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Cutting open the oil filter and inspecting the media is part of "acceptable methods, techniques and practices". If you aren't doing it, then you are not doing the oil change properly according to the FAA. So you should! UOA augments but cannot replace doing this because each detects different...

I too had reservations about Camguard because most oil additives are "snake oil", useless or worse. But everything I've read from multiple sources tells me that Camguard is the exception that proves this general rule. So I overcame my reservations and started using it.

Indeed. Which says, in part (though there is a lot more): If more than five small particulates are on almost every panel in the oil filter element or if there is a 1/4 teaspoon full of metallic particles from an oil pressure screen or oil suction screen, these metallic particles require...

Funny you would ask. The Gill G-243 in my plane is 8 years old now, tied down outside, flown regularly and gets a handful of freezing starts each winter. It's finally dying, slow crank if it's been sitting more than a week (which rarely happens). No battery minder, and the only parasitic load is...

To put it into perspective, Ca in UOA was around 10 ppm and after using Camguard it jumped to around 100. By comparison, automotive oils even with SN and SP can have > 1000 ppm (for example: https://pqia.org/2021/03/11/above-and-below-average/) So the Ca in aviation oil is still 10x lower in...

I've wondered how they add Ca without increasing risk of detonation. Doesn't Ca qualify as metallic which could form deposits creating hot spots and increasing risk of pre-ignition? Is this a case of dosage being the only difference between medicine and poison?

I didn't use Camguard with the O-320 that came with my airplane. After that engine died due to cancer of the cams/lifters, I started using Camguard in the O-360 that I replaced it with. I immediately noticed that in UOA, calcium went up by a factor of about 10, and phosporus by a factor of about...

The way I learned it was, "Happy Wife, Happy Life" :)

Aviation is expensive but not uniquely so. People spend comparable amounts of money on other hobbies, from amateur car racing (SCCA etc.), to golf, to skiing, etc. I find that I can occasionally incorporate flying into family activities, like flying somewhere for weekends or vacations. I also...

I concur with the opinions that an engine with high hours yet regularly flown is probably in better condition than a low-time engine that sat around. These engines weren't intended to sit around unused and when that happens the tend to rust out. Note that the Lycoming O-320 and O-360 have the...

The oil pump is positive displacement, so when the oil gets thick the pressure rises but the volume or flow rate should be unchanged. However, if the oil is thick enough to trigger the pressure relief valve, the volume / flow rate to the engine will be reduced, since some of the oil is escaping...

Plenty of pilots and even CFIs say "full rich below X thousand feet", period, no matter where the throttle, RPM & power are. But I did not intend to imply that it was you. This is true, which is why leaning aggressively is the key word. The mixture knob will be close to cut-off. This is where...

If you lean aggressively for ground operations, you will never foul a spark plug. And you'll save gas, reduce pollution, keep the spark plugs & valves cleaner, and reduce the likelihood of carb icing. Using full rich during ground ops, then idling at 1000+ RPM to prevent plug fouling, is ...

On a related note, getting a taildragger endorsement is a good thing for similar reasons. Even if you never fly another taildragger again, it significantly improves takeoffs & landings in any airplane, even with tricycle gear - smoother, more precise and safer.

I agree that some of the FAA advice is ill advised, perhaps even counterproductive (if you rebuild a perfectly healthy engine at TBO, your risk for the next 100 hours on a new engine is actually higher than what it was with the old engine). But don't discard the entire barrel just for 1 bad...

On a related note, last month the FAA published a circular on the various ways pilots mis-manage their engines causing in-flight loss of power. This spans operational procedures to maintenance. https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC_20-105C_FAA.pdf

Mike Busch recently covered this topic. While his take on "inexpensive" is much more than your $50 range, his tips look useful no matter what kind of borescope you use:

Indeed. Flight Following and ADS-B In are both GOOD THINGS but you cannot rely on them. FF won't always call out traffic for you (nor will Approach or Tower), and airplanes don't always show up on ADS-B In. Use them as secondary safety aids but don't become complacent or bet your life on them...

I read somewhere that an A&P cannot legally refill or service your compass, because it is a flight instrument. However, the compass fairy has been known to visit airplanes while sitting overnight in the shop.

I did the same with mine after first installed just over a year ago. Went through the menus and calibrated everything. This reduced drift to a manageable level, about the same as a mechanical gyro. But it still has one fatal flaw: temperature sensitivity. If you fly into temperatures...