PA-28 new cylinder break in

[jmarine225]

I recently had a new, number 3 cylinder installed, as a crack was found in my old cylinder while investigating excessive oil usage. I’ve read the lycoming and it basically says to fly it at 75% for two hours at cruise, with no power offs or long power off decents.
With that said I have a two part question here:

how many hours do I need to keep flying at cruise before it’s broken in. Or, after 3 hours am I able to fly it in the pattern without any damage (maintenance took excessively long so now I need to complete my landing requirements).

next is oils usage on the new cylinder. Paperwork says it may take a little bit before oil usage gets stabilized. Unfortunately it’s a chrome cylinder and the consumption isn’t the best to begin with. After how many hours should I see it stabilize?

 

[aftCG]

What did your mechanic tell you?

 

[Rgbeard]

What engine is this? Simply curious. The PA-28s are made with a variety of choices.

Essentially run it like someone else is buying the gas.

 

[Magman]

There are many versions of break-in procedures that have been around for a long

time.

Suggest you follow directions of whoever is providing the warranty.

I’ve never had an issue with chrome jigs.

One of the key items is to avoid excessive ground running.

A long downwind taxi means zero cooling.

Pick a time you can take off w/o delays and configure the cockpit before start-up.

When clear of obstacles use a cruise climb for better cooling.

3 hrs seems a little low for pattern work.

5-7 is more what I’ve see.

No abnormal mag drop from fouled plugs is a good indication of

proper break- in. Do not “ burn-off” if there is an issue.

Post flight mag checks tell stale.

 

[jmarine225]

There are many versions of break-in procedures that have been around for a long

time.

Suggest you follow directions of whoever is providing the warranty.

I’ve never had an issue with chrome jigs.

One of the key items is to avoid excessive ground running.

A long downwind taxi means zero cooling.

Pick a time you can take off w/o delays and configure the cockpit before start-up.

When clear of obstacles use a cruise climb for better cooling.

3 hrs seems a little low for pattern work.

5-7 is more what I’ve see.

No abnormal mag drop from fouled plugs is a good indication of

proper break- in. Do not “ burn-off” if there is an issue.

Post flight mag checks tell stale.

Thanks for your insight on this. I’ll do some more cross countries with the throttle at cruise for a bit then. That way I’ll be able to judge my oil usage a little better also.

 

[chemgeek]

Follow the instructions provided by whoever provided the cylinder. But typically, break-in involves using straight mineral oil and high power settings for 10 hours or until oil consumption stabilizes, then reverting to your normal oil and operating procedures. Chrome cylinders will typically use a little more oil than steel or cermi- or nickel-chrome, but that's no big deal. It is usually pretty obvious when oil usage stabilizes, and that could take anywhere from 2-10 hours. I had replacement channel chrome cylinders on previous engine in an AA-1A and an AA-5, and they performed well. My old AA-5 engine had a mix of steel, cermichrome, and channel chrome cylinders. My new engine has all nitrided steel cylinders and oil consumption stabilized after the first two hours of break-in. I changed the oil back to multiweight after 10 hours. No issues since. RTFM, and follow the directions.