Airplane Owner Maintenance - By Dean Showalter

By Dean Showalter

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A podcast devoted to airplane owners and the maintenance of their airplanes.

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234 – Why the Airplane’s He...

09.23.2023

I’ll get right to it… I think it was because one of the brushes in the heater combustion fan motor was severely worn, and when the motor / combustion fan did not run, the heater did not light. Here’s a ...

Airplane Owner Maintenance - By Dean Showalter episodes:

09.23.2023 234 – Why the Airplane’s Heater Didn’t Light Last Winter I’ll get right to it… I think it was because one of the brushes in the heater combustion fan motor was severely worn, and when the motor / combustion fan did not run, the heater did not light. Here’s a ...
09.08.2023 233 – Mike’s Owner Assisted Annual on His F33A Bonanza Mike Garcia has become a good friend over the past year or so. Recently we completed his annual inspection together, and he really enjoyed working on his airplane while learning more about what’s under the surface! Mike was my guest ...
08.30.2023 232 – A Piper, A Pineapple, and a Motorcycle Be sure to scroll down to see how my Maui Gold Pineapple plant turned out! (It’s been growing in a pot here at our house for a very long time
07.31.2023 231 – Piper Comanche Weird Electrical Problem and Seeping Oil Drain Valve In this week’s podcast episode, you’ll hear about: King Air flying. Listener feedback from the last episode on “Phantom Cylinder Cracks.” The latest annual inspection I’m involved in. … and a few other things! I’m in the midst of an ...
07.17.2023 230 “Phantom Cracks” in Airplane Engine Cylinders Do you think these really are cracks between the spark plug bosses and the fuel injector bosses? (Cirrus SR22 Continental engine.) The owner of a Cirrus SR22 was told by a service center he had 4 cracked cylinders on his ...
07.08.2023 229 – Cessna 206 Alternator Not Working The charging system was not working, but why? There was normal voltage at the alternator field terminal. The field circuit resistance seemed normal as well. But the alternator was not producing the normal 28 volts during operation. Occasionally, it would ...
07.01.2023 228 – Saving a Cylinder on Dan & Jeanne’s Bonanza Dan and Jeanne are some of the nicest people you will ever meet, so it’s always a privilege to work on their airplane. It was annual inspection time, and the compression test on cylinder #1 was 25/80. The borescope showed ...
06.25.2023 227 – Electrical Chaos When the Landing Light was Turned On This Bonanza had a problem in the landing light wiring circuit. All kinds of weird things were happening when the light was turned on in flight. You can listen to the podcast audio for more details on this squawk. I ...
06.17.2023 226 – Piper Lance Lands at SHD After In-Flight Electrical Failure It was a beautiful Tuesday morning at KSHD, and we had the maintenance hangar door open with a good view of the runway. A nice, red and white Piper Lance made a perfect landing on runway 5. As the airplane ...
06.09.2023 225 – Obscure ATC Intersection Mystery Solved (It’s UDIYU!) And the winner is… Ben Moroze! Recently, in podcast episode #223, I asked for help in identifying an ATC intersection we flew over on our way into Dulles Airport, (KIAD) awhile back. I remembered it sounded something like “you-dee-ah” or ...
06.02.2023 224 – Jim’s Exhaust Valve Rescue on his Cessna 182 Engine Recently, I received an email from Jim Janaitus, owner of a Cessna 182. He told me the story of lapping an exhaust valve on his engine because the valve showed signs of burning even though the compression was still in ...
05.26.2023 223 – Piper Cherokee Annual and Other Maintenance Adventures In the beginning of this week’s podcast episode, I want to give a big congratulations to my friend, Chris Wieczorek, who recently got his A&P certificate! Listen to the audio to find out how Chris pursued getting his A&P in ...
05.13.2023 222 – How an Engine Cylinder Went From 25/80 to 75/80! I inspected another A36 Bonanza recently, and one of the cylinder compressions was too low… lower than the minimum prescribed by Continental using the master orifice tool. I had two options: Option One: Remove the cylinder for repair or replacement. ...
04.21.2023 221 – Maui Adventures in the Air and on the Ground! Maui is simply amazing! Maria and I thoroughly enjoyed our trip, and here are some highlights. (And for the aviation maintenance portion of the trip, see the last episode, 220.) So many indescribably beautiful beaches to see: Maria and her ...
04.16.2023 220 – An Epic Working Vacation to Maui! We arrived on Maui the evening of March 27 and were greeted by our friends, John and Leslie Caubble, with a “lei greeting” which is a warm welcome with a beautiful ring of fresh flowers around your neck. We were ...
03.24.2023 219 – I Installed New Brake Linings and the Wheel Would Not Turn! It took some significant detective work and deciphering to solve this mystery. The brake caliper at the top of the photo was the wrong part number for the A36 Bonanza I was working on. The one at the bottom of ...
03.17.2023 218 – Engine Oil was Seeping Out of the Top Cowling Not long ago, there was an oil leak on the right engine of a Cessna 414. The leak was significant enough to come out the louvers on the top cowling in flight. There was oil all over the rear inboard ...
03.10.2023 217 – Does Your Magneto Have Any Broken Teeth? I recently removed a magneto from a Piper Cherokee, and my curiosity about why the magneto had failed got the best of me. I took the mag home, sat down at the kitchen table, put my grandson Spencer on my ...
03.03.2023 216 – WHY is the alternator not working?! Here’s the short answer: Worn and contaminated brushes inside the alternator. Check it out: My theory is that the excessive amount of carbon dust from brush wear was causing a short circuit situation between the brushes, and not allowing the ...
02.24.2023 215 – Vacuum Pump Adventure with Clark, my Airline Captain Friend Clark and his family came to Virginia to visit his mom recently, and on the way up from Florida, the right vacuum pump quit working… as often happens when a vacuum pump quits, the drive shaft had sheared off, saving ...
02.17.2023 214 – An Unacceptably Low Cylinder Compression This is a good looking exhaust valve with a nice concentric appearance. However, the compression was very low at 8/80. I lapped the valve, hoping it would improve the compression test result… it only came up to 10/80, and that ...
02.10.2023 213 – Stellar Advice for YOUR Aviation Career Where are you RIGHT NOW in your aviation journey? Have you started flight training, but stalled out along the way? Did you finish that instrument rating? How about the commercial certificate, or CFI, or even CFII? Ever dream about getting ...
02.03.2023 212 – Is Your Airplane’s Battery Too Old? How long should the battery last in a small, piston-powered airplane? That’s a great question, and we are talking about it in this week’s podcast episode. Tune in to hear the story behind this 24 volt battery in the photo, ...
01.27.2023 211 – A Cold Flight in an Aerostar! I had an opportunity to fly in an Aerostar the other day… it was going to be a fairly long trip to the destination, with one fuel stop along the way. As we climbed out of the Shenandoah Valley in ...
01.20.2023 210 – Cessna 172 Engine Install / Good ATC Talk Here are the highlights you’ll find in this podcast episode: My latest assignment at Classic Aviation – Installing the freshly overhauled engine in a Cessna 172 that is almost complete after an extensive rebuild process. Some emails I’ve received from ...
01.13.2023 209 – Responses from Airline Pilots, and Finishing a Bonanza Annual But first… My friend and podcast listener, Chris Wieczorek, flew into SHD recently and we ate burgers for lunch. It was a win-win. I provided the ground transportation, and he bought lunch! https://oldschoolburgerbus.com/ The conversation was very inspiring to me, ...
01.05.2023 208 – Back in the Maintenance Shop and Off to JFK! Happy new year friends! In today’s podcast episode, you’ll hear about the following: The airplane I’m currently working on. My recent King Air trip to JFK, and the interesting approach we got that day. A couple listener emails. Thanks for ...
12.17.2022 207 – A Fantastic Conversation With My Son Seth! Recently, Seth and I spent part of a weekend at a remote mountain cabin location, and we decided it would be a great time to record a conversation about the career changes both of us have made. I love this ...
11.24.2022 206 – Thanksgiving, Deer Hunting, and Discount Codes Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I’ve been deer hunting with my daughter McKenzie this week, and so far, she got a button buck, and I got a doe… she’s trying to get a good supply of venison in her freezer for the ...
11.02.2022 205 – My First Landing at Hannah Field in a Cessna 150 A week and a half ago, I flew a Cessna 150 from KSHD to Hannah Field near Monterey, Virginia in Highland County. It was a Saturday morning coffee-and-donuts fly-in hosted by the owners of the private airstrip, along with our ...
10.15.2022 204 – FlyRight King Air 350 Simulator Training was Awesome! In this podcast episode, I’m sharing my experience of going through the training course for a Type Rating in the King Air 350. FlyRight in Concord, North Carolina was definitely the best choice for this training! Home Page FlyRight is ...
09.05.2022 203 – Dean’s Midlife Aviation Transition! Listen to the audio for this episode to hear what Dean’s been up to recently, and why there have not been many podcast episodes in recent weeks. I’m transitioning out of the maintenance shop and into a flying job, and ...
06.15.2022 202 – Pax River Navy Test Pilot: Trace Bowen Recently, I had the amazing opportunity to visit NAS Pax River, a United States naval air station located in St. Mary’s County, Maryland, on the Chesapeake Bay. My friend, Trace Bowen, picked me up in his Cessna 310, flew me ...
05.14.2022 201 – SureFly Ignition Installation Have you ever seen one of these? It’s a SureFly Ignition Module, or “SIM” for short: I recently had an opportunity to install one on an E33A Bonanza, so I thought I’d do a podcast episode about it. Hopefully you’ll ...
04.09.2022 200 – My Recent Flight Review and Other Adventures You guys know I love out-of-the-ordinary things, and my recent flight review definitely qualifies as one of those! First, my good friend and excellent flight instructor worked me over in the ground portion of the flight review. Here are some ...
03.12.2022 199 – A Bulging Exhaust – Change it, or not? I recently inspected a Piper Saratoga, and I found the following condition on the right exhaust collector: Earlier this week, I sent this photo to my email subscribers and asked if they would change this piece of exhaust if it ...
02.25.2022 198 – Be Careful About In-flight Troubleshooting! Chris Saindon, a podcast listener and owner of a Cessna 172G, contacted me with a different, and important perspective that I had completely overlooked. I recently told of a landing gear light in a Piper Seminole, and how the pilots ...
02.19.2022 197 – When He Put the Gear Up the Right Alternator Quit This was what happened recently in a Piper Seneca… and in this episode, we discuss why the alternator quit… it was something I totally was not expecting. After verifying the field connections (power and ground) were good, and the brushes ...
01.23.2022 196 – Joe’s #5 Cylinder Mystery This fuel injector line must have only been attached finger tight when the fuel injectors were reinstalled after cleaning. The engine ran fine at first, but all of a sudden during one engine run, the #5 EGT took a nose ...
12.31.2021 195 – Is it Time to Tear That Engine Apart? When an airplane engine is making a small amount of ferrous metal, but the evidence is not totally conclusive, the decision to tear it apart, or not, can be gut-wrenching. Such was the case for the O-540 engine in a ...
12.10.2021 194 – All About Airplane Prebuys with Adam Sipe This episode is a good one! If you’re thinking about buying an airplane, stop right now and listen to this episode, because Adam Sipe can absolutely save you lots of time, money and needless frustration in the process of buying ...
12.04.2021 193 – How Did this Starter housing Break? That’s a good question, and although I don’t have the full story, we will toss around some possibilities in this episode. Thanks to all of you who responded with some really good guesses about the cause. I received responses from ...
11.20.2021 192 – We Always Knew He Had A Screw Loose! My good friend, Clark Trobaugh, flew into KSHD this past week, and while he was visiting with his family, I walked over to his airplane on the ramp and noted a few things that needed attention… Here’s the one that ...
11.14.2021 191 – A Tale of Two Exhaust Valves In this episode, we are talking about two different exhaust valves, both of which showed signs of burning when we looked at them with the borescope. One valve was in the beginning stages of burning, and the other was too ...
10.21.2021 190 – The Cessna 172 is Flying Again! It’s been a long and in-depth annual inspection, along with the extensive list of squawk repairs. But it’s a great airplane, and I’d love to fly it if I had the opportunity! In today’s podcast, we cover the remaining squawks ...
10.15.2021 189 – Cessna 172 Squawks Part Two In episode 188, we covered the first 30 squawks on a Cessna 172 that’s in the shop for an annual inspection and a bunch of repairs. In this episode, we are tackling another chunk of the squawks and repairs. Here’s ...
10.08.2021 188 – Cessna 172 Squawks and Repairs It certainly looked like a crusty old engine when we removed the cowling for the annual inspection. The exterior is one thing… but perhaps even more importantly, I wondered about the internal condition of the engine. Surprisingly, the borescope showed ...
09.18.2021 187 – Wonders and Woes of a Cirrus SR22 In today’s podcast episode, I talked about this specific SR22, and some maintenance I was involved in… scroll down for some related photos. But first, I just wanted to say the SR22 is a great airplane! Here are some of ...
08.28.2021 186 – Diamond DA40 Squawks & a new Bonanza Friend! From left: Arthur, Dave, Mervin, Dean (I got to work with these guys last Monday at Classic Aviation., when Dave had me lap the exhaust valves in cylinders 3 and 5.) Scroll down for more info about this valve lapping ...
08.20.2021 185 – Standby Alternator System and Other Fun Stuff I’ve just completed the installation for a B&C Specialties standby alternator system on an E33A Bonanza. It’s a fantastic system, and I talked about it in today’s podcast episode. Be sure to listen for a caution about the right magneto ...

Older episodes

Airplane Owner Maintenance - By Dean Showalter

What's Airplane Owner Maintenance - By Dean Showalter about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Airplane Owner Maintenance - By Dean Showalter episodes:

234 – Why the Airplane’s Heater Didn’t Light Last Winter

233 – Mike’s Owner Assisted Annual on His F33A Bonanza

232 – A Piper, A Pineapple, and a Motorcycle

231 – Piper Comanche Weird Electrical Problem and Seeping Oil Drain Valve

230 “Phantom Cracks” in Airplane Engine Cylinders

229 – Cessna 206 Alternator Not Working

228 – Saving a Cylinder on Dan & Jeanne’s Bonanza

227 – Electrical Chaos When the Landing Light was Turned On

226 – Piper Lance Lands at SHD After In-Flight Electrical Failure

225 – Obscure ATC Intersection Mystery Solved (It’s UDIYU!)

224 – Jim’s Exhaust Valve Rescue on his Cessna 182 Engine

223 – Piper Cherokee Annual and Other Maintenance Adventures

222 – How an Engine Cylinder Went From 25/80 to 75/80!

221 – Maui Adventures in the Air and on the Ground!

220 – An Epic Working Vacation to Maui!

219 – I Installed New Brake Linings and the Wheel Would Not Turn!

218 – Engine Oil was Seeping Out of the Top Cowling

217 – Does Your Magneto Have Any Broken Teeth?

216 – WHY is the alternator not working?!

215 – Vacuum Pump Adventure with Clark, my Airline Captain Friend

214 – An Unacceptably Low Cylinder Compression

213 – Stellar Advice for YOUR Aviation Career

212 – Is Your Airplane’s Battery Too Old?

211 – A Cold Flight in an Aerostar!

210 – Cessna 172 Engine Install / Good ATC Talk

209 – Responses from Airline Pilots, and Finishing a Bonanza Annual

208 – Back in the Maintenance Shop and Off to JFK!

207 – A Fantastic Conversation With My Son Seth!

206 – Thanksgiving, Deer Hunting, and Discount Codes

205 – My First Landing at Hannah Field in a Cessna 150

204 – FlyRight King Air 350 Simulator Training was Awesome!

203 – Dean’s Midlife Aviation Transition!

202 – Pax River Navy Test Pilot: Trace Bowen

201 – SureFly Ignition Installation

200 – My Recent Flight Review and Other Adventures

199 – A Bulging Exhaust – Change it, or not?

198 – Be Careful About In-flight Troubleshooting!

197 – When He Put the Gear Up the Right Alternator Quit

196 – Joe’s #5 Cylinder Mystery

195 – Is it Time to Tear That Engine Apart?

194 – All About Airplane Prebuys with Adam Sipe

193 – How Did this Starter housing Break?

192 – We Always Knew He Had A Screw Loose!

191 – A Tale of Two Exhaust Valves

190 – The Cessna 172 is Flying Again!

189 – Cessna 172 Squawks Part Two

188 – Cessna 172 Squawks and Repairs

187 – Wonders and Woes of a Cirrus SR22

186 – Diamond DA40 Squawks & a new Bonanza Friend!

185 – Standby Alternator System and Other Fun Stuff