----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]----
" ...during my annual from hell, ..." And this would be different from EVERY damn annual how? :-) Artie N2666H ----- Original Message ----- From: "Pete Thomson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "'Bob Saville '" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Cc: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Sunday, April 21, 2002 8:04 PM Subject: RE: [COUPERS-TECH] [COUPERS] 87 Octane Gas > ----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]---- > > Good evening evryone. I have read with some interest the comments on vapor > lock. I have vented gas caps on all 3 tanks and have been advised by the > service memorandums, which I am slowly going through during my annual from > hell,to close off the main tank cap vents. I would sure appreciate some > feedback from all of you, do you have vented or unvented caps on wing tanks > and or the nose tank? If you have closed the vents on the wing tanks, where > does the air come from to take the place of the fuel? Thanks Alaska Pete > > -----Original Message----- > From: Bob Saville > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Cc: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: 4/20/02 7:09 PM > Subject: RE: [COUPERS-TECH] [COUPERS] 87 Octane Gas > > ----[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 > > > > > > > > ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?bz8Sid.bAhN69 Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
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