Posted for W Atkinson <Walter@advancedpilot.com>:

 Adam:
 
 Our experiences are obviously quite different.
 
 In response to your comments:
 
 1) My fuel injectors have not needed *calibration* over hundreds of hours of
trouble-free service.  They've not needed cleaning and the F:A ratios have
remained steady and consistent for many hundreds of hours.   As long as the
F:A ratios stay the same, I  do not clean them.  I
 don't understand the concern about steady-state/calibrated, balanced
injectors.  It's as maintenance free as it gets.
 
 2) Leaning is quite simple once you have balanced F:A ratios.  It takes me
less than 5 seconds to very accurately lean my engine for cruise.  I can
repeatedly hit the same mixture setting within a very narrow band in 5
seconds. If it takes longer than that, it is being overly complicated.
 Where's the complexity?
 
 3) I have complete flexibility to lean appropriately for any mission or any
change in the mission.  In contrast, there is no flexibility with FADEC-type
systems which make all of these decisions for the pilot and the pilot cannot
over-ride them.
 
 4) Your comment about ground leaning is an interesting array of issues.
 After start-up, I aggressively ground lean and do not again touch the
 mixture until takeoff power is applied.  I do the run-up aggressively leaned
as it is more diagnostic.  Any other procedure is overly complex and
sub-optimal in my view.  I find my procedure optimal and no workload at all.
 
 5) If I remove all twelve of my plugs and lay them out, you will not be able
to tell which ones came form the top and which ones came from the bottom.
 They are all light tan and I have not had a fouled plug in years.  Worrying
about fouled plugs is not on my radar screen.  It doesn't happen with my
normal procedures.
 
 6) From the time I lean for cruise at the top of the climb (which took me all
of 3 seconds and can even be done while I'm talking to ATC), it is quite
common for me not to touch the mixture again until I am on the ground and at
the hangar ready to shut down.  That may have been four or five hours of doing
nothing with the mixture (no, I don't alter the mixture during the let-down).
 Where's the workload?  Heck, I'm already doing nothing.  How much more
nothing should I be doing?
 
 I don't know where the high workload you are worried about is found.   It's
not on my flights.  I'm not willing to trade whatever little advantage  may be
identified in lower workload in an already no-workload situation for the loss
of flexibility and control over the mission.
 
 Your mileage may vary.
 
 Walter