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What did you do with your RV this Weekend (2/29/2020 - 3/1/2020)

Passed up a chance for the 200 kt club in the RV-9A. 47 knots at 9,000, but surface winds gusting to 34. No, thanks...
 
This morning, I decided to take the RV out and grab some breakfast. I ended up flying over to Cable (KCCB) and had a very good breakfast (I'd recommend it, if you haven't been). Cable was a very busy airport this morning. After breakfast, I flew back and put the airplane in the hangar. Rain is coming tonight through Monday, so that's going to do it for my RV weekend..

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CRQ

We flew down to CRQ for breakfast (no pics, sorry) Had a great breakfast and met a fairly new PP who flew down with her date, who happened to be a controller at John Wayne (KSNA). Good food, good conversation then back to KLGB to change the oil...

-Marc
 
It was a great weekend

Elk spotting. Attention shed hunters it?s almost time.





Then hopped to the other side of the ridge.




Dinosaur National Monument.



Checked boaters by Flaming Gorge.




Net to catch rogue pilots :D

 
Went for a "leap day" flight on 2/29, to exercise the -10 and top off with cheap gas before work.

Flew over the airport where I first soloed and took off for my checkride just 2 weeks short of 25 years ago:

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Yesterday my airplane as well as an RV6a, and 2 RV8's did a missing man formation flight for a funeral for a pilot. My airplane was lead, I was navigating communicating while my buddy was doing the lead flying work.
 
Got N241ES back in the air

Left brake on the pilot side has been leaking around the cylinder inside the plane. I managed to get that fixed a week ago, but it was brutally cold in the hangar. I must be getting old:) So today I went out and bled the brakes and took a test flight. Got home just in time for the snow storm we are supposed to get tonight!

Geoff
 
On my last flight the Comm1 breaker decided it didn't want to work anymore. Worked fine on the flight out, then quit just after takeoff on the return. Comm was off and on for the entire flight. I was able to get a couple calls in prior to landing. Luckily I fly out of an uncontrolled airport and it was pretty quiet as well.

So, this Saturday I swapped out the breaker, all is working well now. I could have gone for a flight, but the 25kt winds make a fun around the patch not all that worthwhile. So, I decided to try out some of that new ceramic wax. Since bug season is about to start, I am hoping it will help a bit. I used the Mothers CMX version. Went on pretty easy, time will tell.
 
Having just completed Phase I on the 10, I took my wife to visit our son at Iowa State on Saturday. Beautiful flying weather that day and wife seemed to like the 10 better than the 6. It is Soooo much nicer as a cross country platform.

Larry
 
Sunday proved to me once again that aircraft ownership is a never-ending learning experience, this community we're part of is amazing and always willing to help, and luck flies along with us whether we realize it or not.

On today's round robin from Victoria to Powell River to Courtenay to Victoria, my right brake went flat after startup at Courtenay. Sitting with the engine idling, the airplane slowly started turning left while my right foot kept pushing until it reached end of travel. I shut down before I turned into the fuel pumps beside me, but we were truly stuck at that point. My brake piston had come out far enough that the o-ring seal breached and the fluid exited the piston. No fluid, no brake, no fly.

The first thought was how I would get my passenger, a new commercial pilot along for her first ride in an RV, back to Victoria. Then, how to get the wife to drive to Courtenay for a retrieval.

However, parked at the Visitor spaces at Courtenay was an RV-7, and I asked the owner where he was based... I hoped it might be near Victoria and that I could impose upon him to return my passenger. But as it turns out, he was based at Courtenay. And he knew another RV owner at Courtenay. And they knew an AME based at Courtenay. And before I knew it I had tools, parts, new brake pads, brake fluid, and an airworthy airplane. In the middle of a Sunday afternoon as the rain was starting.

Ironically, I have most of the tools to install new brake pads in my hangar. I was gauging my brake pad wear by the measurement of the visible (top) edge of the pad... I knew the right pads were due, but thought there was another flight or two in them. As it turns out, they don't necessarily wear evenly... Mine were tapered from just under 1/8" at the top, where I was observing them, to about 1/16" at the bottom... Enough to make the piston o-ring borderline on sealing. And as it turns out, the o-ring was pinched, either when installed, or while it was failing. The tilt of the pad suggests the piston was probably tilted as well, which wouldn't help.

Thanks to Mike (RV-7), Richard (RV-7A), and Dwayne (AME) at Courtenay, I owe each of them lunch when the weather allows a return flight.
 
Flew my plane home from the avionics shop on Friday afternoon with my brand new G3X Touch-based IFR panel. Spent most of the day Saturday on the ground, hooked to aux power, learning the new system from top to bottom. The winds on Saturday were quite sporty so didn't take her up. Took her flying on Sunday for a good bit to apply what I learned on Saturday and check out any bugs/quirks/squawks that need addressed.

Old Panel:
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New Panel:
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AJO, Yuma, Gila Bend, Ajo, Wink, Sasser, Hooks

The previous weekend we had a flat at a remote airport (Grapevine, AZ88). After Rosie rescued us I decided to replace both tires and tubes with new. Parts arrived from ACS about 1pm Thursday and N174RT had a new set of feet installed by 4pm. Worked on the ramp without a jack. So Friday was time for a shakedown flight. Sandy and I flew to Yuma for lunch, O2 fill and fuel. Sadly the person in line in front of us at the caf? got the last order of Millionaire's Friday Rib lunch. We still had nice BBQ for lunch. The small O2 tank was filled so we could use it for our upcoming trip instead of my larger tank, filled with fuel - $3.97 fuel (cheap for AZ). We stopped and topped the tanks at Gila Bend on the way back to Ajo (P01).

Saturday morning we launched eastward. Less than three hours, mostly at 9500' with nice tail winds we landed at Winkler County Airport (KINK) in Wink TX. This has become a frequent stop for us. Nice family owned/operated FBO. Peanut butter & jelly on bagel for lunch. Then less than two more hours of flying until we landed at Sasser/Breakaway airport near Austin. Scott Card had agreed to help with some plane maintenance which we mostly completed Saturday afternoon before adult beverages and dinner. We always enjoy visiting the Cards. Sunday included final inspection/re-assembly of N174RT before heading to Houston area.

Large mine near Marana AZ
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Guadalupe peak:
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Wink Sink just east of KINK:
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While flying from Ajo to KINK, near Deming NM we were listening to ATC. ONLY listening, I had not called ATC. My ADSB showed a plane, opposite direction, 500' above us and 15 miles away. When the plane was just under 10 miles away ATC called "N174RT, are you on frequency, traffic alert opposite direction 500' above you, xx miles"!* I acknowledged and shortly after told ATC I had traffic in sight. Confirmed my ADSB out was working.

N174RT being pushed into the Card's hangar:
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Sasser Breakaway (40XS) to Tomball, Texas (KDWH)
Filed IFR flight plan. Picked it up after taking off from 40XS. Stay at 3k for traffic - American Airlines flight that went off our bow. Cleared to 5k. Mostly above the clouds. About 15 minutes from KDWH, we were cleared to 3k, then fairly quickly to 2k. Short 5-10 minutes in soggy clouds. In and out of the clouds at 3k, underneath the overcast at 2k'. 20 miles out, ATC asked if we had Foxtrot at DWH, but it was garbled. 10 miles out, ATC asked if we could see the runway, which we could not, but we were eventually able to get ATIS info Foxtrot. ATC asked us to keep our sped up since a Cirrus was following. That was easy. Turned to 080 as directed. 5-6 miles out, we spotted the beacon. Visual approach, and contact tower.
Two nice young men drove out in a mini-van to put chocks under the plane, and drive us to Gill FBO as its not very close to parking.
Sandy treated herself to a Keurig Starbucks coffee in the FBO, and Rachel (at the desk) gave Sandy a box of Godiva Chocolates wrapped with a red ribbon since they were out of cookies!

Regards,
 
On Sunday I flew a Pilots N Paws mission down to Shreveport Downtown airport and back to home base. Picked up 8 puppies and one larger young dog named Ruby. The puppies rode back in the soft sided crate. All delivered safe and sound to a local rescue.

Side comment is that the winds were strong and I hit 215 kts ground speed on the way home!

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I've somehow managed to maintain Instrument currency (very seldom proficiency) without the hood for a number of years, pretty humbling to be back under the visor for some approach work! I need to do this more often.

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