I have noticed that my A&P charges mostly labor for cleaning my plugs so I'm wondering if I would be better off simply buying new plugs instead. I have a Archer with a pretty new engine. Any comments/suggestions? I don't have time to do the work myself.
WHen it comes to what to do with spark plugs it is like the Chevy/Ford comparision.
I downloaded a super good article from Champion about spark plugs. Gives all of the care etc required. Just go to their Champion site and it is easily found.
I personnally change mine out quite often. I dont go over 100 to 150 hrs Not due to the cost of cleaning but rather piece of mind. After I got my airplane it fouled very bad about 600 AGL and it was not a good experience. So now I lean very aggressively on the ground and in the air.
I am probably going overboard but at least I know I have good plugs.
One thing I have learned is that the bank account is useless in the air.
Lot of folks talk about the 3 useless things in aviation - well I have added a 4th one for me and that is the bank account.
hey Frank,
you fly a lot more than I do. If your bank account is useless to you up there can I have it while you are flying? I promise to take real good care of it.
Sincerely,
mark A
Very good Frank. I have used that same philosophy when I went to buy a number of things for my plane, like the life raft, CO detector, back up vacuum pump, and the like. None of that money that it takes to purchase that kind of equipment is worth a thing in the bank account if you are a smoking hole in the ground (or trolling for sharks).
Back to the spark plugs. While expensive, the fine wires just about eliminate fouling. Annual cleaning is simple with a dental pick, but you have to make sure your mechanic doesn't put 'em in the sand blaster cleaner thingy (that ruins them). They go right to engine TBO before replacement. Unison are much cheaper than the Champs and about the only difference is the color. There is probably some better quality control with the Unisons because of the method in which they are made.
I've used Champions for about 10 years O-320 E3D and never fouled any plugs. I had one fail, but never foul. The only thing I had against then is that they are painted and will rust. I now have an O-360 A4M which was delivered with Unisosn plugs that are plated and don't rust. So far not a sign of fouling. As for replacing them every 100 hours I can't see the need. Both Unison (Autolite) and Champion have told me that as long as they are not worn out (Unisosn gave me a gage for measuring this) there is not real reason to replace them. If you are noticing fouling in flight I'd be suspecting something else, as if only one plug in a cylinder fouled (unless you are doing an in flight mag check) I don't think you'd really notice it.
Again just my $.02 worth and as per Frank's comment, that's all I ve left in the bank account.
Oh and BTW why not clean the plugs yourself, it's no big deal, then you can make a deposit to you bank account. ;-)
Well Dave, it seems that You are the only one that has all the info needed to make that decision since You didn't include the amount You're A&P charges for the clean/gap/rotate in Your post. Since You don't have time to do it Yourself it's a simple math calculation. Are new ones cheaper than the labor. I bought a vibrator cleaner, a cheap abrasive plug cleaner/blaster, buy new copper gaskets from AC Spruce by the bag of 100, and do the dirty deed every other oil change (100 hrs.) The job is tedious, monotanous, and in so many other words just plain sucks. If it weren't so much more expensive to shoot new ones in every 100 hrs. I would do it but unfortunatly (for Me) My time isn't worth that much any more so since it's real easy to come by, that's an easy calculation too!
Thanks for all the advice. I'm going with Frank on this one since I just lost a dear friend not too long ago that I'm sure would have given up his bank account, motorhome, motorcycle, golf clubs, etc to have his life back. I can almost feel him nudging me right now and saying - "just buy new spark plugs every 150 hours". So, I will. Just like I replace my vacuum pump every 500 hours. Thanks again to everyone, this is how we learn - then we have to make the tough decisions for ourselves. Thank God, I only have a Archer, not a Bonanza, that would be a lot more bank account.
I think changing the plugs every 100 hours is not neccessary. Standard massive elctrode plugs are normally good for 300 to 500 hours. I typically look to replace mine when I see the electrode get "footballed" (become oval in shape).
I clean and re-gap my plugs about every 75 to 100 hours. This is on the list of approved owner maintenance and after getting the hang of it, it only takes me about 1 hour. I use a wire brush and a pick to clean them. You do not need to purchase an ultrasonic cleaner or sandblaster. A gapping tool is about $20 and wire brushes are less than $3. The one hour it takes me to do this not only saves me mucho dollars, it also give me an opprtunity to stick my head under the cowl and inspect a few things myself. I often hear people say they don't have time to do these things, but honestly, it would take me more time to bring my plane over to my mechanic and explain to him what I want and then arrange time to pick it up than it does to clean and re-gap my plugs. It would be more accurate if those people just said that they plain don't want to do it themselves. I can at least understand that argument. But servicing plugs is not a big deal.
If you are having fouling problems, I would look to change to a different type of plug. I had fouling problems when I was using all REM40E's in my O-360-A4A. I swithed to REM37BY's which have the proturded electrode. I never had a fouling problem again, and the engine ran much more smoothly. If you are getting serious problems with plug fouling, replacing plugs every 100 hours will not solve the problem. You may have excessivley rich mixture or a problem elsewhere. Look for that first.
Regarding the REM37BY's, I have heard many people say that they perform almost as well as the fine wore plugs at 1/5 the price. I have been using them for 2 years and I highly recommend them.
Just to be clear, I use my plane for business and my time is valuable. Also, my A&P picks my plane up so I don't have that hassle. Yes, I could do it myself but then I would give up time for other things and I really have no desire to work on my airplane, I just want to fly it. Besides, I look at it as good for A&Ps, they need to work.
Thank You Turbo Dave!
no offense to anyone else and I supprot those who do like to do those owner preventative maintenance things but I would like to have about ten more customers like you.
Yes Pat, A vibrator cleaner is simply a hand held, electric vibrator engraver (Like You mark Your tools with) that has a somewhat flattened "Spoon shaped" tip that will reach way down into the crevice where the insulator meets the metal shell. It breaks up and dislodges the deposits that would require excessive abrasive blasting to remove (If even then). They cost little more than a standard engraver and replacement tips are available for a buck or two. Well worth the time and the plug abrasion they save.
Dave M.
