New Safety Alert issued

[gyroo]

t-bird,the original reporter has 3 Goodwin tanks - one was installed in a podded gyro and that"s the one that leaked most of its fuel out overnight. The reporter then went to where he had his 2 other seats stored unused. He unwrapped a new 40 litre seat tank and the sight tube "broke" as shown in the photo. Now, to have a sight tube break is a huge concern because they just shouldn"t "break". I asked Allan to get a photo and that"s what the reporter sent.The overnight leaking issue apparently was caused by a split low down on the sight tube that allowed fuel to leak out relatively quickly. There are 2 obvious issues with a problem like that: (1) the possibility of an airborne fire from fuel droplets blowing back onto exhausts, and (2) the loss of fuel quantity, even if it doesn"t start a fire, will probably catch the operator unawares leading to unexpectedly running out of fuel and an out-landing most likely a long way away from anywhere convenient.Mark R

[tonydenton]

but if you run out of fuel and dropped into a fast flowing river you could be ok. [ geez , I"ve been waiting for tim to come up with that 2 stroke joke , I couldn"t let it go ] yep that for sure will bite me on the ass.

[tonydenton]

this is a very serious topic and just letting you know that some one hacked my computer.

[t-bird]

Hi MarkMy braided brake lines on my Motorbike were stuffed after transportation. Don"t think that fuels lines would be unbreakable.Are these lines different than previous ones ?If they aren"t, why only problems now and then 2 defective ones at the same customer.If the lines in GW tanks concern by all means issue a safety alert.

[t-bird]

I had a look at the maintenance manuals of 3 factory gyros.Fuel lines have to be replaced every 3-4 years or 300-500 hours depending on the model.Do we have something similar for home builds ?

[gyroo]

No specific requirement - yet!In the Tech Manual I"m generally emphasizing the "on condition" principle and the need to adhere to written checklists during periodic inspections, as well as comprehensive pre-flight inspections that involve checking the integrity of the fuel system tubing and connections.Mark R

[Waddles]

Gents,I"ve just spent 30 mins talking with Gerry Goodwin. He is aware of the deterioration of the tubing used for the fuel sight gauge. He does not know what the cause is but it appears that the source of the fuel may be a factor. He says that there seem to be more issues with fuel from some locations as opposed to others.The bottom line is that Gerry hasn"t sent out a fuel tank for more than 6 months and the tubing he was using, although a good brand (Dupont) has been sent to the tip! He is currently speaking with an American supplier that seems to think that their product will be his saviour. He intends to import some and conduct field type tests to check it"s integrity. Assuming that these tests are satisfactory, he will import an adequate quantity and make it available to users of his seats at cost. It will take some months to satisfactorily complete the testing so please be patient.The bottom line is, a thorough check of ALL components of your gyro prior to and after flight is a must. As PIC, you are responsible.Regards,Allan Wardill

[birdy]

As PIC, you are responsible.Zactly.

[MadMuz]

The fuel we get these days is such crap..... there is a small amount of petrol, benzinol, toluene, perfumes, ethanol and heaps of additives to achieve higher octane from sh!t fuel.... and as a result, the shelf life is about 2 weeks.... how long has some of the petrol been in the petrol station tanks? Months? From what I have heard, it is all 91 octane to begin with, then E89 is watered down with ethanol.... 95 has some additives and 98 has even more additives..... after 2 weeks, it is just 91 again..... the stuff is so full of chemicals and mixtures of old fuel, substandard fuel you really don"t know what you are buying, nor what it does (the combinations of chemicals) to rubber fuel lines and gaskets..... you will notice that most fuel lines are grey or black, same as Jerry Cans because the black base material resists petrol longer....

[Briglow.Joe]

Muz,If that"s what is in our petrol, why are we still pricing if off crude oil.

[Brian]

Muz,If that"s what is in our petrol, why are we still pricing if off crude oil.

[blakemorem]

Hey fellars I recall this topic ages ago under fuel hose in technical dept, fuel hose standards range from J30R7 to J30R12 rating and so does the price. You can get bullet proof hose and you"ll pay for it.It"s available and you can also go thru Sky shop, and this may be a case of don"t be a tight ass. My fuel hose had external cracks and i assumed it was from UV and general engine heat. whatever the case i only got 50 hours before replacement. if you do your searching using this rating J30R9 being middle of the range, J30R12 is more high pressure injection stuff. Just one thing to add Norma Oetiker crimp clamps or fuel injection rated hose clamps are best happy searching. I just went to sky shop but there are other suppliers like good year but as always tell em its for your racing car never aircraft they wont deal with ya silly but true. Any way if you get onto some good stuff buy a roll and share it with ya mates it will last forever. I paid $400 for two 4mtr lengths of 1/4 and 5/8, I know i paid alot but tired of searching. I"ll go back and try to find reference of some good stuff. I recall Goodyear and Parker hose.Mike.

[MadMuz]

What??? oil companies take us for a ride?? No, that cant be??!! tell me its not true.... next you will be telling me that the gubbamint isn"t on our side?? :

[blakemorem]

Hey Mus have you tried carefully run a sharp stanley blade over the tube down the length of the barb the tube will peal off easily try not to score the barb. About fuel quality look deep into your gerry can the truth is there.Mike.

[MadMuz]

Hey Mus have you tried carefully run a sharp stanley blade over the tube down the length of the barb the tube will peal off easily try not to score the barb. About fuel quality look deep into your gerry can the truth is there.Mike.Yeah Mike, I mean that you cant remove and replac the same site tube, it has always been too fixed in its shape and brittle. Carefully cutting them off has always (for me) been the only way to get them off.....