Avenger V with 1/2 VW and traffic alert

[rwanttaja]

There was around 7 people whom saw this happen. I lost both valve covers. I have never had one fall off myself, but then again I use a gasket, he did not, only forum-a-gasket.

Like I said, I owned VW Beetle autos over a ~25 year period and never lost a valve cover. Never even heard of it, and I don't think the John Muir book ("How to keep your Volkswagen Alive") mentioned it, either. With tens of millions of these on the road in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, it seems like I should have seen have seen ejected valve covers scattered along the roads. But I didn't.

I did a couple of Google searches, looking for mention of ejected valve covers, and found zip.

I'm not doubting that you had problems, but am curious as to why it happens. Is it related to the two-cylinder conversion?

Ron Wanttaja

[1600vw]

Like I said, I owned VW Beetle autos over a ~25 year period and never lost a valve cover. Never even heard of it, and I don't think the John Muir book ("How to keep your Volkswagen Alive") mentioned it, either. With tens of millions of these on the road in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, it seems like I should have seen have seen ejected valve covers scattered along the roads. But I didn't.

I did a couple of Google searches, looking for mention of ejected valve covers, and found zip.

I'm not doubting that you had problems, but am curious as to why it happens. Is it related to the two-cylinder conversion?

Ron Wanttaja

Nothing to do with the twin conversion. It has to do with someone thinking they know everything. I ran this A&P off. The gaskets hold the valve cover tight against the bail wire. Remove the gasket and the valve cover will fall off as it did me. But because an A&P did the work I did not check it. That will never happen again.

Not all A&P's should work on an EAB.

[1600vw]

Hmmmm...how often does that happen on the cars? Over the years, I owned a '64 Sedan, '71 Super Beetle, and a '74 Thing. Never had a valve cover came off, even when the rocker arm fell off on one side.

Ron Wanttaja

That is because it was installed correctly. Remove the bail on mine and the covers will not fall off. If you read my post I state this. Once the bail is removed you must work to get that cover off.

[rwanttaja]

Nothing to do with the twin conversion. It has to do with someone thinking they know everything. I ran this A&P off. The gaskets hold the valve cover tight against the bail wire. Remove the gasket and the valve cover will fall off as it did me.

Ah, gotcha. It's been 15 years since I've owned a VW, but I remember the valve cover gasket was made of thick cork. Put something thinner in there and it'll be loose.

Thanks for the info....

Ron Wanttaja

[1600vw]

Ah, gotcha. It's been 15 years since I've owned a VW, but I remember the valve cover gasket was made of thick cork. Put something thinner in there and it'll be loose.

Thanks for the info....

Ron Wanttaja

Not a problem at all Ron.
Now we hit on the reason I have a problem with a GA or general Aviation A&P having to do my condition inspection. Just because one is an A&P does not really mean they know what is needed to keep an EAB running reliably.
Ask an A&P to work on a set of AZUSA brakes and see what you get. Every EAB I have seen has these for wheels and brakes.
Can I be the only one whom has ever had this kinda problems with an A&P working on their airplane? Surely I am not the only person to own an EAB they did not build. Thanks for the comments, by the way.

Tony

[martymayes]

Can I be the only one whom has ever had this kinda problems with an A&P working on their airplane? Surely I am not the only person to own an EAB they did not build.

How many different A&P's have you hired to work on your airplane? I seriously doubt your experience is representative of A&P's in the homebuilt world.

Put another way, an A&P throws all his practical knowledge out the window when he works on a homebuilt and assumes the engine is assembled with sealant only and no gaskets? Really?

[1600vw]

How many different A&P's have you hired to work on your airplane? I seriously doubt your experience is representative of A&P's in the homebuilt world.

Put another way, an A&P throws all his practical knowledge out the window when he works on a homebuilt and assumes the engine is assembled with sealant only and no gaskets? Really?

You doubt this happened?

[Jim Hann]

How many different A&P's have you hired to work on your airplane? I seriously doubt your experience is representative of A&P's in the homebuilt world.

Put another way, an A&P throws all his practical knowledge out the window when he works on a homebuilt and assumes the engine is assembled with sealant only and no gaskets? Really?

Marty,
I would have agreed with you a year ago. Now deep into a rebuild/repair job on a certificated aircraft due to shoddy work and some possible pencil-whipping by an IA, I tend to agree with 1600vw. Are these guys coming out of an A&P mill or what? All the A&Ps/IAs I'm working with can only shake their heads at what we've seen in my airplane and this is a standard category, not an E-AB.

Jim

[rwanttaja]

Not a problem at all Ron.
Now we hit on the reason I have a problem with a GA or general Aviation A&P having to do my condition inspection. Just because one is an A&P does not really mean they know what is needed to keep an EAB running reliably.
Ask an A&P to work on a set of AZUSA brakes and see what you get. Every EAB I have seen has these for wheels and brakes.
Can I be the only one whom has ever had this kinda problems with an A&P working on their airplane? Surely I am not the only person to own an EAB they did not build. Thanks for the comments, by the way.

I think this problem is going to arise every time an EAB's systems use equipment that is not used in production-like aircraft, because it falls outside their experience base. VW's are notorious for leaking valve covers; the A&P used the kind of solution they're used to. But they didn't have the background to realize that the bail holding the cover on depended upon a gasket of a particular thickness and material. Using a liquid gasket product would probably have worked on an A65, but he didn't think forward enough to realize the drawback in a different application.

It's the A&P's fault, true, but in fairness, they don't get a lot of experience in these out-of-the-box situations. Tony's experience is a good warning to all of us.

With a Continental-powered Fly Baby, I'm mostly protected from these sorts of situations. I've had only three different A&Ps over ~25 years of Fly Baby ownership (and the first was a homebuilder), and there have been only one or two instances where I had to gently inform them that their intended action Was Not a Good Idea in a Fly Baby.

Ron Wanttaja

[martymayes]

You doubt this happened?

I'm asking for data because you have formed and expressed an opinon, no doubt based on your experience, that A&P mechanics are not capable of inspecting/repairing a homebuilt. One bad apple does not spoil the whole barrel.