Pete Lehmann
Filing Flight Plan
I can remember the day back in 1992 during one of my first few primary training lessons when my Lynn, my CFI popped open the left side cowling of one of the two 1978 Piper Tomahawks in order to introduce me to the systems that make the thing go. I paid attention as much as any 14 year old would, but did catch something that she explained that I thought she was kidding about at first. I refused to accept that what I had naively assumed would represent the bleeding edge of technologically innovative which set the tone for all other industries, aviation.
So in such a world that I was stunned to realize didn't actually exist as I thought it would, it was difficult for me to reconcile that the engine we trusted to keep the spinny thing in front spinning, was wholly reliant on what I called at the time (and still use to this day) 1940's tractor parts? My lawnmower used a magneto, a component that was first developed in the 19th Century!!!
Gee, I wonder why they insist on always using two? Yes think it has something to do with the fact that from the moment a new magneto is put into service, it literally starts self-cannibalizing itself from the inside, and doing so in about 2 dozen separate ways, all which represent potential single points of failure. Let's not forget the fact that they are designed in such a way that it's impossible to determine the condition of all these deteriorating components unless we completely remove, and completely disassemble the entire magneto assembly! I'd guess that's probably due to every single option available currently on the market and in use today are built according to a certification approval issued before WWII began!
Good thing they have such docile failure modes and simply stop sending current to the sparkplugs.... Oh, wait, that's actually the least common failure mode for a magneto, with the most common, a plastic gear spitting plastic gear teeth off that causes that magneto to just randomly send sparks to all the plugs it is connected to! The real fun starts the when a plug fires 20° - 30° prior to the appropriate time and internal cylinder pressures get all hot to melt pistons!!
But there is light at the end of the tunnel of arcane FAA Part 33 Small Engine Certification regulations that are about 4 decades past due for an inject of common sense! I actually figured I had missed missed where the article mentioned that what I was reading was related to the Amateur Builder kids, but by Wally, it was for certified airplanes!
I just bought me one of them Gucci Tomahawks, and sneer at the two cancerous tumors attached to my engines accessory gearbox, yup, shiny, but Model-Ts can be shiny too. Great, put them both in a museum where they belong. The FAA is now approving not one but TWO certified piston aircraft STCs for the replacement of one of the the tumors with a solid state, variable tinted digital ignition system, and both company's are relativity certain that the second will be approved 1st quarter next year but require a dedicated back up battery. Sure, I'll put two in if it means being able to achieve the performance, efficiency, and reliability gains those electronic modules represent!
The two companies are:
ElectroAir (my choice) and SureFly (not my choice but still a solid option.
Both cost about the same as a magneto overhaul, the SureFly modules have a life limit of 2,400 hours (hmmm more than 500), and the ElectroAir has no in-service time, operational time, or any kind of replacement requirement, however it will set you back another thousand dollars or so.
Anyway, just wanted to share with those who aren't aware, and hope some folks who were ahead of the game and already have them installed could chime in and tell me your experience.
Also, you, the one who will defend the honor of the magneto, and never trust anything else. What is it you guys always say?
"Magnetos work, and do a great job. Trusting that new unproven electronics is foolish because magnetos work"
Sure, and DC-3s work, and Model-Ts work, and if you look hard enough, I bet you can find an old Apple IIe that works. And if that's your style, go get it. Please don't try and argue about how reliable magnetos are, and inflight electrical failures. I ask you not to because I don't want anyone to argue a point that is patently false. Before you do, I would invite you to get on your Macintosh Plus computer and research just a few things. The statistical probabilities of inflight failures of a magneto.... Then, for funnies see if they say anything about the probability of losing both. Then, do the same thing, but this time look for inflight electrical failures. You may also want to see how many accidents over the last decade have been not just attributed to, but even judged as a contributing factor in all the accidents suffered by the single engine reciprocating engine powered experimental fleet.
Fun fact that I just recently learned! According to multiple separate amateur built aircraft studies, the of percentage of piston powered amateur built aircraft active today which are using one of several dozen electronic ignition systems available is as close to 100% as they can get. My point there is, calling the SureFly and ElectroAir digital ignition systems "unproven" or "untrustworthy" because they are only just now available to us certified aircraft owners is just flat wrong.
Alright, back to not writing book long posts!!
So in such a world that I was stunned to realize didn't actually exist as I thought it would, it was difficult for me to reconcile that the engine we trusted to keep the spinny thing in front spinning, was wholly reliant on what I called at the time (and still use to this day) 1940's tractor parts? My lawnmower used a magneto, a component that was first developed in the 19th Century!!!
Gee, I wonder why they insist on always using two? Yes think it has something to do with the fact that from the moment a new magneto is put into service, it literally starts self-cannibalizing itself from the inside, and doing so in about 2 dozen separate ways, all which represent potential single points of failure. Let's not forget the fact that they are designed in such a way that it's impossible to determine the condition of all these deteriorating components unless we completely remove, and completely disassemble the entire magneto assembly! I'd guess that's probably due to every single option available currently on the market and in use today are built according to a certification approval issued before WWII began!
Good thing they have such docile failure modes and simply stop sending current to the sparkplugs.... Oh, wait, that's actually the least common failure mode for a magneto, with the most common, a plastic gear spitting plastic gear teeth off that causes that magneto to just randomly send sparks to all the plugs it is connected to! The real fun starts the when a plug fires 20° - 30° prior to the appropriate time and internal cylinder pressures get all hot to melt pistons!!
But there is light at the end of the tunnel of arcane FAA Part 33 Small Engine Certification regulations that are about 4 decades past due for an inject of common sense! I actually figured I had missed missed where the article mentioned that what I was reading was related to the Amateur Builder kids, but by Wally, it was for certified airplanes!
I just bought me one of them Gucci Tomahawks, and sneer at the two cancerous tumors attached to my engines accessory gearbox, yup, shiny, but Model-Ts can be shiny too. Great, put them both in a museum where they belong. The FAA is now approving not one but TWO certified piston aircraft STCs for the replacement of one of the the tumors with a solid state, variable tinted digital ignition system, and both company's are relativity certain that the second will be approved 1st quarter next year but require a dedicated back up battery. Sure, I'll put two in if it means being able to achieve the performance, efficiency, and reliability gains those electronic modules represent!
The two companies are:
ElectroAir (my choice) and SureFly (not my choice but still a solid option.
Both cost about the same as a magneto overhaul, the SureFly modules have a life limit of 2,400 hours (hmmm more than 500), and the ElectroAir has no in-service time, operational time, or any kind of replacement requirement, however it will set you back another thousand dollars or so.
Anyway, just wanted to share with those who aren't aware, and hope some folks who were ahead of the game and already have them installed could chime in and tell me your experience.
Also, you, the one who will defend the honor of the magneto, and never trust anything else. What is it you guys always say?
"Magnetos work, and do a great job. Trusting that new unproven electronics is foolish because magnetos work"
Sure, and DC-3s work, and Model-Ts work, and if you look hard enough, I bet you can find an old Apple IIe that works. And if that's your style, go get it. Please don't try and argue about how reliable magnetos are, and inflight electrical failures. I ask you not to because I don't want anyone to argue a point that is patently false. Before you do, I would invite you to get on your Macintosh Plus computer and research just a few things. The statistical probabilities of inflight failures of a magneto.... Then, for funnies see if they say anything about the probability of losing both. Then, do the same thing, but this time look for inflight electrical failures. You may also want to see how many accidents over the last decade have been not just attributed to, but even judged as a contributing factor in all the accidents suffered by the single engine reciprocating engine powered experimental fleet.
Fun fact that I just recently learned! According to multiple separate amateur built aircraft studies, the of percentage of piston powered amateur built aircraft active today which are using one of several dozen electronic ignition systems available is as close to 100% as they can get. My point there is, calling the SureFly and ElectroAir digital ignition systems "unproven" or "untrustworthy" because they are only just now available to us certified aircraft owners is just flat wrong.
Alright, back to not writing book long posts!!