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My AME told me to do the best I could to balance the demands
of the testing of the aircraft and the break in of the engine. Accordingly
we limited ourselves to the least ground running possible to prove system
integrity and test propellor cycling etc. Very limited high speed taxying
and then off into the wild blue yonder! We had initial high oil
temperature problems which necessitated some rework but once we got them tamed
flight testing was limited to proving the plane was safe to fly and all flight
systems and instruments were working. Remember this is not a new aircraft
type and has flown many times before.
As soon as the pilot was satisfied we did two hours of 75%
power at 7500ft. My engine holds 8quarts and we filled it initially to 7
quarts. After the limited ground running and the initial flight we topped
it up with one quart which brought it to just under the 8quarts. After 11
hours of running we are down about half to 3/4 quart. This tells me
that the rings are doing a good job of oil control and what we did to the engine
in the initial start up, ground tests and taxi trials has not hurt it. We
are using straight run mineral oil as per the recommendation.
I have to get a plug in here for Victor
Aviation who rebuilt the engine for me. My oil consumption is
great and the engine runs like silk. No leaks or any other problems at all
since the first start up. Their service and professioal attitude during
the time they were doing the rebuild was first class. I fly with
confidence behind that engine. Thank you Victor!
Happy to provide further information if you need
it.
Regards
Ian Crowe
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