It was time for N6888A's annual checkup and I thought I would do some of the simple things myself in hopes of lowering the cost. I changed oil, new aircleaner filter, cleaned & regaped the plugs, cleaned and repacked the main gear wheel bearings, etc. When I gave this list to my AI he said he would still have to pull the mains as he always does so to check the wheels and axels for possible cracks. Well I guess I could have done that myself, but didn't. When he did, fortunately no cracks were found there, BUT he did find a crack in the Cleveland brake caliper where the bolts go through the caliper. It was, as you might imagine, on the bottom so it was difficult to see. A suggestion is to be sure to inspect this area with a mirror every so often.
As a followup to an earlier post, no problems were found with the ECI steel cylinders I installed at overhaul. I am still very pleased with them.
Frank Stephenson
Annual Inspections
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