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2450 Hour Report!

petehowell

Well Known Member
Andi and I took a nice little daytrip up to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore on Saturday. Highly recommended - in the very pretty and relatively untouched UP of Michigan and just 2 RV-9A hours by air from Minne!

If you want to go - the grass strip in Munising is in great shape and the county bus will take you into town for $5/person.
We took a 2.5 hr cruise to see the lake shore - we'll come back to camp and hike.

The rocks were spectacular........

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The cruisers were happy.......

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The trip home took us just shy of 2450 on the Hobbs, so you know what time it is........ Oil, filter, compression and borescope!

Dropped the oil, and the filter and screen had the usual carbon chunks - nothing sparkly - giddy up. Compressions showed 78s all around. The plugs had a nice tan color (including #2, that can sometimes be a bit oily). Oil pressure is still right where we set it, and Oil consumption was 1.25 qt this past 50 hours. She seems to be hanging in there very nicely.

Here is what you came for ......naked valve pics:

Exh #1
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Int #1
Image was corrupted by idiot with camera(it looked just fine tho!)

Exh #2
AM-JKLUkfQ_VFgkD5XYalG4KoyD-cbGnxug5-gMBU3ReS-EI2kvYd4xnmhhpS2IgJ5SJgvYbdyWZEX5c55USsmsC_w_uAq9qrNdGL4cQs2xAKrEdHTqv69cRxOCTjLxhUt7EIAW-jhV8PfyrOMSg3IvLf_YYjg=w640-h480


Int #2
AM-JKLULBGr648kH3Y4U2TROrmSTLMwDyEZrU33fPAiaqQg9ZOuzSVnZ9cDuAAj_QR2ALvwVdwM5vg3tXG2-PkOqak7C9DiB4epgAGboI4ewCLf78IUGCSxy4cHdS2ttyD0DX9cacpjKvMw7QLbKNJNyYaVeRQ=w640-h480


Exh #3
AM-JKLX8SxYetzd2lZJODf5d66WtcBqralRin4Sqx_XxnGQP6Qb_xE8HeX8P6LMX0CiTrEoVJ1GEAtsY7a2CbUa0CMQYqygOk-91UvNPXyAoOIXCTus1y4TEI7sEujgc4sqlWC9ll_aBtEYGHyKcX1p_Bgddww=w640-h480


Int #3
AM-JKLVyOhRDyg1ETZay1VpxyCKpLmog19dmG9kMVAkMlW0Kp11PzS0qcCRs82SHlfhyL36VFI2BSf_ku_HBHxM7yKgyK7NhgxpblQB7tsnxB_RzrjR1nIsBoMo1Sv20uTbWqt262niyDGIY_Eq_sPMuJ--JZg=w640-h480


Exh #4
AM-JKLXApHYlyhhFcvoZHKRI6YIA3GC2Ll1MnOlXBNkSSzXldXECqYfcCKLFXg2_vuO85Ui9ccdzILLN2Fg4c7qaNVBl2McORghKKWdR78HTPRlclzx8aKfY4s4-HeunkeuuUHoMr4RcPLpr16aZiz9ICPyGyw=w640-h480


Int #4
AM-JKLUEFkj2CXGyNsLJZp04vB-1Yj6DePrtSMwM4OzaVXJjR8E2nBGcqP1MMIvajuFvlyqbz_fFnOLR7IfqzHC9hAo_KvURyC_gu0D_5xOj4TcsxJuM6Hfl1JaAdJf-jzmTEwEE47Z7Z4uUsHzBZGyPh6WftA=w640-h480


Same setup as always:
  • O-320D1A
  • Hartzell
  • Carb
  • Dual EI
  • Almost all Mogas now
  • LOP all except takeoff

The camera used is a $10 (prob $15 now) USB 7.5 mm drain cam from Tomtop. I use safety wire to guide it.
 
Pete,

Your cylinders look really clean at 22 percent over TBO...nice work!!!

Can you provide us with some engine operation tips and tricks so we can enjoy the same amount of longevity.

Nice pics of the rocks...THANKS!!!
 
Tips?

Well,

Just a few things at almost 2500 hrs now:

- Fly as much as possible - 2 or 3 times a week
- I think the mogas really helps keep things clean
- I run LOP almost all of the time
- Keep the CHTs in the 300s whenever possible
- Use Oil sump and cylinder heaters for wintertime starts
- I run 20W-50 XC oil - no idea if it is better, but it is all I have used
- I run MMO in the mogas - may only lube the fuel selector, but it is cheap at Wally world, and an old super cub driver I know ran his O-320s to over 3000 hrs using it. So I do too. Might be snake oil - I won't argue if you say so.

Am I doing it right? No idea, but it seems to work. Might all be dumb luck!!


Pete,

Your cylinders look really clean at 22 percent over TBO...nice work!!!

Can you provide us with some engine operation tips and tricks so we can enjoy the same amount of longevity.

Nice pics of the rocks...THANKS!!!
 
Well,

Just a few things at almost 2500 hrs now:

- Fly as much as possible - 2 or 3 times a week
- I think the mogas really helps keep things clean
- I run LOP almost all of the time
- Keep the CHTs in the 300s whenever possible
- Use Oil sump and cylinder heaters for wintertime starts
- I run 20W-50 XC oil - no idea if it is better, but it is all I have used
- I run MMO in the mogas - may only lube the fuel selector, but it is cheap at Wally world, and an old super cub driver I know ran his O-320s to over 3000 hrs using it. So I do too. Might be snake oil - I won't argue if you say so.

Am I doing it right? No idea, but it seems to work. Might all be dumb luck!!

At what ratio??
 
MMO? I would suggest using 2 cycle oil: it is specifically made to mix with fuel and designed to burn cleanly in the combustion chamber. I works in my golf cart at 250 to 1 mix ratio.
 
Sounds like a great result well proven over many hours of operation. Do you have any modifications to the fuel system to be able to run mogas, or see any signs of vapor-lock?
 
on the opposite end of the scale

C172 I just did a prebuy on a month ago. Engine had 42 hours SMOH and was flown for 15 minutes every 6 weeks.

What not to do.
 

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Your engine made it this far because you flew it, frequently. Lycoming has raised certain engine TBO's to 2400 hours for high usage operators.
 
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