THE MICROLAND THREAD..."Home of the Tailwinds"

[Bundy]

Back on 9 June, for a lekker kuier

Mooi Man! Dan sien ons julle seker vir die braai 21ste?

Hi Nick, saw you but we were on our way out. You were parked at a different hangar

Nick has moved to there Paul.....as you know his old hanger was not good to him during the summer storms.

Had our Inspection done and DBP needed some TLC in one or two areas, but all sorted now.

Of mention to you all was the badly perished "Fuel Balance" pipe that Hans discovered during his check. This pipe is located underneath the fuel tank and allows fuel to travel between the LHS and the RHS below the level of the boom tube. It is something that I will admit I have not checked as regularly as the other (more visible) lines.... and ours was so badly perished that it literally split when twisted slightly ....If you spring a leak there, you can loose all your fuel in a matter of minutes! Not a nice thought.

I will certainly pay more attention to this in future.

Fly safe chaps.

[mulderpm]

Nice to hear you will be back on the 9th June Andries. See you at the fly-and-braai on the 21st, I hope.

Nuwe Hangar, so gedink, Nick. Ek is nou ook al vir n' maand in my nuwe een. Nog nie eenkeer die ander hangar maats gesien nie...yipeeee...sies.

Good idea to replace the fuel filter. They are just R30 from Mercedese. Also to clean the carb parts/jets by removing them and washing them in carb cleaner and blowing through them with compressed air will eliminate that possible cause. Just work through it with Hans, and you will find the cause I am sure "die ding het mos nie n' Ma of n' Pa nie"

[NickSwardt]

Hallo Paul, ek is baie bly ek het geskuif, so veel meer beskerming vir my vliegtuig

Me and Hans are gonna stand in the cold Saturday to fix my plane, only thing left to do is check and clean the carbs

If you there come and say hello to me me and my paper weight

[Bundy]

Hey Nick, did you get your aerie sorted mate? Hope so big guy...

What a great morning to fly!..Even had a flamingo do a duel take off with me from Delmas....sheesh you don't see that everyday?

Freezing cold but smooth as silk.

Off for a lekker fishing trip next weekend, will catch you all at the braai most likely.

Blue skies and fly safe chaps.

Enjoy.

[NickSwardt]

Hi Alan

It looks like it. I replaced the fuel filter, drained most of the fuel. Hans checked the needles and jets and adjusted the mixture and idling, and seemed to have done the trick.

Haven't flown her yet but ran around on the ground for more than 30 min without the engine dying.

I think the problem started with contaminated fuel, did find allot of rust particles in the drained fuel which is strange, I only use the one garage for fuel for my plane for more than a year now.

See you guys next weekend back in the air

Enjoy the fishing Alan, hope the weather changes otherwise you might just freeze

[mulderpm]

Hi Oom Nick. This is good news. Dirty fuel is a sure way to clog your filter and starve the engine of fuel.

I had all intensions to fly on Sunday morning but could not convince myself to brave the -2 deg temperature. See Bundy did fly....must be preparing himself for the temperatures of the upcoming fishing trip.

See you all soon.

[Bundy]

Hi Alan

It looks like it.

Great man...good to hear.

Do you use metal containers for your fuel? Could explain the rust?

I had an idea once to modify a std syphon tube and fit an in line filter to it to remove any "gremlins" that the local garage might give me....but ja that is a long term plan it seems....haha

After your experience it may be a good idea to revive this idea....

I did see an element filter fitted to a funnel once at Midas.... that may be more practical though! Will go have a look again soon.

Stay safe and enjoy the flying....the cold is good for the trout guys! Stef and I have more than enough rum packed to keep us warm! haha

Chat soon, cheers.

[Bayliner]

Bundy, how do you guys stay warm up there on the reef?

-2 must equate to a wind chill factor of -20.

I suffer here in the Cape when the temperature drops below 10.

Do you know that you can get heated clothing? Mark Becker I think is the one to contact.

Cheers
Glenn

[Bundy]

Bundy, how do you guys stay warm up there on the reef?
I suffer here in the Cape

Glen if you live in Slaapstad then you must suffer I'm afraid!

Keeping warm is a challenge believe me...but ironically I find that often it is 3-4 degrees warmer at cruising alt than on the ground due to the inversion factor (mostly pollution!).
Look...I wont lie to you.... Sunday was DAMN COLD! Preflighting in -2 on the deck is really not cool, I thought my fingers would break off when I unclipped the carb bowls!!

I am seriously considering tucking a hot water bottle into my flight suit to keep my nutbag warm!

All worth it to fly in those conditions!

[mulderpm]

Do you use metal containers for your fuel? Could explain the rust?

In my days of working on motorbikes, Triumphs, I noticed that if the fuel stands for a long time, 6 months, it forms a red residue which when disturbed looks like rust. Use a magnet to check if it is rust. Usually it is just fuel residue.

I had an idea once to modify a std syphon tube and fit an in line filter to it to remove any "gremlins" that the local garage might give me....but ja that is a long term plan it seems....haha

At the one end of my siphoning pipe I have a bottom of tank in-line nylon mesh filter. I do not pour the fuel in, I siphon it in. This way any dirt or water tends to stay behind in the can. Every now and again I clean that filter and you will be amaized of what comes out of it. Usually black particles. Looks like carbon or soot.

You can also buy a funnel filter that includes a water/dirt trap. I have seen some fixed wing pilots using this device and no dirt or water gets past the filter. This filter is essential when buying fuel in neighbouring countries. It often has water and dirt in it.

Did AMH's 100 hrs service yesterday afternoon. The rotary valve oil had a metalic shine to it and the gearbox oil was dark. The magnetic drain plug was also full of black sludge. Do NOT skip these oil changes. Carefully tourqued the plug to spec, 24 NM. Don't want to strip it hey

It was a bit windy but smooth aloft. She is performing like a star...old faithfull...AMH.

Bundy enjoy the fishing. Do you actually catch any trout? I have tried without much success. Aidan, on the other hand catches plenty. But he has partaken in competions and has more patience.

See you all soon.

[Bundy]

Makes sense Paul, I use premix as you know so I generally pour in from the fuel can....I think one of those special funnels you mention will be my next purchase.

Do you actually catch any trout? I have tried without much success. Aidan, on the other hand catches plenty. But he has partaken in competions and has more patience.

Yip, it is actually my other passion. I have been fly fishing since I was in early High School, was a member of the PBHS Angling club (Perhaps Aiden is too? )
Stef and I both belong to the Haenertsberg Trout Ass. That is where we are going, we have access to over 25 quality still waters and rivers. Beautiful mountains and challenging fishing...but we catch our fair share....when we actually TRY!....in between all the gees and Rum!

Troy getting into it now too....so "Dad" sits back and watches a bit more than usual these days I guess.

Who cares....beats the sh!t outta work anyday!

[mulderpm]

Yip, it is actually my other passion. I have been fly fishing since I was in early High School, was a member of the PBHS Angling club (Perhaps Aiden is too? )

No, he is not, but he will be next year. This year it clashed with his Latin classes at TUKS. He already has his Gauteng colours so he will just fit in. It is actually embaressing to go trout fishing with him. I use the same fly and reel and line and stand right next to him and I catch NOTHING. It is truly an art and a skill.

Enjoy.

I will find out about the funnel filter. You may have to buy it from a shop that sells aircraft stuff.

[mulderpm]

Alan, for your Fuel Filter Funnel, Racor makes one. Look at this thread;

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=8210&p=82226&hilit=racor#p82226

P T S Filters in Pretoria has Raco Funnel Filters. 012 335 9127. But you will have to visit your bank first. Costs R599 each.

Then there is also Mr. Funnel from the Thaliban or.....from Outdoor Warehouse. Thaliban has 2.5, 3.5 & 5.0 gpm filters ranging in cost from R330 - R714. The one @ Outdoor Warehouse costs R380. They don't give the fuel flow rate. It looks like it could be the 3.5 gpm funnel.

http://www.outdoorwarehouse.co.za/mr-fu ... ilter.html

http://cometaviationsupplies.co.za/inde ... ct_id=1012

You could also try Republic Aircraft Parts or other 4X4 shops.

[mulderpm]

Only in Botswana.

[Robbie Shaw]

Only in Botswana.

So cool