RkyMtnHI Posted October 21, 2009 Report Share Posted October 21, 2009 Hey all, I started to list this under "some of the things i learned.." but this is more about helicopter maintenance than flight training soooo... We experienced a slight governor lag on our Clipper II last week, in forward flight it was not noticeable, but on termination to hover and lifting off, the throttle would droop just a bit, enough to get our attention real quick. So, we called our favorite A&P only to find that he was so busy he couldn't come look at it for three weeks!! The last thing i remember him saying was "hope you don't need it anytime soon!!" :-) My first thought was to call other shops, but instead did what i usually do first; i called Robinson. They have a couple of really smart guys that take "tech" questions over the phone and try to explain what action to take to remedy the issue. This is one of the things i really love about Robinson and have called them many times for questions about stuff like replacement screws to over-speeds (man could i write a good one about that subject, at my previous school there were three of them!!). Anyway, the tech i spoke with at Robbie said to check out the throttle adjustment rod that goes thru the firewall to see if it was dirty... sure enough, it had a ring of dirt that was impeding the smooth movement thru the seal!!! He told us to clean it with a dry rag and see what happened! Amazing! No more issues. So, why am i telling you all this? First, know that some things are simple and might just need a clean rag to correct, always expect the simplest thing first (be optimistic). Second, to let you know about the tech guys at Robbie, they are awesome and can save you money by telling you what to expect when you take your ship in for repair. Here are a couple of photos below!! You can see the seal that the rod slides thru, the dirt had collected right where the rod goes in. It was just a small amount of dirt, and surprised us that it was enough to slow the gov. We will have this polished during our next 100 hour. dp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HelliBoy Posted October 22, 2009 Report Share Posted October 22, 2009 A clean helicopter is a happy helicopter Especially in the nooks and crannys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted October 22, 2009 Report Share Posted October 22, 2009 Thats funny, we were having the same issue on the Raven 1. The owner detailed it last week and told me "it flew better' in fact, the slow governor problem seemed to go away. He just didn't know exactly why! Now he does, so thanks Dennis! Goldy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John90290 Posted October 22, 2009 Report Share Posted October 22, 2009 What you explained is a tool I use just about every day for problem solving. It's known as Occam's razor or "theory." "This rule is interpreted to mean that the simplest of two or more competing theories is preferable and that an explanation for unknown phenomena should first be attempted in terms of what is already known. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RkyMtnHI Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Hey all, I had to bump this post and say a little more about my friends at Robinson and my latest experience with our clipper II. We had a minor main transmission leak and called the tech line for Daniel's opinion on the issue, i am amazed that these guys are almost always available and actually answer their phones most of the time, if not they call back within a few minutes (try get that kind of service anywhere now days). They always know what's going on and take their time to pull up part numbers and discuss the issues at hand and others that may come up. I cannot tell you how much this service has saved us in time and $$$. I am amazed at how easy it is to maintain our R44 and i love that ship.. we will undoubtedly have more of them soon.. Oh yeah, the o-ring cost us 35 cents, and as usual, they shipped it out the next day for no extra charge!! aloha, dp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldy Posted December 20, 2009 Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 Hey all, I had to bump this post and say a little more about my friends at Robinson and my latest experience with our clipper II. We had a minor main transmission leak dp I know you won't put this off but if its the one I am thinking of, you have to take quite a bit apart to get to it. However, the leak will allow fluid to get down along the firewall and it will ruin your interior, and a few other parts along the way. (Like the electronics for your HSI, if you have one) Not to mention, its a pain adding fluid all the time! I've seen one ship have thousands in damage because they deferred fixing this little leak. My advice is schedule it for the next 100 hour! Goldy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RkyMtnHI Posted December 20, 2009 Author Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 I know you won't put this off but if its the one I am thinking of, you have to take quite a bit apart to get to it. However, the leak will allow fluid to get down along the firewall and it will ruin your interior, and a few other parts along the way. (Like the electronics for your HSI, if you have one) Not to mention, its a pain adding fluid all the time! I've seen one ship have thousands in damage because they deferred fixing this little leak. My advice is schedule it for the next 100 hour! Goldy Thanks Goldy, great advice. It is leaking just a few drops, but we scheduled it for the next 100 hour anyway, and that's six hours out!! Had it not been so close we'd have done it the day we found it. aloha, dp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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