brendanw

All, Last week the gasket on my Champion oil filter blew out, sending oil all over the place and generally making a huge mess. Note: my plane isn't flying yet, else this obviously would have been even more of a problem. Given the fact that this really sucked, I've spent a good deal of time researching what happened and how to prevent it from happening again. My first thought ... I didn't measure the torque on the oil filter during installation even though it specifically says 16 - 18 ft-lbs. I turned it hand tight, then put a little over a 1/4 turn with a strap wrench. So, maybe it was too loose. My second thought ... you know, I dont think I put a safety wire on right after installation. I think I realized it wasnt there some time after and certainly after a number of engine starts. I installed the safety wire, but of course didn't check the torque on the filter even though, yet again, the "16 - 18" was staring me in the face. Maybe it was tight enough to start, but then loosened without the safety wire in place. My third thought ... on a cold night I pushed the plane out of the ~55°F hangar into the ~32°F air to run the engine and troubleshoot, of all things, the oil pressure sensor and the tachometer. I ran it for about 3 to 5 minutes, then shut it down. I left it outside for about an hour while working in the hangar then came back out and restarted. Perhaps the gasket contracted enough in the cold temps and allowed an already loose (?) filter to blast oil all over the flippin' place! Thus far I've chalked it up to this series of errors and have blissfully learned my lesson while stripping the engine and cleaning off all of the oil. However, another possibility has now come to light ... I have the famed Airwolf Remote Oil Filter Adapter installed!!! While emailing back and forth with them trying to figure out why I have a small leak coming from the fittings they supply (mystery has been solved), I mentioned the recent oil filter gasket incident. They asked that I verify that I had it plumbed correctly, which I do. I then mentioned that I have a 17-row oil cooler plumbed into the return side in between the oil filter and the engine. WHOA WHOA WHOA Jonny from AFC states!!!!!!! Apparently, AFC's instructions (see attached) explicitly state "DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES CONNECT AN OIL COOLER IN SERIES WITH OUR REMOTE MOUNT OIL FILTER KIT". Stated reasoning is that during a cold start when the oil is thick, it will take advantage of the bypass built into the CH48109 oil filter and keep things flowing. If it then runs into the piping of an oil cooler, the pressure could build up and blow the filter gasket, filter, oil cooler, lines, etc. I, of course, dont recall ever seeing this instruction or hearing about it anywhere else. So, I have to ask ... how the heck is everyone else plumbing their oil coolers, with or without an AFC oil filter adapter? AIRWOLF_AFC_K001_INST.pdf

Has anyone successfully connected the airspeed trigger on the RMI micro encoder to the 'SENSOR' lug on the Composite Design Nose Gear Retract Control System (Wright Nose Lift) circuit board to give a 'gear up' warning as the airspeed drops off? Ref: RMI_Micro_Encoder_Install.pdf, Page 20 RGnoseP4RC.pdf I believe I can use a digital relay (Digikey LCA710) to trip the alarm, but I havent done any testing yet. RMI_Micro_Encoder_Install.pdf RGnoseP4RC.pdf

Are there any Cozy IVs using baggage pods (Gary Hunter's or otherwise)? James Redmon did an incredible job installing them on his Berkut (http://www.berkut13.com/berkut59.htm).

So I installed the V1 set of baffles this past weekend. Most of the pieces fit fine ... amazingly fine actually. It looks really really great. However, there are a couple of pieces that were absolute crap!! All the misfit pieces could be hacked a little and made to fit, but I'm going to edit the 3D model and have another set cut ... V2!! Hopefully this week. Attached is the VERY low-level 3D CAD model of my O-360-A1A. It's basically a rudimentary stab at the cylinders, with a tight-fitting profile sketch on which I based the baffles. The rocker box profile and 1/4-20 holes are accurate, which should be a great starting point. Hope it's helpful to someone out there. As for selling the baffles, that will be handled by Dale Martin of Owl Eagle Aerial Composites (niceez@gmail.com). I've basically taken his O-320 baffle plans and modified them to fit the O-360 with guidance from him. Making them digital (and waterjet / laser cut-able) was my idea, but only because I'm less digitally lazy than physically lazy . In the end he'll likely sell either a copy of the plans with installation instructions or pre-assembled baffles ready to bolt in. In any case, go ahead and contact him if you're interested. I'll post some pictures of the V2 install when it's final. O-360_A1A_3D_MODEL.zip

So after some back and forth, and some discussion with a knowledgeable Cozy III owner, we decided to pull out our Cozy MK IV plans-built baffling and replace it with a new set based on an existing O-320 design. My approach was to install the O-320 paper templates on the O-360, then add and subtract as required to get a proper fit. About 5 or 6 sets of templates later we had a winner!!! I ended up making a very rudimentary 3D CAD model (SolidWorks) of the O-360 cylinders and some other areas, trying to capture only the details that were relevant to the baffling. From there I was able to digitally wrap the engine in 0.040" thick aluminum sheet metal, which then provided me with the flat-pattern cutouts. I made a final set of paper templates from the flat-pattern to make a final fit check before construction. Fingers crossed. As it turns out, one of the machine shops I do a bunch of work with has a waterjet cutting machine. All they need is a 2D CAD file of the flat-pattern and away they go. I dropped off two 4X8 sheets of 0.040 aluminum (they only needed one it turns out) and 16 minutes and ~750 inches of cutting later, I had an entire set of baffles cut out and ready for bending!!!!!!!! Price ... about $45. Last night we went over to my company's machine shop and formed all the pieces into shape, using the flat-pattern bend lines and 3D model as a guide. It only took about 1 1/2 hours to get the job about 80% complete, with the remaining pieces to be formed at the hangar this weekend with the engine within arms reach for fit checks. I'll probably go ahead and anodize all the pieces afterward ... probably blue or red. Below are a couple of pictures from the process along with a YouTube video link showing the waterjet cutter. I'd recommend this approach to anyone as it will probably get us some fine looking baffles. Hopefully they'll cool the engine properly too!!

Attached to this post is a sample of the data directly from the RMI Micro Monitor. A while back Waiter had offered to take a look at it to develop a more visual interface for it, but I'm not sure the quality of the data is worth the effort. A couple of notes ... - The data sample resolution is set to 1 minute increments. You cannot get any better resolution, so any sort real-time monitoring is impossible with the RMI micro monitor. - I need to install a 9V battery source to maintain the clock or hardwire it with a fuse directly to the B&C battery. The clock, and possibly all of the calibration settings, go away when you turn the master off. - I get OAT from the RMI micro encoder, but obviously the two arent talking properly. Ugh!! - I have no idea why the GMT clock counts down, then up, then down, then counts up properly. No idea. Ugh!!! - No way the OT was at 84F after 5 or so minutes of engine run time. Must be a calibration issue. Ugh!! - I dont believe the OP readings are correct, but I cant explain why. The on-screen value 'floats' when the engine is off / cold. If I turn on the unit (but dont start the engine) right now, the value will 'float' up to about 35, then float slowly down to about 25. Ugh!! - I had the engine up to what I know by ear was about 1500 to 1800 RPM. The data shows 1000 RPM max. Must be that I didnt have it there at one of the 1 minute data points. Ugh!! - One would think that fuel flow (FF) would trend toward the RPM setting given that the mixture was full rich the entire time. Not true with this monitor. Ugh!! - Looks like I got a peak of 46 amps at one point. Geez, that seems like a lot ... or is it the monitor? Who knows ... ugh!!! Again, does anyone have any relevant experience with installing, setting up and calibrating the RMI suite? Help!!! RMI_Monitor_Data_Sample.txt

I absolutely loathe spade connectors!!! Even with the expensive M/F spades, the proper size wire and the fancy crimp tool, the majority of the connectors can be pulled off of the conductor fairly easily. As a matter of fact, more times than not, they are pulled off when I'm trying to unplug the connectors (using the requisite multiple pair of needle nose pliers of course) I'm now going through and replacing most of them with Molex plugs in order to improve the reliability of my electrical system connections. With the proper crimp tool, the Molex pins will not separate from the conductor ... you'll break the conductor before the pin will slide off!!! AND BONUS, you can easily disconnect everything without pliers and having to redo all of the connectors!! Attached is a picture of what I'm going from (mess of 8 spade connectors) to what I'm going to (8-pin Molex connector) just for the EGT and CHT wires on each side of the engine. I'm using 2 and 3-pin plugs in a number of other places. Joy, joy, joy!!! Maybe now I'll be happier with my Rocky Mountain Instruments micro monitor ... doubt it, but I'll try to smile

Here's a good on ... does anyone happen to have a relatively accurate 3D CAD model of an O-360? I'm going through the motions to create one at the moment, but I would rather not reinvent the wheel. Also, we picked up our O-360-A1A from Aero Sport as well. We've only got a couple of ground run hours on it thus far, but it runs like a champ!

I found a couple of photos on the net of some canards that I hadn't seen before ... the 24B and the XP55. It's amazing how creative the engineering minds were as the aerospace industry developed.

I saw a Cozy on the 'big boys' ramp at ACK yesterday (Sunday 8/17). After paring my C172 I didnt get over there quick enough to say hi before you departed.

Guys, thanks VERY much for uploading and / or directing me to some pictures of your heat shields. It's extremely helpful! Attached are a couple more shots of the heat shield assembly from the 3D CAD program I use. We built the shields as previously shown and agreed that we needed a larger OD. The assembly worked and the material thickness was OK, though I wouldnt mind a bit thicker. As you can see from the new pictures, we do in fact have enough clearance for the piston to move in and out of the caliper. Also, we've extended the heat shields about 0.5" radially past the brake disc. We'll be adding a strap to the bolted connection that will tie the shields back to the wheel pant bracket that we attach to the backside of the gear bow via the 4 axle bolts. This will keep the shields from contacting the disc. I may 'glue' the heat shields to the caliper bodies with a couple dots of high-temperature RTV. That way they wont ride on the caliper alignment pegs All in all I think it will work well. Thanks for the help and advice. Wishing I was at Oshkosh, Brendan

Does anyone have photos of their brake system heat shields that they can post? Pictured below is what we've built and installed to retrofit our Cleveland 500 X 5 assembly. Currently I have the OD sized the same as the brake disc, but it seems like I should make them slightly larger. Also, we're currently using some thin aluminum sheet metal, but I think I would like to switch to steel (preferably same thickness).

It certainly looks like a nice bird from the pics. A couple of things I see: - I notice that the starboard sight gage is leaking substantially into the cockpit. There could be an issue with the fuel reacting with the epoxy and causing a lot of damage. Maybe the tank was sealed with Jeffco or similar. From the looks of it the issue may be easily quantifiable, which might not be a good thing. I'm not sure how you would fully inspect the inside of the tanks. - Was the engine prepped for long-term storage, e.g. cylinders filled with oil, all fuel drained (probably not based on fuel leak) - 375 hours total, 5 hours on the prop. What was on there for the other 370 hours and why was it changed out. - $31K is pretty steep compared to some other LEZs I've seen listed. One of the guys on my home field just bought one for about $20K. This bird needs a substantial inspection given the long-term storage. You should figure on paying a knowledgeable LEZ builder to come down and have a long look.

Good question, and good for you for planning ahead on this. The obvious answer is that you need to figure out what type of seal you'll be using before you size the gap. I fit the canopy seal just before I did the final contouring of the canopy interface. I purchased a length of rubber, D-seal material from McMaster Carr. I glued it down using the same contact cement that you use to put Formica counter tops down. Once the seal was in place I taped over it, shut the canopy, laid on the micro and sanded forever. Note: I havent flown my plane yet, so this approach might just suck!! As another data point Zeitlin did a canopy seal retrofit not too long ago. Check out: http://www.cozybuilders.org/flying_reports/2007_11_16_Canopy_Seal.html I'm not sure of the end product, but you could email him for some qualitative advice I'm sure.

And how would one get hold of this fellow if they wanted to actually give him e few bucks for his time and effort? It happens that I just emailed James some questions regarding his design. If I can trade a few bucks for time, I'll happily do so!!!

As a data point, I've posted some detailed information on the use of the Polyfiber system as well as some PPG primer. Search: Key Word(s): primer Posts Made By: brendanw Two posts will come up. Again, just a data point.

With regard to the RMI suite of avionics, does anyone have any experience downloading the Micro Monitor / Encoder log files and reviewing them in a spreadsheet? I successfully updated the software in ours via a laptop, but was unsuccessful in actually downloading a log file. Waiter has offered to develop a nice, graphical GUI if I can get him a data stream. Help!! Also, does anyone have any suggestions, tips, recent experiences with installing, calibrating and programming these units? We're on to the programming stage right now after we sort out an issue with the ammeter / oil temp / fuel flow sensors. One thing I've noticed thus far is that we dont have the micro monitor hard wired to the battery, so our clock goes away on shutdown. Also, the micro encoder is powered off the transponder, so if we lose that, we lose both. Thanks for anything you kids can offer up!!

Attached is a simple diagram of the airport incident that I put together. It's helpful to have a bit more of a visual of what occurred so that we can learn from it.

My Friend, the data will be yours as soon as I can get it!!! Probably will be a week or two. I cant get some of the sensors going - ammeter, fuel flow meter, oil temp sensor. Also, I think I have o solder in the 9-pin serial port and I'm not the soldering type ... prefer drilling, tapping and bolting!

Unbelievably cool! Got anything or know of anything for the Rocky Mountain Instruments micro-monitor and micro-encoder? I'm at the point where I'm going through all of the manuals for them trying to get everything figured out and programmed. Apparently there's a 9-pin serial connection that I can make to my laptop, but I havent gotten that far yet. I just downloaded a ZIP file from their website that supposed to contain some monitoring software. Should be fun. Great job with the Dynon / Grand Rapids GUI though!

Wow! Are these steel or aluminum? I suppose if there was a flange all the way around and not just on the inboard side, one could safety wire some rubber baffling material on very nicely. Great job though! I think I agree that the phenolic material wouldn't stand up to the heat. Our current approach is along the lines of what's been suggested - install some aluminum 'collars' onto the aluminum baffling to make the edge thicker, and end up leaving about a 1/16" gap around the pipes. We'll likely be investing in a whole bunch of high-heat silicone as well. Thanks for the info everybody!

When we started the engine, we had the cowling off and our tech advisor saw the plans way of running the pipes through the baffling and gave us a down check on that method. He said that a metal to metal connection would eventually lead to damage to the pipes or the baffle or both. Would using a 1/2 inch phenolic sheet fashioned to the the present pattern on the M drawings do the job, or would the phenolic not stand up to the pipe heat? I note that Nat was quite emphatic about needing a tight seal between the pipes and the baffling. Others have stated that a tight seal doesnt affect the cooling performance. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Good! How did the airplane noises come out then??!?!?!

OMFG!!!! This is absolutely fantastic!! I think I spit coffee out my nose twice thinking about it. Thanks SOOOOOO much for the laugh

It seems like you might have trouble with the kinematics of this approach. With this orientation you'll have to push away and up with the balls of your feet to get full rudder deflection and engage the braking system. With the opposite orientation (plans method) your heels are essentially in line with the pivot point of the pedals, thereby making it a more natural movement. Dont get me wrong, this will probably work and you've done a really neat job. Just make sure you consider the throw of the pedals for rudder and braking. If nothing else, it will give you an excuse to sit in the cockpit (with whatever shoes you may be wearing in flight), push on the pedals and make airplane noises!!