Bob White wrote:

Hi Dave,

I'm glad to hear you got the engine running again.  First let me say
that you are a lot braver than I am running the engine without a prop.
It's unbelievably easy to over rev the engine that way.  I don't think
you can tell much about tuning until you get a prop on it either.
  

We aren't really tuning at this point.. we arent instrumented to properly tune.  We are just cranking and running for proof of concept as well as looking for leaks. The throttle is closed or near closed. Chris is the one running and starting it, but I support his reasons.. Its MUCH safer to risk overspeeding in our case than try to dance around a whirling propellor on the back of the plane looking for leaks, checking fittings, etc. Remember, we cant walk in front of the wing and play alongside the engine with the cowl off like the RV guys can. If you approach from the rear to the engine you are in a danger zone. Likewise, we have to secure the plane against movement with a prop because we do not have parking brakes.

One step at a time. Once all the leaks are secure and we have finalized wire runs and routing, then we will work on proper tuning with prop installed and switches in the dash/panel.

I think you know you want that wiring to be rock solid.  Are you using
the PIDG type crimps?  I would bet you are since you are a Nuckolls fan.
They have a metal sleeve that crimps the insulated part of the wire.
Was there anything wrong with the crimp that caused it to fail?
  

I will defer this to Chris.. He's the Nuckolls fan and is wiring according to Bobs wisdom.

One of my RD-1C drains had very little oil coming out of it.  I called
Tracy at the time and he said that was normal.  I don't remember
positively, but I think it was the same one. Sounds OK.
  

Noted.

The water temp should be measured at the hottest location you can get
too.  Somewhere near the water exit from the block.  Oil temp is
measured after the cooler. 
  

Our oil temp will measure as it exits the oil filter just prior to re-entering the engine. For reference, there is a stock water temp sensor on the block near the heater hose, as well as one on the water pump outlet. Perhaps we can put one in the place of the one on the water pump outlet/thermostat housing. That sounds optimum.

Bob W.


On Sun, 03 Jun 2007 21:49:11 -0500

Thanks for all the feedback Bob,
Dave