gmcjetpilot
Joined: 04 Nov 2006
Posts: 170
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 Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2008 2:56 pm Post subject: Do AD's really apply |
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Short answer is NO! If EAA member search their
builders section for info. If still in doubt or wanting more
depth call EAA's legal department. If you can have a
Subaru engine you can have an "experimental Lyc". If
you can carve out your own prop out of wood or
composites than you can have an experimental
Sensenich or Hartzell.
The TRUTH? Well we are at the mercy of the FAA or
their representative who may or may not be really
qualified once in the life of the home built, the initial
approval for Phase I. This can be a real pain in the
back. I have heard it all. A guy had his inspection by a
DAR and he was told he needed and A&P sign off
because the engine was a Lycoming! Look I don't know
if its ignorance, power trip or just guys jealous you have
a beautiful airplane they probably can't make them self
or will ever own? MANY ARE IN SURVIVAL MODE.
They are in PURE Cover There A** mode. They would
rather make you made and be super conservative
needlessly and protect their little Gig as a DAR than get
involved in any controversy, even though the law is
clear. So be aware, they have the power which they us
indeterminately and some times retarded with out
regard to the FAR's or logic.
Now they do have one indisputable argument or logical
reason, WHY NOT? It's a good idea and can't hurt.
That is true so you have to ask yourself is it just being
cheap? Is there any loss of safety? You get to decided
but they tend to impose their "judgment" where they
have no power. They do have the power not to sign it
off and that is it. You can fight it or comply or go
somewhere else. I suspect once in the system you are
"marked" so choose your DAR carefully.
Second if you get Phase one and onto II, than later
change to a prop that is not certified or meets the prop
AD (say a 100 hour inspection) you are OK. The FAA
does not consider a prop change a major mod and they
have no say on AD's.
The COMMON SENSE? Well if there is a serious AD
on engine or Prop or accessories for the engine or prop
than you might be foolish to ignore the AD. Do you want
to fly your wife or kid or grand kid in your plane with say
an AD oil pump or old prop Gov aluminum lines and
fittings? May be may be not.
The new one is the Hartzell 100 hour eddy current
inspection. I talk to many shops and they have never
found a crack. Also the cracks that where found where
in OLD hubs and many off of 300HP agricultural planes.
Hartzell uses the same hub for 150 hp to 300 hp. It
does not take a genius that a prop with 6000 hours of
heavy use on an Ag plane is not like a RV prop with
1000 hours on it. The AD was just shot gunned to
include a bunch of older props. A lot of this is again
being conservative and frankly getting circa 1960's
props off the fleet, a semi force retirement. So can you
expand that inspection to 150 or 250 hours or 500 hrs?
Sure but if something happens you have the moral
and legal responsibility as the pilot and builder at
some point. You have to make a judgment call and
think about it. Now is a known low time hartzell, no
crack verified with no inspections till say 1000 hours
less safe than some experimental prop that has
fleet wide service of a few 100 or a 1000 hours v
a Hartzell design that has been around for 35 years
and been improved after 1/4 million flt hours (?)
in 1000's of props. By the way the hub I am talking
about is the HC-C2YK. The "A" model was started
to be made about 2000? Any way there is not AD
on that prop which is also the same hub as the
new RV blended Airfoil (BA) hub. The inspection
can be done on the plane and it cost $200 an up.
Some shops will want you to remove the prop?
They use an eddy current probe to find a crack
in one location where there is a fillet or gusset as
I recall. If you do hard core aerobatics every day
on you fire breathing 180 or 200 HP Lyc 360 than
you might want to have a look see if your prop is
high time.
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