Christmas Wish

[joea]

Do a search for starter in the aircraft parts section of motors and its there. I do not have it bookmarked.

[Dusty]

Titanium Scout gear legs, installed and approved please!

[boris48]

joea-- not to bug you, but I don't know how to get into the aircraft parts section, let alone the starter catagory., A little guidence please??

[joea]

Boris,

Sorry about that. Try this: http://tinyurl.com/ydjyheh

I do not know anything about this particular seller or product, but the starter is a good one. Both B&C and Skytech make a alternate starter for the small Continental engines that is about half as heavy as the stock unit. As well they are a geared version of the starter, so work a bit better.

Is this one worth what he is asking? Who knows, but I bought one used but in good shape a few years ago for $400 or so. This one may be overhauled or recondition, forget, but in the end it all depends on how much you need it. This auction has 1.5 days left to run, so please look today.

One last thing, to use this on your engine you may have to do some mods, either removing a bearing or cutting off a shaft. Both are "do-able" with the engine on the plane but its not a 10 minute thing either. I have never done one, just heard that some engines require some additional work.

Joe A

[boris48]

thanks..when I took the airplane apart and painted it last november, I took the engine off and cut the shaft while it was easy to get to. Problem is (was) I spent too much money freshening up the plane and couldn't afford the new starter at that time.

[joea]

Good that you looked ahead and did that. Some engines do not require that but you never know until you pull the cover off and look.

[seaheli]

Dusty, why titanium gear legs?

Charles

[Dusty]

Seaheli: I've been fantasizing about converting to spring gear for a while now. Citabria gear is short, wobbly, and prone to bending. Scout gear gets me prop clearance and is tough as hell - but it weighs a ton. Aluminum scout gear is a little lighter, if still pretty heavy, pricey, and oversprung for a Champ. TI is light, tough, and can be sprung to just about any "give." I think it would be absolutely perfect for skis. It is/was STC'd for the C180, and I believe selling for about $6k/side in that application. I'm told that version was around half the weight of stock, but only because they had to leave way too much metal behind to make the FAA happy.

I figure invoking the help of Santa Clause is the only want to get TI gear on a certified Champ. I'll leave cookies and Jack Daniels out. Just leave the 337 in my stocking.

[joea]

Dusty,

How about the Bahn Cub style bungee gear for the Chief/Champ? Have seen some pics of it and hear that its wonderful for off airport ops.

Joe

[Dusty]

Carl has apparently burned some bridges with the FAA - for whatever reason, my mechanic could not get the Bahn gear approved. I can go to spring gear with a service letter, and to Scout gear with a FA. I've been holding off partly in the hope that Carl gets the STC he's been talking about for the last several years, as it's certainly a simpler, and perhaps equally functional, upgrade.

[joea]

Sorry to hear that, he had some interesting ideas that appeared to be good upgrades.

Guess this is why the O-360 Continental STC for the Sedan is not moving forward either?

Joe

[seaheli]

Dusty,

Do you need a taller gear with an adjustable rate spring oleo or a progressive rate spring oleo.

Charles

[Dusty]

Charles,

That would indeed make me very happy. A progressive spring would do it - taller gear is icing. As it is, on my no-bounce gear, particularly on skis, the constant pounding, which is very noticeable even when slowly taxiing a light airplane on a good strip, causes the spring to collapse entirely. That, under the right conditions, bends the crossover truss and/or a vertical tube every now and then. It takes a remarkably small bounce, delivered in precisely the correct manner I presume, to get expensive. One expensive episode involved a double-fist-sized chunk of ice hiding on a hard-packed strip, at perhaps 20MPH, while loaded to near gross. It wouldn't even have been noticeable on bungee or spring gear.

Do you have a solution? With the exception of the Bahn gear, I've been remarkably successful at getting things field approved and would happily play guinea pig if you have a brilliant idea! dustymc at gmail dot com if you want to take it private.

[joea]

I emailed Carl Bahn and he replied right away, so the email address is a good one for him if anyone is looking.