----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]----
Hi David,
I don't mean this to sound sarcastic, so don't get mad at me. Just
read this through, think about
it for a minute and then read it again. I don't know if this is the
'solution' you're looking for, but
it could be the 'cause'. Okay, so here goes........
Fred Weick designed what was probably the most advanced and trouble
free Airplane ever invented, at
least at that time.
When Erco sold out to Sanders, then Forney, then Alon and finally
Mooney, they all thought they
could 'improve' on this great little plane. If you look back at all the
complaints we get on this
website, I think you'll agree that nearly all of the 'recurring' problems
we're hearing about are not
from the basic Erco design. It seems (to me at least) that the things that
are breaking are the things
that these other companies have 'improved' over the basic design. ie;
spring gears breaking, slide
back canopies departing the plane while being openned or closed during
flight, elevator trim tabs (the
'add-on' pieces), the trim control systems and yes the exhaust systems
cracking, Maybe I'm wrong, but
this is the way it seems to me at least.
I bought my basic, stock, un-modified, bare-bones 415C in 1986 and
with the exception of annuals and
now recovering my wings I've done nothing to it at all. That's 15 years of
trouble free dependability,
now how can you impove on that? Oh yes, I nearly forgot, I did replace my
old tired and worn-out
Eisemans with new Slick Mags about three years ago. The reason for this
was that I was going to have to
rebuild them and since I didn't have a shielded ignition harness I wanted
to change over and install
one so I could (someday) install a radio. My AP told me I could get new
slicks and the harness for
about the same as I could rebuild the old mags and convert them to accept
the shielded harness. I
priced it all out and he was correct, they had a special going at the time
so that's what I did. (Now
maybe someday I'll install a radio so I can 'chat' while in the patterns
of airports with uni-coms.)
Anyway, back to your problem......My complete exhaust system is
fastened together as a solid unit.
Left manifold, muffler, right manifold and the little tailpipe that sticks
out the hole in the bottom of
the fuselage. Nowhere is it fastened to any part of the airframe. Not to
the engine mounts, the firewall
or anywhere else. When the engine vibrates, the exhaust system vibrates
with it, not against it due to
being mounted to a part of the airframe. This is why cars have their
exhaust pipes mounted to the frame
with 'rubber type' hangars and not bolted solid to the vehicle. If they
diid that, when the engine moves
in the rubber mounts,due to torque, and the pipe couldn't 'flex' the cars
would have a cracked exhaust
pipe quite often. Make sense?
I don't know how your Alon system is fastened, but if the muffler is
mounted solid to the airframe,
I'd change it.and go back to the original design.
Another solution would be to connect the two manifolds into the solid
mounted muffler (if it is
mounted to the firewall) with flex-pipe. I don't know if you could get an
AP to sign that off as I
doubt that flex-pipe is 'FAA appproved', but it's something to think
about.
Perhaps you saw one of my posts a short time back when we were talking
about a new wing that has
been built (and STC'd) by a friend of mine. He has also designed "dual"
pipes for one of his coupes.
Each manifold has a pipe that is built right onto the manifold and goes
right out the bottom of the
cowl. The two sides are independent of each other and they have no
mufflers. He told me he hasn't put
enough hours on it yet to get it STC'd, but he's working on it. I can't
put his name here for you to
contact as I promised I wouldn't give it out. He is a very busy guy and
rarely goes on the internet or
has time to answer phone messages. In fact the only way I can talk to him
is to go there or be lucky
enough to occaionally catch him at home via phone calls.
I don't know if this will help you David, but at least it'll give you
something to think about.
(And probably start a nice 'debate'.)
Good Luck,
Bob Saville
N3396H 415C
Eugene, OR
David wrote:
> ----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following
any advice in this forum.]----
>
> I'm replacing the cracked right-hand exhaust on my Alon. When I do, I
> would like to know what you have found works best to keep the exhaust
> from cracking. I previously wrote to the list and was referred to the
> Service Bulletins. I've read them and I also service other aircraft -
> these small Continentals on the stiff mounts vibrate the heck out of the
> exhausts - everything in the Service Notes has been tried on other model
> aircraft as well as the 'coupe series.
>
> My question is: WHAT WORKS???
>
> Has anyone had an exhaust system (especially the right stack) on an
> Alon, M-10 (or dual exhaust 'coupe or Forney) that lasted many hundred
> hours without cracking? If so, how is the stack supported? Was the stack
> plain steel or stainless? Thanks a lot for taking the time to reply.
>
> David
> N6359V
> Alon A-2 #A35
>
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