14-19-3 Back To California

Rob58

Rob58

Moderator
After two trips to Iowa to resolve problems with the fuel injection system and finish up a fresh annual, 8835R and I made the trip back to home base at KSBP this weekend. This plane is a dream to fly and it really gets up and moves. Naturally there are a bunch of ongoing maintenance items and upgrades on my checklist, but it will be a lot easier to make progress in my own hangar rather than dealing with minus zero temps in the Midwest. I got a taste of what you cold weather folks have to deal with and it’s not fun. Now I should be able to actually fly in to the June convention in a Bellanca instead of a spam can. Just for the record, the -2 is still my favorite triple-tail however there is a lot to like about the fuel injection system on the IO-470. My thanks to Bill for the engine management tips – using his technique the engine fired right away on a hot start. --Rob
 
Congrats! We’re hoping to have our -3 at Columbia, assuming the weather in the Pacific Northwest is live ice-filled than last year...
 
Hi Adam... yes that's the one. You might recall his asking price... well by the time it was ready to fly I had twice as much invested (and I'm not done yet!). As we know we don't love Bellancas because of their resale value.
 
It was a nice bird from the pictures I remember seeing.
It seems all Bellanca's end up on the west coast eventually..
 
Ooo a new fuel injector doohickey cast in solid gold with matching gold fittings, very shiny. That looks expensive. :shock:
 
In regards to starting, I have a new trick on the crate. This has been the worst winter since 76/77 very cold and windy plus snow. Few good flying days. I started using a Radial procedure starting the engine. I prime, turn the Master on (mags are off), hit the starter and wait for the prop to do a revolution or two then turn the mags to both. I get an instant smooth idle. I have been starting the Crate for 15 years conventionally and when it is cold it starts but seems to run a couple cylinders till the rest come online in a second or two. I like my new procedure, does anyone have any thoughts on this good or bad?
I have not got to the fuel pump overhaul yet due to Turbo redo in a T-tail Lance and starter adapter in a Mooney Acclaim . I got a funny to pass on to you boys. The Mooney is owned by a Dr. friend of ours. He spends like crazy and has all the latest toys. I was in Miami and he gets in his spaceship puts on his Bose super high tech noise canceling headset, fires up the Garmin G1000 (which is smarter than he is) hits the starter and the prop won't turn. He switches batteries(dual system 24V Concord's 8 yrs old) prop still won't turn. The DR. diagnosis dead batteries so he buys two new 24V Concords over a Grand in price and has my Spartan buddy reluctantly install them a couple days later.He takes the original batteries to a recycle center. Next good weather day he drags it out suits up in his spaceship, (cone of silence Maxwell Smart Bose) hits the starter and the prop won't turn. Now I get a phone call and when I return from FLA the next good day we can drag the Spaceship out I witness what is happening. He gets in suits up headset and Garmin hits the starter and the prop won't turn BUT the starter is screaming! The starter adapter has failed at 534 hrs! He couldn't hear the starter screaming with all his high tech gear. I'm still laughing at that and it is going to be an expensive fix. Oh well a Winter story. Lynn the Crate :D
 
Lynn, that's a great story and a bit typical of the new generation of technology (and the high-roller pilot types). Did your Dr. Friend learn something from his humbling experience? I like your starting procedure and it makes sense: get some fuel into the combustion chamber before lighting the fire. Good stuff... Rob
 
Regarding the fuel system...I was not about to become another "forced landing due to fuel starvation" statistic for the NTSB to talk about or to cause our insurance rates to go up. When the previous owner experienced an engine failure which, fortunately, had a positive outcome... well I decided to take the extreme approach of installing a completely new fuel system: pump, fuel control and all. The peace of mind on the long flight home was worth it. Like I said there is no financial justification for the care and feeding of a Bellanca!
 
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