"If you go to 76 percent, the wings will fall off"

A creative modification, lean of peak with turbocharging, electronic ignition, and oil leaks are on tap. Email [email protected] for a chance to get on the show. Join the world's largest aviation community at aopa.org/join Full notes below: Tom has a turbocharged Mooney and he's wondering how to manage it while lean of peak. The hosts say the first goal is to get on the lean side quickly, and then fine tune once there. They argue you can hear and feel when you're lean of peak, which is how you can expedite it. Then check the CHTs and the TITs to make sure they are below limits. That's it. Paul said in that way turbos have an advantage because it doesn't at what altitude you lean, the numbers should be similar. He tends to lean based solely on fuel flow. Ray is considering going to dual electronic magnetos, but he's concerned about redundancy and the safety of the associated battery. The hosts talk at length about the benefits of dual e-mags, and think that redundancy is better with e-mags than traditional magnetos, so even though you're going away from two independent systems, it's still an improvement. Mike said the TSO for the battery containment is extremely high, and not to worry about thermal runaway. The company must also think so because apparently the experimental version is largely the same, minus the same battery containment. Eric is a new A&P and he's trying to become better informed on the difference between major and minor overhaul. He helped a friend create an external charging port for a battery minder on the belly through an inspection port. The hosts are wowed by the work, and want to do it themselves, and all agree it's a minor alteration. It doesn't stick out into the airflow any more than a GPS antenna, which is a minor alteration. Mike recommends reading FAR Part 1.1, which gives the definition of a major alteration. If it doesn't meet that definition, it's minor. But of course Eric is a scientist by day and doesn't love the ambiguity of the reg. Mike says it's in his best judgement, and part of his role as a mechanic. Walter is trying to track down an oil leak on his Beech Sierra. Over a few years he's had his mechanic address multiple trouble spots, and over time that's helped. But recently he's had some oil pooling on his lower cowling. Colleen thinks areas such as oil return lines are problematic. The rubber boots connecting those lines get worn out and can be replaced. She's been trying to track down an oil leak on her Lycoming without luck, and gives Walter a bunch of places to check.