Original Posted By:>> > Michael D Cuy
The Aeronca Defender I used to work on a few years ago belonged to mymain "pride and joy" customer. The reason I worked on it so much andbecame so familiar with its structure is that he wrecked it three timesin four years! The last wreck was bad and totaled the airplane. Hisengine failed on take off, this after I told him and told him thatsomething had to be done with that engine. I did not do the last annual. The second wreck was due to his hand propping the plane. He had ownedit for years and was very familiar with starting the engine, but on thisparticular day he flooded the engine. Following the normal procedure, heturned off the switch and began pulling the prop through several times toclear the engine. Now fate enters in. He gets a phone call up at thehouse and he goes to answer it, talking for some twenty minutes. Back tothe plane he goes, forgets that the throttle is wide open, turns on theswitch, and props it. The engine started on the first pull and race tofull power. How he got out of the way, I'll never know. As the Defenderwent by, he grabbed the tail and the airplane began to drag him all overhis field. Two of his neighbors saw his predicament and came to theresque, all three hanging onto the tail as this little Defender drug themall around the field for about twenty minutes. Finally the owner decidedsomeone was going to get hurt (there were several opportunities) and theylet it go. As the plane started to lift off and become an unguidedmissile, it ran into a group of live oak trees, the right wing (the one Ihad just recovered eight months before after the first wreck) hitting andbending a strut but stopping the airplane.John Langstonwrites:>Yes I was trying to start a 7AC at farmers pride airport just north>of Lebanon Pa. It was a cold day and It just would not start>so I thought I could get away with cracking the throttle 1/16''>and hand propping. It worked the plane started right up but>began to crawl forward I thought no problem I'll step to the side>that the door's on and grab the plane by the strut and it'll stop.> Have you ever squared danced with an Aronaca>Champ, the plane went in circles> I was able to jump inside and stop it>but from that day on I tied>the plane to my pickup with a rope.>>Russell>>>----- Original Message ----->>>From: Ken Beanlands >To: Pietenpol Discussion >Sent: Thursday, September 23, 1999 12:04 PM>Subject: Re: Battery Box.>>>> OK, let's not get nasty. I had a friend back in university days that >lost>> his foot while hand propping a Chief. He had owned the plane for >years and>> flew it regularly. His girlfriend was in the plane and on the brakes >at>> the time. When he pulled the prop through, he lost his footing on >some ice>> and ended up slipping down and sort of under the prop. His leg >naturally>> came up and was caught by the prop. There was a lot of blood and it>> sprayed onto the windscreen where his girlfriend was. Somehow, the >plane>> was damaged, but I can't remember how. In any case, I became rather>> reluctant to go for a non electric plane.>>>> Besides, have you ever tried>> hand propping on floats? It's hard enough to stand on the floats at >the>> best of times. If you had a heavy wind, you'd have to let the ropes >go and>> try to hand start while drifting back down the pond. If it didn't >start,>> you could easily end up on the rocks. With electric start, I >generally>> untie the plane as I head in the cabin. I hold onto the rope until >the>> plane starts and idles and then toss the rope out the door and clear >of>> the plane. Even that sometimes requires a third hand
.>>>> Ken.>>>> On Wed, 22 Sep 1999, walter evans wrote:>>>> > Good one Mike.>> > My input would be to give the battery a test flight.>> > Mark out a reduced pattern. Pick up the battery and carry it >down the>> > runway, to the trees, turn right till you hit the bushes, now >right>again>> > and go all the way down parallel to the runway to the other end >to the>> > bushes, right again, and right again when you are in line with >the>runway.>> > When you reach the numbers, put it down. Do you want to carry >that in>> > flight?>> > walt>> > -----Original Message-----
)))>>>Just funning with you. Seriously, I swear I've seen>poly type containers in Wicks or ACS catalogs just for this>purpose...not sure on the cost though.>>Mike C.>>________________________________________________________________________________