Someone in another thread mentioned printing a cooling shroud for Pmags. Here is what I installed on mine:
Printed from Nylon - wasn't one of my easiest print jobs, but it does work. I've been using mine for about 6 months now.
Don
I second Bill's request. Simple design!
Ron B
Bill - quick dumb question on P-Mag temp sensors (the color dot on the exterior of the case). I had my P-Mag removed today to complete the annual gear inspection - what a PITA to get to the clamp nuts, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. I checked the temperature sticker and it's all white, even within the black circle of the temp sensor area. What I can't remember is whether "all white" is good, or whether the sensor spot changes temp to something other than white if it exceeds the indicated temperature.
Thanks for your helpful reply.
BTW, while it was a PITA to remove the P-Mag to inspect its drive gear, oh man is it ever easy to time the P-Mag. Of course I checked and reset the timing on my Slick mag as it had drifted a couple of degrees over the first hundred hours of service. It took me more than a few tries to get it "just right" at 25BTDC while it took no time at all to set the P-Mag at TDC.
I would also like a couple of these if they fit the current 114 mags, although I question how much good they’ll do without any data.
Someone in another thread mentioned printing a cooling shroud for Pmags. Here is what I installed on mine:
Printed from Nylon - wasn't one of my easiest print jobs, but it does work. I've been using mine for about 6 months now.
Don
I don't mean to derail but I'm wondering if it's been posted in the past; has anyone installed some kind of temp sensor under the cowl and collected data on how effective opening the oil door is at reducing temps after shutdown?The temps definitely creep up on shutdown from heat soaking. I just make it a habit on super hot days to open the oil door.
Well, I have not heard from Don, so looking at trying to design my own 3D shroud, and will be getting another new 3D printer to print it up in carbon.
Now, I also found a simple temp probe I can stick to the PMag, and I will be able to input and display the temps of my PMag on my SkyView displays.
When I get it all done, I will post all the info and programming needed.
It will be a few months to get the new printer setup, and the shroud designed and printed, so please be patient.
Brian
Off the top of my head I can name about a half dozen ignition systems that don't need cooling shrouds, external monitoring devices, temperature sensors, or annual inspections of a drive gear, requiring removal.
What I learned from this thread.
Just sayin.
I do that anyway to let the vapor out of the oil dipstick, but totally agree that if you are designing a product, you need to make sure it works in the target environment. Engines get hot. If you make something that bolts to the engine, make sure it can handle that temperature, plus some safety factor. Not saying this is easy, but that's why we pay the big bucks!Add "opening the oil door on hot days" to that list
A very nice looking solution. What’s the red thingy on the right side?
Thought this would be a good place to park this...
Not obvious from the picture but the tube is split and encompasses the whole cooling section of the Pmag. No pirep yet but I did stick the Van's electrical conduit in a pot of boiling water and it did very well with no deformation or perceptible softening.
Think it'll melt?
Seems like a good project/idea for anyone with 3D printing capabilities.
Just be very, very careful what material you use ... you could end up with a bad situation in flight if your shroud melts or breaks in flight ...
3D printing is awesome for a lot of things, but I would stay away from critical parts unless you're very skilled and really understand the materials and environment involved.
Since 3D printing happens in layers, those layers are subject to delimitation, which is very common.
Someone in another thread mentioned printing a cooling shroud for Pmags. Here is what I installed on mine:
Printed from Nylon - wasn't one of my easiest print jobs, but it does work. I've been using mine for about 6 months now.
Don
With temperature and vibration, I suspect that the safety wire will soon slice through the plastic tube.
Don't mean to disregard the caution but PMAGs worse heat conditions are typically when the engine has just shut down on a hot day, The heat from the engine with no cooling air may melt it much sooner than in the air when it is being*constantly fed with a blast of cold air.I don't know what the temp for 3D material is but I would imagine it would need to stand at 250 degrees for a long term use.* My temp strips on three sets of plane with PMAG has not show any recorded temp above 190F*and my current plane has a probe for the inside cowl (near the battery box) and I don't see temp above 120-125 when in the air
we open the oil access hatch after each flight
Silicone tape to seal the gap at the start of the split. It's probably not necessary/effective but that's what it is.
It's surprising how well the sliced conduit fits the Pmag.
I tried to point the exhaust end at the mechanical fuel pump but abandoned that for lack of room. Don't know if it would heat or cool the pump.
We've had really good parts made from 3rd party services that have high-end printing machines and a wide selection of materials, both plastic and metal.
Perhaps someone on the forum here knows what the best material would be for this application?
https://www.shapeways.com/
https://www.xometry.com/capabilities/3d-printing-service/
I have access to some very high-end 3D printing equipment where I work. If someone has a dfx file for the shroud in the OP, I would gladly print a few. My CAD skills just aren't that good (yet!).
I use the typical Van’s corrugated tubing, one for each pMag. The end pointed at the pMag as discussed in the install instructions.
The photo shows highest temp after several hundred hours.
Carl
I would guess the 3D-printed shroud or corrugated-surround would provide more even cooling to the unit, so why not?I show the same temp range with the simple recommended solution. Why risk changing what has proven to work well!
I would guess the 3D-printed shroud or corrugated-surround would provide more even cooling to the unit, so why not?