P

prkaye

Well Known Member
Does anybody fly without CHT and EGT guages? Would you even consider flying a new airplane without these?
 
All the time. However, I have not flown anything brand new or that wasn't owned by someone else. FWIW, I'm planning on a full engine monitor to take advantage of having all of that data that it will provide.
 
CHT/EGT Worth the investment

A $1K investment in all cylinder temp values is the cheapest insurance you'll find in protecting and diagnosing your $21K engine!
"To be forewarned is to forearmed".
 
I flew without ANY CHT or EGT gauges in many rental airplanes for decades....Lycomings (and Continentals) run pretty good without instrumentation. That said, the instrumentation is so cheap nowadays, and if it can save you a gallon/hour of fuel burn, it's not hard to see why most people put it in from the start. Especially when breaking in a brand new engine, seeing the CHT's, and doing something about an overtemp before you glaze the cylinder walls is pretty nice!

Paul
 
Well, here's an example from the other day that saved me a bunch of time. I was idling the engine while on the ground for about 20 minutes when I noticed that #4 EGT was quite a bit higher than the others, even though the engine sounded fine. I tired to clear it with a high-power run-up and leaning but that did not do it. I then cycled each mag and noticed that the #4 EGT fell off and it ran rough only when the left mag was active.

So I shut it down, pulled the cowl, and pulled the #4 plug on the left mag. Sure enough the plug was bridged. Cleaned it off and everything has been running fine.

Without those gauges it would have been much harder to diagnose and even discover. :D
 
I'm not a fan of the CHT steam gauge particularly because I have yet to see one work effectivly. However, testing out a digi one may change my mind.

EGT is going to give the first indication of serious engine issues. Any aircraft I own will have at LEAST an EGT. It can save alot of money in the long run.
 
Last edited:
My Skipper has absolutely nothing.... and I'm saving for a "Ultimate Bar Graph" I just want that extra bit of comfort knowing that all 4 engines up front are operating right. I never understood a single cylinder EGT on a carb'd engine.
 
No Way, Jose.

prkaye said:
Does anybody fly without CHT and EGT guages? Would you even consider flying a new airplane without these?
Click to expand...

No, I wouldn't. At the least I'd get a complete kit like GRTs EIS system if low cost low fuss is an issue. It's a complete self contained system that's expandable if you ever go on to use their displays. I'm helping a fella now in his test phase balance out his CHTs and EGTs. In cruise he consistently had almost 100 degrees difference between his CHTs and large average differences between the left and right sides and very large difference between front and rear cylinders. We've been able to record all the flight data, make informed changes to the baffle and bracket designs and are really dialing in balance.

It such a good tool for leaning and engine troubleshooting that it'll pay for itself not only monetarily but in peace of mind.

http://www.grtavionics.com/product.aspx?productno=2&featureno=9
 
You must log in or register to reply here.