Off to Lubbock
We are going to Ginny's graduation at Texas Tech in Lubbock. We will leave for Lubbock Friday afternoon whether we take the Mouse or the Eggplant (It's a dark purple Windstar, guess where the nickname came from). Weather looks doable as of Thursday afternoon, so I call the FBO. They offer the courtesy car, but Ray and Amy (the eldest daughter) with 2 of her daughters will be there to pick us up. They also tell us that they will hangar the plane for $10/night and waive that if we buy gas. Sweet deal, huh?
The Mouse has about 40 gallons on board and the flight will be 2.5-3 hours, so it is ready. Sandra will leave school at 2:00 and If I am ready to go, we should take off about 3. She is in a meeting on another campus that lets out at one, so she comes straight home from there and catches me just as I get in the shower. Bags are packed and we leave the house at two.
The weather briefing has a thunderstorm warning on a line from Abilene to somewhere in Kansas, but there is no sign yet of them forming up. Our proposed route is Bowie VOR to Guthrie VOR to F82, Town and Country Airpark on the south side of town. We can deviate south as needed to avoid any buildups. The forecast is for rain Saturday night ending by mid morning and clearing. We pack enough for another day if necessary.
After a detour by her home campus to drop off some papers, we head out, taking off right at 3:00. We pick up flight following shortly after leaving the pattern and are soon at 4500 in smooth air heading for Bowie. Shortly after Bowie, the scattered puffies become more numerous and are bracketing this altitude. I have just decided to go to 6500 when Fort Worth Center tells us that they are losing radar coverage at this altitude. They pick us back up at 6500 although we are actually running 68-71 to stay over the tops.
By Archer City, the clouds under us are pretty solid, but with adequate breaks. Through a hole, we see Lake Kickapoo and just past Seymour, they end and we are looking ahead at clear skies except for a massive thunderhead building directly ahead. FTW Center warns us that it is building directly over the Guthrie VOR and we should take a heading direct to Town and Country. We aim just south of the portions at our altitude and soldier on. Although we are more than 15 miles from the column, the anvil extends out over us a mile or more above. It is an awesome sight.
Soon we are clear of it and the ground is rising swiftly under us. US82 is coming in from the left and we identify Crosbyton ahead. On this side of the storm line, the wind is from the west and our ground speed has gone to pot.
Over Crosbyton, Lubbock Approach tells us, "Town & Country is 12 o'clock and 25 miles. Report field in sight.". These people are accustomed to very clear visibility. You won't catch a Dallas controller giving that report so matter of fact. They don't generally tell you about the destination more than 10 miles out. We have no problem identifying the airport area and make the small adjustment to head for it. Just east of the Slaton airport, we positively identify it and close flight following.
No contact on Unicom, but Lubbock International is reporting 290-300 at 14G18. This will be another maximum effort crosswind landing and on a 50' wide strip reported to be rough. The only good thing is that we will use 35 and put the crosswind on the left. I enter on the crosswind, turn downwind a little too soon and have to fight to keep any distance off the runway. The base leg is nearly non-existent, and we turn final still a little high. The runway has no centerline markings, but we are never in any danger of running off the edge. It is rough and cracked, but more than smooth enough. We roll just past the last useable turnoff (<2000' from the threshold) and taxi back. Pick our way past the construction cones and onto the ramp. For the conditions, it was a very good landing.
I log the time (2.9 hours on the Hobbies) and make the picture while Sandra calls Ray. I talk to the line people and then go in for a much needed potty break. After making all the FBO arrangements, I walk back out just as Ray drives up. I direct him to the plane so we can transfer our bags directly to his Pathfinder, caution the guy on the tug about turning the nosewheel too sharp and we head for town.
Lubbock and Texas Tech
Ray takes us back to our motel which is next door to theirs (Rooms anywhere in Lubbock are scarce for graduation weekend). We check in, deposit bags and freshen up, then walk back over to their motel. Ginny is out with some of her friends but has left her car for the gang at the motel. We decide on a place to eat and the girls (Sandra, Amy, Rachel and Sarah) go in Ginny's car and Ray and I in the Pathfinder. The place is Tex-Mex and good, but not exceptional.
The obligatory stop at Walgreens to pick up items forgotten and back to the Motel. We sit around in Amy's room for a while and then go downstairs to the lobby to await Ginny and the big girls. They arrive around 10:00 and we all sit in the lobby for an hour. We arrange meeting locations for after the ceremony and the girls leave, taking Ginny's car. We walk back to our rooms and retire for the night.
Saturday morning is nice but windy. After all, this is west Texas. We dress and scarf up the continental breakfast. Then we walk next door and meet up with the gang, now expanded to include Martha and Tim who arrived about 1:00AM. They couldn't leave Dallas until Martha got off work at 6. The car seats are now in the Pathfinder, so Ray, Amy and the little girls get in it and Tim, Martha, Sandra and I get in Martha's car.
We all drive out to Slide and visit the Coyote Candle Company. In addition to the obvious, they have literally thousands of items in western decor. If I had a 4000 sq. ft house and a ton of money to decorate, I would give these people carte blanche.
From there, back into town, find the Buddy Holly statue and grab a quick snack for lunch. Then on to the campus. For some odd reason, we park a mile from the arena and all 8 of us hoof it. There are more than 2000 graduates and Ginny is receiving her Masters degree in education. The ceremony is in the basketball arena and TV cameras on the floor show the doings on the scoreboard screen. We find a group of seats in the nosebleed section that will accommodate all of us. The ceremonies are good for that type of thing and it moves right along.
After the ceremony, we all meet up outside for the obligatory pictures. Then hoof it back to the cars and go to the motels to get a little more casual. Then back through town, picking up items along the way for a picnic dinner in a park near Ginny's apartment with a bunch of people, mostly young, who had been through various phases with Ginny. We had good Texas barbecue and all the fixin's. At dark, we packed it all in and headed over to the apartment where we sat around until the two little girls were on the verge of collapse.
Back to the motels and call it a night. The weather is now showing a growing line of thunderstorms moving towards us from northern New Mexico.
The bad and the good
In addition to the sound and light show during the early morning, it is raining when I get up at 7:00. The clouds are mostly low and moving along right smartly. Checking the internet weather, the radar and satellite pictures show clearing just to the north and west and all clear east of here from halfway to Wichita Falls.
We eat breakfast and pack up. By the time we take out stuff to the other motel, it is no longer raining and we can see breaks to the north and northeast. We head for the airport with the whole gang in tow. After settling the fuel bill, the weather briefing is slightly negative for VFR to Dallas. When I explain that our intent is to go northeast and then east, he concurs that that should be ok.
We load up and saddle up. The gang is gathered to watch. I start the engine and wait for oil pressure. Sandra asks if I intend to turn on the alternator. I am poised with my finger on that switch, but I don't normally turn it on until I see oil pressure. The oil pressure has not budged off the peg!
After what seems to be an hour but was probably 15 seconds with no change, I shut down. We pile out and Sandra 'splains to the waiting crowd while I consult with Ron. Ron and one of the boys bring some tools out and we disconnect the oil line to the pressure gauge. I crank the engine and for a short time, there is no oil. Just as I start shutting it down, the line in Ron's hand burps and spews oil.
Clean up and re-connect the line. Re-start and we have oil pressure. Bubble in the line maybe? Run it for a few minutes, up to 1700rpm and back to idle. Pressure seems normal. Gather things back up and prepare to leave.
Fire up again and the oil pressure comes right back up to normal. Taxi out to the end of the taxiway and do the runups. Everything is normal, but as we are back taxiing, the pressure slowly starts going down. At taxi rpm, it is at the top of the yellow by the time we get to the end of the runway. Goosing the throttle gets it back into the green, so we line up and take off. It is high in the green at liftoff which is a little lower than normal, but normally, it isn't this well warmed up. We turn crosswind and then on course towards Guthrie. It is falling again towards the bottom of the green. We turn back and enter the left base to 17. By the time we turn final, it is falling through the yellow. When we turn off the runway, it is almost to the peg. Back up in front of the FBO and shut down.
It is now about noon on a Sunday. We aren't going to get a full service A&P out to look at it today. Sandra calls Ray and learns that they are all still at Ginny's but are leaving shortly. We arrange to meet up with them and send her back to Dallas while I stay with our ill eagle. Sandra and I take the courtesy car into town, hit an ATM for some extra cash and some necessary stuff, then eat lunch. We meet Ray at the motel parking lot and transfer the Redhead and baggage to the Pathfinder and they take off. Having babysat the plane before (at Tunica), back to the airport seems to be the best way to spend an afternoon.
I wander around for a while, getting underfoot and gawking at the other planes in the big hangar. The mouse is in front of bay 1, and when everybody else is busy, I get out the can of Pledge and start wiping bugs off the wings and nose while I admire a Stearman doing touch and goes. After several along with a couple of low passes, he lands, taxis over to the ramp and goes into the FBO. I just think I'll finish up here and go over and ogle the Stearman.
Just as I am putting up the rag, he comes out through the hangar and says some nice things about the Mouse. And I explain the problem. We then start talking about his plane and he suggests we go over and look at it close up. No biggie, I wuz gonna do dat anyway. On the way, I mention that I have never been in one (hint, hint, hint) and he immediately offers a ride. Did I turn him down? Are you crazy?
Fortunately, he has a jumpsuit in the baggage bin that fits me nicely. The temperature is in the mid 60s and all I have on is a short sleeve T. That taken care of, look at this plane! It is gorgeous. It was recently completely restored by a well known aerobatics group with complete, authentic navy training squadron markings. After I (ungracefully) clamber in, I can look around carefully while he gets in and runs through prestart. All the exposed tubing inside is zinc chromate. But it is obvious that it was all taken down to bare metal before the chromate. The floorboards are varnished plywood. The instrument panel is rudimentary, containing only necessary engine and flight instruments. And those are period types. No gyros, no radio. About the only thing I can find that looks out of time is a spherical mirror under the upper wing that allows us to see each other. I can also see myself and all I can see is a huge grin.
The big Continental radial fires up and we taxi out. Chad asks if I have ever been in a tail dragger before and I tell him only a J3 Cub once. In this beast, you truly cannot see where you are going, but after we get on the runway, he back taxis to the north end with no s turning. Wheel it around and line up and we are off. The tail comes up immediately and we lift off well before the middle of the runway. Even on a mostly gray day, this is exhilarating. The sound of that big round engine, the wind blowing in your face and through the wires, the view through struts and wires. This is what flying was like when it was new.
We go out east of the airport towards Slaton and Chad turns it over to me. Get it stable while I determine how sensitive the stick and rudder is, then some gentle S turns. Roll it back level over a road and hold course straight down that road. Next some tighter S turns. Hold bank and altitude, roll out on "course". Wow, this is great. The ship is very docile, seeming to eagerly do just what I want it to do but no more. Chad takes over and does some more aggressive maneuvers and then gives it back to me for a few more precious moments. We work our way back towards Town and Country and he takes over for landing. I am jealous, the only indication that we were back on the ground was a slight lurch as the wheels start rolling. This has been an experience!
I am so full of adrenaline, I have to literally lay on the ramp to get out of the jumpsuit. While Chad is talking to a friend of his who came out as we taxied in, I go get the camera. I make some pictures of the plane and one of Chad and then some more as he and the friend take off.
Mess around some more and about 5, head for town in the courtesy car. Check in to the Motel 6 and call the graduate to ask if she wants to have dinner with an old man. We arrange to meet at Fuddruckers. I stop at an Old Navy store and get a light sweatshirt. As the sun goes down, it is getting cooler. Ginny brings one of her friends that we met at the graduation party and we eat hamburgers and talk. Then back to the motel and bed time.
And now the truly ugly
Get up, check out, get a McBreakfast and arrive at the airport shortly before 9. The Mouse is already in the maintenance hangar and I can see bodies working on it. Get a cup of FBO coffee and walk over. Meet Larry and Ed and we discuss symptoms, history and probable causes. They pull the oil pressure relief valve and it is full of metal pieces. They all appear to be thin slivers produced when the ring gear shaved off 3 teeth on the alternator drive gear.
We had gone to Waxahachie intending to change the oil when we returned. After the loud unpleasant noises, we just put it in the hangar and left. We should have drained it then while it was hot. Pull the oil filter and open it up. There is more metal shavings most of them the long thin ones from the shaved teeth, but one long thin aluminum one.
We drain the rest of the oil out and flush the crankcase with diesel fuel. Reassemble and refill with oil and push it out for test. Oil pressure comes right up. Shut down and check for leaks. We got a big one. The bottom gasket on the oil filter didn't seal correctly. Fix that and try again. Oil pressure is fine, but after a few minutes begins falling again.
Push it back in the hangar and back to work. Pull the pressure relief valve and find more metal. This time, it is granular pieces of steel like large grains of sand. I have been calling Dave and Dowling each step of the way and now we have some real data to work with. They both suggest pulling the alternator and checking it and the ring gear. Remove spinner, prop and cowling. Pull the alternator and check it. There is no abnormal wear on the drive gear and the mesh seems to be good. Now look at the ring gear. There are many teeth on it with the back corners chipped off. This is where the granules are coming from. Pull the oil filter and check it. No new metal. We got all the metal out with the drain and flush, but now that ring gear is coming apart. Dave, Dowling, Larry, Ed and I all agree that the engine must be torn down (again), cleaned out, inspected and the ring gear replaced (again). The Mouse is definitely not flying back to Aero Country anytime soon.
Start the process of pulling the engine off while I go back to the FBO to see about getting it and me back to Dallas. If I can rent a one-way vehicle that can carry the engine, I can avoid the ticket for me and shipping for the engine. None of the car rentals has a minivan or pickup that they will rent one way, but U-haul does. We reserve one for tomorrow and go back to work.
The FBO offers me a bed upstairs over the office for the night, so I don't have to pay for a motel. Tuesday morning, we finish removing the engine. Larry takes me over to U-Haul to pick up the truck. We load up the engine, eat lunch and I am on my way home by 1:30. I arrive home tired, hungry and by now quite ripe a little after 7:00PM.
Wednesday morning, I take the truck to Dowling's and we unload the engine. Dave meets me there after his PT and we turn in the truck, eat lunch and out to Aero Country to pick up the Eggplant. I went into the hangar to leave some things and pick up some of the things that will go back to Lubbock with me. It was really sad to lock up the hangar without the Mouse either inside or on the ramp waiting for me.
Dowling is waiting on some parts for the engine ahead of mine, so he gets it disassembled by Friday morning. The list of problems is long, but not major:
- The ring gear must be replaced (but we knew that).
- The main bearings have no damage, but are beginning to show copper through the babbitt.
- Same with the rod bearings.
- The long aluminum sliver was scraped out of the oil pump housing when a piece of the steel shavings got wedged under the impeller gears. It will polish out.
- The thrust bearing runout is at the top of the new limits.
Other than that it is in good shape for the abuse it has suffered in the 300 hours since overhaul.
I find a ring gear, thanks to a list of possible sources supplied by Dowling, and he gets the gasket set, rod and main bearings and thrust bearings. The following Thursday, I take the ring gear to him and pay him for the other parts. Now, we wait while Dowling takes a long weekend over Memorial Day.
Getting it all together.
Tuesday after Memorial Day, Dowling calls to let me know that we are now in the process of reassembly and he should be finished by Friday afternoon. There is no sense in taking the engine back to Lubbock on Saturday only to sit around until Monday. But if I take it on Monday, I should be home with the bird by Thursday and now the planned trip to South Dakota is again a possibility. Thursday, I go down to Tex-Air to buy an oil filter and some other items, along with the sectionals I will need for the trip north.
Call Larry and the FBO to tell them I will be there Monday afternoon. Make arrangements with the U-haul facility behind Aero Country to pick up the truck on Sunday afternoon. That way, I can leave the Eggplant there so I will have a ride home when I bring the plane home.
Sunday morning, I make plans with Dowling to pick up the engine around 4:30 and head for the airport about 2:30. Dave and Travis are both nowhere to be found, so at 3:15, I leave the minivan at the hangar and walk the mile over to the U-haul. Check out the truck and head for Richardson. Load the engine up and head for the house. I will leave shortly after Sandra leaves on Monday morning.
Monday morning, I load the duffle bag into the cab between the seats, along with the flight bag and the bag of parts, log books etc. and set my 24oz thermos mug of coffee on the dash. Close the passenger door and go back in the house for a final pit stop. Back out through the garage hitting the door closer on my way out. Climb into the seat and start the engine. Where is the coffee mug?
It has fallen onto the duffle bag with the drinking hole down, draining itself while I was draining my bladder. Fortunately, the duffle is ripstop nylon and most of the coffee is on the floor of the truck. Only enough has leaked in through the zipper to wet my windbreaker and both pair of jeans. Grab it out keeping that end low and lay it on the ground. Open it up and get the wet jeans and jacket out. I cannot get back into the house as my GDO is in the eggplant at the airport. Fortunately in the miscellaneous stuff is a new roll of paper towels. Open them and dry out the inside of the duffle bag. Use a bunch of them to sop up the coffee on the floor of the truck. Put the mostly empty duffle bag back in. Lay the 2 pair of jeans over the duffle bag and passenger seat arm rest to dry. I guess it is time to hit the road.
I stop in Olney for a Coke to renew my caffeine level and gas in Crosbyton, arriving at Town and Country precisely at 2:00PM. Larry and Ed had been ready to start on the Mouse as soon as I got there, but about 11, a Twin Commanche had come in with a fuel feed problem. The solution had been more complicated than they thought and now most of it's interior is scattered over the hangar floor. They will finish it up before they leave tonight and start on mine first thing tomorrow morning.
We unload the engine to an out of the way spot on the floor and Ron leads me to the U-Haul place to turn in the truck. Ron and Debbie again offer the bed upstairs, so I am set. Take the courtesy car to Pete's for dinner and back to the airport for the night.
By 10 Tuesday morning, the mouse is in the hangar and Ed and I attack it like a swarm of bees. By lunch time, we have all the accessories, intakes and exhaust back on the engine and are ready to remount it. After lunch, we put it back on it's mounts and start hooking things up.
Nearing Miller Time, the next item Ed picks up is the main fuel line. It attaches to the mixture control body on the rear of the engine with a right angle pipe style fitting. Since I am on the left side, and the starter motor obscures it from the right side, I try it. For what seems like an hour, I try to get the threads to engage. We try caps on both the male and female sides, and the threads are just fine. Ed tries it for what seems like another half hour while I work on other things. Then I try it again. Considering the direction the plane is facing, if we had turned that nut with threads engaged that many turns, the nut would have been in Dallas by now. Larry walks through and we appeal to him to try it. After another 10 minutes, he finally gets it engaged and we tighten it up. Make a note; there is enough slack in the hose from the firewall to that fitting to allow it to be installed before pushing the engine back onto the mounts next time.
At Miller time, we have virtually all of it back together. All that is left for tomorrow morning is the cowling, prop and spinner. Back to Pete's for dinner and watch TV in the FBO lounge until bedtime.
Wednesday morning, Larry, Ed and then I, check that everything is hooked up and tight where necessary. Mount the lower cowling with the corner screws. Mount the top cowling by the four corner screws. While Ed finishes the 5 dozen screws on the cowling, I hang the prop. Ed and I torque the nuts and while Ed does paperwork, I safety wire the prop. Then the spinner and it looks like an airplane again.
Whee!
Wheel it out and get ready for testing. It fires right up. Oil pressure comes up to normal. Alternator charges. Run up to 1700rpm and test mags. Right is fine, but when I switch to left, it nearly dies. It will continue to run on left, but only above 1000rpm and very rough. Shut down and leak check. None. Push back in the hangar and look around. After checking several other things, we discover that Dowling had apparently had a short memory lapse during reassembly and thought this engine was a Lycoming where the number 1 cylinder is in the front. The top plug wires to 1 and 3 were reversed. Swap them and wheel it back out.
Starts right up. Oil pressure comes right up. Alternator charges. Mag checks are good. CHT meter pegs on all 4 cylinders. EGT meter shows no reading on any cylinder. Engine runs smooth at all rpms. Shut down and put the nose back in the hangar (in the shade). We will test fly it after lunch.
Think about the EGT/CHT thing over lunch. Normal CHT is 350-400 and that is center scale on the meter. Normal EGT is 1200-1450 and the meter scale starts at 800. Is it possible that I plugged the EGT leads into the CHT jacks and vice versa? It is easy to get to them on the right side, so after lunch, I swap EGT and CHT leads on 1 and 3. Close it back up and it is time to see if I still know how to fly.
Town and Country is at 3200 feet. The temperature is in the low 90s and the humidity is close to 80. Density altitude will approach 5000'. This will really test the plane. Complete preflight, fire up, taxi across the grass to the FBO ramp. Down the FBO ramp past the taxiway construction and onto the taxiway. Do the runup and back taxi 3000' to the end of 17. Line up and away we go. It seems to take forever to accelerate, but suddenly we are at rotation speed and the Mouse leaps into the air.
"Lubbock Approach, Musketeer Five Niner Four Lima Bravo, VFR off Town and Country. We'll be orbiting this area for engine test flight. Need to put at least an hour on it."
"November Five Niner Four Lima Bravo, squawk xxxx. Climb and maintain 5500. You wish to remain over Town and Country?"
"I'll remain over or east of Town and Country between there and Slaton."
Slaton is only 7 miles east of Town and Country and at 2300 feet above ground level, I can glide 5 miles if the engine quits.
Round and round we go. Counterclockwise, clockwise and figure 8s. Keep checking the engine instruments. Oil pressure stable and good. Oil temperature a little higher than normal, but with new bearings, that is normal. Alternator good. 1 & 3 CHT normal and close together. EGT normal. Repeat ad nauseum.
After an hour on the meter, tell Lubbock approach goodbye and begin a descent back to Town and Country. Wind is a little off to the right, but less than 10 knots. The north end of 17 slopes down and I float further than I like until I catch up with the runway. Taxi in and pull up to the fuel pumps. I go into the FBO and get a Coke. Ron asks how it went. "Well, you can assume it went well since I pulled up to the fuel pumps instead of back over to the maintenance hangar." "Yep, I noticed that."
Back out and fill the tanks. Now to decide whether to head for home or wait until tomorrow morning. It is hot and the normal afternoon popup thunderstorms are about to start. By the time I can pack up, pay bills and leave, it will be well after four, and I am already tired and wrung out. I tell Ron to put it away for the night, I'll leave as early in the morning as the clouds begin burning off.
I go out a little after 6 to drive over to Pete's for dinner and Ron is preflighting the 4 place helicopter. I walk over and ask if he has a student. He has a couple of passengers to pick up and deliver, "have I ever been in a helicopter?".
"No, but I'd like to."
"Well be here about 8 and I'll give you a short ride when I get back."
Quick like a bunny, over to Pete's, eat and come back about 7:30.
About 7:45, he comes back and sets down on the grass right off the FBO. It seems a little strange getting in the left side when I am not the pilot, but that's the way it works in the world of fling wings. After getting all arranged and a short briefing, Ron picks it up and we scoot over the runway to the grass strip. Ron is keeping a continuous patter, explaining what he is doing and "selling" rotary wing flight.
We hover over the grass at about 10 feet. Then we go forward. Then we go back, then left, then right, then turn 360 over the same spot. Next, take off to the south out over the cotton fields. Then an auto-rotate into a grass field. Next back up and out to the east. He lets me drive for a while and them thar things are skittish as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Then back around to an approach and landing right beside the hangars.
In the immortal words of Will Smith in Independence day, "I gotta get me one of these!"
At long last home.
I am up shortly after 6AM. Make a pot of FBO coffee and observe the low but thin clouds. Go back upstairs and shower. Pack up and bring my bags to the office. Drink another cup and eat a cinnamon roll. Now wait for someone to get the plane out of the hangar. Shortly after 8, I see Blake go into the hangar and come out the side with the tug. In a few minutes, the mouse is sitting on the ramp.
Carry the bags out and do a thorough preflight. Come back in and get the weather briefing. There will be scattered to broken clouds all of the way. The bottoms range from 2000 to 3500' above the ground and they are uniformly 1000' thick. If I can get on top, this should be easy enough. Call Sandra and tell her I should be wheels up at 9.
Crank her up and as soon as I bring the throttle back to idle she tries to die. Jockey it a little and I can keep it running while I look for a probable cause. How come it is I ain't got no fuel pressure? At 1000rpm, the FP is about 3psi and should be 7-9. At 1500, it is 7 and should be 12. Fast idle, wheel around and taxi back over to the maintenance hangar and shut down.
Larry and Ed come out to look and we cuss and discuss. I start it back up and Larry observes carefully the symptoms. Larry goes in and comes back with a wrench. He lifts up the right side cowling and tells me to get in and run the boost pump. I get in and he comes out from under the cowling and walks back into the hangar. As he comes back by, he mutters, "Got the wrong size wrench." He sticks his head back under the cowling and says, "Turn it on". I do and after several seconds, the sound changes slightly. "Turn it off." I do. He walks over and leans on the wing saying, "Fire it up." She is more than a little flooded, but I get it started like I knew what I was doing. It purrs, it idles at 500rpm, it has 15psi at 1700rpm. Lordy, lordy.
I look over at Larry and he has a big grin on his face. He can't see the gauge, he can tell by the sound it is right now. Shut her back down. "What did you do?" "Tightened up the fuel line to the throttle body. You were sucking fuel and air."
We are now good to go, but the clouds that had lots of holes 20 minutes ago are now nearly solid. I call Sandra and tell her we had a little problem, but it is fixed. And I will leave as soon as I get another break in the clouds. If she doesn't hear from me by noon, it will be because I am on the way.
I sit in the maintenance hangar because it faces south and that is where the clouds are coming from. Just before 10:00, there is a break and I can see more coming and more off to the east. I say my good-byes to Larry and Ed and saddle up. I wave to Ron at the FBO as I taxi by. The runup before I backtaxi is normal, we are good to go.
I have deliberately filled the tanks completely. The extra15 gallons of gas do not make up for the weight of the Redhead and her clothing, but it does bring my gross up to about 2000lbs. Travelling in the summer, I try to hold the gross between 2100 and 2175 to aid in performance. But right now, I need to gauge the performance to 7500'. Our next trip is to south Dakota and Wyoming and We will need to go that high several places.
Takeoff is normal and I turn east on the crosswind. Checking in with Lubbock Approach, I get flight following set up for the entire trip. The bottoms are about 5000' and just as I get to that altitude, I enter an opening running to the southwest. I swing around to the southwest and start up.
"Lubbock Approach, Four Lima Bravo is maneuvering to climb through a hole in the clouds."
"Understood Four Lima Bravo. Maintain VFR."
I have overheard another pilot say that he broke out at 6000' and that squares with the weather briefing and what I am now seeing. I am not quite going to get to the top before hitting the end of this canyon, but the cloud to my left ends and the opening hooks around it. I start a turn to stay in the opening and as I get back to east, the opening stretches far enough in front of me that I can get on top without further turns. As I pass the lip of the opening, I call in, "Lubbock, Four Lima Bravo. The tops here are 6200'."
"Understood Four Lima Bravo. Thanks. You continuing to 7500?"
"Roger."
The air is incredibly clear. And sooo smooth. The sky is sooo blue. And the sun is so bright. And hot. The incoming air is not as cool as I expected and the sun is shining on my navy blue T shirt. Passing through 7000', I check the outside temperature and it is 70. Oh well, just wish I had worn a light colored T.
The undercast is nearly solid, but I can see holes nearly everywhere I look. A larger one appears just in the right place and time for me to identify Guthrie and the 6666 ranch off to my left. Some miles ahead, I see a large clear area. Over it, I finally identify Knox City and the 2 bridges over the Brazos River. I pass between them, maybe a mile south of my course line (the 33 deg 30 min line).
Before I can see Munday, the undercast is back. This time, it is solid, but I can see that it only extends maybe 15 miles south of my course. So I know where I can get to clear sky. After maybe 20 minutes of this, I can see bumpy tops many miles ahead which will mean holes. I check the AWOS at Graham and they report broken at 3000.
I am flying mostly east by the seat of my pants. I can now "see" the Bowie VOR, and use the Wichita Falls VOR to track my progress. I don't intend to head directly to Bowie, but instead intend to pass slightly south of it. Checking other AWOS, Bridgeport is broken at 3500 and Gainesville is scattered at 3500. The bumpy clouds are nearer now and past them I can see dark areas which are big holes.
I am now talking to Dallas Approach and thinking about getting down before I interfere with the approaches to Alliance, DFW, Love and Addison.
"Four Lima Bravo, Dallas. What do you want to do about descending into the Dallas airspace?"
He's been reading my mind.
"Uh, I know I need to, but it is still pretty solid under me. I do see some serious holes ahead and will pick the first one going my way."
"Roger, maintain VFR. By the way, we have some VFR traffic around Denton at 3000, so it is ok there."
Unknown pilot on frequency, "Now there's a real pilot. VFR on top."
"Not only that, No GPS and no DME. If I'm where I think I am, I'm about 10 miles southeast of Bowie."
I move slightly to the right and turn southeast to start down through a hole that just keeps opening up as I approach. I see a 4 lane divided highway going by a good sized town. It is not big enough to be Bowie.
"Uh Four Lima Bravo, you are descending over Bridgeport."
"Can't be Bridgeport, there ain't no lake." (Besides, there is no divided 4 lane NW-SE through Bridgeport)
"It is behind you."
"I don't think so. That is Decatur directly ahead"
About that time, I clear the cloud to my right and there, way behind me to the right, is Bridgeport, lake and all. I was about 7 miles NE of Bridgeport.
In any event, there is good old US380, passing from Bridgeport through Decatur and going east all the way to Aero Country. Level at 3500 until I35 then 2000' the rest of the way home. Land and taxi the Mouse to it's nest. John drives up and helps me push it in. I call Sandra to let her know I am home. She is out to lunch and I simply say on her voice mail, "The mouse is back in the hangar."
John takes me back over to Dave's where Eric has been working on the van. The phone rings again and it is Sandra. "What's wrong now?" "Huh?" "You said it is back in the hangar. What's wrong?" "No, I meant back in OUR hangar. I'm sitting at Dave's right now." The Mouse is back!
