Pragmatic Answer Sought: When to build engine
Hi, All;
I know the 'proper' anal retentive answer is to build the engine one day, hang it and wire it the next, then start it and fly it the 3rd day.
Unfortunately, very few of us can do that.
Background: I'm building a Zenith Cruzer. I'm at the 90% done, 90% to go phase. I have periods of time where I'm thinking about how to do things, and working on building my O-200 would dovetail nicely with those periods. But, it would be a drawn-out project. I've had all of my parts inspected and yellow-tagged, so I'm basically at the put it together point.
I know some guys hang an engine before the fuselage is even ready to be set on its gear, and I don't think I've heard of any incidents occurring as a result. Having the engine relatively complete would also aid in running sensors and other cabling in place.
So: Better to wait, or go for it? It'll probably be a 9 months to a year before I'm ready to have first engine start.
