Closing the 'Business End'

We made nice progress over the weekend completing the installation of the JPI and replacing the nose bowl. It almost looks flyable.

There were several systems to connect to the nose bowl including the light, ram air cable and oil cooler.

...and cowl flaps.

Fresh parts including gasket to seal the ram air opening.

This panel insert has the JPI mode switch and data port, a set of headset jacks and a push-to-talk that we installed by the co-pilot's right hand. Nifty. When we turned on the JPI, the cylinder heads and exhaust ports read 97-98 degrees--we knew they were registering properly. It was HOT this weekend.

The prop had been gathering dust since November.

The prop and governor have really neat mechanical components. The bolts that hold the assembly on the engine are designed such that they can't work themselves out, and then safety wire is used as a redundancy. I'm confident the prop will not come loose or fall off.

Spinner set in place for photo.

We pulled the spark plugs and turned the engine over to make sure we had proper oil pressure. This also tested the new starter. We'll be firing up this old bird within the week and do some more system testing. Then back under the microscope by our mechanic before she takes flight.