AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2022 - 96

RUDDER & WRENCH
Savvy Maintenance coverage
sponsored by AIRCRAFT SPRUCE
SAVVY MA INTENANCE /OPINION
Real-life breakdowns
Dealing with problems away from home base
BY MIKE BUSCH
EVERY AIRCRAFT OWNER dreads a mechanical
breakdown while away from home on
a trip. In the five and a half decades that
I have owned an aircraft-I bought my first
airplane in 1968 and have always flown
lots of long trips-I've been the victim
of such mechanicals more times than I
have fingers. From firsthand experience,
I can tell you these events are emotionally
charged. You're typically stuck
somewhere you don't want to be and at
the mercy of strangers you don't know
whether to trust. It's usually frustrating,
frightening, and exasperating. You just
want to go home.
Can't get engine started
A few years back, a Cirrus SR22 owner
from Florida called my company's
SavvyBreakdown hotline on Thanksgiving
Day. He'd just finished a business meeting
in Tallahassee and had returned to
the airport to fly home to Gulf Shores,
Alabama-about 200 nautical miles-
for Thanksgiving dinner with his family.
" When I turn the key to the start position,
I can hear the starter motor turning, "
he told our account manager Tom Cooper,
the A&P/IA on call. " But the propeller
just twitches a little and the engine won't
turn over. "
Cooper instantly recognized the
symptoms of a slipping Continental
starter drive adapter, the clutch-like
device that couples the starter motor to
the crankshaft during engine starting.
He explained that the adapter contains
a knurled steel drum that is geared to
the crankshaft, and a beefy coiled spring
that fits snugly over the drum and is
driven by the starter motor. When the
starter motor is energized, the spring
grabs only the drum like a finger trap and
cranks the engine. Once the engine starts,
the spring relaxes its grip on the drum
96
AOPA PILOT / October 2022
and disengages the starter motor from
the crankshaft.
" If the outside of the drum or inside
of the spring become worn, the starter
drive adapter will slip and cause exactly
the symptoms you have described, "
Cooper explained.
The owner replied that there was a
Cirrus Authorized Service Center on
the field at Tallahassee, and he would
try to have the SR22 towed there so
they could work on replacing the starter
drive adapter the following day. He was
clearly upset that he would not be able
to get home to Gulf Shores in time for
Thanksgiving dinner.
Cooper told the owner he didn't think
that was the best plan. Continental starter
drive adapters for the IO-550-N engine
were backordered for at least four weeks,
and once a replacement adapter was in
hand it would probably take 12 hours of
labor to remove the slipping adapter and
install the new one.
" See if the FBO can bring over a 28-volt
ground power unit, " said Cooper. " In our
experience, a slipping Continental adapter
is usually good for a few more starts if the
airplane is powered from a 28-volt GPU
rather than the 24-volt ship's battery. Let's
see if we can get you home for dinner. "
The owner thought this was worth
a shot and called the FBO. About 20
miutes later, he phoned Cooper again.
" Tom, it worked! You're a magician! "
the owner said over the sound of the
running engine.
" Good flight and enjoy the turkey, "
Cooper replied. " I'll contact your home
service center in the morning and have
them order a rebuilt starter adapter
for you. " The owner agreed that he
would be much more comfortable having
the work done by his regular shop.
AOPA Pilot Magazine - October 2022

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