Tag: eaa airventure

119 – Sneak Peek of Dean’s Oshkosh Presentation

July 20, 2019 / Dean Showalter / 0 Comments

Scroll down to check out Dean’s favorite borescope.

I have three kids, and those are my two oldest… from many years ago 🙂

Morgan, my oldest, is on the left, and Seth is on the right. I’m guessing they were around 9 and 7 years old at that time, and they’re now 22 and 20!

So why am I showing you this picture? Good question. I’m using this picture because it’s deeply meaningful to me, AND this Cessna 182 has turned into my favorite exhaust valve borescoping and lapping story.

I’ll be telling that story in a presentation at Oshkosh on Saturday July 27, at 8:30 am. Hope to see you there!

The whole idea of “lapping” the exhaust valves came out of first borescoping the valves.

A borescope is necessary to determine if an exhaust valve is a good candidate for lapping or not.

And for this purpose, I’m a firm believer that:

Sometimes a borescope is better than a compression tester.

When it comes to viewing the condition of piston engine exhaust valves, a borescope is better than a compression tester. I have three specific story examples of actual airplanes that had an exhaust valve in serious trouble, but all three of those cylinders still had a compression test result of at least 60/80. After seeing these examples, it is EASY to see that “Sometimes, a borescope is better than a compression tester!”

So… I’ll also be talking A LOT about borescoping in my Oshkosh presentation. I’ve actually tracked down the company that produces my favorite borescope and I’m looking forward to meeting these people at Oshkosh. Oasis Scientific will have a booth there.

They’ve been great to work with and have set up a code for me to offer you 10% off the purchase price. Just use my code “Dean” at checkout to receive the 10 % discount. Oasis Scientific has many borescoping products, and here are my two favorites to recommend to you: (The first is the borescope alone, and the second is a bundle that includes an adapter to allow you to view and save pictures on your iPhone or iPad.) I bought the bundle and am very happy with it.

If you will be at Oshkosh 2019, you can go to Oasis Scientific’s booth and get their discounted show price PLUS another 10% discount by using my code “Dean”.

For the VA-400 borescope:

https://www.oasisscientific.com/vividia-va-400-rigid-usb-articulating-borescope-videoscope-inspection-camera.html

The borescope above will connect directly to an Android device or tablet.

Or if you’re like me and want to use your iPhone or iPad, you’ll want to buy the bundle which includes the VA-400 above along with a WiFi adapter to allow viewing on your iPhone or iPad. Here’s the bundle: (This is the one I bought.)

https://www.oasisscientific.com/store/p374/VA-400-WiFi_Bundle%3A_Vividia_Ablescope_VA-400_USB_Rigid_Articulating_Borescope_plus_VA-B2_WiFi_AirBox_for_iPad_iPhone_and_Android_Phone_and_Tablet.html

It’s an incredible tool that comes in a really nice metal box.

I’m really happy with this borescope. If you’re looking for a borescope, this one may be a good option for you as well.

Don’t forget to use the code “Dean” at checkout to recieve a 10% discount off the purchase price.

If you have not downloaded my free UPDATED Exhaust Valve Inspection Guide with pictures and descriptions of what to look for, be sure to grab a copy of that as well… it will be super helpful in using your new borescope. You can get access to that free guide here: airplaneownermaintenance.com/exhaustvalves

In the next podcast episode, I’ll give a report on my first time to Oshkosh!

Have a great week, and I hope to see some of you at the big airshow!

117 – Cirrus SR22 Flap Problem Solved

June 9, 2019 / Dean Showalter / 2 Comments

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Four things for this episode:

An announcement about Oshkosh.
An Aeronca Champ that landed at SHD recently.
My new friend, Brad Flickinger. Brad is a podcast listener from Pennsylvania who stopped in to see me at SHD recently.
A flap problem on a Cirrus SR22.

1.Oshkosh Announcement:

I’ve never been to the EAA Airventure Oshkosh Airshow. But this is the year to change that, and I’m planning to go this year! I can’t wait.

I have been scheduled to give a workshop presentation at Oshkosh this year. The name of my workshop is “Exhaust Valve Borescoping and Lapping,” and you can click this link to get the details:

https://www.eaa.org/eaa/event/Exhaust_Valve_Borescoping__Lapping?id=B60EDF7E3005415C9DE8F72AB063B6F9

It will be in Workshop Classroom A, on Saturday, July 27, at 8:30 am.

If you will be at Airventure / Oshkosh this year, please stop by for this presentation… I would love to meet you there.

2. The Aeronca Champ that landed at SHD:

Such a classic little airplane!

And it even had a backwards tachometer, like the one I flew years ago.

… and with a wooden prop and no electrical system, it’s a really simple airplane.

3. My new friend, Brad Flickinger.

Brad stopped in to see me at Classic Aviation at SHD recently. I found out he’s been listening to the podcast while driving a truck.

Brad owns and flies a Mooney, and we are currently making plans for me to go spend some time with him and some of his airplane friends in PA.

Thanks Brad, for taking the time to stop in for a visit. I always love to meet podcast listeners in person!

4. Cirrus SR22 Flap Problem

I’ve been doing an annual inspection on an SR22, and one of the squawks was that the flaps would not extend all the way.

A call to Cirrus Tech Support turned out to be a fantastic experience!

Ben gave me some ideas about what to check, and one thing he suggested checking was the flap system relays under the floor panel behind the copilot seat.