Maintenance

Some overhaul shops claim beneficial cooling effects of blackpaint on their engine. The theory is that black is a betteremitter of infrared (heat) energy. A hot engine in a cold surrounding,radiates energy from the hot object to the cold. The amount ofradiant cooling (thermal emissions) is generally dependent uponthe temperature of the emitter (engine) and […]

Preflight: Start: Idle: Takeoff: Cruise: Shutdown:

Proper leaning during idle and taxi operations is much more important thanmost pilots understand. It can solve spark plug fouling problems, reducevalve guide wear and valve sticking problems, and prolong engine life.Here’s why. Mixture distribution is poor at idle. At a rich idle mixture, some fueldoesn’t vaporize and enters the cylinder as a liquid where […]

Identifying the problem Alternator induced radio noise is a high pitched whine whose pitchand intensity increases and decreases with changes in engine speed.Turning the alternator master switch off also turns off the radionoise. Solid state regulators that use a pulse-width-modulated fieldcontrol system can also create a whine in the radios. Regulator-causedwhine can be distinguished from […]

Each cylinder of your piston aircraft enginehas two valves—intake and exhaust—that open and close by slidingin and out through a close-tolerance valve guide. A stuck valveis one that no longer slides readily in its guide. A stuck valvemay refuse to open, or once open it may refuse to close. Eithersituation is quite serious. Stuck valves […]

Dear Cessna 210 Owner, FAA records indicate that you recently registered a Cessna 210 aircraft. I am writing to brief you on several safety-critical topics that we believe every Centurion owner should be aware of. Our experience indicates that many 210 owners (even some experienced ones) are not aware of certain important characteristics of this […]

AVweb’scomments are in red. Why would a sane and profitable multi-national conglomeratelike Textron want to mess around with engines for little airplanes? Because as long as we return to the shareholder the profits theyexpect, we’ll be in the engine business. And we have been ableto do that. If it gets to the point that an […]

Will the piston engines of tomorrow incorporate new technologyof will they just be more of the same? Do piston aircraft engineseven have a future? To answer these questions, we’ve been touringthe country talking to as many engine experts as we could find.This is the second article in a periodic series on the currentstate and future […]

Will the piston engines of tomorrow incorporate new technologyof will they just be more of the same? Do piston aircraft engineseven have a future? To answer these questions, we’ve been touringthe country talking to as many engine experts as we could find.This is the second article in a periodic series on the currentstate and future […]

Oil is the lifeblood of your engine. To achieve maximum engine life, it is crucial to choose the correct oil and to change it regularly at the correct intervals using the correct procedures. If you were flying behind a turbine engine, the choice of oil would be easy. You’d simply choose the slipperiest, longest lasting […]