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Lancair's Full Service Maintenance Facility
 At Lancair’s new maintenance facility, we can perform pre-purchase inspections, condition (annual/100 hour) inspections, and engine and aircraft repairs. We also provide aircraft modifications and air conditioning installations. Lancair maintenance facility will offer the most experienced and reliable service you will find. The department is headed by John LeStelle and our staff of experienced A&P mechanics.
John LeStelle, has a B.S. in Aerospace Systems Maintenance with an A&P, IA. John has flown over 15,000 flight hours on turboprop and turbojet aircraft as flight engineer both in military and commercial aviation. John served 22 years with the U.S. Navy as a flight engineer and flight engineer instructor on the Lockheed P-3 Orion aircraft; he also served as a combat aircrewman in Vietnam. John was formerly employed at Piper Aircraft in Vero Beach, FL before joining the Lancair staff in April 2003. At Piper Aircraft, he was the maintenance supervisor and chief inspector in the customer repair facility, a certified repair station. John has extensive maintenance and management experience in F.A.R. Part 91, 135, 121 and 145 operations. Additionally, John will be adding maintence tips each month and is avialable for questions.
Please email John at johnl@lancair-kits.com or call him at 541-923-2244 to schedule an appointment, ask him a question or if you would like to see an upcoming tip.
July's maintenance tip of the month
This month I have included a link that gives the timing procedure for slick magnetos. Click here to download the pdf instructions.
If anyone has any maintenance subject they would like me to address, please e-mail me at johnl@lancair-kits.com
October's maintenance tip of the month
When adjusting the fuel pressure on the Continental IO-550-N engines you must first set the mixture. Adjust the idle speed screw to obtain 600 RPM. Retard the mixture control, you are looking for a rise of 25-50 RPM as the engine dies. Less than 25 indicates a lean condition; more than 25 indicates a rich condition. Run the engine at approx. 1500 RPM for several seconds to clear the system between readings. After this is set you should move on to the next step in the procedure which is reading and adjustment of the unmetered pressure setting of the fuel pump. At 600 RPM you should have 8-10 psi, and approx. 5 psi metered pressure. At 2700 RPM you should have 28-32 psi. and 19-21.3 metered pressure, and 150-160 pph fuel flow. Low speed adjustments are made at the rear of the pump. Metered adjustments are made at the orifice on the side of the pump. A special tool can be fabricated from a standard allen wrench. After making adjustments, mixture settings should be rechecked and adjusted as necessary. The Continental service bulletin covering these adjustments is SB-97-3B. Click here to download this bulletin for reference.
June's maintenance tip (commentary) of the month
Well, sorry I took so long to add another maintenance tip but I have been very busy lately. Hope that excuse is good enough, it’s the only one I have. I would like to deviate from a tip this month to
make an observation. I have seen a lot of traffic on the internet regarding flight with a known discrepancy. This condition is allowable only under certain conditions. Is it an airworthy issue affecting safety of flight, or just a minor problem of little concern? In order to fly an aircraft with a known discrepancy F.A.R.’s require the aircraft be inspected by a qualified inspector to determine airworthiness. This does not mean the owner with a repairman certificate, a close friend, or some other unskilled person. The application states a certified airframe and powerplant mechanic or inspector. Just because you MAY have built the aircraft does not qualify you as an airworthiness expert. The determination of airworthiness is based on factory recommended guidelines, experience gained in the field, and common sense. The latter seems to be lacking in some of the articles I have read. Another thing that concerns me is the attitude of some individuals when questioned about their foolhardy decisions, or an attempt is made to elevate their thinking regarding safety of flight. I personally don’t know how individuals offering free advice gained by training and years of experience, ADVISE THAT IS SOUND AND MAY SAVE YOUR LIFE, have the patience to endure ridicule and personal attacks in the process,. I would just sit on the sidelines and let Mother Nature clean the gene pool. Just because you have an experimental airworthiness certificate does not relieve you of the responsibility to maintain an airworthy aircraft or exercise sound judgment. The fact that it is EXPERIMENTAL means that you should be doing it better and safer than everyone else.
June's maintenance tip of the month
This month I would like to discuss proper preflight of an aircraft. I have seen many items posted on the LML concerning if something should be included on a preflight. As a professional flight engineer with thousands of hours doing preflights I can say for sure—if it’s on the aircraft and can be seen, it needs to be checked before flight. Security of attached parts, condition of tires, brakes, fluid reservoirs, lines and fittings, flight controls MOST DEFINITELY! I have seen experienced pilots just jump in and go. BAD MOVE! I don’t care how well you know your aircraft the old saying “complacency kills” is a very valid statement. In the engineering world the 800-1000 flight hour mark is when you have a tendency to become dangerous. You suffer from “know it all” syndrome and become complacent. Check all your equipment before you take-off. It only takes a few minutes and saves a lot of grief when you least need it. I suggest making a checklist for preflight and USE IT. Be consistent and through with your inspection and you might just be surprised what you may find. It’s a lot easier to fix when you are on the ground.
May's maintenance tip of the month
During a fuel injection set-up on a customers Legacy the unmetered fuel pressure jumped from the upper limit of 32 psi to 44 psi all by itself. Investigation revealed fuel contamination due to sanding residue left in the wings. This contamination was in the entire fuel injection system and ending up being a costly repair. I would advise everyone to triple flush the wings before installation, and no matter how hard it is, remove the cowl and clean the gascolator and the internal filter during the first few hours of operation. Remember, this is the last line of defense before the fuel injection system. I also discovered that someone left the O ring out of the gascolator completely. They used some kind of sealant to keep it from leaking. Not really smart.
March's maintenance tip of the month
If anyone has ever made a mess while draining their engine oil and changing the filter this may help. On Lycoming engines a medium sized freezer bag placed over the oil filter and adapter will allow you to unscrew the filter and catch the oil in the bag. This will not work on the Continental engines, however if you use a punch or some other pointed tool to punch a hole in the top of the filter and allow it to drain for awhile it will not make a mess. A trough can be fabricated out of thin aluminum to fit under the drain plug in the pan to divert the oil to the bucket.
An effective fuel injection nozzle removal tool can be made by turning down a 12 point 1⁄4 inch socket in a lathe to almost non-existence and then cutting flats for a wrench at the top of the socket. This home made tool works pretty well. Continental has a special tool but does not sell it and could not advise me who does, go figure.
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Copyright © 2005 Neico Aviation Inc. All rights reserved, specifications and pricing to change without notice. Lancair, the Lancair logo, Lancair IV-P, Lancair PropJet, Lancair Legacy, Lancair Legacy FG and Lancair ES are trademarks of Lancair International Inc. and Neico Aviation Inc. No images or content in their part or entirety may be used without the expressed permission from Lancair International Inc. and Neico Aviation Inc.
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