In October, Ask Paul columnist Paul McBride, who retired after 40 years with Lycoming, received this letter from Mike Stolyarch in far-off Russia: “In order to be completely confident in my engine, I decided to do a major overhaul of the O-435A on my 1947 Stinson 108-1. I have already found all the necessary spare parts, […]
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Tomahawk buyer plagued with engine contamination
Q: I bought a Tomahawk from someone I trusted. First oil change I discover very small needle-like pieces of aluminum in the filter, about a teaspoon worth. I ask the IA-rated seller about it. His reply: No big deal, still good compression. Nothing is on a strong magnet that is carefully passed along the flattened […]
What’s going on with the left prop on my Piper Mojave?
Q: I just bought a Piper Mojave. It has 1,200 hours on both engines. Pre-buy, including oil analysis, was good. During a maiden flight, the left prop feathered on prop check. We checked the dome pressure, it was low. We topped it to 41 psi. Took off for an hour flight. Landed and left prop […]
What should I do about rust in the barrels of cylinders?
Q: I read some of the material you have posted and was very impressed. I have a question about finding rust in the barrels of the cylinders. Here is the situation: A customer is looking to buy a Piper Lance II. It was asked that we do an annual instead of a pre-buy inspection. The engine […]
What is fueling high engine temps?
Q: I bought a 1972 Cessna 177B with an O-360 a few months ago. It had 900 hours on the engine. My first 20 hours I would use 23 squared and pull the mixture back to 10 gph or less, then watch the cylinder head temperatures, monitoring to keep the hottest (#2) around 385°. When […]
Are my oil pump gears OK?
Q: I found an old article with your name on it, regarding AD 96-09-10 and oil pump gears. My information is as follows: My Lycoming O-320-E2D, S/N: L-24557-27A, was overhauled by Penn Yan Aero back in 1990 when the engine had 2,000 hours on it. During my annual in 2011, the question came up about oil […]
Breaking in the engine on an RV-6
Q: Hello, Paul. I live in South Africa, Johannesburg. I love reading your articles on engines. You have wise words. Thank you. I have an RV-6 built by myself and my brother-in-law. We fitted a Lycoming O-320-B2C that got overhauled after 560 hours by Alton Engineering. I believe you will be able to help me with […]
Can you rebuild a narrow deck engine into a wide deck?
Q: I’d be most grateful if you could advise whether it would be feasible to take a narrow-deck Lycoming 360-A1A and rebuild it as a wide deck 360-A1A, with a new crankcase and cylinders. What parts could be reused otherwise? Mark Holmes A: Mark, you asked for my advice regarding taking a Lycoming 360-A1A series narrow-deck […]
High temps after overhaul
Q: I have a Lycoming O-320 engine that was overhauled by an IA who has overhauled lots of engines and, ever since, the oil temperature runs very high. The oil gauge was checked for accuracy, and the oil cooler was sent out, cleaned and checked. I replaced the varitherm and the induction tubes have new couplings and clamps with […]