6300-6400 rpm and 115 mph indicated but only for about 10 minutes then back to 6000 rpm. I don't think that could have caused the problem but maybe I guess.
    Thanks,
    Dan
    Avid C Speedwing with 582
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  15. dav8or added a post in a topic Yamaha RX1 Engines   

    This sounds like a great engine upgrade. I would probably consider it except that snow machines are non-existent in my part of the world so coming up with the donor for the engine would be tough and probably expensive. I am not sure if it would fit well in an Avid either since it would be replacing an inverted 582.
    Dan
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  16. dav8or added a post in a topic Proper ID in Traffic Pattern?   

    I fly out of one airport that is just outside both a class B to surface ring under a 2000ft shelf with a class D butting up to it. There is also a very active private strip within 3 miles. That combined with a high level of student traffic plus a mix of low speed and jet traffic is the reason I will call every leg of the pattern at that airport so I would say it depends on the particular airport. I agree with the abbreviated tail number. I happen to fly my Grumman from that airport and my Avid from a private grass strip where we use minimal calls because we usually know who is up and where they are. I have been asked before if I was the blue grumman by others in the pattern so they can confirm position but I do not announce it in a normal call. I use Experimental + number for controlled airspace. I don't remember ever hearing anyone announcing as the model for an experimental type in this area. The controller will ask if they want to know. Usually they want to know the speed you are capable of instead.
    Dan
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  17. dav8or added a post in a topic Flying over Class C Airpsace   

    I believe most of the time the controllers would prefer to clear you through with a transponder code so they can track you and know that they have contact with you for separation from other traffic. If you fly over they don't have a clue what you really plan to do.
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  18. dav8or added a post in a topic 3 blade wood Prop hub and spinner for rotax 582 great shape   

    Hi Justin,
    Do you have any details like diameter, rotation direction? Is it an adjustable GSC?
    Thanks,
    Dan
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  19. dav8or added a post in a topic Jam nut required on strut rod end?   

    Joey, let us know if you find a solution. My Model C speedwing is the same way. I have it adjusted all the way with the jamb nut and still have a slightly heavy left wing. I have seen one Avid that corrected a heavy right wing with shock cord to the controls set to counter the heavy wing as a trim of sorts. I would prefer to have the rigging corrected if possible. I have never flown mine with the right wing tank full and that might be enough for hands off flight but I would rarely if ever carry that much fuel since I do not do 4 hours of flight time with it in a day and I drain unused fuel from the fiberglass tank at the end of the day. I keep the aluminum tank full to prevent condensation. I usually make the longer flights in my Grumman Yankee.
    Dan
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  20. dav8or added a post in a topic Reworking a B model cowling   

    Looks really good Joey. When I did mine I screwed down a piece of old plexi or lexan cut from from an old windshield with a wax paper liner to the outside of the cowl. 2 layers of cloth inside and one outside after removing the plexi if I remember right. I had a bit of a rough spot where the wax paper had gotten a crease that I didn't notice. It sanded out though. Filled and sanded a few times and the outside was smooth as if uncut.
    I did similar to what you are suggesting for the little screw holes. I taped little pieces of wax paper tightly over the back of the holes and filled with thickened epoxy. No problems at all after 2 years.
    Dan
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  21. dav8or added a post in a topic Culver props   

    I have one of those early Culver props that I believe came with a 532 on an Avid. I think it is a 71x37. I tried it once on a 532. It worked Ok but the engine was having timing issues so I swapped to a 582. I have a 2.58:1 box. I do plan to try the Culver again one of these days to compare the performance to the 68" GSC ground adjustable that I have been flying with.
    Dan
    Avid Model C Speedwing
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  22. dav8or added a post in a topic Rotax 582 getting air in the cooling system   

    I never replied back to this post that I had an issue with a radiator cap. I replaced the cap and pretty much solved the problem. Also instead of modifying my existing recovery bottle I found a coolant recovery tank from a Polaris something or other that has the recovery line connection at the bottom of the tank so when mounted properly it will automatically bleed any air that reaches the radiator cap from the system. I also had a thermostat that was 20° too hot which also caused problems. (crazy part numbers that were only 1 digit off)
    I flew through the hottest months of summer here with OAT as high as 98° and the coolant temp never hit 180° in a steep climb out.
    Dan
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  23. dav8or added a post in a topic Completed the 16 hr Repairmans Course   

    Hi Chris,
    I didn't realize it was a rebuild. That is very lucky for you. I am just lucky that for now I have an A&P friend who enjoys coming over to the hangar while I go through the inspection with him. I just buy him lunch and will take him flying in his planes whenever I can since he let his medical lapse while waiting for re-form and does not plan to try the medical again. It is not quite as easy for my Grumman Yankee although I do have another friend who is an IA so I get to do an owner assisted annual.
    Dan
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  24. dav8or added a post in a topic HacMan install issues on 582   

    Hi Chris,
    Yes the high EGT's are with the valve completely closed and it is a speedwing. I do not want to add anymore pitch to the prop since I am already down to 5900 static with climb out at around 6200. It would be great to have an in-flight adjustable but an IVO is definitely not in the budget right now. I plan to experiment with the props I have to see if I can find a happy compromise. Having the leaning system does make it easy to correct a dangerous situation as long as I have large jets in there to fall back on.
     
    Dan
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  25. dav8or added a post in a topic Transponder antenna location?   

    If it is inside the signal could be reduced by the fuselage I would think. I have my ELT antenna mounted inside for now until I find a better location but I am risking my signal not getting out as far as it could in an emergency (or am I protecting the antenna from crash damage?).
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