Flaked the paint off the oil door?

Climbing out of KBLM today in our club's Piper Dakota (235hp O-540) in
pure milky white rain and cloud and I saw a white flake hit the
windshield. Later on after I climbed up a bit I noticed that all the
paint on the oil filler door is flaking off. I was still in the climb so
I hadn't leaned it, but the EGTs were probably around 1200. So did I
overheat the engine? Was it on the ground, or in the climb?

--
Paul Tomblin http://blog.xcski.com/
Can't get out of 'vi'? Common problem. Don't worry, I'm here to help. Just
log in as root and type "init 0". It works for pretty much any problem you
might have with Linux. No, no, no. Thank /you/. -- Mikey Raeder

On 23 Jul, 22:09, (Paul Tomblin) wrote:
Climbing out of KBLM today in our club's Piper Dakota (235hp O-540) in
pure milky white rain and cloud and I saw a white flake hit the
windshield. Later on after I climbed up a bit I noticed that all the
paint on the oil filler door is flaking off. I was still in the climb so
I hadn't leaned it, but the EGTs were probably around 1200. So did I
overheat the engine? Was it on the ground, or in the climb?

Some detached shock wave effect?

"Paul Tomblin" wrote in message
...
Climbing out of KBLM today in our club's Piper Dakota (235hp O-540) in
pure milky white rain and cloud and I saw a white flake hit the
windshield. Later on after I climbed up a bit I noticed that all the
paint on the oil filler door is flaking off. I was still in the climb so
I hadn't leaned it, but the EGTs were probably around 1200. So did I
overheat the engine? Was it on the ground, or in the climb?

I am neither a painter, nor an A&E, but most flying clubs have mechanics as
members--usually more than one. So I would suggest asknig around the club.

My personal guess would be that the oil door may have been repainted--they
receive more wear than most of the cowling and are tantalizingly easy.
Depending on the climate some paints, especially aerosol cans, will *never*
fully cure unless force dried. When I occasionally refinished avionics
boxes in southeastern Florida, which is perpetually humid, it is necessary
to cure most aerosol paints at a temperature which would lower the humidity
to around 20 percent--preferrably overnight. Otherwise, you could *easily*
strip the paint with your thumbnail--even months later.

BTW, if the mechanics in the club have an answer, please post it.

I hope this helps.

Peter