time until first plug cleaning?

[prkaye]

I've got about 35 hours on the plane now. This spring/summer, probably when I get close to 50 hours, I plan to hire a local retired AME to teach me how to do a major inspection including mag timing check, compression test, etc.
Question - am i ok to wait to 50 hours to do my first spark plug inspection and cleaning? I've been running mineral oil, and am just now changing to Aeroshell W 15W50 (what does the leading "W" indicate, by the way?).

[AltonD]

15 winter weight, 50 summer weight.

Basically, it is a multiviscosity oil. Cold, it exhibits the properties of a 15 weight oil. hot, it exhibits the properties of a 50 weight oil.

[Neal@F14]

IMHO, 50 hours is generally a very reasonable period to go before cleaning the (conventional massive electrode) spark plugs unless they are somehow getting excessive carbon and lead deposits in them prematurely.

At the first 50 hours in the RV-8 in my avatar (new ECI IO-360 engine), the plugs were still so clean and devoid of any lead or carbon deposits that we just simply checked the gaps and put them back in and waited until 100 hours before running them thru the abrasive plug cleaner. They were even still very clean then. Every time you beadblast them with an abrasive spark plug cleaner, you remove some amount of potential useful service life from them, so you really don't want to beadblast them too frequently if they don't need it... especially for how expensive spark plugs are these days to replace. The high-dollar platinum or iridium fine wire plugs have been known to be able to go to full TBO (2000 hours) without cleaning!

[turbo]

clean with dental pick, regap, and rotate, thats it. FLY ON!!!!!