Sport Pilot Talk

...every once in a while is a good idea.

As background, I took my S-LSA Sky Arrow Experimental in 2009. Since 2010, I’ve done all the annual condition Inspections and the lion’s share of maintenance, preventive and otherwise. Last mechanic other than myself to work on it was Roger Lee in 2012, when he did the 5-year rubber parts replacement for me. And all has been well.

Last Tuesday, I delivered my Sky Arrow to a mechanic in SC for my 5-year rubber parts change. He came recommended, and had previously maintained a Sky Arrow for a local Sheriff’s department.

In any case, he informed me today he found a crack in the muffler. He said it was obvious when “changing out the pump side oil line and even better once exhaust stack was removed.” It’s getting sent to Lockwood for repair.

My point is, I’m not sure I ever would have spotted this during my normal annual condition inspections. And that no matter how conscientious you think you are as a mechanic, a fresh set of eyes and hands every once in a while is probably a very good idea.

FastEddieB wrote:...every once in a while is a good idea . . . . .
My point is, I’m not sure I ever would have spotted this during my normal annual condition inspections. And that no matter how conscientious you think you are as a mechanic, a fresh set of eyes and hands every once in a while is probably a very good idea.

That point is well taken!

I couldn't agree more Eddie. Always good to have a fresh pair look things over from time to time. We all get complacent and miss things.

Ironically I received my LSRI certificate in the mail today from the FAA. I'm finally a LSRI as well for my SportCruiser. My annual condition inspection isn't until November and I plan on having my old mechanic look things over when I'm finished. Mainly because this will be my first go at it alone. I've actually assisted in many of my last condition inspections so I already know the procedures. I have intimate knowledge of every inch of my plane but one can never be too sure.

Use the Rotax checklist and your Sport Cruiser checklist every inspection. print them out and fill it out. Annotate in the margins everything you tweak, change, fix or torque. Hole punch these and keep them in a binder. A 100 hr / annual logbook entry should never be a three liner. That's bottom of the bucket documentation and barely legal. A good logbook entry is a three fourths to a page long. Mine are #9 font typed. Hand written would take pages and most have such bad handwriting it's hard to decipher at times.
If you ever have to defend yourself in court, with the FAA or the insurance company you will thank your lucky stars you don't make logbook entries like most.

Learn and adopt good habits. It isn't any harder than the lazy guy.


Don't be average as their are way too many like that. Strive to be a cut above.

https://www.rotax-owner.com/en/rotax-bl ... everything

I agree Roger. All my log entries are printed on my computer and are pretty thorough and longer than most. I keep a printed copy of both checklists at my hangar and even copies on my iPad for a quick reference if ever needed. I can even print them at my FBO if I need a spare copy or spill oil on the current one.

No one likes sloppy log entries. Detailed and thorough entries may even increase the value of your aircraft if you ever sell it. Whose plane would you rather buy? One with pencil whipped, one liner log entries or one with well documented and thorough entries?

Most people don't even know what entries are required, or how long they should be kept. For inspections big long detailed entries are even contrary to the regulations.

When I did a research project years ago the FAA said that what is in the FAR's is the bare minimum like the bottom 5%. That just gets you by on the legal requirement, but they said they wished everyone would document better and more. There is no limit. What you don't write can be held against you by the FAA, insurance companies and especially the courts. Courts pretty much say if it isn't written it wasn't done. The majority of mechanics are lazy and sloppy when it comes to documentation. Some have said my logbook entries are over kill and I say your just average and maybe below.

The saying still stands. Don't strive to be average strive to be a cut above.

I will protect you and keep a higher resale on your plane. Don't except junk from a service center either. Guys you're paying these mechanics damn good money so you should get good service which includes a document that actually says what they did. IAW is junk unless you back it up with some detail. Plus in court IAW means you did every little single thing on the MFG's checklist. Without using a checklist I guarantee you didn't and don't use a Part 43 checklist when Rotax and the aircraft Mfg already has one. The Part 43 is generic and leaves out many things unique to that aircraft.
After spending 30 years in courts I can tell you you will be help accountable without good documentation and without it you have no defense.

This is kind of like the IRA. You can claim anything you want and may get away with it for quite some time, but when the day comes you'll regret your past.

Interesting discussion about keeping accurate logs, but it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the topic of this thread.

roger lee wrote:When I did a research project years ago the FAA said that what is in the FAR's is the bare minimum like the bottom 5%. That just gets you by on the legal requirement, but they said they wished everyone would document better and more. There is no limit. What you don't write can be held against you by the FAA, insurance companies and especially the courts. Courts pretty much say if it isn't written it wasn't done. The majority of mechanics are lazy and sloppy when it comes to documentation. Some have said my logbook entries are over kill and I say your just average and maybe below.

The saying still stands. Don't strive to be average strive to be a cut above.

I will protect you and keep a higher resale on your plane. Don't except junk from a service center either. Guys you're paying these mechanics damn good money so you should get good service which includes a document that actually says what they did. IAW is junk unless you back it up with some detail. Plus in court IAW means you did every little single thing on the MFG's checklist. Without using a checklist I guarantee you didn't and don't use a Part 43 checklist when Rotax and the aircraft Mfg already has one. The Part 43 is generic and leaves out many things unique to that aircraft.
After spending 30 years in courts I can tell you you will be help accountable without good documentation and without it you have no defense.

This is kind of like the IRA. You can claim anything you want and may get away with it for quite some time, but when the day comes you'll regret your past.

Roger, we have had this conversation before. Mixing maintenance and inspection entries is not a good idea, but many people do. Documenting maintenance in detail is required by regulation. Brief inspection entries are also required by regulation. Once the next inspection is done the old entry is useless, and serves no purpose. My recommendation is to make separate maintenance and inspection entries, especially if there is a lot of maintenance to document.

3Dreaming wrote:Most people don't even know what entries are required, or how long they should be kept. For inspections big long detailed entries are even contrary to the regulations.

Aren't the regulations even contrary to the regulations?

I'd rather have thorough logs than not.

FastEddieB wrote:Interesting discussion about keeping accurate logs, but it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the topic of this thread.

It's Roger's fault, he steered us into the weeds.

ShawnM wrote:

FastEddieB wrote:Interesting discussion about keeping accurate logs, but it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the topic of this thread.

It's Roger's fault, he steered us into the weeds.

To be fair, I honestly think I would have caught the cracked muffler, if only I had made my logbook entries in #9 font typed!

Another discovery:

My engine has had a persistent very tiny oil leak. At first I suspected the oil pressure sender, since the oil was dripping off it. But that wasn’t it. I had long suspected the oil pump cover, after seeing this after a “foot powder test”:



I had asked the mechanic to take a look. In the process of replacing the o-rings, he found this:



He said, “This at the drive end which is tied into the cam shaft.
In other words all the way inside the pump - I was replacing all of the o rings in the pump.

Parts are on order and should head out tomorrow.”

Nice catch!

Eddie, please remember to do a full oil system pressure purge after working on the oil pump. And remove the rocker box covers afterwards, so you can make sure all the lifters have inflated by pushing in on the rocker arms.

drseti wrote:Eddie, please remember to do a full oil system pressure purge after working on the oil pump. And remove the rocker box covers afterwards, so you can make sure all the lifters have inflated by pushing in on the rocker arms.

I’m not where the work is being done, but I’ll remind the mechanic about the purge.