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Check Those Floats!


FlyingMonkey

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I've been having fuel in my right drip tray for a while now, and was not able to nail down the cause.  Not enough to be dangerous, just enough to see some stains.  I pulled the bowls and checked everything, did a bunch of troubleshooting over several months, but was not able to figure it out.  The last straw was when I replaced the bowl gaskets with the new rubber type...and still got leaks. 

I had discounted floats as a cause, since I'd replaced them with the new "improved" design a couple of years ago.  But as a last ditch, I went ahead and weighed both sets of carb floats.  Both were over the allowable limit, though only one carb was leaking (it was the heavier of the two sets).  I replaced both sets, and the fuel in the drip trays disappeared immediately.  So the moral is, if you have drip tray stains, check those floats. 

And to Rotax/Bing:  COME ON GUYS!  These things have been through several revisions, and you can't seem to get it right.  Carbs have been around since 1826, most manufacturers have figured out how to make reliable floats over the last 190 years.  Make them out of metal and be done with it.  And don't charge $300 (for both carbs) for little pieces of foam that will need replacement every couple of years.  Gah! 😡

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I think the Mavel Schebler had it right but discontinued the development of new floats that they initially made. They had the right material,  the same as used in hundreds of thousands of carburetor aircraft. European Rotax users had no problem with them according to Marvel Schebler. They had a small float weight issue but not unresolvable. I think the main issue is that Rotax would never approve them because of who makes the money. SLSA manufacturers also control their market 100%. There is no STC option for light sport.

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39 minutes ago, Madhatter said:

I think the Mavel Schebler had it right but discontinued the development of new floats that they initially made. They had the right material,  the same as used in hundreds of thousands of carburetor aircraft. European Rotax users had no problem with them according to Marvel Schebler. They had a small float weight issue but not unresolvable. I think the main issue is that Rotax would never approve them because of who makes the money. SLSA manufacturers also control their market 100%. There is no STC option for light sport.

E X P E R I M E N T A L     😁

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  • 3 weeks later...

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