AVIATOR pOinls - American Bonanza Society

Landing gear issues
I am the proud new owner of a
1963 P35. I am writing to report how
glad I am that I anended the May ABS­
ASF Service Cli nic in Madera,
California. Technician Bob Olson
ca lled my attention to a problem in the
landing-gear motor assembly. The
emergency crank handle had very liule
play left, which means the gear was
coming to rest against the stop of the
sector gear. I was advised to have it
overhauled soon.
I did the annual and in the process
had the landing-gear motor and actuator
assembly overhauled at Cruiseair
Aviation at Ramona. It had been about
500 hours since the last overhaul, so it
was definitely time.
Cruiseair did an incredible job. I
can certai nly recommend their work.
They also took the time to explain what
I should be on the lookout for in the
future. Their customer service was
excellent.
Once the actuator and motor
assembly were put back in by my own
mechanic, it was time to rerig everything.
We did uncover a differe nt problem:
The inner landing-gear doors were
slightly tweaked, probably as a result
of someone putting the gear down at
too high a speed.
When we hand-cranked it until the
microswitches engaged, the front edges
of the doors were sti LI open about a
quarter inch. My guess is that the
microswitches had been adjusted to
have the motor pu ll just a linle longer 10
get the doors completely closed. This is
the wrong fix, obviously. The doors
must be straightened to fit properly
without tension. Stopping the motor
later puts it closer or against the stop of
the sector gear, which could damage it
from percussive force on the stop.
The other danger is that it puts
more tension between the wonn gear
and the sector gear and this will either
bend the worm gear, or both the sector
gear and the wonn gear will wear out
prematurely.
Now that the motor and actuator
have been overhauled, the doors
straightened and all the rigging adjusted,
everything works we ll and has the
proper amount of play left on the
crank. The moral of the story is to
check the al ignment of the gear doors
while checking the amount of travel on
the actuator assembly. It might have
been intentionally adjusted to fix the
wrong problem.
Apparently, landing gear issues
like this are becoming more evident as
our aircraft age. I wanted to share my
own experience, potentially to save
others some headache.
-Marc Zorn
Sherman Oaks, California
Cowling light bulb
In the August Tech Tips, Jonathan
Budd, Richmond Hill, Ontario, complains
that his cowling landing light
bulb keeps go ing out. ABS Tech consultant
Bob Andrews recommended the
Arrow Light or the Knots 2 U as a fi x,
but he didn't mention the Beechcraft
Landing Light Assembly Improvement
Kit (36-4016-00 I).
As I recall, that kit was reasonably
priced and used rubber shock mounts
like the ones on instrument panels. The
instructions were a linle confusing, but
I eventually managed to get it installed.
The kit seems to work we ll , but then I
didn't have an unusually short life with
my nose cowl light after turning the filament
to the vertical.
- Tim Brown
Midlothian, Texas
Appreciation for ABS
I just rejoined ABS in March
2008. In 2004 we sold our wonderful
1968 Model 36 and acquired a pressurized
Piper Aerostar. During the time we
new the Aerostar, we were members of
its national association, a great group
of pilots and staff.
I had been a member of ABS for
more than 25 years; in fact , I had
helped stan the Pacific Bonanza
Society. I am the former owner of
Pe/formance Aero, the well-known
Beechcraft parts and accessories firm
that has a two-page ce nterfold ad in
each ABS Maga zine.
I just want to say to you, the ABS
staff, board of directors and technical
advi sors, how grateful I am to have
recently acquired our beloved Model
36 (£-70 N707WG) and to experience
the remarkable and significant work
that the aforementioned people perform
for the ABS membership.
ASS has always been the premier
GA owners association, both nationally
and internationally, in my opinion.
What has really become more evident
10 me is that despite the obvious stress
and pressures on GA aircraft owners
and service providers in recent years,
ABS presently provides more meaningfu
l services to its members than at
any other time in its history.
The magazi ne conte nt has been
taken to an even higher level since I
last viewed it in 2005. The technical
anicles, photos and graphics ... and
member notifications are consistently
first-rate. The ABS-ASF Service
Clinics, BPPP clinics and ABS Aviator
program continue to set the standard
for the industry.
I just received the August 2008
issue and want to also say how appropriate
I feel it was to commemorate
John Miller's passing with a cover
photo and prominent farewe ll story.
Having been away for nearly four
years, I sincerely appreciate everyone's
contributions to ABS. It's great to be
back!
-Gory J. Boker
Reno, Nevada
Send your letters of recommendotion,
warnings, or odvice to fellow
members to absmail@bonanza.org.