Today the temps here reached 40° so I decided to do some engine testing with a full cowling on the plane. After about two hours of testing, I determined the following about the Aerocarb. If you remember, I had installed a pressure regulator between my stock mechanical fuel pump and the Aerocarb. Today with a very cold engine and using no primer, the engine started right up. I had the regulator set to 1/2 psi and was getting hiccups in the engine. I shut the engine down and changed the pressure to 1 psi. Well, I still got hiccups and actually had the engine stop running as if it were flooding. I simply was not able to get a continuous smooth running engine using the pressure regulator and stock fuel pump. Previously, I had run this set up with good results. Next, I removed the fuel line to the stock fuel pump and regulator and placed a gas can on top of my forward deck and ran a fuel line directly to the Aerocarb for gravity flow. Started the engine and had absolutely no hiccups at any rpm or mixture setting. I have determined the mechanical pump to the regulator to the Aerocarb is an accident waiting to happen. I will not fly that set up. What I will do is install a small header tank connected to the mechanical fuel pump with return lines to my wing tanks and a gravity line to the Aerocarb. I had told a friend of mine down in Alabama that my fuselage was 99% airworthy an that I only needed to complete the outboard wings. Well, this will add a little more building time but it will be a safe fuel arrangement. And I still have set my goal to fly this plane this summer. Oh yea, with the cowl installed and the engine baffles I have, the CHT stayed at 280°.
Mark Jones (N886MJ) Wales, WI USA E-mail me at flyk...@wi.rr.com Visit my KR-2S CorvAIRCRAFT web site at http://mywebpage.netscape.com/n886mj/homepage.html
