It is important to check the oil sump screen for contaminants at least once per year. This was the first time this screen was checked, one year after a major overhaul. The connecting rods were scraping the crankshaft due to misaligned/wrong parts.
In Case You Missed It
Around the Patch
Editor-in-Chief Marc Cook takes the temperature of the homebuilt industry at the first big fly-in of the season.
Ask the DAR
DAR Mel Asberry answers questions about when you need A&P signoff, re-certifying an airplane to make it an LSA (hint: cant be done) and pre-registration of an Experimental.
Unusual Attitude
Vans Aircraft founder Richard VanGrunsven considers flight safety, and how improving our building and piloting skills would do more to reduce the number of mishaps than additional regulations would.
Check the oil sump EVERY oil change just as one inspects the filter media.Unpleasant surprises don’t always show up in the oil filter.