Vic Syracuse
Vic is a fixed-wing and helicopter commercial pilot, CFII with ASMEL/ASES ratings, an A&P/IA, DAR, and EAA technical advisor and flight counselor. Passionately involved in aviation for over 40 years, he has built 11 aircraft and logged over 10,000 hours in 72 different kinds of aircraft. Vic volunteers as a Young Eagle pilot, has his own sport aviation business called Base Leg Aviation, and has written two books on aircraft prebuy and condition inspections.
Another Alternator Gotcha
Well, it seems to be the season for alternator problems, as just this week I had to diagnose another interesting one. As with any...
No Brake Fluid
Perhaps brake lines in the cockpit should be part of the preflight? This aircraft was moments away from having no left brake due to...
A New Sojourn
My aviation dream has not been much different than for thousands of other aviation lovers. Kid loves airplanes. Kid builds model airplanes. Kid flies...
No Backshell and No Screw
I hate seeing D-sub connectors not supported or fastened correctly, as the wires will eventually break. In this case, two broken wires on the...
Deformed Gascolator O-Ring
Some gascolators have internal O-rings that should be checked for deformation regularly. This was caught on an inspection, but the gascolator had blue telltale...
Overheating and Intermittent Electrical Problems
I find that overheating and intermittent electrical gremlins are some of the toughest problems to fix. Often, the data you are given to work...
The Repairman Certificate
Those of us who have built or are building Experimental/Amateur-Built aircraft know that one of the rewards besides the airworthiness certificate is another document...
Plastic Tubing No-No
The symptom was a static system that leaked like a sieve when tested. Further investigation discovered this AN fitting being used with plastic tubing. AN...
Broken Control Cable
Here’s a throttle control cable that has separated from the housing. It is very likely that on a stiff throttle, the cable might bend...
In Case You Missed it
Murphy’s Law, Occam’s Razor
Ed, an aerospace engineer, and Bill, a 14th Century philosopher, walk into your workshop…and...
Around the Patch
Have you checked your fuel system for leaks lately? Turns out there's a good reason to periodically conduct a thorough investigation. Incipient leaks may go undetected. Worse, when the O-ring on the fuel-selector valve goes bad, it could allow air into the system, which means your engine could misbehave at a most inconvenient time. Often, this malady is difficult to diagnose and the assumption is that the fuel selector is OK when it is not.
