Last thing I found -- Airparts of Lock Haven, Pa. They claim that the
FAA requires that the sender unit be sent to them. They will replace
the float, certify the unit, and ship it back -- all for $65.

I was wondering if anyone on the list knows about this FAA
"requirement".

Yes. The legal theory is that the float is an instrument. It takes a
certified instrument shop (not just any A&P) to repair an instrument.
Airparts of Lock Haven is a certified instrument shop, your A&P is not.
Not saying it's necessarily valid, but that's the theory they're going
on.

Of course the realistic solution would be to find a plastic float that
looks like the broken one, replace it yourself, not tell anyone, and
not log it. However, this would not be legal.

You see, what irks me the most was the sticker on the back of the fuel
sender unit when it was pulled. A sticker showing Airparts of Lock
Haven, 5/30/02. That means that float came from the same company and
was only 2.5 years old. And when I called the company back about this
little item -- I was told that I'm lucky. The supervisor who talked
to me said that some floats only last a year while others last five
years.

The floats in my senders are 40 years old, and doing fine. It makes no
sense that a plastic ball should last only a year to five years. I
think it's because these guys are using inferior materials or
procedures. For an FAA certified repair station, that's the norm
rather than the exception.

Michael