After the first run of the engine the very next thing you have to do is go through the break-in process. I’ve been experiencing heating issues with trying to go through the break-in period. It’s running hot. I called Six-Chuter’s Rolando and he had me adjust the needle in the carburetor. This helped but I’m still running overly hot in the 4500-5000 rpm band.
My next steps are to, drain the fuel and put in new fuel, I’m going to double-check the oil/fuel mix ratio to make sure I didn’t mess something up. I’m also going to call Rolando again to see if there is anything else I can check.
This weekend I went to a local fly-in to meet up with a friend of mine who helped me out with the first startup of my engine. It took a little to start it but it finally came to life. Joey video’d the startup but it’s shared in a private facebook group. I’ll try to get the video and put it up here.
So now that I got the engine running it’s time to do the break in. There is a very specific procedure you have to follow, running the engine at specific RPMs for specific amounts of time. In doing this I noticed a couple of issues. My idle RPM was registering at 3000 RPMs. The engine seemed to not want to run at that RPM very well. Also, Joey remarked that it wasn’t very windy behind the prop. Those were two things that were nagging at me. So I changed the calibration of the tachometer so that it registered the idle RPM at 1500 RPM or so. That seemed more in line with what the engine was actually doing. Then when I ran the engine at the prescribed break-in RPMs, it ran much smoother and I could feel more “push” from the prop.
Another problem I ran into at first engine start was that my EGT (exhaust gas temperature) didn’t seem to be working. It turned out that it was! I just needed to run the engine at a higher RPM. So as I was doing the break-in at the higher RPMs I noticed my EGT was up past the recommended 1100 deg Fahrenheit and even started to hit 1200 which is the absolute max. I decided to throttle back and let the engine cool down after which I shut down. I’ll contact Six Chuter tomorrow to get their opinion on what I should do to fix this problem.
I now leave with with few photos from the MacFarlane Farms Fly-in…
This is my wrap-up video for my Six Chuter P3 Lite powered parachute. I only have to items to finish; connect the gas line to the fuel tank, connect the voltage regulator to the battery. Everything else is complete. I had to move a few things around when I found I had mounted them in the wrong place. Now I have holes where I don’t need them. We call those lightening holes. An aircraft term used to refer to holes cut to save weight in the airplane. 🙂
Good Friday. What’s so good about it? It is the day my Savior and King Jesus Christ, Son of God finished His work of salvation. Fully man and fully God, He knew no sin, yet became sin for us. He fulfilled every requirement of the Law for us now and forever.
The day after tomorrow we celebrate the greatest victory in history: Resurrection Day! The day death was defeated. Because death could not hold Him, death cannot hold us!
I found that I mounted the started solenoid in the wrong place. It can still work here. The only problem would be the longer rear wire. If I can’t tuck it away safely, I’ll move the solenoid.
A few more minor things done today. There were a few bolts that I wasn’t happy with the sizes, a little too long, a little too short so I ordered some more bolts from Aircraft Spruce. So with the bolts in hand I was able to mount my starter contactor (solenoid), and mount the regulator more securely. I also started on the fuel hose and primer bulb.
There has also been some talk about fuel pumps. I’m inclined to keep it in the factory position as they say they have not had any problems reported to them with this setup.
However, I’m not opposed to mounting it in a more favorable position, which would be above the fitting on the crankcase (follow the clear hose on top of the fuel pump.) I just can’t see a way to do that. Any ideas?
Today I had to work late so I didn’t too much done. But we only have to do one thing a day right? So today I ran a wire for my strobe from the instrument pod to the top of the prop cage where I’m going to mount the strobe. I wanted to find a position on the key switch that provide +12V whenever the key was in any position other than OFF. Unfortunately this key switch does not provide that. So I tapped off the +12V terminal that goes to the battery. I just have to remember to turn the strobe switch off. I would have liked for it to turn off if EITHER the strobe switch were turned off, or the key switch were turned off. I’ll have to look for a different key switch down the road.
This was another one of those days where I just try to get one thing done. Today I finished wiring up the switches and gauges in the panel. Well, almost. I added a switch for my anti-collision strobe light and need to run the wires for that still. But all the other wiring in the panel is done. Tomorrow I’ll run the last two wires for the strobe. I also labelled all the wires at the far end of the wire loom. I’ll finish wiring those up when I permanently mount the wire loom in the back of the PPC.
Sundays are for spending with family so I didn’t get much done today. I was able to do some wiring and wiring cleanup. I attached the wire loom to the frame and began connecting up the switches. I’ve only got to connect the gauges and the electrical wiring is done.
I also need to check with the factory to see if they have designated certain wire colors for certain things.
Air Prayer 