Apr 23, 2023     A/C Leak Category: Maintenance

Refrigerant leaked over winter. Recharged system with R134a to 220/25 psi (ambient temp 76F) with engine running at 1300 rpm, A/C on, and condenser fan one high. Shut down and allowed to equilibrate overnight. Detected refrigerant leak in evaporator condensate drain. Removed and ship evaporator to John Strain for replacement. Also detected minor leaks in bulkhead fittings, perhaps due to over-tightening. Plan to replace all o-ring on reassembly.

  Dec 24, 2022     Canopy Scrath Removal and Polishing Category: Maintenance

Experimented with approaches to remove canopy surface scratches, likely due to poor cleaning techniques. Using a 18"'X24"X0.22" sheet of plexiglass (Lowes 1AG2123A), lightly scoured 1/4 of the surface with red Scotch Brite pad in circular motion. Started linear sanding with a pre-wetted 1500 Micro-Mesh (KR-70) using moderate pressure for about 2 min. A good slurry forms indicating material removal. Wiped surface with moist microfiber cloth and checked that swirling scratches from red pad were gone or repeated sanding. Next, wiped surface clean with water and a damp cloth and continued linear sanding with 1800 Micro-Mesh at 90 degrees to the first sanding direction for about 2 min. Wiped surface and inspected that previous sanding marks were gone and moved on to 2400 Micro-Mesh and 3600 Micro-Mesh.

At this point, I switched to using 3M Perfect-It EX AC Rubbing Compound (36060) applied using a 3" yellow foam pad (Harbor-Freight 69335) attached to my cordless M-12 drill with 90 deg adapter. Applying moderate pressure, polished the surface at 1500 rpm for abut 2 min or until material disappeared. Wiped surface clean with water and a clean towel and applied Micro-gloss from the Micro-Mesh kit using the 3" white foam pad using moderate pressure at 1500 rpm for about 2 min. Finished cleaning with soap and water.

These final steps deviated from the Micro-Mesh but I felt they provided a superior finish in a shorter time. For these scratches, it was essential to start with the 1500 Micro-Mesh and work up to the 3600 before using the 3M rubbing compound. Deeper scratches will probably need an initial sanding with 400 grit sandpaper.

  Dec 21, 2022     1st Annual Condition Inspection (202 hrs) - (20 hours) Category: Maintenance

Ran engine inflight to normal op temp, hangered, and drained oil. Removed oil filter. Submitted oil sample to Blackstone (46 hrs on oil). Cut open filter and found no debris. Removed and cleaned suction screen and also found no debris. Reinstalled and safety wired suction screen plug. Installed and safety wired new oil filter (Champion CH48110-1). Added 8L oil (Phillips 66 X/C, 20W-50). Removed spark plugs and cleaned plug adapters. No apparent plug fouling observed. Installed new Denso 5347 IKH27 Iridium Power spark plugs (0.030" gap) and copper gasket (Part# M674) using Tempest Anti-Seize (Part# T556) to required torque.

Ran engine at 1500 rpm until CHTs reached 300F. Removed upper plugs. Performed cylinders pressure test and obtained: 1 (78/80), 2 (78/80), 3 (78/80 ), 4 (79/80). Boroscoped each cylinder and stored photos. Nothing notable observed. Reinstalled spark plugs. EGT#1 giving erroneous readings. Replaced with new probe (Alcor #86255 EGT Probe Type K) and ran engine to verify operation.

Pulled prop using newly constructed wooden gantry. Installed new, larger Hartzell 70A alternator (Plane-Power Part No. AL12EI70/B, S No. H-S040586) and belt (Dayco Part No. 15350 ). Also installed 1" blast tube for new alternator. Replaced AC belt. Set belt tension and torqued all bolts to spec. Install new o-ring, reinstalled prop, torqued all bolts to 60 ft-lbs, and safety wired.. Torqued all bolts to specs. Installed new air filter. Inspected all engine compartment connections and components. Ran engine, cycled prop, and confirmed no leaks and normal operation. New W&B calculated.

Lubricated prop with 1oz (6 trigger pulls) of approved grease on each side of hub. Removed wing root fairing and inspected all bolts and harness connections. Removed fuel filters, disassembled, and inspected. No debris found in either one. Found evidence of fuel leak on left side likely due to loose compression fitting aft of the filter. Re-torqued fitting. Removed seat ramp covers and noticed light surface corrosion on floor, probably the result of water intrusion when canopy seal was leaking, since repaired. Re-primed all surfaces below the ramp cover. Removed entire tunnel cover from CB panel to baggage bulkhead and inspected area. Removed floor covers under seats and inspected area. Tightened headset jacks and added lock washer to prevent loosening and tested. Repaired O2 mount. Re-installed baggage area carpet and mounted O2 cylinder. Re-installed all floor plates and carpet.

Updated G3X and G5 software to latest version (9.14) to comply with Garmin Mandatory Service Bulletin 22112 Rev. B, 09Dec22. Re-installed all remaining fairings and cowlings. Test flew the airplane. Return to service.

  Aug 03, 2022     Best Glide Speed - (1 hour)       Category: Performance

Measured best glide speed and sink rate.
Conditions:
- Full fuel
- No pass or baggage

Procedure
Climb to 7000 MSL. Set direct to KCRE, approx perpendicular to wind. Mix, Prop, Ram in, cut power, set IAS to desired and take picture every 30 sec to 3000 ft MSL. Climb and repeat at new airspeed. Continue on reciprocal course direct KSUT.

Results
Best glide speed (Vg) was 80 KIAS. Sink rate about 900 ft/min. Glide ratio 1.68 miles/1000 ft (8.8 ft//ft).

  Aug 02, 2022     Right Tank Fuel Level Sensor, A/C - (5 hours) Category: Maintenance

Right tank fuel level sensor showing wild swings during flight home from KOSH. Suspect bad ground. Removed upper fairing and noted lock washer missing on sensor cap screw. Confirmed open circuit. Removed and cleaned cap screw and surface and re-installed with washer. Measured 0.78V or ~ 15 gal. Reinstalled fairing.

A/C stopped working during trip to KOSH. On return, confirmed compressor operation so suspected freon loss. Using freon charge line on manifold, added 1/4 oz UV dye and attached 12 oz (340 g) of Freon 134a. Bled air out of line. With high and low pressure lines attached, started engine and fed freon through low side to 250 psig high side pressure. Added ~ 10 oz (283 g), so lost about 0.62 lbs of Freon of initial 1.2lb charge. System cooling. Ran 10 min and checked for leaks but unable to pinpoint source. Will continue to run and look for leaks.

  Jul 19, 2022     Tires - (1 hour) Category: Maintenance

Checked tire pressures and set at 45 psi (all were around mid-20s). Required removing main front wheel fairings and entire nose wheel fairing. Re-installed fairings with new screws.

  Jul 18, 2022     Garmin DBs - (1 hour) Category: Maintenance

Updated G3X and GTN databases.

  Jul 15, 2022     Replace Canopy Seal. Grease Prop. Adjust K-factor - (3 hours) Category: Maintenance

Engine hours: 107.9, Total hours: 114.6
Replaced forward canopy seal and applied silicone sealant to prevent leakage occurring at hinges. Applied silicone sealant at upper aft rear canopy seam to prevent water leakage from rain. Added 5 pumps of NYCO grease to each prop lubrication fittings. Inspected prop pitch controller for leakage and damage. Added 19.6 gal 100LL. Used 17.8 gal flying from KRHP to KSUT. New K-factor = (17.8/19.6)*81488 = 74004

  May 15, 2022     Cooling Test - (1 hour)       Category: Air Cond

Approximately 1 lb of R-134A refrigerant was charged to the previously evacuated system and with the engine running until the high side/low side pressures reached about 200/30 psig. Ambient conditions at the time of the test were 83.5 F and 75% RH. An Omega Engineering RH85 handle hygrometer was used for the measurements. With the compressor engaged and evaporator fan speed at medium, the following results were obtained:

  May 14, 2022     Koger sunshade - (3 hours) Category: Finish

Fabricated and installed headset hangers for pilot/co-pilot from aluminum stock. Installed Koger Sunshade. Installed wire chain lanyards for Bogart bars support retaining pins. Checked oil, 7.5 qts.

  Jan 14, 2022     Flight Day 10 - Phase 1 Complete! - (6 hours) Category: Flight

A windy and gusty day from the NW. Completed over 40 hrs as recorded by G3X.

Preflight
- Inspected roll trim servo and found a loose connection. Roll trim works now.
- Added 1 qt oil to 7.5 qts
- Changed pitch trim settings to reduce aggressiveness based on suggestions from VAF.

Flight Summary
Flew both RNAV approaches at KCPC. Control was good until full flaps, then got large drop in pitch and oscillation. Flew to KACZ, landed, refueled, and set additional intermediate flap position settings so have more step-downs. Flies much better with more gradual flap extension, essentially slowing rate of flap. extension. Flew RNAV 23 circle to 05 with strong 12 kt crosswind and gusts to 16 kts.

  Jan 13, 2022     Flight Day 9 - (8 hours) Category: Flight

Another good flying day.

Inspected ram air inlet and found that y-valve had shaken free of the fuel controller. Removed the inlet air plenum and retourqued clamp.

Shot the VOR-A approach to KCTZ and confirmed navigation with the NAV radio (green lines). After a few attempts, learned that need to select NAV on the GFC 500 to track the VOR outbound.

Flew the RNAV 05 approach with and without auto pitch trim. Found the trim is overly sensitive resulting in large pitch oscillation when extending flaps. The approach with manual pitch trim was much more controlled. Since we're on a glide path, the nose up response of flaps seems to cause the pitch trim to overcorrect. With only me in the left seat and full fuel, a lot of nose up trim is needed on final. Hitting TOGA and going missed caused a large nose up pitch unless the pitch trim is simultaneously adjusted.

Flew several other approaches into KACZ and KSUT both with a fix transition and vectors-to-final to gain more practice.

Discovered on landing the the roll trim servo is not functioning.

Good values for flying the approach:
- 14 in/2700 RPM gives about 100 kts


Goals for next flight:
- Fly off another 5 hrs to complete 40 and Phase 1
- Investigate the roll trim motor issue

  Jan 12, 2022     Flight Day 8 - (8 hours) Category: Flight

Fantastic day for flying. No clouds, lights winds. Goals today were to tune the AP without auto-trim and fly as many approaches as possible.

Morning Flight
- Flew to KCTZ and configured roll and pitch gains. Flew the VOR/DME A approach and landed for fuel. Very nice small airport.

Afternoon Flight
- Departed KCTZ, climbed to 5500 and recalibrated the AoA. Set-up and flew the LOC 06 approach.
- Flew the RNAV 24 approach at KCPC
- Flew the RNAV 23 into KLBT then did missed and entered hold. Left hold to do the ILS 06, but localizer was U/S.
- Flew direct to KSUT and did the RNAV 05 approach, broke off at 1000 and entered pattern for touch and go. Left pattern and flew the RNAV 23 approach and landed.

Summary
- A/P works well without auto-trim.
- Enter procedure at 90-100 kts. 50% power. 14 in/2700 rpm is good setting
- Maintain speed with power adjustment as pitch changes when capturing glide path
- Bring power into landing and cut power when at level pitch over runway. Come in faster.

Squawk List:
- Fly VOR to confirm NAV radio working
- Fly ILS 06 approach into KILM to confirm LOC is active then break-off before entering airspace.
- Engage auto trim and tune
- Reload databases

  Jan 11, 2022     Pre-Flight Preparation - (7 hours) Category: Flight

- Removed air control cable and discovered cable was bent aft of the bulkhead bracket fitting preventing full stroke. Straightened it out and re-attached cable, work as designed now.
- Leveled airplane and performed pitch/roll calibration for G3X and G5.
- Moved airplane outside to re-calibrate magnetometer and perform G5 vibration test.
- Configured G3X to show alternator alarms

  Jan 08, 2022     Flight #8: GTN Practice - (8 hours)       Category: Flight

Flew with Carlos today as Additional Pilot. Shot the RNAV 06 approach into KCPC twice using GTN for first time to fly approach and missed. The AP performed as expected with the corrected trim motor direction configuration. Used TOGA button for first time. Landed and refueled.

Worked on pitch servo control settings to reduce oscillations on final with flaps deployed. CG was far aft with 100 lbs of sand in baggage area which was probably a contributing factor. Will try again with CG further forward.

Flew RVAV 15 approach at KEYF and landed to borrow the courtesy car for lunch at Cape Fear Vineyard. Adjusted stall vane to reduce nuisance alerts.

Flew flight plan that finished with full RNAV-05 approach, Carlos calling radio. Went missed and entered hold then repeated and landed.

Noticed G5 and G3X pitch offset. It's likely since I haven't performed pitch/roll calibration procedure on G5 yet.

Good setting for final approach:
- 15.7 in MAP, 50% power, no flaps,110 kts
- 13.2 in MAP, 40% power, full flaps, 83 kts

Post-Flight Squawk List:
1. Remove alternate air cable and find cause for reduced stroke.
2. Perform pitch/roll calibration of G5.
3. Email g3expert about pitch servo settings.
4. Email Stein and g3expert about alternator alert/alarm configuration one the G3X
5. Recalibrate AoA so it start displaying at a slower speed, say 90 kts.

  Jan 07, 2022     Flight #7 Pre-Flight - (4 hours) Category: Flight

Pre-Flight Prep:
- check angle of each flap relative to canopy longeron and neutral aileron. Make adjustments if possible to add differential lift in ccw direction
- adjust stall warning vane down slightly so that it actuates at a lower airspeed.
- read about the TOGA button and practice using it in the pattern

Trim Issue:
G3expert emailed that the AP roll trim behavior is a backward roll trim servo direction, which was in fact the case. The trim was be directed by the servo to move in the opposite direction. This should solve the problem.

Co-Pilot Stick
Installed the co-pilot stick.

Gust Lock
Installed the Anti-Splat gust lock.

  Jan 06, 2022     Flight #6 - (4 hours) Category: Flight

Great weather today for flight testing. Calm winds and high ceilings.

Morning flight summary:
Loaded additional 100 lb ballast in baggage area in addition to the 150 lbs in co-pilot seat. Topped of tanks. With flight bag, total take-off weight 2135 lbs. CG calculated at 87.69 (91% aft). Disabled ESC. Flew 2.7 hours in practice area.

Pitch control
With aft CG had no issues with pitch authority at any flap setting.

Roll Gain
AP is doing better job handling small heading changes with aileron trim in center position, but has more trouble with large heading changes.

AoA
Was able to successfully calibrate AoA using AP in IAS mode with full flaps, starting at 90 kts for min visible, 75 kts, for caution yellow, and power off stall for stall red. Stalled at about 50 kts with full flaps.

Afternoon Flight Summary
Re-enabled ESC. Noticed I didn't have AP trim control selected which explains the observations before. Used values AP settings from Mike at Garmin for RV-14. The AP worked pretty well as long as roll trim was set manually first before engaging AP. This must be done often, otherwise, AP has tendency to pull and hold trim to extreme of range. Not sure why it's doing this. While hand flying, roll can be trimmed out with about 30% left trim, meaning plane has tendency to roll right with neutral ailerons. When trimmed, the AP handles heading changes well, but when untrimmed, the AP does not seem to be adjusting trim properly. Sent an email to g3xexpert about the issue.

Aileron rigging is correct since I checked both wings with the template. I also set the trim motor in the spring neutral position during calibration. So, if I require left trim for level flight, there is something causing differential lift, and causing a clockwise roll. Some possibilities are: offset flaps, wing twist, aileron twist. Only thing I can really adjust are the flaps.




-

  Jan 05, 2022     Flight #6 Pre-Flight - (2 hours) Category: Flight

Rain today so no flying

Removed wing tips and confirmed aileron neutral position with template. Removed inspection plate holding trim motor. Set ailerons in neutral position and moved inspection plate with motor to neutral position and reinstalled plate. Calibrated as new neutral position.

  Jan 04, 2022     Flight 5: Autopilot, Pitch, MP noise, AOA - (8 hours) Category: Flight

Flight 5 objectives:
- Evaluate performance following installation of snubber fitting and correction of ram air butterfly position
- Complete on-ground and in-flight set-up of autopilot on G3X
- Evaluate pitch control with heavy forward CG
- Calibrate the AOA and perform power-off stalls.

Flight Summary:
Flew two segments, morning and afternoon, with break for lunch, for total of 4.6 hrs. Confirmed correct operation of AP on ground. In flight, verified that snubber fitting and butterfly valve alignment resolved problem of MAP noise. Engage AP and performed in-air set-up to set desired roll and pitch gains. With roll trim centered and a roll gain of 1.0. after a left perturbation of 10deg, the AP rolled level after 10 deg. However, a right 10 deg perturbation required 127 deg before level. Suspecting the roll trim, moving the trim to just left of center, increased the right perturbation recovery speed to 30 deg. Need to reset roll trim neutral position. In afternoon segment added 150 lbs ballast in co-pilot seat and topped tanks. During flight, observed position pitch control at each flap setting and speed from 100 kts to 70 kts.

Performed a few power off stalls and attempted to calibrate the AOA. With full flaps and a heavy forward CG, the plane stalls at about 61 kts. Stall behavior is benign, lots of mushing then the nose drops. AOA calibration was unsuccessful, I think due to inability to maintain level flight. Will try again using the AP. Based on this, Vso of 75 kts is reasonable.

Used Lean Assist to find optimum cruise conditions:
- 23/2300 (66%), 9.2 gpm, 146 kts TAS, lean at peak
- 25/2500 (80%), 11.1 gpm, 155 kts TAS, lean at peak
- 25/2500 (80%). 12.8 gpm, 160 kts TAS, lean 50F ROP
CHTs were all comfortably under 400 F.

Spoke with Aircraft Spruce about ram air control cable. They confirmed stroke should be 3" not the 1.5" I'm seeing. There is likely a kink somewhere preventing full extension. The best option is to remove the cable and test on the bench. A replacement cable will take 4 wks to procure. Also look for a more direct routing with fewer bends.

Engine oil measure 6.8 at start of day and 6.2 at end of day, or 0.13 qts/hr.

  Jan 02, 2022     Pre-Flight Maintenance: Continued - (3 hours) Category: Flight

Centered the y-valve control horn perpendicular to the valve body with both butterflies half-way open. Moved the cable back in the bracket. Was able to find a setting in which the ram air butterfly is centered in the ram air position and the filtered air butterfly is centered in the filtered air position. However, in each case the other butterfly is slightly open. This really shouldn't cause a serious issue. The only way to fix this is with a longer reach on the control cable, but these cable controls seem to have a fixed stroke length. Alternatively, could source a shorter control horn. Set best valve travel and torqued all nuts. Torqued clamps holding FM-200 and filter hose.

Installed snubber fitting (McMaster Carr, Part # 3820K42) on #3 cylinder and ran engine. The MAP responded within just a few seconds and appears very stable.

Re-installed cowlings.

  Jan 01, 2022     Pre-Flight Maintenance - (3 hours) Category: Flight

Removed cowlings. Noticed butterfly y-adapter was loose. Also, the butterfly valve control rod was bending and preventing smooth operation. The butterfly is also not fully open in ram mode....could this be contributing to noise in the MAP reading at full throttle. Will need to rethink the linkage and install some support.

Measured 7.8 qts oil. Ran engine until oil temp reached 150F. Drained oil (dark black). Replace filter and safety wired. Added 7 qts Aeroshell 80. Ran engine and no leaks observed.

Oil consumption rate for 4th flight was 0.06 qts/hr.

  Dec 31, 2021     Flight 4: Engine Performance, Altitude, Lean Assist - (6 hours) Category: Flight

Goals for Flight 4:
- Evaluate prop speed settings
- Experiment with Lean Assist
- Evaluate performance at various altitudes

Pre-Flight Prep:
- Added 2 qts oil to 8 qts total
- Tighten spinner backplate, torquing bolts to 170 in-lbs.

Flight Summary:
Flew total of 3.1 hours covering 390 NM in box. Flew at 3500, 5500, 7500, 9600, 10,500, 11,500, 12,500.

At 2700 RPM could only marginally lean engine limited by CHT1 and CHT2 reaching max imposed limit of 400F (fuel flow 20 gal/min). Decreasing prop speed to 2500 RPM, 25 in, permitted better leaning to 13.4 rpm (100% RAM air), although still limited by CHTs. Reducing prop speed to 2300 and 23 in, permitted full leaning while keeping CHTs below maximums. Best fuel consumption was between 10.5 and 11.5 gal/hr.

These results confirm:
- Use full rich at 2700 RPM
- Lower MAP to 25 and prop to 2500 for high power climb, don't lean yet
- Lower MAP To 23 and prop to 2300 for economy cruise. Use Lean Assist to lean mixture. Operate at max EGT
- Fly at high power cruise (25 in, 2500 RPM). Use Lean Assist. Operate 150F ROP.

Plan for 11 gph fuel consumption when properly leaned and 150-160 kts TAS.

Other observations:
- the airplane trims out very well. There is no offset in the turn coordinator, the ball is right in the middle. There's plenty of pitch authority with one passenger and full tanks (take off weight 1860 lbs, CG 84.3, 36% aft)
- steady MAP readings difficult to obtain with large variations difficult to explain. The engine appears to run well, so this is likely a sensor issue rather than a manifold leak issue. The snubber fitting should dampen out the pressure pulses.

  Dec 30, 2021     Phase 1 Planning Category: Flight

Thursday, 12/30
- Grounded due to wind/rain
- Package up parts for return to Vans
Phase 1 hours, 7

Friday, 12/31
Weather forecast good.
- Continue engine break-in at full power for another 3-4 hours, for a total of 10-11 hour engine time and measure oil consumption
- Complete G3X on-ground configuration
- Re-torque spinner mount, appears loose
Phase 1 hours, 10

Saturday/Sunday, 1/1-1/2
Weather forecast, wind and rain.
- Remove cowlings.
- Change oil and filter. Inspect and clean screen.
- Inspect engine for leaks.
- Replace safety wire on alternator
- Install MAP snubber fitting and reconnect MAP line from transducer
- Install screws missing on inspection plates
- Install missing screw on baffle
- Install missing nut plate
- use solvent to remove tape residue on surfaces
- Install nose gear fairings. Epoxy tow bar hole guide to nose fairing
- Install main gear fairings. Continue with fabrication of transitions
- Test LED strip and repair/replace
- Install iPhone mount
- Install tow bar mounts
- Pick up sand bags

Monday, 1/3
Potential flying day...
- Pitch authority at various take-off weight and CGs.
Phase 1 hours, 13

Tuesday, 1/4
- Stall testing
- AoA calibration
Phase 1 hours, 16

Wednesday, 1/5
- Autopilot operation
Phase 1 hours, 20

Between 1/6 and 1/20 (14 days), need another 20 flight hours, or about 6-7 more good weather flight days.

  Dec 29, 2021     Flight #3: More Engine Break-in Time - (8 hours)       Category: Flight

Today flew total of 4 hours, running hard at full throttle and 2700 rpm, >80% power. Covered the corners of my approved box for a total of 520 NM. Remained mainly at 5500 due to cloud layer and strong winds from the southwest. 8PP performed flawlessly.

Oil consumption rate has been steadily declining.

Oil Consumption
First flight (1.5 hrs)...................0.67 qts/hr
Second flight (1.5 hrs)..............0.33 qts/hr
Third flight (4.0 hrs)..................0.25 qts/hr

CHTs were well controlled and kept below 400F by adjusting the mixture. Fuel consumption was about 17 gal/hr for filtered air vs 16 gal/hr vs ram air at full power.

  Dec 28, 2021     Flight #3: Fogged In - (6 hours) Category: Flight

Flight #3 Plan:
Continue full power break-in. Plan to fly boundaries of box. Total distance 190 NM. Plan to refuel in Lumberton. Observe CHTs.

Flight #3 Summary
Grounded today due to fog rolling in around 11am so worked on squawk list. Oil volume 7.5 qts.

Squawks:
- Drained left tanks and removed 9 gal. Removed drain valve. Problem was over-torquing. Reinstalled and tighten to just before binding obtained. Fuel gauge read 0 when empty and 9 when recharged.
- Identified bad ELT remote battery. Purchased new one at Ace and replaced. ELT test successfully.
- Fixed stall warning switch by moving one wire to common.
- Sanded headset holder and fuselage, applied new tape and installed.

Other:
- Paired iPad with G3X. Live data download activated. Successfully uploaded flight plans to GTN.
- Started installing new glare shield that arrived today.
- Updated G3X software and all databases in G3X and GTN.

  Dec 27, 2021     Flight #2: Engine Break-In - (5 hours)       Category: Flight

Watched great video by Mike Busch on new engine break-in which does the best job I've seen to explain the topic.
https://www.eaa.org/Videos/Aircraft-Building/6228066360001

He recommends in his video:
- run at highest power (full throttle) at lowest safe altitude.
- continue until oil consumption stabilizes and CHTs drop
- monitor CHTs, don't let any cylinder exceed 440F

Break-in should take 5 hours or so.

Flight #2 Summary:
Flew 1.4 hrs from KSUT to KACZ (Wallace) twice at 2500 ft and at 6500 ft at full power. TAS was 165 kts measured at each altitude and direction. Fully rich fuel flow was 19.4 mph at 2500 ft and 17.7 mph at 6500 ft. Added 1qt oil to 8 qts prior to departure. During flight measured about 1in additional MP when switching to RAM air. Tried leaning at full power, but CHTs rapidly hit imposed limits of 400F, so clearly will not be able to lean at full power. CHTs settled out during high power cruise with 1/2 reading higher than 3/4. MP signal is still noisy. G3X install manual suggests installing snubber fitting (Rev AN, 24-24). Purchased one from McMaster Carr.

Squaks:
- left tank fuel drain stuck....will drain tank and inspect. Ordered spare drains from AS
- ELT remote non-functioning....will check with back-up ELT
- Missing 6-32 pan head screws on aft empennage inspection panels....ordered from McC
- MP signal noisy...ordered snubber fitting from McC
- Stall warning switch not working
- Headset bracket still not secure.

  Dec 25, 2021     Post First-Flight Inspection - (2 hours) Category: Flight

Removed upper cowling to inspect engine. Didn't observe any leaks. Inspected the MAP line from #3 cylinder to the transducer and the compression nut may have been slightly loose. Retightened the nuts on both ends. Repaired a very small hole in duct to the oil exchanger. Used a heat gun to confirm #1 and #2 CHTs are properly configured. Will need to keep an eye on these.

Connected Garmin Pilot on iPAD via bluetooth to the GDL 51R to enable datalog downloads during operation.

Downloaded first flight data to on-line application called FlightData.com to better enable post-flight data analysis.
https://www.flightdata.com/flights/N818PP

  Dec 24, 2021     First Flight - (3.0 hours)       Category: Flight

Successful first flight under ideal conditions at KSUT. Take-off run at gradual power increase to full was about 500 ft and climbed out at 1300 ft/min to 3000 ft. Performed three loops around the airport. Pitch trim is a bit sensitive, but was able to trim stable in pitch and roll. All engine readings in green. Performed two 360 turns at 30 deg in each direction. I didn't sense bias or heaviness in the controls. Climbed to 5000-7000 ft and flew NW to Clinton (CTZ). Practiced landing pattern at 4000 ft and returned to SUT. Max IAS at 154 kts and ground speed 180 kts. Switching from filtered to RAM air resulted in about 1in increase in MAP. Landed in less than 500 ft after 1.5 hrs.

CHTs were within range during entire flights, although they started to climb when flying at max power at end of flight. It's odd that cylinders 1 and 2 are reading higher and need to confirm they haven't been mis-assigned. MAP signal was quite noisy at high power which needs to be investigated further. Oil temps looked good as did oil pressure. Fuel pressure was well-regulated through flight and can clearly see increase when fuel pump turned on. Generally, vibrations were low and controls smooth.

Need to link Pilot to G3X to be able to download datalogs to Pilot.

  Dec 23, 2021     Pre-First Flight Preparation - (3 hours)       Category: Pre-Flight

Performed power taxi tests. Plane tracked and steered easily. Confirmed pitot operation by comparing IAS with GPS ground speed (chart). Oil temp settled out at 180F (chart) within range. Oil pressure was in range. CHTs are within range. Oil pressure correlating with RPM.