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Pitts Repairs or "It's gonna cost how much???"
| Date |
Description |
Cost |
| Jul 27, 1999 |
I've been the proud owner of my Pitts now for a whopping two months or so. I had the
plane inspected by a mechanic before taking ownership and aside from a few minor
points, it has a clean bill of health. I now have about 50 hours in it and am starting to do
an increasing number of gyroscopic maneuvers which are a lot of fun although hard on the
engine. The engine is a little worn however, so I expect to be rebuilding it in about a year's
time anyway. |
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| Jul 28, 1999 |
I'm halfway through a practice session when I notice the windshield fogging up. I realize
that it's covered in a thin film of engine oil, so I immediately throttle back and return to the
airport. From all the oil I find covering the front of the engine, I'm guessing that those
gyroscopics finally took their toll on the crankshaft's front (prop) oil seal. I take the plane
to my mechanic and thus the saga begins... |
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| Jul 30, 1999 |
Under my mechanic's supervision, I remove the prop and immediately notice something
very worrying. A crack is working its way around a third of the circumference of the
crankshaft behind the prop flange. My mechanic and I spend several minutes discussing
how lucky I was that the thing didn't let go and hurl the prop into someone's backyard,
leaving me to land the world's worst glider! I already know one thing for certain; this is not
going to be cheap! |
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| Aug 20, 1999 |
Replacing the crankshaft will involve removal and tear-down of the engine, so I elect to
do the overhaul a little ahead of schedule. After some investigation, I choose LyCon, a
highly respected engine shop in California, to do the work. They quote $14,000 for the
basic overhaul plus $6000 for a new (solid) crankshaft. Now, we all know airplanes are
expensive, but $6000? The same item for a car would only be a few hundred bucks. A
sickening feeling is growing in my stomach! |
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| Aug 28, 1999 |
To save money, I decide to remove the engine myself with the aid of a mechanic friend.
We attack the task on a Saturday morning and by mid afternoon, I have a much
shortened airplane, an engine and a huge pile of neatly labeled parts! I pay my friend for
his time, marking the first of the repair costs. Later that week, LyCon pick up the engine
and I estimate that I'll be flying again before the end of the year. I couldn't have been more
wrong! |
$200.00 |
| Nov 12, 1999 |
LyCon called to say they're backed up and have only just got around to stripping my
engine down. They've discovered some additional items that need replacing and at this
point, I also elect to use high compression NFS pistons (10:1 vs the standard 8.5:1). They
will add an extra $1600 to the bill, but now is the best time to do it and I confess, the
extra power does sound appealing! |
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| Feb 8, 2000 |
Exciting news! My engine is at last finished and they can deliver it as soon as I pay up. I'm
hit with the killer repair bill and thanks to the marvel credit cards, I pay them and begin to
wonder how I'm going to afford all this. |
$25,014.31 |
| Feb 11, 2000 |
My plane, the engine and a pile of parts are now sitting in my mechanic's hangar. He too is
snowed under and I agree to help out as much as possible to speed things along. The
plane's annual inspection has also expired, so my mechanic starts this before the engine
installation. I'm praying that nothing else is seriously wrong with this aircraft. |
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| Feb 24, 2000 |
That sickening feeling has returned. I'm holding a long list of items that need fixing for the
annual, the worst being that the top wing has some internal damage to the trailing edge and
the fabric covering is worn out. It needs recovering and I am unsurprised to hear that it
will be expensive. To make matters worse my mechanic explains that he's understaffed
and can't do any of the work. I pay him and he passes me off to another mechanic on the
field who, fortunately, has a good reputation. |
$250.00 |
| March 15, 2000 |
The new mechanic is working round the clock and I'm excited. He has installed the engine
using some fancy, though expensive custom oil lines. He has taken care of most of the
miscellaneous additional repairs but explains that he's not willing to take on the wing
recovering. I ask around and find a reputable shop at a nearby airport who agree to do
the wing for me, quoting $4000. I've spent so much money already, that I take it in my
stride, albeit with a glazed look over my eyes! |
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| May 13, 2000 |
I knew it couldn't last. My new mechanic informs me that he is moving away. We fire up
the engine for the first time and I taxi back to my hangar. It sounds awesome and I'm quite
upset that I still have to sort out the wing before I can fly it. The mechanic also explains
that the exhaust is worn out and will need replacing. He helps me remove the wing and I
pay his bill before he leaves. |
$4723.97 |
| Aug 9, 2000 |
The wing work is now proceeding at the repair shop, but they do need to make a few
more minor repairs which will drive up the bill somewhat. In the meantime, I order a nice
crossover exhaust system from Sky Dynamics which should only help boost the engine
power still further and improve that all important engine note! |
$784.00 |
| Oct 26, 2000 |
At last, the wing is complete! Fortunately, I am sitting down when they give me the final
bill. It is $7300!; considerably more than the $4000 estimate but it turns out that the price
is fair for the amount of extra labor. They deliver it and I pay the bill. All this expense has
finally taken its toll on my finances though and I'm going to have to wait a while before
getting it installed. |
$7275.31 |
| Feb 5, 2001 |
My financial situation has started to recover and I've found a mechanic who seems excited
about doing the work. I want to be excited too, but I'm just too jaded to believe that it
will be complete any time soon. With the help of a couple of friends, I temporarily install
the top wing and we push the plane over to the mechanic's shop. The mechanic takes one
look at the routing of the new exhaust and tells me we'll have to replace some of those
brand new oil lines to use it... damn! Along the way, I decide to get some panels
repainted and install an alternator which in turn requires a new electronic tachometer. I've
spent so much already, I'll hardly notice the extra! |
$1604.39 |
| Feb 22, 2001 |
I'm speechless! Standing in my mechanic's hangar, I'm staring at my airplane and it's
finished. I climb inside, fire it up and taxi it back to my hangar. I'm wearing a dorky grin
on my face that just will not go away. At last, I have the final bill. |
$1559.83 |
| Feb 23, 2001 |
The magic moment has finally arrived! I spend a long, long time doing a very thorough
pre-flight inspection while I try to summon up the nerve to climb inside. At last I do so and
fire up the engine. I get fuel and head to the end of the runway. I remain in the run-up area
until the engine oil is in the green and call the tower. I taxi onto the runway and push the
throttle to the stop. After a negligible ground roll, the plane leaps into the air and I start to
circle the field at altitude to begin the break in process. |
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Grand Total |
$41,411.81 |
Summary
After 18 months of repair work, it finally ended up costing $40K to fix a $28K airplane! All is not lost
however, since the new engine has increased its value considerably. At this point, I no longer care, I'm just
thrilled that the Red Bug is now flying once more!
It took an awful long time to get here, but in case you're wondering if it was all worth it, take a look at a
short article I've been reading over and over
to help keep my outlook positive!
Should I bother writing about the fun I've been having flying it? Or how I almost balled it up on landing
after the first test-flight? Perhaps, but that will be another page...
Nit-picker's epilogue!
- I really did get the plane inspected before I bought it. The compressions were a little off, the fabric was
obviously shabby and the plane had been flown hard in the past. However, the fuselage and wings were factory built
and it was assembled by Rich Bastian, so I knew I was getting a solid airframe underneath. I could have paid
more for something in better shape, but who is to say that the same thing wouldn't have happened anyway?
- The broken crankshaft was hollow with flange lightening holes. The biggest problem was the loads
imposed by that big old metal prop and all those snaps and lomcevaks would have been best saved for when I had
upgraded to composite. What can I say? I have a habit of learning well known lessons the hard way!
- I could have had the engine rebuilt cheaper elsewhere, but frankly, I think going with LyCon was one of the
better decisions I've made so far and I believe their work is worth the extra.
- I went for an original Lycoming solid crankshaft. I could have saved some money with an aftermarket part, but
I wanted to know what I was getting. If someone else is using an ECI or other manufacturer's crank in their Pitts,
I'd love to hear about it.
- The long timeline was caused partly by bad luck, largely by my own lack of funds and mainly by the sheer
volume of work mechanics have in my area. I live in Silicon Valley, California and few mechanics can keep up
with the rising cost of living and many are forced out of the area. Worse yet, my $28K plane is competing against
$1M planes for attention. If you were a mechanic, whose would you work on first?!
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