Responsive preventative maintenance

I'm not sure that the subject accurately portrays the topic about which I'm
asking, but I couldn't arrive at a better term.

The person that flew the club airplane before me reported a magneto problem
in the squawk book. When I tried to start the plane the next day, I found
it unwilling to start. When the mechanic was finally able to get to it (a
day later), it turned out that the magneto used for starting had to be
rebuilt.

My thinking is that the report by the person that flew before me should have
triggered something. I'm not sure exactly what, though. Perhaps it
should go directly to the mechanic? Perhaps some third party should have
looked at it first?

An owner would do what in that case? I guess that's part of what I'm
asking. If you - as an owner - found a problem - and I'm guessing that
what the previous person saw was a lack of mag drop during run-up - what
would you do?

I guess it seems silly to me to wait for the next person before the plane is
actually "looked at". Would an owner wait for the next flight? That I was
there the next day is one thing. But what if the airplane was "off" for a
day or two? That would be the ideal time for the problem that's arisen to
be fixed. But that cannot happen if it waits for the next pilot.

[Of course, a separate issue is whether you'd fly it with no mag drop.]

What do other clubs do in this regard?

Thanks...

Andrew

[I originally posted this to the wrong group. Apologies to those that read
it twice.]

Andrew Gideon wrote:

Would an owner wait for the next flight?

This owner would not (and did not when one mag died).

That didn't mean it got looked at immediately, however. The problem was reported
to the local shop immediately, but the mechanic didn't get to it for several
days.

George Patterson
To a pilot, altitude is like money - it is possible that having too much
could prove embarassing, but having too little is always fatal.

Mag problems do not fix themselves. Since any ignition problem is an
airworthiness issue, the airplane should be checked into the shop without
even thinking about it. If the previous pilot misdiagnosed the problem then
it would, of course, be different.


"Andrew Gideon" wrote in message
online.com...
I'm not sure that the subject accurately portrays the topic about which
I'm
asking, but I couldn't arrive at a better term.

The person that flew the club airplane before me reported a magneto
problem
in the squawk book. When I tried to start the plane the next day, I found
it unwilling to start. When the mechanic was finally able to get to it (a
day later), it turned out that the magneto used for starting had to be
rebuilt.

My thinking is that the report by the person that flew before me should
have
triggered something. I'm not sure exactly what, though. Perhaps it
should go directly to the mechanic? Perhaps some third party should have
looked at it first?

An owner would do what in that case? I guess that's part of what I'm
asking. If you - as an owner - found a problem - and I'm guessing that
what the previous person saw was a lack of mag drop during run-up - what
would you do?

Andrew Gideon wrote:
What do other clubs do in this regard?

The answer is, it depends on the club and their rules and structure.
One club I am in, the Rules of Conduct state that any member observing
any deficiency will notify the club maintance officer as soon as
possible and post notice to other members that the aircraft off flight
status until further notice.

A second club I am in, upon discerning a discrepancy, it is your
responsiblity to denote the discrepancy on the white-board in the
clubhouse. Always check the white-board prior when obtaining the
aircraft key.

On 16-Oct-2003, Andrew Gideon wrote:

An owner would do what in that case? I guess that's part of what I'm
asking. If you - as an owner - found a problem - and I'm guessing that
what the previous person saw was a lack of mag drop during run-up - what
would you do?

We co-owners work it this way: if a problem arises that raises an issue of
airworthiness the one who finds the problem notifies the others (by e-mail
or telephone) as soon as practical, and contacts the shop to arrange for
service. We trust one another to get required maintenance taken care of,
even if we are away from home base.
--
-Elliott Drucker

"Andrew Gideon" wrote in message
online.com...
snip
An owner would do what in that case? I guess that's part of what I'm
asking. If you - as an owner - found a problem - and I'm guessing that
what the previous person saw was a lack of mag drop during run-up - what
would you do?


This owner would probably have packed it in for the day. Things related to
keeping the big fan blowing get my attention, although if it was lack of a
mag drop, it's likely just a poorly connected lead.

Actually, time permitting, I would have parked the plane and walked over to
the hangar to talk to the mechanic. I'm lucky in that my shop goes out of
their way to keep me flying. They usually have time to stop by and take a
quick look. If it's simple (like reconnecting a lead), it gets done right
away. Not so simple and we schedule a regular appointment. Most any shop
would do the same I think.

mark

Andrew Gideon wrote in message gonline.com...

An owner would do what in that case? I guess that's part of what I'm
asking. If you - as an owner - found a problem - and I'm guessing that
what the previous person saw was a lack of mag drop during run-up - what
would you do?

Lack of a mag drop would indicate that the P-lead to the mag switch
is not grounding properly. This means the mag is always hot. I would
not only park the plane, but I'd attach a note to the prop, warning
others that the prop could be hot.

John Galban=====N4BQ (PA28-180)

"John Galban" wrote in message om...

Lack of a mag drop would indicate that the P-lead to the mag switch
is not grounding properly.

Or that the magnetos are mistimed..

This means the mag is always hot. I would
not only park the plane, but I'd attach a note to the prop, warning
others that the prop could be hot.

The prop could be hot even if both mags have a mag drop. Switches
have been known to stay hot in OFF when they worked normally in
L & R.

"Ron Natalie" wrote in message ...
"John Galban" wrote in message om...

Lack of a mag drop would indicate that the P-lead to the mag switch
is not grounding properly.

Or that the magnetos are mistimed..

I've never heard of that one. The P-lead problem seems a lot more
common.

What sort of timing configuration would result in no mag drop when
going from "both" to one mag? I'd always assumed (perhaps
incorrectly) that running on 1 set of plugs would always result in
less than optimum combustion, with a coincidental drop in rpm during
run up.

This means the mag is always hot. I would
not only park the plane, but I'd attach a note to the prop, warning
others that the prop could be hot.

The prop could be hot even if both mags have a mag drop. Switches
have been known to stay hot in OFF when they worked normally in
L & R.

Also true. There's an AD for many planes dealing with that problem.
Of course, the point of my post was that the lack of a mag drop could
be an indicator of a potentially dangerous situation.

John Galban=====N4BQ (PA28-180)

John Galban wrote:

What sort of timing configuration would result in no mag drop when
going from "both" to one mag?

Retard one of the mags about 5 degrees.

George Patterson
To a pilot, altitude is like money - it is possible that having too much
could prove embarassing, but having too little is always fatal.