R

RogerM

Member
I have a YIO-360 Lycoming engine purchased thru Van's that comes set up for a constant speed prop. My plan is to convert this engine to run a fixed pitch Catto prop. This requires compliance with Lycoming Service Instruction 1435. To complete this modification I must removal of the front expansion plug in the crankshaft, put a 1/8 to 3/16 hole in the aft crankshat expasion plug, avoid damaging the tranfer tube forward of the aft plug, and reinstall the forward expansion plug in the crankshaft.

I need a detailed set of instructions on how to accomplish this conversion without doing some serious damage to the crankshaft. Some of you very talented guys have undoubltedly done this and I'd appreciate your sharing your knowledge.

All of the arguments, pro and con, for the fixed vs cs have been extensively reviewed and argued with my professional flying buddies and that is no longer a topic for discussion.
 
Im doing the same thing mostly cause FP is WAYYYYY better than C/S! :) hahah I cant wait for the fun now!

in any event. anyone have a source and P/N for the crankshaft plug?
 
RV8R999 said:
Im doing the same thing mostly cause FP is WAYYYYY better than C/S! :) hahah I cant wait for the fun now!

in any event. anyone have a source and P/N for the crankshaft plug?
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Van's has them in their inventory. I bought one to do the reinstallation of the forward plug and it was only a few dollars.
 
Jeff R said:
Don't you also have to remove and plug the oil return tube?
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You can remove the oil line and the base housing for the prop controller and replace them with a plug and plate saving a few pounds of weight, but Tech Support at Lycoming told me that it's not necessary to remove it if willing to live with the weight. I have the part numbers for this fix, but decided not to do it.
 
N941WR said:
There will be no "reinstall" of the old plug. You will damage it when you remove it. "Replace" is a better word.
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I was hoping to receive some helpful information to assist with completion of my project, and if you happen to have any I'd appreciate receiving it.
 
I removed the gov adaptor, the line, and plugged at the crankshaft end. More than weight savings I like having the extra room to behind the engine to get to all the oil, fuel pump fittings..sure makes things easier back there.

Just bought a couple of plugs at spruce. Not sure about punching that hole in the after crank plug though...drilling is out cause where are all those metal chips going?
 
CAtto Prop

I've used Van's Sencenich prop on two 7's and it works great. Why Catto? Sencenich will be around in 10 years for service.
 
RV8R999 said:
Im doing the same thing mostly cause FP is WAYYYYY better than C/S! :) hahah I cant wait for the fun now!

in any event. anyone have a source and P/N for the crankshaft plug?
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Van's part #'s are EA STD 1211 for the expansion plug, $4.50.

If you decide to remove the mounting plate and oil line for the prop controller Van's sells the Accessory Case Cover Plate, "prop governor cover", for $23 and the gasket for $1.50. I suspect they can also provide the plug for the forward attachment of the oil line, but I haven't looked for that item.
 
RogerM said:
Van's part #'s are EA STD 1211 for the expansion plug, $4.50.

If you decide to remove the mounting plate and oil line for the prop controller Van's sells the Accessory Case Cover Plate, "prop governor cover", for $23 and the gasket for $1.50. I suspect they can also provide the plug for the forward attachment of the oil line, but I haven't looked for that item.
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Be sure you don't damage the oil line you remove in case it needs to be used at a later date. That little puppy is high$$$$$$$!
 
RV8R999 said:
I removed the gov adaptor, the line, and plugged at the crankshaft end. More than weight savings I like having the extra room to behind the engine to get to all the oil, fuel pump fittings..sure makes things easier back there.

Just bought a couple of plugs at spruce. Not sure about punching that hole in the after crank plug though...drilling is out cause where are all those metal chips going?
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Ken, That makes a lot of sense, and I'm rethinking my initial decision to leave the hardware inplace. Thanks.

Lycoming says to punch a hole in the plug with a long sharp pointed awl, but I'd like to communicate with someone thats actually done it.
 
some cranks have a threaded plug inside

I'm not sure which engine you have, I don't know what a YIO-360 is.

The angle-valve engines, and I think, some parallel-valve engines, have a removable inner plug in the crank that you can just unscrew rather than punch a hole in. There is a standard 1/8"NPT pipe-thread set screw basically, with a hex-key end that you just unscrew from the inner plug.

This makes it much easier to switch between CS and FP. I guess you should be prepared to do the punch trick, but you may be pleasantly surprised when you shine a light in there.

then of course you have to install a new outer front freeze plug.
 
scsmith said:
I'm not sure which engine you have, I don't know what a YIO-360 is.

The angle-valve engines, and I think, some parallel-valve engines, have a removable inner plug in the crank that you can just unscrew rather than punch a hole in. There is a standard 1/8"NPT pipe-thread set screw basically, with a hex-key end that you just unscrew from the inner plug.

This makes it much easier to switch between CS and FP. I guess you should be prepared to do the punch trick, but you may be pleasantly surprised when you shine a light in there.

then of course you have to install a new outer front freeze plug.
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The YIO-360 is Lycomings experimental version of their certified IO-360 180 HP. This model has the solid plug. It's my understanding that the threaded plug is only in the 200 HP engines.
 
agough277 said:
I've used Van's Sencenich prop on two 7's and it works great. Why Catto? Sencenich will be around in 10 years for service.
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Why Catto? It will run a bit smoother. Three blades really look cool when they're not going round and round, and I'm willing to sacrifice the slight reduction in efficiency of 3 vs 2 blades. While Sencenich will be around in 10 years, I probably won't be, so that's not a concern for me. you see, there are some advantages to being really old.
 
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