{"id":3421,"date":"2015-06-19T07:07:04","date_gmt":"2015-06-19T14:07:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.mechadigital.net\/?p=3421"},"modified":"2021-08-26T20:37:55","modified_gmt":"2021-08-26T20:37:55","slug":"132-wrenching-for-pilots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/132-wrenching-for-pilots\/","title":{"rendered":"#132 Wrenching for Pilots"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve touched on this subject before.\u00a0 Maybe it\u2019s a sign of how important I think it is that I\u2019m going to touch on it again.<\/h3>\n
\"Learning<\/a>
John Morton hand propping the 140.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When I was producing the Tailwheeler\u2019s Journal video on \u201cHand Propping\u201d, I pointed out to someone that hand propping an airplane was similar to \u201cpopping the clutch\u201d to start a car on a hill.\u00a0 My point was that no driver should be ignorant of that starting technique.\u00a0 Similarly, every pilot should know how to hand prop.<\/h3>\n

The same could be said of certain maintenance operations.\u00a0 In fact, it seems to me that every student pilot should be familiarized with some maintenance operations during their flight training. Some that come to mind are oil and filter changing, filter inspection, brake lining replacement and tire changing and inflation.\u00a0 This subject has caught the interest of many aviation writers.\u00a0 They normally approach the subject from the standpoint of what the FARs will allow.\u00a0 I suppose we have to bear that in mind, since the feds are always lurking to bust pilots for any violation, no matter how minor.\u00a0 I\u2019m more concerned with how well an operation is performed rather than which operations are permitted by the boys in polyester pants.<\/h3>\n
\"Cammi<\/a>
Cammi Benson relines brakes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I try to give my primary students the opportunity to get some hands-on experience with maintenance.\u00a0 Perhaps the best example of increasing pilot maintenance ability is to simply stress the proper inflation of tires.\u00a0 Heck, I think we can train a chimp to check tire pressure.\u00a0 Then it\u2019s an easy step to inflate the tire to the proper pressure.\u00a0 \u00a0For those who don\u2019t understand why I hate wheel pants, just try to check your tires and brakes when those damned things are installed!<\/h3>\n

I continue to be impressed by how few pilots have any idea of how much brake lining remains when they peer at it during a pre-flight\u2026 or miss it completely.\u00a0 And it\u2019s so simple to teach!<\/h3>\n
\"Brake<\/a>
A 7\/16″ socket is used to remove the two bolts holding the brake to the rotor…<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A 7\/16 socket and ratchet are all that\u2019s necessary to remove the typical Cleveland brake and check the lining.\u00a0 And the assembly itself \u00a0is a pretty simple thing to maintain.\u00a0 It may require the expenditure of a few<\/h3>\n
\"Julie<\/a>
…and VOILA! it’s off and inspectable or relineable.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

bucks for a riveting tool, but it\u2019s a pretty good investment.\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t take long for the average person to judge how the wear is proceeding on their linings.\u00a0 They are so simple to disassemble that you can do it several times just to get an idea of how much lining needs to be showing before the rivets contact the disc.<\/h3>\n

When I was in the airshow biz, I stopped in South Bend, Indiana and needed an oil change.\u00a0 I must have been feeling flush, because I asked one of the FBO\u2019s to do it and never bothered to ask how much.\u00a0 Boy, did I learn from THAT one!\u00a0 I think I may have commented, \u201cI just wanted an oil change, not a top overhaul!\u201d<\/h3>\n

For a few bucks you can buy an oil filter cutter, too.\u00a0 This enables you to open up that filter so that you can get the element out and see if the filter caught any metal.\u00a0 Different mechanics have different methods for checking that element and I\u2019ll bet you can find out a good one from a mechanic you like. Personally, I like to squeeze the pleated element in a vise, leaving nothing but the particles, if any. They are plainly visible when I pull the pleated paper apart, much in the manner of Myron Floren playing the accordion. I learned that technique from Jeff Stanford and it\u2019s a good one.<\/h3>\n

Years ago I read of some research someone had done on the concept of \u201cthrowing like a girl\u201d.\u00a0 Seems\u00a0 the researcher wondered why girls seemed to throw with less effectiveness than boys.\u00a0 What he found shouldn\u2019t surprise us.\u00a0 It was cultural.\u00a0 When growing up, boys were encouraged to throw rocks and climb trees.\u00a0 Girls were encouraged to be \u201cladylike\u201d and have tea parties.\u00a0 There is virtually no difference in<\/h3>\n
\"Janet<\/a>
Janet Lansburgh changes the starter on her car. Her brother, whose hand can be seen, has been relegated to handing her parts from below….<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

the physical ability to throw between the two sexes.\u00a0 Similarly, boys are often encouraged to work on cars and to learn about tools.\u00a0 Since there is no difference between the aptitude for flying between males and females, we\u2019d be well-advised to bring our little girls into the garage and teach them the difference between an end wrench and a screwdriver.<\/h3>\n
\"Roll<\/a>
…of course she’s been working in the shop for a while.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The lack of experience should not stop anyone who\u2019s learning to fly from learning to do a bit of maintenance.\u00a0 Besides, airplanes are generally a lot cleaner than cars and easier to work on.<\/h3>\n

I would have to say that if you learn to fly and never learn to change the brake linings or hand-prop, your training is deficient..\u00a0 Those who know me know that I take pretty seriously the old wheeze that \u201cwhen the student fails to learn, the instructor has failed to teach\u201d.\u00a0 But not all instructors teach any maintenance.\u00a0 That\u2019s especially true at modern Acme Flying Schools, so the responsibility falls on the student.\u00a0 Don\u2019t drop it.<\/h3>\n

<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“The lack of experience should not stop anyone who\u2019s learning to fly from learning to do a bit of maintenance.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3426,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[23,35,38,67,174],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3421"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3421"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3421\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}