Your method of keeping tabs on fuel

[EdFred]

Yes, it equals time, but fuel only = time when the leaning is done the same every time.

...and the same power settings, and the same altitude, and...

 

[Bob Noel]

...and the same power settings, and the same altitude, and...

For my Cherokee 140, planning for 8.5 gph will be conservative enough that I can do pretty much any (reachable) altitude while staying within the 75% power setting.

So for at least some airplanes it really is as simple as fuel used = time * rate (but I would really say fuel used <= time * conservative rate). Even more so if you factor in bladder-range for some of us old guys.

 

[midlifeflyer]

Yes, it equals time, but fuel only = time when the leaning is done the same every time.

It still equals time but the calculation still includes the fuel flow. Even if you lean "the same" every time (depending on what you mean by "the same").

 

[tonycondon]

i really liked the totalizer on the 421 when the only thing you could really accurately determine visually was whether or not the tank was full or not. The gages on that plane were actually pretty accurate too which was nice. the only thing that was unfortunate about the totalizer is there was only a "fill" button on the one we had so if we picked up a partial load somewhere we just had to remember how many gallons we had added.

 

[Dean]

And don't drop your dipstick in your tank of fuel - !!!

Been there done that, dropped my in the 150 the first time I flew to Gaston's for the POA get together. Ken Ibold was standing there talking to me when I did it. Flew it over to Mountain Home and used a flexible grabber to fish it out with.

 

[rottydaddy]

Yes, it equals time, but fuel only = time when the leaning is done the same every time.

I didn't specify any specific ratio of fuel to time... the point is that estimating distance based on known fuel amount and burn is secondary to estimating endurance. Works inversely, too, i.e. trying to estimate remaining fuel based on how far you've come rather than how long it took you. You're better off thinking of fuel as time and time as fuel; the desired distance will either get covered or it won't.