----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]----
Hi Ken,
Just a guess, but I'd say that the grounding wire going from your mag
switch to the mags is probably
grounding out at the back of ths switch. Since it effects both mags in
order to kill the engine
completely I'd say either the swithch itself or right at the top end of
the wires where they connect.
Could be that the wire has a little slack there and by raising the nose it
makes a bare wire(s) touch
some metal and thereby grounds out the mags as if the switch had been
turned off.
Like I said, just a guess, but one more thing to check before you fly
it again. It surely wouldn't
hurt to check both wires all the way to their respective mags to look for
a bad spot in the insulation.
Especially where it goes through a clamp or the firewall. Or if it is
'rubbing' against any metal such
as the engine mount for example.
Bob Saville
[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> ----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following
any advice in this forum.]----
>
> I'll add my experience(s) to the list on the subject of engine stoppage.
>
> I have an Alon. I've put about 350-400 hours on it without similar
engine
> incident. I did replace two pistons about 6 months ago. (I had real low
> compression on one cylinder and low on the other one.) It already has
new
> slick mags (2 years ago). I only use 100LL.
>
> Last Nov my engine quit at about 300 feet. Fortunately there was a nice
> field ahead of me so I landed uneventfully. It was a perfect carb ice
day
> and I still suspect that was the problem. I flew the plane out of the
field
> later in the day.
>
> I flew the plane several times after that without incident. But a month
> ago, after flying around for about an hour I stopped at a local airport
for
> fuel and breakfast. As I rotated on take-off the engine quit. I set
the
> nose back down and the engine ran fine. I taxied back and it happened
> again. I did this three times with the same results. The engine didn't
> sputter, it just quit--like the key had been turned off. The run ups and
> static run-ups checked ok and taking off with carb heat on didn't help.
I
> should have tried lowering the tail while tied down and running but I
> didn't--too frustrated at the time.
>
> My Mechanic and I discussed all the possible problems and talked to
several
> other people, including other Alon and Ercoupe owners. The comments
were
> usually: (a) Alons just do that, keep current on emergency landings (b)
> Alons do that because the gasolator sits too low on the firewall; (c)the
> fuel line must have a hump in it causing a vapor lock; (d)the carb is
> contaminated; (e)it has nothing to do with the fuel, fuel line, carb or
> vapor locks--something is shorting-out both magnetos---maybe a bad
ignition
> switch.
>
> So we checked the carb and it was clean and looked good.
>
> I re-routed the fuel line because there was just a slight hump in it.
The
> fuel line had been replaced about 2 years ago just because the old one
was
> ratty on one end. The slight hump had been there for the past 100 hours
+
> of flying.
>
> I checked the vent hole in the fuel line caps--all ok.
>
> I replaced the ignition switch although I can't imagine how the switch
would
> go bad such that raising the nose would cause it to short out.
>
> But I didn't find anything else unusual and there was no definitive
cause
> found for the engine quitting. After all of this, the plane flew just
fine.
> I flew it above the airport for a while before heading home. That was
last
> week and the weather has been bad ever since so I haven't gotten to do
> enough test flights to know if the problem is solved.
>
> I don't think my experiences really add anything accept more confusion.
> Most probably our experiences are not caused by the same thing.
>
> Ken Doyle
> Alon N5477E
> Springfield, Mo
>
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