Finally flew the Skylane

Jaybird180

Jaybird180

Final Approach
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Jaybird180
Yesterday I had my first flight in the C-182. My impressions:

It's not the boogeyman that I've heard. I can see over the panel just fine and it doesn't seem to drop like a rock when cutting power.

Conditions were gusty with a decent crosswind, so I performed 2 takeoffs and let the CFI demonstrate 3 landings. I did the first takeoff and although rotation speed was supposed to be 60MPH, she didn't feel ready to fly until we got to about 80. My second takeoff was much better and I was comfortable pitching up to 90MPH.

At 120MPH, she pegs the VSI on decent, even though I wanted to keep it moderate.

I didn't care for the fact that I would need a ladder to visually preflight the fuel level and that the fuel strainer was on the pilot side but the fuel outlet was on the right:dunno:. I'm sure there's a trick to catching the fuel sample.

It wasn't the ideal day for a first flight. Scattered deck at about 3100 and gusty winds and choppy below 2000.

Next flight I'm hoping to get some slow flight, stalls, steep turns a few landings and maybe if we have time for engine out practice, that would be nice. This is my first flight for an aircraft above 180HP.
 
Nice.
I never flown the 182, never had an opportunity.

Are the speeds really measured in MPH on it or did you mean knots?

Also how roomy is the cockpit? Just curious.
 
Jaybird180 said:
Conditions were gusty with a decent crosswind, so I performed 2 takeoffs and let the CFI demonstrate 3 landings
Click to expand...

//Rant on

...Really?

The CFI landed it three times and you didn't? Once I can see. Maybe. But don't waste your money. Land it yourself.

I never just demonstrate a landing for someone when they're transitioning to a new airframe. I'll provide verbal instruction and 99% of the time that's what is needed. I might have to come on the controls some.. But demonstrating 3 landings sounds like an instructor just having fun on your dime.

//Rant off
 
MachFly said:
Nice.
I never flown the 182, never had an opportunity.

Are the speeds really measured in MPH on it or did you mean knots?

Also how roomy is the cockpit? Just curious.
Click to expand...

They did that in the olden days
 
jesse said:
//Rant on

...Really?

The CFI landed it three times and you didn't? Once I can see. Maybe. But don't waste your money. Land it yourself.

I never just demonstrate a landing for someone when they're transitioning to a new airframe. I'll provide verbal instruction and 99% of the time that's what is needed. I might have to come on the controls some.. But demonstrating 3 landings sounds like an instructor just having fun on your dime.

//Rant off
Click to expand...

I asked him to do the 2nd so I could verify my observations. I should have asked for the controls on the 3rd.

Point taken
 
Jaybird180 said:
I didn't care for the fact that I would need a ladder to visually preflight the fuel level and that the fuel strainer was on the pilot side but the fuel outlet was on the right:dunno:. I'm sure there's a trick to catching the fuel sample.
Click to expand...
My trick is to have my son holding fuel jar while I pull strainer from pilot side :)
Dunno how to do it alone.
The big difference between C172 and C182 that you have to plan your arrival well in advance, descend and slow down before you enter the pattern. That took me some time to get used to. Stay well ahead of the plane.
Another trick I learned is to land with a little bit of power to make elevator more responsive and easy to move. Otherwise it is quite heavy.
 
Many older 182s have ASI in MPH. We have a dual-ring so you can do either.
 
Jaybird180 said:
I didn't care for the fact that I would need a ladder to visually preflight the fuel level and that the fuel strainer was on the pilot side but the fuel outlet was on the right:dunno:. I'm sure there's a trick to catching the fuel sample.
Click to expand...

Do what I've done by accident -- drop your open flight bag on the ground by the nose of the plane and then pull the strainer knob. You'll catch plenty. I've done this twice now. :mad2:

That said, the idea (I've asked) was not so much to check for water as much as to just spit it out onto the ground if there happens to be any. You really don't sample it. Just drain it and go. (The wisdom here is up for debate but I'm just retelling what I was told when I asked about it.)

I found that checking the gas requires sticking fingers into the filler neck and hoping to touch wet fuel. Checking the oil on some models is a PITA as you can get the dipstick out easy enough, but you can't see where to put it back in.
 
thomascannon said:
Do what I've done by accident -- drop your open flight bag on the ground by the nose of the plane and then pull the strainer knob. You'll catch plenty. I've done this twice now. :mad2:
Click to expand...

:rofl: :popcorn:

Oh, that got me laughing out loud. How you'd always choose the passenger side of the aircraft in one little spot to put your flight bag, TWICE... oh man, that's funny stuff.

thomascannon said:
That said, the idea (I've asked) was not so much to check for water as much as to just spit it out onto the ground if there happens to be any. You really don't sample it. Just drain it and go. (The wisdom here is up for debate but I'm just retelling what I was told when I asked about it.)
Click to expand...

I also don't bother trying to catch it. The sump on the belly is at a lower point in the system, the drain is the lowest point below the carb/engine if I remember correctly. I check that one carefully as well as the wing sumps.

thomascannon said:
I found that checking the gas requires sticking fingers into the filler neck and hoping to touch wet fuel. Checking the oil on some models is a PITA as you can get the dipstick out easy enough, but you can't see where to put it back in.
Click to expand...

Get a fuel dipstick. Those tube things that you put your finger over to see where the fuel level is are a heck of a lot better than sticking your fingers in the hole.

Just make sure to order the correct one if you're not using one you calibrated yourself. There's multiple different C-182 tank sizes. Ours is the odd-ball 80 gallon with 75 usable, and if you go looking for the pre-marked dipsticks like the FuelHawk, it's rare to find anyone stocking them. "Restart" 182's also have different size/depth tanks than the older ones.

Take a few flights and make sure the thing is accurate. If it's not within a couple gallons of what you calculated your fuel burn to be, figure out why.

Note: If your nose strut is extended a long way, or low on air and sitting nose-down, it'll change the dipstick level significantly. Figure out where it needs to be to be accurate, but realize that a clock/logbook with times since last fill-up will probably be more accurate than the stick.

The stick is just to keep from having to stick your fingers down in there. It's not a perfect solution. Fuel totalizers on things like a JPI are about the most accurate thing you can get.

We leave our stick in the airplane for all to use.

If you're renting, go browbeat your club into making or buying some sticks and mandating that anyone taking them will have fingers broken and twisted painfully. :)
 
denverpilot said:
:rofl: :popcorn:

Oh, that got me laughing out loud. How you'd always choose the passenger side of the aircraft in one little spot to put your flight bag, TWICE... oh man, that's funny stuff.



I also don't bother trying to catch it. The sump on the belly is at a lower point in the system, the drain is the lowest point below the carb/engine if I remember correctly. I check that one carefully as well as the wing sumps.



Get a fuel dipstick. Those tube things that you put your finger over to see where the fuel level is are a heck of a lot better than sticking your fingers in the hole.

Just make sure to order the correct one if you're not using one you calibrated yourself. There's multiple different C-182 tank sizes. Ours is the odd-ball 80 gallon with 75 usable, and if you go looking for the pre-marked dipsticks like the FuelHawk, it's rare to find anyone stocking them. "Restart" 182's also have different size/depth tanks than the older ones.

Take a few flights and make sure the thing is accurate. If it's not within a couple gallons of what you calculated your fuel burn to be, figure out why.

Note: If your nose strut is extended a long way, or low on air and sitting nose-down, it'll change the dipstick level significantly. Figure out where it needs to be to be accurate, but realize that a clock/logbook with times since last fill-up will probably be more accurate than the stick.

The stick is just to keep from having to stick your fingers down in there. It's not a perfect solution. Fuel totalizers on things like a JPI are about the most accurate thing you can get.

We leave our stick in the airplane for all to use.

If you're renting, go browbeat your club into making or buying some sticks and mandating that anyone taking them will have fingers broken and twisted painfully. :)
Click to expand...

The finger method works very well for checking if you have full tanks and your tall. I can check that way without the benefit of dragging out the ladder :)
 
thomascannon said:
Do what I've done by accident -- drop your open flight bag on the ground by the nose of the plane and then pull the strainer knob. You'll catch plenty. I've done this twice now. :mad2:

That said, the idea (I've asked) was not so much to check for water as much as to just spit it out onto the ground if there happens to be any. You really don't sample it. Just drain it and go. (The wisdom here is up for debate but I'm just retelling what I was told when I asked about it.)

I found that checking the gas requires sticking fingers into the filler neck and hoping to touch wet fuel. Checking the oil on some models is a PITA as you can get the dipstick out easy enough, but you can't see where to put it back in.
Click to expand...

This raises a question for me: Are you (we) violating the EPA regulations about dumping sumped fuel when you do that? The C-172N I used to fly I could reach the strainer knob and the outlet, just. (I'm almost 6' tall and have long arms.) The C-172C I now fly is on opposite sides so I can't. My home airport has placards all over the place about $50,000 fines for dumping sumped fuel, use the barrels, etc. How do you good folks deal with that?

John
 
80 mph seems way too fast to be lifting off. 60 seems more like it. perhaps you just need to put a little more muscle into it. in the towplane we're usually lifting off somewhere in the 50 mph range and climbing at about 65.
 
Greg Bockelman said:
If it is a clean sample, put it back in the tank.
Click to expand...

I can't reach it with a GAT jar (or anything else) that was the point. Other than using the flight bag like the quoted poster:D I can't reach to catch it with anything. I pull it anyway, but am I risking the fine?

John
 
Picture-13a-300x195.jpg




jsstevens said:
I can't reach it with a GAT jar (or anything else) that was the point. Other than using the flight bag like the quoted poster:D I can't reach to catch it with anything. I pull it anyway, but am I risking the fine?

John
Click to expand...
 
jsstevens said:
I can't reach it with a GAT jar (or anything else) that was the point. Other than using the flight bag like the quoted poster:D I can't reach to catch it with anything. I pull it anyway, but am I risking the fine?

John
Click to expand...


Only if an EPA Enforcement SWAT Team is prowling the flight line.
 
As previously stated she didn't feel like she was ready to fly at 60, So I held constant back pressure until she flew herself off the runway.

The design of the fuel strainer was a bad idea to put them on opposite sides. I have no way of ensuring that I got all the water or if there are contaminants in the system. "leading to the accident was the pilot's failure to perform an adequate preflight..."

(My) Skylane has bladders, so I don't trust any fuel stick measurement, too much room for error.

Anyway, these are first impressions. I'm by no means short or small so I have no idea what Cessna was thinking on the fuel tanks.

And I left out, that this is the first airplane that I've flown that needs left rudder on decent. Still working on my rudder perception. CFI had reminded me on right turns and climbs; no idea why I can do it correctly for left rudder.
 
I've found that I can squat down to catch fuel out of the bottom as I reach up to actuate the fuel strainer. It may depend on the specific model.
 
Would a travel warer dish for pets work for catching the fuel... The kind that fold up and could be stored on a smell proof plastic container in the baggage compartment?
 
Fearless Tower said:
Actually many older planes in general use MPH....even into the late 70's aircraft manufacturers were putting MPH ASI's in planes.
Click to expand...
General Aviation Manufacturers Assn. members finally agreed to switch performance data and instrumentation from statute miles to knots in the mid-70s. Cessna switched with the 1976 model year, Piper in 1977.

But it's still not universal -- my 2007 Sport Cub's ASI is in mph!
 
Jaybird180 said:
(My) Skylane has bladders, so I don't trust any fuel stick measurement, too much room for error.
Click to expand...

Uhh, the bladder is sitting flat on the bottom of a box with all the rivet lines taped over to make them smooth.

Wrinkles/ridges are sometimes found, but if the clips are installed correctly on the top, the tank size isn't changing significantly at all. Sticking the tanks is plenty accurate.

Jaybird180 said:
And I left out, that this is the first airplane that I've flown that needs left rudder on decent.
Click to expand...

It has rudder trim. It was probably cranked a turn to the right for takeoff. Lots of folks forget to trim it in extended cruise. ;)
 
denverpilot said:
It has rudder trim. It was probably cranked a turn to the right for takeoff. Lots of folks forget to trim it in extended cruise. ;)
Click to expand...

Yeah, I forgot about that. The inclinometer was off to the right in cruise, but the plane appeared to need right rudder in right turns. I thought the inclinometer was off. I should have checked the trim.


Q: What's the deal with putting the cowl flap lever down near the floor? Did Cessna throw ergonomics totally out of the window when they designed this airplane? Closing the flaps is in the down position and it is more than an arms reach away (and I have a long reach).
 
You'll get used to taking the half-second to move the cowl-flaps.

The only time you're moving the cowl flaps during high-workload situations is on the final approach or go-around (depending on when you are supposed to open them).
 
TMetzinger said:
You'll get used to taking the half-second to move the cowl-flaps.

The only time you're moving the cowl flaps during high-workload situations is on the final approach or go-around (depending on when you are supposed to open them).
Click to expand...
Biggest challenge I've found with cowl flaps is that Cessna rigs theirs completely backwards from just about every other manufacturer (in Cessnas, Up is open and Down is closed). Screws me up everytime I get in to a Cessna after flying a Piper or Beech for a while.
 
TMetzinger said:
You'll get used to taking the half-second to move the cowl-flaps.

The only time you're moving the cowl flaps during high-workload situations is on the final approach or go-around (depending on when you are supposed to open them).
Click to expand...

Yeah, and you're going to have to reach down there for the trim wheel anyway... you get used to it.
 
The trim wheel is within reach. But as stated, I guess I will adjust.
 
Is your Skylane equipped with retractible shoulder harness(es) or like ours with the ol' 70's pull-em-tight variety?

If I cinch mine to where it should be for a crash, you can't get to either the trim or the cowl flaps. :(

I end up getting it just loose enough to kill me so I can reach. I've always thought I'd remember to grab and cinch it if something bad were happening but I doubt it.

The car-style retractors and a dual over the shoulder from BAS would be a nice upgrade someday.
 
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