Jonathan,
Our runway is 18 m x 600 m asphalt 26 - 08 and I agree 100 % with your
handling because I experience the same results and entire satisfaction
with my Mono XS # 447 F-PKRL with Airmaster AP332 on a 912ULS even
though I have only 110 hours. If this can confort you....
Best regards,
Karel Vranken.
----- Original Message -----
From: Jonathan Milbank
To: europa-list@matronics.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 15, 2008 11:43 PM
Subject: RE: Europa-List: Re: Rotax idle speed. Tailwheel Europa
Hi John,
What a lucky lad being able to fly to Sun N Fun! Yes it's true that
things are worse with a fixed pitch prop, but we've been loving the
benefits of our Airmaster constant speed for about 8 years. We always
make the final approach to land in fully fine pitch crossing the
threshold at 55 knots or less.
Our runway is 500m tarred but narrow, barely 15m. Even in still air
with the prop fully fine, we use up the majority of the runway esp. when
light. Crosswinds can be challenging on our relatively narrow strip with
soft ground/ditch/long weeds to catch the outriggers should anyone allow
the 'plane to drift too far sideways.
Scottish weather being what it is, the verges tend to remain soft for
much of the year and at least half the year the wind blows 10 to 15
knots at right angles. The annual quota of sunny days with winds light
along the runway can almost be counted on your fingers and toes. They
tend to happen on working days or when the wife wants something done
around the house and garden. I wonder if I can find a well-paid job in
the US of A!
In the mean time I'll keep our engine settings the way they are to
minimise floating and ask my Sheila's angels to surround us in a fluffy
pink cocoon. Actually I can't see any problem with my settings; as I
emphasised previously, we keep the engine above 2000 rpm for all but a
couple of seconds when checking slow running before take off. During the
glide it remains smooth without any hint of quitting. We aren't allowing
the gearbox to chatter, ever. Someone please prove me wrong!!
Am I green with envy? Who, me! Well at least we know that the Europa
is still a brilliant little machine.
Jonathan
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> Date: Tue, 15 Apr 2008 11:59:47 -0400
> From: johnwigney@alltel.net
> To: europa-list@matronics.com
> Subject: Europa-List: Re: Rotax idle speed. Tailwheel Europa
>
<johnwigney@alltel.net>
>
> Hi Jonathan,
>
> Thank you for your interesting and informative emails regarding idle
> speed for tailwheel Europas. It is certainly true that tailwheel
Europas
> will float if too much prop thrust remains. However, if one has a
> constant speed prop it does change the picture.
>
> I have just returned from Sun N Fun in Florida - an enjoyable trip
with
> no problems in the trusty Europa. 1100 miles round trip as the crow
> flies, using 45 US gal of 100LL. Trip down was somewhat below the
scud
> but never below 1,000 ft agl. Stop was in Georgia at Brunswick on
the
> coast. Coming back, I had to bob and weave to dodge some showers and
> rain but it soon improved to clear blue and this time I stopped at
> Waycross in Georgia to fill up. Waycross is just north of the
Okefenokee
> swamp which is a large national park with lots of alligators!
>
> Anyway, getting back to idle speed. Before the trip I had just
finished
> my annual and had replaced my throttle cables with solid music wire.
I
> carefully set the idle speed and full throttle with the mechanical
> adjustments as per the Rotax procedure and followed Lockwood
Aviation's
> recommendation of not less than 1,800 rpm which is about where I had
it
> previously. (Lockwood is a big Rotax dealer here.) On this occasion,
I
> did not do the pneumatic synchronisation. However, the engine ran
very
> smoothly. Most of the landings on the trip were in less than perfect
> conditions but I did not have any problem with float. I normally
come in
> over the numbers at ~55 kts and when I close the throttle at the
flare -
> it lands. With a large passenger and a load, it emphatically lands.
>
> I suspect that the big difference between your experience and mine
is
> the constant speed prop. See
> http://www.whirlwindaviation.com/series100.php During landing, the
prop
> is set fully fine for max thrust in the event of a go-around. In
effect,
> it acts almost like an air brake when the throttle is closed. I
noticed
> that when I had the idle set at ~1,500 rpm on previous occasions,
the
> a/c used to fall out of the air quite rapidly as I rounded out at
the
> flare. For this reason I usually leave a little power on at the
flare to
> smooth the contact. Incidentally, there was a very nicely finished
new
> tri-gear at the Sun N Fun stand which had the same type of Whirlwind
> prop which uses a hydraulic governor for control.
>
> Wishing you many more smooth landings.
>
> Cheers, John
>
> N262WF, mono XS, 912S, 590 hours
> Mooresville, North Carolina
>
>
> ORIGINAL MESSAGE
>
> From: Jonathan Milbank <jdmilbank@hotmail.com>
> Subject: FW: Europa-List: FW: Rotax idle speed. Tailwheel Europa
> Well, there it is folks. Andy Draper's reply below must be the last
word on this matter. I don't want to be guilty of suggesting something
against the manufacturer's recommendations. Just because my experience
with the way I adjust and operate my engine is satisfactory, it doesn't
follow that others will enjoy the same benefit.
> Do it by the book and no-one will be able accuse you of
irresponsibility.
> Sincerely.
> Jonathan
>
> Subject: RE: Europa-List: FW: Rotax idle speed. Tailwheel
EuropaDate: Mon,
To:jdmilbank@hotmail.com
> Hi Jonathan,
> It is relatively rare to find a Rotax engine that will idle happily
at below 1200 rpm, in my experience, even with balanced carburettors, so
we would always set the idle speed to be around 1500rpm (between the
recommended 1400-1600rpm band) on our demonstrators. This enabled us to
operate the aircraft without excessive float, but I guess that we all
just got used to that set up.
>
> I would expect that gear box wear will be accelerated if the slow
idle is 'chattery' but if it's smooth and especially as you minimise the
time at slow idle, then you probably won't suffer excessively. I'm not
sure, though, that I would want to go into print to recommend others to
set their engines up similarly to yours if it contravenes what the
manufacturer says.
> Best wishes
> Andy
>
> From: Jonathan Milbank [mailto:jdmilbank@hotmail.com] Sent: 14 April
2008 10:27To: Andy DraperCc: editor@europaclub.org.ukSubject: FW:
Europa-List: FW: Rotax idle speed. Tailwheel Europa
> Hello Andy, The emails below are for your interest and comments, if
you have any. If not, then I'll go ahead and submit an article to "The
Europa Flyer". Maybe I'm going over a subject which has been dealt with
before, in which case I apologise. Should you spy any traps for the
unwary in what I'm advocating, please let me know. Thanks. Jonathan
>
> From: jdmilbank@hotmail.comTo: europa-list@matronics.comSubject:
Europa-List: FW: Rotax idle speed. Tailwheel EuropaDate: Sun, 13 Apr
>
> Pilots/Owners of tailwheel Europas, My email to Conrad Beale and his
advice that I should post these communications on the forum are set out
for you below. The four of us who have been flying G-EIKY since 1997
(865 hours in tech. log) have no problem in remembering never to allow
the engine to idle below 1500 rpm. In fact after starting we use the
throttle to maintain warm-up above 2000 rpm and don't taxi below 1500
rpm. Only briefly after checking the ignitions do we pull the throttle
all the way back for a couple of seconds to check slow running around
800 rpm before commencing take-off. On
> rounding out for a landing, the throttle is closed fully until the
landing roll is completed and re-opened once the aircraft reaches a safe
taxi speed. Thus the percentage of time that our engine spends below
1500 rpm is almo
> st negligible. I learned to fly on Harvards 40 years ago and clocked
274 hours on that type. The combined experience of my fellow group
members on tailwheel machines totals in the 1000's. All this might not
make us any safer than others with less time in tail draggers, but I
certainly wouldn't have been wanting to land any such aircraft in a
crosswind with the engine idling quickly. Get squarely in contact with
Mother Earth a.s.a.p. after rounding out is my fervent hope and
intention! If anyone has comments or criticisms, I'd be grateful for
your input. Thanks. Jonathan
>
> From: louise@conairsports.co.ukTo: jdmilbank@hotmail.comSubject: FW:
Rotax
> 912/914 idle speedDate: Tue, 8 Apr 2008 18:58:06 +0100
> Jonathan,
> Thank you for your comments regarding the article. I am grateful for
your feedback, especially about the idle speed, and I understand your
concerns. As you are aware the gearbox wear will be a problem if the
idle speed is too low. I can see you have accepted this as a consequence
for your set up, but you benefit from an aircraft that is easier to keep
on the ground. Normally it is difficult to achieve a stable speed below
1200, and the engine will often stop if set any lower. Rotax suggest
1800RPMI think your experience would be of benefit to other (if you were
to post it on the Europa (Matronics) forum), but it needs to be backed
up with the warning about increased risk of engine stoppage and
increased gearbox wear t
> hat will ensue.
> I will bear your comments in mind when I am working on installations
that might benefit from our feedback in particular the mono wheel
Europa..
> Regards Conrad Beale ConAir Sports Ltd www.conairsports.co.uk ONLINE
SHOP +44 (0) 1295 771088
>
> From: Jonathan Milbank [mailto:jdmilbank@hotmail.com] Sent: 08 April
2008 10:23To: service@conairsports.co.ukCc:
mo@moragjones.demon.co.ukSubject: Rotax 912/914 idle speed
>
> Hello Conrad, I thoroughly enjoyed reading your very helpful, clear
and valuable articles on servicing Rotax engines and I look forward to
the next one. Now I'm going to take the risk of slightly contradicting
something you wrote and hope you won't think too ill of me. I know that
your articles and advice are not aircraft type-specific, but idle speed
is a sensitive issue with Europa mono/tailwheel aircraft during the
touch-down phase. With its laminar flow wing and slippery profile, the
Europa mono is a bit notorious for departing from the runway against the
pilot's wishes and efforts. It wil
> l float after rounding out and can easily "balloon" upwards if just
a little wind gust should happen. Once the Europa is squarely planted on
the ground with the stick held fully back and the tailwheel solidly
gripping the surface, then it is easy enough to keep it running
straight. It's during the tricky period between raising the aircraft
nose to round out and getting well settled on the runway that
directional control can be awkward, particularly in a crosswind.
Therefore it follows that this period of floating above the surface must
be kept to a minimum. A fast idling engine will exacerbate
> any problems. I keep the carburettors adjusted so that at full
engine operating temperature and with the aircraft standing still in nil
wind, the idle is around 800 rpm and the engine is on the verge of
cutting out. Of course this means that the engine is safely idling at
around 1200 rpm with the throttle fully closed while gliding. We who
belong to the group that flies this Europa are all fully aware that
allowing the gearbox to clatter at low rpm on the ground will
drastically shorten its life, so we always set the throttle to keep the
rpm above 1500 after start up and when taxying. Possibl
> y the reason why our monowheel Europa has survived relatively
unscathed for 11 years ( touch wood ) is that we are nearly all
professional pilots with a lot of general aviation experience and
tailwheel experience. But we all also appreciate the importance of
minimising the floating period after rounding out for a landing. Thanks
for your superb contribution to better understanding the maintenance of
our engine. Sincerely. Jonathan Milbank
>
>
>=====================
>
>
>
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