: So far everything looks very good except for two things. My A&P IA was inspecting
the propeller spinner back plate : and was turning the prop real slow by hand as he
did so. He noticed that the impulse coupler on the left mag wasn't : clicking. He
turned it a little faster and it works fine. Tried it slow again and sometimes... no
clicky.
I would be a bit concerned on that. There are AD's against some mags' impulse
couplings (like mine... O-360 with Bendix). Basically, the little tabbies that are
supposed to catch and load the spring get worn. Also, there is a bad type of rivet
that holds them on the impulse coupling. If the pivot point on the catch tabs are
worn, it could be binding enough once in awhile so gravity won't drop them where they
need to catch. If these couplings fail and fall apart, they'll drop a bunch of little
steel pieces in the accessory housing and likely jam up the gears. Since important
things like the camshaft run on those, it could ruin your day.

Even if they aren't the type with ADs on them, I'd take the mags off an have a
looksee. It doesn't take that long to take them off and look. Also, it's typical for
only one mag on the Cherokees to have a impulse coupling. Does yours have one on
both?

: Question #2 The nose strut is not leaking, but there is a spot in which the chrome
plating is beginning to blister. : It is hard to see and is low on the strut where it
would take some extremely hard braking or a big bump, (or one of : my not so good
landings, come to think of it) to get the top portion of the strut to pass over it.
Eventually I : suspect, it will need attention. Is it still possible to have these
struts rechromed? A Google search turned up a : post from 2002 listing these guys:

I don't know about rechroming, but the worst thing I can think of that would
happen would be a bit more wear on the rubber O-ring seals on the struts. They're not
that tough to replace either... just a bit messy. I would be a bit concerned about
any heating that may have to happen to have it rechromed. I don't know anything about
the process, but losing the heat treatment on them could be bad. I'd probably see
what some fine sandpaper on the blistered chrome would do. Just make sure it doesn't
rust afterwards.

-Cory

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* Cory Papenfuss *
* Electrical Engineering candidate Ph.D. graduate student *
* Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University *
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