skippydiesel

WOWEEE! !!!! FlyBoy 1960 you have had fun with this. Great work, will take it all on board, along with the preceding comets by others. Much 😈

I feel that, giving plenty of notice ie time to understand / look out / find & be found by other aircraft is important for me and other pilots in the air or about to take-off. To this end; I always do an "Inbound" - If high traffic activity, may do an additional call. Followed by an "Overhead The Field" - I do not like joining the circuit , without having an opportunity to assess traffic (on ground/in air) so unless an emergency, do not do Straight Ins / Circuit Joins, before an Overhead. Having "Joined the Circuit" the number & position of calls is determined by traffic density / position & intention of other aircraft All my calls include; Position in Space (Location / Altitude) & Intention. If I am unable to locate a potentially conflicting aircraft - more calls may be made. I believe that there is too little timely / useful radio communication. This results in accidents.😈

Yes. I use my Dynon True airspeed, as a de facto fuel flow gauge (the actual one is not sufficiently sensitive) so mainatine 130 knots, 5000 rpm, in Cruise. My actual average fuel consumed is 14.25L/hr but a flight plan at 15L/hr. My Dynon Fuel flow read out rarely drops below 17L/hr in level flight. When compared against actual Litres refueled, cant be correct. Weirdly the computed Fuel Used/ Fuel Remain read out is spot .😈

Hi One\ track, Thanks for all that. I was thinking of trying to contact Clubs at potential overnight / refuelling locations - what think you? What of Serpentine as my destination field??😈

My questions will almost always relate to ; Must see Fuel Accommodation On the topic of accommodation- I will be carrying an emergency tent & supplies but as a retired person, no longer in the first flush of youth, would prefer to kip in a nice cozy bed with a roof overhead, toilet & (hot) shower not too far away. Cost is is a factor Suggestions welcome.?? 😈

Forum News & Debate is a tad slow at the moment, so I thought I would offer this, as something many of you may like to get involved in. For years I have wanted to fly from The Oaks to WA in a small aircraft - all sorts of hurdles have got in the way however the opportunity may now be close. Forum News & Debate is a tad slow at the moment, so I thought I would offer this, as something many of you may like to get involved in. I will be flying my Sonex Legacy, Rotax 912ULS, with just me on board. Some necessary planning details; She carries an easy 95+ L usable fuel (preferably 98 RON) I usually flight plan at 130 knots True @ 15L/hr ,for 5.6 hrs duration and 40 + minutes reserve (10L) at same power setting. I would also prefer to land for refueling with 30+ L remaining (I am paranoid about running out of fuel) I would prefer not to fly for more than 3 hrs without a wee stop, say 2-3 hrs is perfect. I will be carrying collapsible fuel bladders to facilitate fetching 95 RON (I will only corrupt her innards with AVGas if no reasonable alternative exists). I am in no particular hurry but fully aware that the more time I take, the more additional cost for sustenance & accommodation and the more potential for adverse weather to impede my progress.. I am more than happy, within reason (?) to divert of the most direct overland track, to visit fellow pilots &/or take in particular points of interest, that you may recomend. I would like to follow the coastline but will avoid any significant overwater, other than a short dash over the northern part of the Spencer Gulf. I have some idea of returning via a more inland route.than the largely Coastal SA& WA section. I would be delighted to "fly in company" with another aircraft for all or part of the trip. At this stage I have not made contact with any one or airfield along the rout (?). I am hoping that the woeful flying weather that the East of the country has been experiencing, may clear within the next month or so. I may be wrong however summer flying on this trip, seems to present additional challenges that may not be so pleasant for a recreational pilot. Serpentine appears to be a reasonable destination - you may advise otherwise. I await your council/recommendation with great interest.😈

While I agree your radio check advice is what we should all aspire to, it seems to me that you have gone too far in not recognising the realities of operating from small country strips. I always make taxi, lineup, rolling , departure (leg) calls etc. Only "once in a blue moon" do I get any sort of response/acknowledgement, and this is from within the Sydney Basin. Technically this is not a radio check, however I also know that most often there is no one on my CTAF to respond, no one on the airfield at all. I do monitor Area Frequency, so know that I am receiving but have no guarantee that my transmission are being heard, until airborne, when I may (on rare occasions) be able to raise someone at a neighbouring field, on the same CTAF. This is also the situaton, when on a trip, to many more remote airfields, that is unless there is a Club meeting/RPT/Student training/etc. 😈

For years I have used light weight, compact, cheap, sun glair shields similar to the one pictured. They work well as you can place them just where you want on any given trip. They stay in place using a plastic suction pad. As usual I remove them in winter. This winter, I found the suction pads seem to have reacted with the perspex, leaving a raised ring. Its no big deal, does not effect visibility (above head) but has caused an aesthetic blemish, I could have done without . Purchased the shields from a well known Australian chain of supposedly cheap automotive goods. "Yah-gets- whats- yah- pays- for"

Never say never - its amazing how well a few individuals have done with scratch - modified airframes delivering astonishing speed from small engines. Its equally amazing how slick marketing can suck in the gullible 😈

You can do a lot with turbo charge 160hp . If it was 200 knots on 100 hp, that would be something to crow about😈

Did you purchase other 17mmID Gates coolant hoses or just the 02-1562 & 02-1415?😈

Way toooooo lazy😈

Hi Moneybox, I hope the coolant hose you have selected has a 17mm or smaller ID?? If not you are relying on the hose clamp to both make a seal and for security - not good! Ideally the hose should be a tight fit, on the 17mm OD spigot, thus making a good seal against leaking. The clamp, done up firm (not over tight) is just for security. 😈

D_G, "Anyway, you always say 'relatively easy' but never say where you got yours from" When making a recommendation (ie I have personal experince of the product) I have always given the supplier - check back in this thread. Gates hoses Classify fuel & coolant as automotive - their agents (in Au) for these products is Repco - dealerships nationwide Oil hose is classified as hydraulic - I got mine from Hydraulink- dealerships nationwide. There may be other suppliers. "Not scary at all. They are LAMEs and service a lot of Rotax engines" Its nice that you trust these particular LAIM's - When it comes to Rotax, I have had very disquieting contacts, with three completely separate LAIMs (hardly a strong sample). No way would I have them touch my engine. Seems to me that most LAIM's are LYCon focused and have great difficulty in even acknowledging the existence of Rotax, let alone having any skills/knowledge to apply.😈

Yes - I also have had experince of a Daihatsu Rocky 2.8 Turbo Diesel, that had hoses well over 30 years old before replacement. At every 5000km service I would check the hoses, by squeezing/moving, for flexibility. Never had a leak but like you I stick to to the Rotax 5 year hose replacement advice. The old hoses often have a new life on mowers, etc.😈

Thanks OneTrack, "Found his post, it was in March, he has 17.5mm Mackay hose." Now that you mention it, I do have some vague recollection. Two points; I will never fit a slightly overlarge hose but will, if needs be, try a slightly small eg 16.5mm ID. Reason being, a slightly small ID will seal against the spigot, fare better than a slightly large ID. If aged memory serves there were questions about the age of this hose - may have been around the time that I found out "rubber" hose actually has a shelf life. 😈

Thats a bit scary - doesn't sound like you have made any effort to assess quality. The oil hose alternative, to RoTAX, was relatively easy - Gates 8GHT is not supplied by Repco. You will find it in a hydraulics service/parts supply😈

17mm Coolant hose. As most of you will know I am a big fan of Gates hoses. Unfortunately I am unable to find a Gates general purpose 17mm ID coolant/heater hose. They seem to have a "hole" in their supply between 15.9 - 19mm. I know some of their specific, molded automotive offerings will have this ID, sometimes only at one end. Just wondering if anyone has tried a Gates heater/coolant, 15.9 ID hose over a 17mm OD spigot/barb - a 1mm stretch may be asking too much, what say you??? Australia has Mackay Consolidated Industries, who make automotive hoses and , judging by their catalogue, may be able to supply 17mmID coolant hose. Heater Hose Catalogue, https://derwentindustries.com.au/automotive/ Great range of molded shapes to choose from. Range from 100mm - 900mm in length. Should be able to purchase 1-2 shapes & cut to desired length . I have never used their products - anyone on the Forum willing to vouch for them? 😈

Thanks for that PC - seems I may not be alone after all. Odd that in so many years of using OzRunways, I have no recollections of this happening before (the Warragamba Dam is probably my most usual depart/arrival point to/ from the West). Cant comment on airborne phone reception - With the Zephyr I could make/receive a call - Sonex cabin noise much higher, no chance of a meaningful phone conversation. Several on ground "dead spots" around The Oaks/Tahmoor 😈

Its not just the US military who appear to be a "law unto themselves". Quite a few years back , when I was returning to The Oaks, from a flight inland, I was on my last "leg" Katoomba/The Oaks, just over Warragamba Dam/Lake, when I heard some radio transmission between ATC (Area frequency) and a military flight. Details are a little fuzzy now, the gist was the female pilot on the radio (in Command?) refused to give any sort of precise information as to location in space. Moments later, two Hercules in close formation, passed under me - gave me the fright of my life. Although they seemed very close, scale/distance can be difficult assess , especially when frightened, there may have been no danger (would I have been "seen", in my little composite Zephyr, by them?) 😈

OzRunways have got back to me - Speculation as to what might have happened - loss of phone signal being the primary one. Doesn't make sense - I was within line of sight of Sydney, Camden, Penrith, Bringelly, Warragamba Village - as stated, second event of this nature. I would like to hear from Forum members who have experienced something similar😈

Is this real scenario? It seem inconceivable that an international ATC could be so incompetent 😈

While I am all for a bit of thread drift, it would seem that the drift is more like a complete change of topic. Were is the relationship to/ relevance to OzRunways Outage???😈

Did I miss the post where someone (many?) else have had an OzRunways traffic outage??????😈

Garfly - My comment is more about eliciting a response, regarding the two quotes, rather than my particular circumstance, which as you rightly point out was resolved some time ago. The two comments may confuse those who are equal to me, when it comes to all this new fangled technology.😈