---------------------------------------------------------- RVSouthEast-List Digest Archive --- Total Messages Posted Fri 07/08/05: 4 ---------------------------------------------------------- Today's Message Index: ---------------------- 1. 02:55 AM - Re: P-mag installation report (Ron Schreck) 2. 06:06 AM - Re: P-mag installation report (BOB martin) 3. 10:11 PM - New stuff from Dynon (Radomir Zaric) 4. 11:36 PM - Mason City Formation Clinic (Last Call???) (James E. Clark) ________________________________ Message 1 _____________________________________ Time: 02:55:28 AM PST US From: "Ron Schreck" Subject: Re: RVSouthEast-List: P-mag installation report --> RVSouthEast-List message posted by: "Ron Schreck" Bill, Thanks for the report. I'm hoping that my dual Lightspeed installation runs as smoothly as your P-mag setup. The advances in technology are staggering; I haven't gotten airborne yet and my dual electronic ignitions are out of date! Have a great test flight. Ron Schreck RV-8, Wiring panel ----- Original Message ----- From: Subject: RVSouthEast-List: P-mag installation report > --> RVSouthEast-List message posted by: sportav8r@aol.com (SNIP) > Many of my fellow rvators have expressed interest in my impressions and experience with E-mag since I received my mags last month. Here's an update on my not-yet-flying installation. (SNIP) ________________________________ Message 2 _____________________________________ Time: 06:06:37 AM PST US From: "BOB martin" Subject: RE: RVSouthEast-List: P-mag installation report --> RVSouthEast-List message posted by: "BOB martin" Stormy, Good Job on the reporting....I felt like I was there handing you the wrenches....notice I didn't say crawling under the panel....:-) I hope it performes beautifully for you! Thank you for being one of the first.....so it makes it easier for the rest of us to follow...:-) Bob Martin >--> RVSouthEast-List message posted by: sportav8r@aol.com > >Many of my fellow rvators have expressed interest in my impressions and >experience with E-mag since I received my mags last month. Here's an >update on my not-yet-flying installation. > >I started the job this past Saturday, removing the Slick mags and >associated wiring and installing the wires and switching hardware for the >dual P-mags per Bob Nuckoll's drawing Z-33, which I followed to the letter. > Lots of drilling, pulling wire, on my back under the panel kind of work. >The first hitch I encountered was Saturday night, when I broke a brass >adapter in a spark plug hole. Amazingly, Brad Dement was in the shop on a >Texas Saturday evening, building E-mags for impatient customers, and >promised to rush a replacement to me as soon as possible. The Independence >Day holiday put a crimp in that, but I digress... > >This is a good place to interject a warning to anyone else taking delivery >of their Emags soon, if you are converting to automotive plugs: do not >follow the instructions for torqueing the adapters first to 25 ft-lbs. At >least one of the adapters is bound to fail. Install the spark plug into >the adapter with anti-seize first, then insert the whole assembly into the >cylinder and torque to 15 ft-lbs. Stop there. The plug's steel barrel >will support the brass reducer and prevent it form tearing along the >threads as the torque value is reached. > >My 14-to-18mm adapter yielded at about 20 ft-lbs and proceeded to split and >unwind about 3/4 turn along the thread line, about 1/3 of the way down from >the hex shoulder. When I felt this happen, I was able to back it out and >inspect it. Given my impatient nature, and since the brass was all still >in one piece, I elected to try reinstalling it with the plug inserted, and >it seems to have done fine at 15 ft-lbs, but I will replace it with a new >onebefore flying . Hope the old reducer comes out in one piece next time >like it did the first :-) > >Last night was time to install the P-mags themselves in the accessory case >and set the timing, and a most interesting time it was. I was unprepared >for the frustration of trying to install the mags in their holes with new >gaskets. The gaskets kept slipping out of position, and the mags were so >tight in the holes that when seated enough to engage the gear teeth, they >were impossible to turn by hand to dial in the timing. Applying a thick >grease film helped keep the gaskets in place, but did almost nothing to >make the P-mags easier to horse around in the holes. Nothing short of >rocking the mags loose in the holes would free them enough to adjust the >timing, so the result was always a huge overshoot and loss of the precious >"green light" LED signal that the timing was right-on. Never have >conventional mags behaved this way for me. > >It helped to discover that the mags each needed to rotate the same way the >prop did to recapture the timing mark. I would secure the mag, rock the >prop till the green light came on, then look at where the timing mark was, >figure out which way the mag needed to be repositioned, and try again. >Most frustrating of all was the dozens of times the green light would be on >while the mag was in the clamps finiger-tight, only to see the light go out >as the hardware was tightened down. I struggled with this task for over >two hours, and in retrospect I think I should have taken a file to the >aluminum P-mag body to create a little slack in the fit. I hated the >thought of defiling (sorry!) the nice red anodized finish, even where it >would never show. As I wrote to Brad Dement today, a "wrench" cut from >hardwood, large enough to grab the flats on the body of the P-mag (3 inches >wide?) would have helped leverage the mags into final alignment, if there >was enough room to get a grip on t > hem between all the FWF obstacles, which is questionable. I strongly >advised him to machine the next production run a few thousandths narrower >and avoid all this frustration, but at least you, my friends, are hereby >warned. > >Tonight, raining though it was outside, was time to try 'em out. I put all >the tools away and cleaned up the shop area around the prop arc. Reviewed >instructions on handling the ignitions; I'm looking at all new switches >here, new layout, no labels yet, no turn-key-to-start. Master... boost... >prime... mixture...throttle set... R and L ignitionswitches full-up to BATT >position, push the start toggle up, and - she catches on the first blade >and purrs like a kitten. WOW! Turbine smooth. Tach is reading correctly, >no need to adjust the tach pulse switches to get the correct reading; >that's a relief. The GRT EIS seems happy; all readings are nominal. >Run-up and mag check: butter-smooth to 1700 rpm, equal drop on both sides, >both switches briefly off and she dies right away; switches up again and >she recovers. Switches halfway down to the on (self-powered) position and >she runs like nothing's amiss: the P-mag internal dynamo function is taking >over for the "loss" of ship' > s power. Yesssss! Feeding throttle in, there's nary a stumble or >hesitation. Pull back to idle, incredibly smooth. Even running on one >ignition at a time, the engine sounds different, stronger somehow, more >confident. Yessir, I will have no hesitation about the upcoming test >flights; she sounds really good, the best she's ever felt. I remember the >same sensation after the dynamic balancing was done, but this takes >"smooth" to yet another level. > >Last night I admit I was fantasizing about shoving Brad's pointy little >head (I bet in reality he's a big, brawny Texan) into a mag hole and >tightening it down ("Tell me when you get a green light, Brad!"). Tonight >I think I want to give him a hug :-x These things are right! > >More to come later, of course, when I double-check the green timing light >things, apply Loc-tite to the mag stud bolts, re-cowl, and generally get >ready for flight tests in earnest. I was going to collect some pre-P-mag >numbers on Friday, for a comparison benchmark (I have no new, hard data >since a prop re-pitch this spring) but Friday's test flight was cut short >when the carb heat Bowden cable came out an extra 6 inches in my hand in >flight; shucks, it's not supposed to do that, is it? Better land and check >it out. While the cowl is off, might as well start the P-mag install... so >it happened that I have no recent Slick Mag data to compare against for top >speed. I do know my 75% cruise fuel burn for may years has been 7.8 gph >with aggressive leaning, so I can compare fuel economy with some certainty. > >Stay tuned. More to come. > >/Stormy out. > > ________________________________ Message 3 _____________________________________ Time: 10:11:55 PM PST US From: "Radomir Zaric" Subject: RVSouthEast-List: New stuff from Dynon --> RVSouthEast-List message posted by: "Radomir Zaric" And it's lookin' mighty good!! http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=2352 Radomir -7A ________________________________ Message 4 _____________________________________ Time: 11:36:22 PM PST US From: "James E. Clark" Subject: RVSouthEast-List: Mason City Formation Clinic (Last Call???) --> RVSouthEast-List message posted by: "James E. Clark" SERV'ers, I am checking "one more time" on who plans to go to the Mason City Formation Clinic? So far we have (based on the signup list): 1. James 2. Len Anyone else that I missed ???????? Ken is out due to mechanical matters unless some magic happens REALLY fast. Are we it? C'mon guys, you REALLY don't want to miss this one. This is the "big daddy" of the formation clinics. Great place, great hosts, great fun. And its on the way to OSH!! I am sure the one in Ohio that we had to miss due to weather was wonderful as well but this one I can speak of from experience. Since it looks like more than one of our friends might be "out" due to mechanical issues, if you were ON THE FENCE, this **might** be your window! Any more takers? (BTW, the signup might be closed. You will have to check with Stu and Mike but I thought I would give a reminder.) Otherwise it sounds like "Palmetto Flight, Flight of Two" :-( James