Leaderboard

Around 7 hours of work, and the washing I even had assistance. Hand washed twice over, then applied and removed wax with a rotary polisher. Even got the exhaust stains out on the belly, which was the hardest part. After this, I decided a rotary takes too much work. While they are powerful machines, they need a LOT of skill and control to use, and being on ladders instead of scaffolding, or pressing it overhead, or in weird leaning positions, it's just too difficult and I had a couple strikes when it got away from me (marred paint). I sprung for a proper weekend warrior polisher after this, a Griot G9 and wax red pads, will see how it works out. There are also some old repair sites that I'll redo the glaze and paint, as well as the strike areas. Will also do paint correction one day and get it to a true mirror finish with a ceramic wax that I'll switch to, but this already was some ridiculously good results with what I had, I expect good things from this G9 when I finally get to use it.

That's a good option, I often bring up 90 rec fuel with 10% addition of 100LL, or 93 at higher mix as you're doing. There are a couple airports nearby with 91 Rec and Swift fuel that I'll fill up at. I do try to avoid ethanol, but I also see a lot of guys running 93 and zero issues. RunToEat (Dick) and Phil Wade are near me, both run 93. Probably 3000+ hours between both those guys (Phil just installed new 912), and zero issues. They just stopped in for lunch last week and we talked fuels a bit, here's a pic:

Now that the new MOSAIC rules have been put off for at least another year it puts the LSA manufacturers in a real bind. They anticipated the rule changes for this year and developed aircraft to meet the new performance changes. I have seen a lot of the new planes which are very high performance aircraft. But now these aircraft must be flown under "experimental exhibition" which is very restrictive at least until the changes eventually happen if they happen. No one is going to want to put out that kind of money for the restrictive flight requirements. I talked to a friend today who owns a distributorship for a major LSA company. He is about ready to give it up on this news. The aircraft manufacturers like Cessna and Piper don't want the MOSAIC changes, I wonder why. They make dinosaurs with obsolete technology engines for absurd costs. We have lost the GA industry in this country a long time ago.

Just saw this story: https://bydanjohnson.com/theres-a-new-rotax-service-center-in-town-leaf-acquired-by-aps/

I see Brett Lawton is going with the new firm, according to the updated web site. That is good. I've had lots of training from Brett at Leading Edge on the Rotax 912ULS and 503 and have consulted him numerous times on both those engines. Brett has a unique ability to diagnose Rotax, in my experience. The Lake Lawn airport is apparently reasonably near the new firm, so I can fly my gear reduction box there in a few months for Brett to overhaul. Out of idle curiosity, I see the Wag Aero web site has no mention of any of this, so I wonder if Wag Aero will continue to exist in it's current location? Well, I guess that's a question for a different forum.

Went there for Rotax training a few years back and they were always solid with orders so no complains here.On the other hand I maintain my plane at Jeremy Knoll ( who bought the place ) company so having him now own a Rotax shop can be only a good thing.

Can't be a bad thing. When I was a brand new CTLS owner I called LEAF with a Rotax question. I'm still waiting for a call back. Been relying on Lockwood ever since.

Love flying at night. Near Kit Peak Tucson, AZ

Running 93 octane ethanol pump mogas I have been struggling with vapor issues in my CTSW for a while now, but I wanted to work through them as far as I could without asking for help. I ran this same fuel for ten years with no issues, and it came up after I changed my fuel system to include teflon-lined hoses. The symptom has been pretty consistent: intermittent power loss when the engine is hot and the deck angle is high. This means I most often saw it on takeoff and climb out, sometimes at very low altitudes (not fun!). The RPM would drop from WOT RPM (5200-5500 with the eProp) down to about 4000rpm, often surging up and down in 2-5sec pulses. Reducing throttle and deck angle usually allows me to fly at 4000-5000rpm and land. After this first happened I re-routed a fuel line to remove a potential vapor trap and the issue went away and was gone all Summer when it was hot so I assumed it was solved. Then I went to Tampa last fall to visit Bill Ince, and we were two up departing St. Petersburg and the issue happened again out over the water, two quick pulses and then it smoothed back out but we were both a little puckered up! The problem did not recur and we continued on the 15-20 miles back to Clearwater. Before I went back to Georgia I topped off with 100LL and had no issues going back home. After I got back home I went back to mogas and had no issues all winter, so I thought maybe a difference in Florida fuel blends vs Georgia could have been the cause, or just some bad gas in Florida. Carbs were rebuilt in March, and I flew until mid-April with no issues. The last few weeks it got warmer, but only in the 70s or so. Quite suddenly I started getting the vapor issue on every flight. I tried insulating all the AN connections on my fuel lines in case they were getting hot, but no joy. Finally I switched to 100% 100LL fuel and the problem ceased immediately and has been gone for several flights. I'm fine with running avgas if necessary, but I'm still a little confused over what exactly happened or changed. I checked my gascolator screen and did a fuel flow test draining out the tanks completely and there were no issues. My ideas are: 1) The new fuel lines are teflon, stainless braided, and with integral silicone firesleeve. It's possible the new lines retain more heat than rubber hoses and lead to increased chance of vaporization of ethanol. 2) Fuel blends have changed. I read that the EPA is working on changing the max ethanol in standard fuel from 10% to 15%...I'm wondering if suppliers have begun a stealth creep up of ethanol content or other additives. 3) I changed out my fuel pump when I did the hose change...perhaps my new pump is weaker than the old one? The old one was well past replacement age and was an older revision pump, but I never had this issue until after it got changed out. Maybe the new one is just a factory dud. 4) I had to make a new heat shield for my gascolator during the fuel system changes, but it's pretty much the same thickness aluminum material and the exact same shape as the old one if not slightly larger, plus it's more reflective so should bounce more heat. I guess I could beef that up or add additional insulation. Here's what it looks like: I'm certainly open to other ideas, recommendations, or wild speculation. I know Corey recommends a boost pump installation, and I'd do that if 100LL ends up not totally curing the issue, but so far so good. I miss the cheaper fuel, but it is more convenient to just pull up to the pump.

I used to completely remove the engine. Now I do all the hoses I can without removing the engine. Then when I get to the point I need to get to the engine mounts or a hose on the back of the firewall I just swing it out about 18" from the left side. Works just fine and the hose change is easier and quicker and you still get to the engine mounts.

I have B&C regulators on two experimental airplanes with 912ULS engines (one is a CTsw with ELSA registration). No diodes and no problems.

Spark plug cap explanation video Spark Plug cap video.mp4

Topic: This presentation covers the causes of vapor-lock in Rotax engines. On Monday, March 18, 2024 at 18:00 Eastern Daylight Time (15:00 PDT; 16:00 MDT; 17:00 CDT; 12:00 HST; 14:00 AKDT; 15:00 Arizona; 22:00 GMT) Register at: https://www.faasafety.gov/SPANS/event_details.aspx?eid=127437

Might be old tubes. Or cheap tubes. Bad batch. I've had flats in all kinds of aircraft, but one thing I noticed with matco mains, it's really important to have proper tire pressure, and to keep the tire and tube from twisting. I use a little bit of rubber cement to glue part of the wheel bead to the wheel. Just a little bit, around 1/4 of total circumference. I think also part of the reason we get flats, especially with matcos, is because flight design specified matco designs for their aircraft which specifically DO NOT use the matco 1" spacer that is normally offered by matco for 6.00-6 tires... the axles for flight designs can't accommodate those spacers. As a result, there is less expansion room for the inner tubes inside the tire, and they like to fold a little more. USE LOTS OF TIRE TALC AND ABSOLUTELY NO BABY POWDER! ITS NOT A SUBSTITUTE! I only re-use inner tubes if they are in PERFECT condition. No folds, no rubbed off material, no history of issues, valve and valve base in perfect condition. Too many times tubes have burned me due to re-use if I let any of it slide. If I have any suggestion for matco, one big one is to make the holes for the valves a little bit bigger to help keep the pressure off the valve stems. I noticed that different tube batches can have different fitments, and if there's a lot of pressure on the valve stem, it's GOING to be a problem and I try to get them exchanged. Torn valve stem bases are the #1 issue I have with flat tires in the matco wheels, but I've managed to make it almost a non issue by following what I laid out in my post here.

I was absolutely STUNNED at how this turned out.