Auburn, WA Mechanics?

bbarrett

bbarrett

New member
I've recently moved my 14-19-3 from New Mexico to it's new home in Auburn, WA (S50). On a short flight today, the flaps wouldn't extend (and trying to extend / retract didn't cause the hydraulic pressure gauge to move). So I've got something unhappy going on.

Any suggestions for a good Bellanca mechanics in the area? Since I'm not sure what's failing in the hydraulic system, I obviously need to find someone on the field or willing to come to the field.

Thanks!

Brian
 
Brian,
There are several Bellancas at S50. Contact Russell Williams 2069793622. He has a -2 and knows the system better than I do.
Dan
 
bbarrett said:
So I've got something unhappy going on.
Click to expand...
ugh..
You got the gear down so it's not the pump.. Did the handle feel normal?
unless you landed with a puddle of fluid under the plane, sounds like something internal to the valve under the seat.
 
Dan Cullman said:
Brian,
There are several Bellancas at S50. Contact Russell Williams 2069793622. He has a -2 and knows the system better than I do.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the contact info. Russell gave me some contact info for some local mechanics, since I'll need someone to sign off on the work once it's working :). I'm going to put it on jacks and see what's going on Saturday afternoon, since he was kind enough to offer a set of jacks for the weekend.
 
SoCalPlaneDoc said:
You got the gear down so it's not the pump.. Did the handle feel normal?
unless you landed with a puddle of fluid under the plane, sounds like something internal to the valve under the seat.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'd be really surprised if the engine driven pump catastrophically failed in the two minutes between putting the gear down and trying to put the flaps down. I didn't see any signs of a massive hydraulic leak, so I'm guessing I didn't run it out of fluid. The hand pump felt like it does when neither lever is engaged (i.e., fairly smooth without much resistance).

We'll see what happens when I get access to the power pack Saturday and try swinging the gear. I really don't want to pull the power pack; last time I was trying to clean up spilled hydraulic fluid for a couple days.
 
bbarrett said:
We'll see what happens when I get access to the power pack Saturday and try swinging the gear. I really don't want to pull the power pack; last time I was trying to clean up spilled hydraulic fluid for a couple days.
Click to expand...

I'm watching with great interest. By any chance, did you try pumping-down the flaps after engine shutdown? I might try that first just to see if there's any change in the flap ops before you cycle the gear - just to see what happens.
 
SoCalPlaneDoc said:
I'm watching with great interest. By any chance, did you try pumping-down the flaps after engine shutdown? I might try that first just to see if there's any change in the flap ops before you cycle the gear - just to see what happens.
Click to expand...

I had tried to cycle the flaps with the hand pump immediately after shutdown and again after I put the plane in the hangar. Both times, no go.

So I get to the field this weekend, grab the jacks that Russell Williams has graciously agreed to lend me, and discover that the flaps are working perfectly with the hand pump. Jacked up the airplane and swung the gear with the hand pump 5-6 times, everything works fine. Airplane's back on the ground, fire it up, and the flaps work perfectly.

Pifer's did an overhaul about 30 flight hours ago, so I'm going to give him a call and see what he has to say.

I don't like non-reproducable failures.
 
I talked to Dick Pifer (who did the overhaul of the pack last year), Dan Torrey, and Glenn Petersen (a local mechanic) today. All were leaning towards an air bubble rather than some other contamination, based on the problem clearing itself up. Dick in particular said he sees the problem relatively frequently with planes that have sat for a while (mine had sat for two months waiting for a idle mixture adjustment, a story for a different time). He also lectured me on overhauling the cylinders themselves in addition to the pack, which was probably good advice, but I'll probably wait until the low clouds and ice show up to do something that drastic.

More updates to come this weekend...
 
bbarret, the part #s for the O-rings are AN 6227B-19 (3each) AN 6227B-7 (1 each) AN 6227B-10 (1 each)/ per cylinder. I have rebuilt several, and it is an easy job. I believe that the nose wheel cylinder takes the same O-rings, but I am not positive. I bought O-rings from Aircraft Spruce for not much money. Might as well do the flap cylinder at the same time, since that may well be the one that allowed air into the system. Again, I think that the flap cylinder takes the same O-rings, but I havent confirmed it. If you want to order parts before you take things apart, I could dis-assemble a flap cylinder and check? Good Luck. ______Grant. PS, I got the part #s from this forum, and they worked fine.
 
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