BirdDog

So I have done lot of research in the last few days, and I have come to the conclusion that what I am experiencing is most likely normal. I will still do another leakdown test, but I am not much worried anymore. Firstly - Why would the procedure ask you to warm the engine to operating temps before doing the leakdown. If there was no difference between hot and cold, why bother warming it up! LOL! Secondly, heat will cause things to expand - it can't be any other way! Anyways... I will do the leakdown (hopefully in the next few days) just to be sure!

OK - Mail is arriving at the new address. The new address is a Me.com and the old is on G-Mail servers - so maybe there might be something you should look into for that! By that I mean, maybe Google has something restricted from your IP or the like. Anyways... all good for me now. Cheers J

Yep. No drag! Just the "lump" of compression feels less after sitting around.

Thanks again lads. My LAME tells me I am all OK! LOL! - But he is not the one with his arse in the seat in the sky! LOL! I am a little of the.... if it ain't broke, don't fix it mentality. Everything checks out OK. But, for peace of mind, this weekend, I will go hit up another leak down test, and see what I get. I will report back the findings.

Ok - I have changed the email address. Let's see what happens. ?

Hey man! No email received for this one either. ? Ive checked everything my end - Can I change my email address here for notifications? That might rule out some issues.

I am not getting notifications of responses anymore. ? Nothing in my SPAM either. ?

Thanks Lads. 20 hours ago was May this year. She gets flown regularly. It's easy for me to do this again - no probs. Did it do it before??? Well, As I said in my post, I think am now more attuned to it, because I do my own maintenance, and am paying a lot more attention now. And yes, It is NOT stiff. That's not the issue. The issue is, after sitting for a few weeks without a flight, it becomes easier (read less stiff) than if it's warm. Make sense?

Hi lads, Leekdowns were done 20 hours ago, and they are 78/80 across the board.

Hey all, So I have never really noticed this until I started doing my own maintenance, and one step is to measure how much force it takes to pull the prop through, and noticed recently that if the bird has sat for a month or so, the prop pulls through really easy. What I am saying is... when I turn up at the hangar and pull the prop through 5 or 6 times to burp the oil, she is really easy to pull through. If I do the same thing after i go flying, she is a lot firmer. Is this normal? My LAME seems to thing it's OK. She runs fine. Burns no oil, and is smooth. She is a 912 ULS 2008 with about 350 hours on it. All SBs up to date etc. Any advice would be appreciated. Cheers J

Am i the only one that can't see those images?

Agreed Nev. You have to wonder.... If places lo like Cootamundra can do it, why Goulburn couldn't.

Yeah man. I’ve had conversations with one of them and it’s a nightmare for him. Poor bugger.

Just read the remarks in the ERSA!! It's out of control!

Hmm. Good luck man. I wouldn’t do it.

I was with Agile, but went with the deal that RA Aus have going on, and saved me $1000 for the same cover.

Yeah - I have never seen a T Board either, and yes, a wind sock can be hard to see. I was landing at rural field a while back and when I flew over the windsock, it was tangled around the pole! I had to rely on a METAR from a fair way away, and hope it was close. Thankfully it was. ?

I was instructed not to loop in the circuit, but rather climb back up over the airfield to the dead side and rejoin. Unless you can simply extend downwind or the like, but if it's a big beast with wake turbulence where I need more time, going up and over seems a better option. This came in to play when I was on downwind and a big bird called for a straight in approach. (Rex or Jetstar, can't remember). I simply powered up and climbed up over the AD above CCT height and back over to the dead side. Then, just wind down to CCT height and join again! Was awesome view of the bird landing, got some more time on the clock, and landed happy! Again, some might say it's overkill, but when I sit in my cockpit, guess who is the PiC. ?

Maybe it's just me. Maybe it's because I am only 130 hours in, but I do everything I can to stay alive up there. And if that's making radio calls, or completing full standard circuits, so be it! I get more airtime, get to practice my approaches better, and hopefully, all things equal, live to fly another day. Those that want to be cocky enough to just blast in without calls from anywhere, good luck to them. I hope, for their sake, it doesn't come back to bite them one day.

Yep! I was always taught to overfly above CTC height, spot the windsock, loop back and descend on dead side. Let everyone know what you are doing, and then join a midfield X-wind at CTC height!

This is a really good read, and a good watch on Density Alt. They are lucky to be alive! https://www.boldmethod.com/learn-to-fly/performance/prevent-a-density-altitude-crash-on-takeoff/

Hmm... please don't judge me, but I am not wanting to start singling people out. Aviation is a small community, and I don't want to get labelled as a trouble maker. I asked these questions as I was truly curious as to how much of this goes on. Was it common practice. Stupid Practice. Rare, or otherwise. It certainly makes me nervous when I myself am using that airfield. Just again last week... I had just landed and was taxiing back when I say another GA plane ready to enter the runway. No taxi calls etc. As I taxied, I made a bet with my Pax that there would be no radio call. Sure as sh%t he turned on to the runway and blasted off in complete silence. There are no landing fees here either - so it has me baffled at the amount of radio silence.

Yeah these guys joined a right base (well not even base really) when the circuit is definitely left, and not a radio call between them. Both - GA aircraft. On other occasions there’s a guy that flies straight down the runway at circuit height and then gets off the end and pulls nose up and almost hammer head turns to come back and land. Again - GA. its surprised me as I’ve never seen stuff like this before at other ADs. And I’m certainly not wanting to be a trouble maker, and stir the pot - was just curious.

WTF!! That's ridiculous! I would have thought us aviators had more decency! Maybe I am delusional!

Backing up what others have said... When it comes to Nav, you need to think about how your aircraft performs. Understanding Density Altitude could save your bacon if you fly into somewhere you are not familiar with. For example.... A hot day, an AD that is high, and a heavy aircraft. A recipe for disaster if you don't understand it. Understanding how to nav is awesome! I love being able to go places with a map, a compass and a watch - But understanding how your aircraft performs along the way is really important. My advice, is the advice my instructor gave me. Don't be scared to turn back. If there is doubt, then there is no doubt!