After all of the work in so many different areas of the "baby" including re-rigging and engine work, the pucker factor was in high gear as I did the longest, most thorough, preflight of my life. Paying close attention to all control linkages, wiring, and fuel lines I decided all was in order and looked good. Strapping in I followed the check list to the letter and with
two shots of prime, she fired up with three rotations of the prop. I checked the brakes and all instruments and headed for the runway to do a couple of high speed taxi tests. The rebuilt landing gear was now nice and solid with no nose wheel shimmy. When temp came up I did the runup but was getting a 150 rpm drop on the left mag. Ran it up to 2100 for about a minute then checked it again at 1500 and all was fine showing about a 25 rpm drop on the left. Decided to do a "short field" style departure to put as much distance between me and the ground in case the carb rebuild might cause a problem..... perfect day for flying in Illinois..... 54 degrees, 5kn wind straight down the 5000' runway...... Full throttle without a miss..... no fuel "gushing" from the header tank..... and I was off. With low fuel on board and only me my rate of climb was fantastic about 800fpm.... I was at pattern altitude moments after I crossed the end of the runway! Went around the pattern several times at 2500, keeping the runway in sight just in case..... Everything felt so tight and responsive... almost a different plane. Only thing that needs to be tweaked is the trim control as forward elevator pressure remains high even in the "cruise" setting..... Shot 4 t&g"s then off to visit friends at some of the local strips. Pucker factor finally relaxed and once again I felt the love of flying my Coupe. All landings today were greasers and after 6 months lack of practice I felt good about my flying. Got out the bucket and soap after lunch and gave her a much needed bath and touched up the polish on her shiney bare skin. When the late afternoon breeze died down, took a friend up for a tour of the area and together we watched the sun get lower in the haze. Purring along at 2,500 feet, our world looked lovely and tinges of green could be seen everywhere..... spring is getting nearer. The high cost of the annual and "partial rebuild" started to feel better. Thanks to all of you for your support and help during my maintenance ordeal. It's like a new plane. May all your landings be right side up, Fly safely, Rob Talbot-Jones 3040H, Rantoul Illinois __________________________________________________________________________ ______ To unsubscribe from this list please send mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] _____________________________________________________________ Want to find the best email lists? Check out the Topica 20! http://www.topica.com/topica20
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