Hi Gary,
We need to know your N# or serial number.
It may be that your fuel system is spraying out from the cap on the
passenger side, and
would not be easily visible to your ferry pilot. Usually this would
only affect the top gallon
or so in that one tank, but if the crossover line has a significant
blockage and your fuselage
tank overflow is to the right tank, it could set you up for precisely
the situation you describe
without there being tank seam leakage.
That being said, it is unlikely that you could lose four or more
gallons from an improperly
vented or gasketed fuel cap without clear evidence being left across
the top of the wing
(but stranger things have happened :<)
Ercoupe tanks can be damaged if subjected to too much pressure...the
recommended test
pressure is "...not to exceed 1-3/4 p.s.i. per Ercoupe Service
Memorandum No. 33.
I also had a personal experience whereby my plane had an annual just
prior to my long
student "cross country" flight. Fuel consumption which had been
averaging about 4.5 gph
jumped to almost 6 gph due to improperly reset mag timing. I was
watching my fuselage
tank go down beginning almost immediately from the beginning of my
second leg, at the
end of which my tanks took 24 gallons to fill!
To check out the hard steering issue, put a pillow under the rear of
the tail cone and weight
on the elevator to raise the nose. Then you can move the wheel each
way by hand and
check the linkage back to find where the bind is. It's even possible
that such binding will
result from lack of lubrication in the rudder bellcrank shown on p. 30,
fig. 21 of the Ercoupe
Parts Manual. Items 27 and 28 thereon are incorrectly identified as
elevator control elements.
Understand I'm not a certified mechanic (or always very smart)
Call Skyport for the 1320 lb. gross STC (800-624-5312).
This too, will pass.
Best regards,
William R. Bayne
.____|-(o)-|____.
(Copyright 2009)
--
On Feb 14, 2009, at 10:45, G. Davis wrote:
i am the new one on the list, with a new9to me) ercoupe. I had what
the ferry pilot described as a huge fuel leak(he ran out of gas after
2 hrs flying). He safely landed on a road, to find all 3 tanks empty.
I found him, and brought 5 gallons fuel and put in header tank, and he
flew the other 10 miles to the airport. After 3 weeks of looking, we
have found no signs of a fuel leak anywhere. My A&P pressurized the
fuel system, and now the real story starts. I ran so rich at idle, it
would flood itself out. He pressurized the the fuel system the day
before, and now the carb is leaking. ITs off right now being rebuilt.
Also, he called yesterday to say the left wing has fuel on the
trailing edge on the rivets, and is wondering if the lefft wing tank
is leaking. It was as dry as a bone, before this "pressure test" and
also idled fine. This plane is costing me a fortune, and I have never
flown it yet. IT flew all the way from Alabama to Wisconsin without a
glitch, other than the last 2 hr flight it burned all the fuel in the
plane. Any help would be so appreciated.
Doc Gary
