Bubblehead
Well Known Member
On a different thread I described how I started having an intermittent rough engine problem. Last night I removed the magneto cap and ignition wires from the plane to do a thorough inspection and found the insulation on one ignition wire worn through exposing the copper stranded wire below. Apparently this was in a position where it would occasionally get close enough to the airframe to short out instead of firing the spark plug.
Three questions:
1) with only one wire on the cylinder not firing, why did the engine run rough? I can imagine a slight loss of power like in a mag drop test but not the rough running that I experienced.
2) I will replace the ignition harness but until then is there a legal, safe repair to the insulation that can be made?
3) when I replace the harness I'd like to shorten the length of a couple of the leads to make a neater installation and avoid chaffing. Can that be done?
The harness is a Skytronics Aero-lite harness on a Bendix D4LN-2021 Dual mag.
Three questions:
1) with only one wire on the cylinder not firing, why did the engine run rough? I can imagine a slight loss of power like in a mag drop test but not the rough running that I experienced.
2) I will replace the ignition harness but until then is there a legal, safe repair to the insulation that can be made?
3) when I replace the harness I'd like to shorten the length of a couple of the leads to make a neater installation and avoid chaffing. Can that be done?
The harness is a Skytronics Aero-lite harness on a Bendix D4LN-2021 Dual mag.