Charlie,
I will look at some photos tomorrow.
Jeff
Sent from my iPad Dennis, I've had excellent results with that quick-drain system on my Legacy / 550 also, over 300 hrs and a half-dozen oil changes.
I also had the oil pan clearance problem with the nosegear over-center links, in fact my links actually retracted into contact (just barely) with the oil pan. Being in a hurry to get flying, and thinking that the oil pan is fairly thin and flexible, I did a redneck cure: taped two stirring sticks, layerwise, on the bottom of the pan at the point of interference, and manually retracted the nose gear (i.e., by lifting it with my hands) a few times, thus using the O/C links themselves to bend the oil pan to provide about 1/10 inch clearance in ground-retract conditions. I painted the pan and looked for witness marks, but there haven't been any in 350 hours.
Perhaps someone who's been inside a 550 could comment on whether there's anything immed inside the pan, or any other risk of bending it inward/upward 1/10 inch near the center... I assume it's an ordinary reservoir with an inch or so at least of clearance above it, give or take non-structural items like a baffle.
Charley Brown Legacy 299 350 hours.
From: Lancair Mailing List [mailto:lml@lancaironline.net] On Behalf Of Dennis Johnson
Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2014 6:39 AM
To: Lancair Mailing List
Subject: [LML] Legacy Oil Pan Quick Drain .... So a few months ago I installed a different quick drain valve, called the "Lancair IV Oil Drain Valve," Aircraft Spruce part #08-01298. It looks like this ... I installed the drain valve into the oil pan, lifted the nose gear off the ground, and manually swung the nose gear. The clearance was tight, considering how much the engine rocks and rolls, but it looked like there would be enough. For the first few flights after installing it, I inspected the drain closely, looking for rub marks. I didn't find any. There is no evidence that the nose gear strut is contacting the drain valve.
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