X-Virus-Scanned: clean according to Sophos on Logan.com From: "GEORGE PUTNAM" Received: from pv38p43im-ztdg05071201.me.com ([17.133.183.8] verified) by logan.com (CommuniGate Pro SMTP 6.2c3) with ESMTPS id 9797455 for flyrotary@lancaironline.net; Sat, 03 Jun 2017 23:22:04 -0400 Received-SPF: pass receiver=logan.com; client-ip=17.133.183.8; envelope-from=georgeputnam@me.com Received: from process-dkim-sign-daemon.pv38p43im-ztdg05071201.me.com by pv38p43im-ztdg05071201.me.com (Oracle Communications Messaging Server 7.0.5.38.0 64bit (built Feb 26 2016)) id <0OR000O006LNH400@pv38p43im-ztdg05071201.me.com> for flyrotary@lancaironline.net; Sun, 04 Jun 2017 03:21:45 +0000 (GMT) DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=me.com; s=4d515a; t=1496546505; bh=+1JZTykt4VJkjprTZwwIw47auWtwMxHW9SIPH7JA0lo=; h=From:Content-type:MIME-version:Date:Subject:Message-id:To; b=XGPSEzAc+6CiTPUDfF9g5hnAShuRv0ZdaOcv4Amu2y6sPIu9qX02I71pk5+JKxhkk Qrxx0i0MEWRQkiH6Ih8t+ObkhJ4KUwQr0Wc6bZ/vO4AyqSWKNyhcvrn9uoJqrl9Rz5 l8ICD28mJ575aKSaHwxnNVwp4LVUAx0oXx95Iu6M9VQ3oqEN+Da7cCn+GotlN1Qgab LNZJhMJyWUjj+FIwF24BYnSHVUAEwv+tFWLgYFQgVTq26vh7ARpDPCjlKAbYkXYuEg 2nMsq1t70vT1VdURBYsz0HHLbZtAEgAQUrsSL1NB733ogUdm0GSPx6qOAkJQzIlx73 jC8JG0KWtJWwQ== Received: from icloud.com ([127.0.0.1]) by pv38p43im-ztdg05071201.me.com (Oracle Communications Messaging Server 7.0.5.38.0 64bit (built Feb 26 2016)) with ESMTPSA id <0OR0007IH6O7PH10@pv38p43im-ztdg05071201.me.com> for flyrotary@lancaironline.net; Sun, 04 Jun 2017 03:21:45 +0000 (GMT) X-Proofpoint-Virus-Version: vendor=fsecure engine=2.50.10432:,, definitions=2017-06-03_15:,, signatures=0 X-Proofpoint-Spam-Details: rule=notspam policy=default score=0 spamscore=0 clxscore=1034 suspectscore=0 malwarescore=0 phishscore=0 adultscore=0 bulkscore=0 classifier=spam adjust=0 reason=mlx scancount=1 engine=8.0.1-1701120000 definitions=main-1706040062 Content-type: multipart/alternative; boundary=Apple-Mail-ECEC1822-2873-4E95-9E2F-BE929696F70D Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit MIME-version: 1.0 (1.0) Date: Sat, 03 Jun 2017 19:21:43 -0800 Subject: Re: [FlyRotary] Engine out Message-id: References: In-reply-to: To: Rotary motors in aircraft X-Mailer: iPhone Mail (14F89) --Apple-Mail-ECEC1822-2873-4E95-9E2F-BE929696F70D Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Ernst, glad you are in one piece. George Sent from my iPhone > On Jun 3, 2017, at 5:12 PM, Ernest Christley = wrote: >=20 > I'm running a Corvair instead of a rotary, but I thought you guys would be= interested in how I seem to be chasing Ed's gliding time. >=20 > Monday, I started the day with 3 hours of fuel, plus an hour's reserve. Th= e plane had been down for 2 months while I did some upgrades, and I went out= and did all sorts of interesting flying for 1.7 hours. The weather was bea= utiful, and the plane was performing better than it ever has. I was relucta= ntly headed in for the day, when the right tank ran dry. I tried to switch,= but the left tank wouldn't come online. I called an emergency on KTTA's fre= quency, since I had been circling their airspace the whole time (just in cas= e something happened). It was nice to get that support from other pilots ove= r the air, even if there was not one dang thing they could do. I was 12 mil= es out, with the airport clearly in sight. I headed straight for it as I co= ntinued to play with the selector switch. My dual electric fuel pumps make a= clackity racket when they're running dry, so I kept moving the handle back a= nd forth hoping for the noise to turn into that deep guttural sounds that le= ts me know fuel is flowing. I got nuthin', and TTA kept climbing up my wind= shield. >=20 > I turned toward highway US421. It was covered in cars, and it soon became= apparent that it wasn't going to happen either. I looked around, picked a f= ield, and set up a pattern to it. Initially, it was a tobacco field, but I h= ad come in to hot. I had been afraid of extending the pattern to far. Ther= e was a gravel road running beside it, so I swung over, but it took a sharp r= ight about 100yds ahead. I didn't think I could make the turn, so I banked l= eft into an open field. The clumps of grass were about 8" high. The nose whe= el caught, folded under, and I slid along on the cowl. >=20 > I've spent the past week pulling airplane parts out of the farmer's field,= and today I got about the business of determining what happened. The gasco= lator had a few pieces of trash in the bottom, but I'm not sure from where i= t came from. I took the selector valve apart, and there didn't seem to be a= nything going on with it. It turned smoothly, if not somewhat stiffly. The= n I played with the rod that connected the selector handle to the valve. It= was made from a 9" length of threaded rod. An adaptor pinned it onto the v= alve's post. Another adaptor connected to the inside of the handle. Withou= t turning an allen wrench pushed through the pin hole, I could turn the sele= ctor handle 90 degrees. The rod just twisted like bubble gum. Apparently, w= ith two months of sitting, the valve had gotten sticky enough that the rod g= ave before it did. =20 >=20 > I was completely unharmed. I've suffered more damage getting the plane ou= t of the field than I did putting it there. The nose gear, firewall, forwar= d belly and left side skin are trashed. The rebuild starts tomorrow with bu= ilding a stand to hold the engine while I work the aluminium. --Apple-Mail-ECEC1822-2873-4E95-9E2F-BE929696F70D Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Ernst, glad you are in one piece.
George

Sent from my iPhone
=
On Jun 3, 2017, at 5:12 PM, Ernest Christley <flyrotary@lancaironline.net> wrote:

I'm running a Corvair instead of a rotary, but I thought you guys wou= ld be interested in how I seem to be chasing Ed's gliding time.

Monday, I started the day with 3 hours of fuel, plus an hour's reserve. The plane ha= d been down for 2 months while I did some upgrades, and I went out and did a= ll sorts of interesting flying for 1.7 hours.  The weather was beautifu= l, and the plane was performing better than it ever has.  I was relucta= ntly=20 headed in for the day, when the right tank ran dry.  I tried to switch,= but the left tank=20 wouldn't come online. I called an emergency on KTTA's frequency, since I ha= d been circling their airspace the whole time (just in case something happen= ed). It was nice to get that support from other pilots over the air, even if= there was not one dang thing they could do.  I was 12 miles out, with t= he airport clearly in sight.  I headed straight for it as I continued t= o play with the selector switch.  My dual electric fuel pumps make a cl= ackity racket when they're running dry, so I kept moving the handle back and= forth hoping for the noise to turn into that deep guttural sounds that lets= me know fuel is flowing.  I got nuthin', and TTA kept climbing up my w= indshield.

I turned toward highway US421.  It wa= s covered in cars, and it soon became apparent that it wasn't going to happe= n either.  I looked around, picked a field, and set up a pattern to it.=   Initially, it was a tobacco field, but I had come in to hot.  I h= ad been afraid of extending the pattern to far.  There was a gravel roa= d running beside it, so I swung over, but it took a sharp right about 100yds= ahead.  I didn't think I could make the turn, so I banked left into an= open field. The clumps=20= of grass were about 8" high. The nose wheel caught, folded under, and I slid along on the cowl.

=
I've spent th= e past week pulling airplane parts out of the farmer's field, and today I go= t about the business of determining what happened.  The gascolator had a= few pieces of trash in the bottom, but I'm not sure from where it came from= .  I took the selector valve apart, and there didn't seem to be anythin= g going on with it.  It turned smoothly, if not somewhat stiffly. = Then I played with the rod that connected the selector handle to the valve.=   It was made from a 9" length of threaded rod.  An adaptor pinned= it onto the valve's post.  Another adaptor connected to the inside of t= he handle.  Without turning an allen wrench pushed through the pin hole= , I could turn the selector handle 90 degrees.  The rod just twisted li= ke bubble gum. Apparently, with two months of sitting, the valve had gotten s= ticky enough that the rod gave before it did.  

I was completely unharmed.&nb= sp; I've suffered more damage getting the plane out of the field than I did p= utting it there.  The nose gear, firewall, forward belly and left side s= kin are trashed.  The rebuild starts tomorrow with building a stand to h= old the engine while I work the aluminium.
= --Apple-Mail-ECEC1822-2873-4E95-9E2F-BE929696F70D--