[Fred.Stucklen]

I've been having a temp related problem with a P-Mag on/off for some time. After shutdown, and setting out in the hot sun for a while, the P-Mag would not properly restart - i.e., the left mag (P-Mag) would not run the engine during the MAG check at runup. Letting it cool, or taking of on one MAG and getting cool air on it, allowed it to run normally. I've sent the unit back to E-MAG for overhaul.
In the process of taking off the P-MAG, I noted that the gear was badley worn.

Has anyone else seen this type of wear? The gear doesn't look like the gear I have on a certified MAG (slightly different forging). I have noted very small ferrous particles in the oil filter, but nothing I would have worried about.... There was no obvious wear on the mating gear in the accessory case....

 

[Brantel]

Others have reported poor life on the older non certified mag gears sold by Emagair.

Best to replace it with a real certified one.

 

[mannanj]

Gear

Looks to me like it wasn't surface hardened like other gears and bearing surfaces.

 

[tomhanaway]

Just checked their site. Looks like they sell the certified gear now.

 

[Fred.Stucklen]

I just got off the phone with Brad at E-MAG. He told me that this P-MAG had a lot of oil inside due to a failed oil seal. He preplaced that and the shaft, and overhauled the rest of the unit. He included a new certified gear at no additional cost. I had also sent him the other P-MAG - an older 113 unit - which he also overhauled. It was running fine, but, since I do a lot of IFR, I thought it was a good idea to have him look at it too. Total cost was just $170 for BOTH unit overhauls (not including shipping)! A VERY reasonable price to say the least!
I can't say enough about E-MAG's support of their products. I have been using their units since they were introduced, initially with a standard MAG, then with two P-MAGs. Their products have now matured to the point where I trust them in hard IFR conditions. Even with this oil seal failure, the unit ran without any ignition issues (until it over heated on the ground, probably due to the hot oil all over the PCB, and no air cooling). I'm not sure that a Slick MAG, with points, would have fared as well with a similar seal failure....
Brad also mentioned something else about the gear wear issue. He stated that these gears tend to "wear-in" with high initial wear, then very little wear. My oil analysis supports that premise as I initially saw higher amounts of fine ferrous material in the filter, then smaller and smaller amounts over the 875 hours of engine operation. I had initially attributed the ferrous material to engine break-in wear. I guess next time I'll research this type of material in the oil filter more carefully.

I've been having a temp related problem with a P-Mag on/off for some time. After shutdown, and setting out in the hot sun for a while, the P-Mag would not properly restart - i.e., the left mag (P-Mag) would not run the engine during the MAG check at runup. Letting it cool, or taking of on one MAG and getting cool air on it, allowed it to run normally. I've sent the unit back to E-MAG for overhaul.
In the process of taking off the P-MAG, I noted that the gear was badley worn.

Has anyone else seen this type of wear? The gear doesn't look like the gear I have on a certified MAG (slightly different forging). I have noted very small ferrous particles in the oil filter, but nothing I would have worried about.... There was no obvious wear on the mating gear in the accessory case....