Oil Cooler Installation Instruction

[Tomfox]

In my instruction manual, I have an appendix A - oil system installation with the cooler - and it has blank steps. Does anyone have an instruction sheet they can scan in?

thanks

Tom Livermore
SS7 912ULS

[jrevens]

I have the same request as Tomfox... are there actual oil cooler instructions? If so I did not get them. The Kitfox folks are in Sebring, or heading there right now, so I'm wondering if anyone on this forum has a copy of the instructions that they could scan and send to me, if they exist. This would be for the 7 SS.

Also, has anyone incorporated one of the oil thermostats with their installation on a Series 7, and if so could you post pictures of how & where you positioned it?

Thank you!

[rosslr]

tTom/Jhn,

email me ross@imaginecgi.com

cheers

r

[jmodguy]

I have a copy at the airport. Gonna stop by and pick up the snowblower tomorrow. I'll grab them and see if they have blank pages.
Jeff

[jiott]

I installed the oil thermostat in my SS7 (highly recommend it) and have pics of the installation that John McB sent me. I'm not at home now but will post the pics this evening.

[jrevens]

Thanks you guys!

[jmodguy]

attached is oil cooler instructions that came with my KF V project. I had to remove the front page to make the file size small enough to upload

[jiott]

Here are the pics I got from John McB on the factory oil thermostat installation:

[jrevens]

Ross, Jeff and Jim - thank you all very much!

[muth]

Rotax in Europe sells a thermostat which is mounted directly on the oil cooler. Thermostat opens at 189°F / 87° C.
This installation uses less hoses.

[mr bill]

I mounted mine on the back of the gear box, using an aluminum adapter for the different hole centers and rubber shock mounts. The manufacturer recommends isolating the thermostat from vibration.

[mr bill]

I used the oil cooler mounts supplied by Kitfox.

[rosslr]

Hi Muth,

thanks for posting the oil cooler from Rotax Europe - I guess they are available at all Rotax dealerships. It looks like a really good way of simplifying the hoses - if I see correctly, the thermostat screws directly into the inlet and outlet ports on the cooler? I have the factory supplied on and it ends up with a lot of hoses and an issue of working to get minimum radius turns. thanks again for the post.

ross

[Floog]

I mounted the oil T-stat on the firewall with homemade brackets.

[muth]

Hi Ross
yes in- and outlet ports matches with the Rotax oil cooler and the assembly is mounted with 2 screws per side and self constructed brackets and shockmounts to the gear box
Thomas

[rosslr]

Thanks Thomas - it looks like a very nice design.

I await more of your flying pics too - they are spectacular!

cheers

ross

[rv9ralph]

Floog, I was looking at your install, it looks solid. However, it appears you used Teflon tape on your connections. Teflon tape should not be used in aircraft. PFTE thread sealant is the recommended product.
With Teflon tape, even when being very careful, small bits can become loose and block passages.
Ralph

[Floog]

Ralph,

Thanks for the heads up on the thread sealant option. But I'm gonna have to respectfully disagree with your concerns about Teflon contamination. If it's properly applied it's a GREAT SEALANT. Especially in a hydraulic system.

[jiott]

Here's the problem I see with Teflon tape; even if you are very careful putting it on the first time (keeping it off the first 2-3 threads), when you eventually remove the fitting for service, small threads will be left in the female thread roots that you may or may not even see. Then when you reinsert the fitting (with its carefully applied new Teflon tape) it can push those leftover threads into the system where they can wreak havoc. Too risky, maybe years down the line.

[kmach]

I am not an expert, but,
I do feel the need to say that all the maintenance manuals ,documents , including very serious accident reports that I have read suggest teflon tape is not an acceptable sealant for aircraft applications and has caused many a problem.

[rv9ralph]

Here's another issue, then I'll leave it.. If you have not yet had your airworthiness inspection. Your DAR may not pass it with tape used.
Ralph

[Dusty]

Teflon tape should be kept a safe distance from any aircraft!

[Floog]

For what it's worth yes I've had an airworthiness inspection. 610 hours later....not one leak in ANY of the hydraulic systems....KNOCK ON FOREHEAD. At the oil change, the Teflon, pepper, and all the other contaminants are drained out with it. Not to mention the oil filter which gets thrown away too. Has anyone ever found Teflon in their oil filter? I HAVE found the 'Holy Grail' 9AR in the fuel filters however. Isn't that why we install filters? To catch all the little chunks?
Incidentally, when you take it apart, ANY kind of sealant is gonna be left in the (female) threads. If you don't clean it out of the threads, it is gonna be pushed into the system when you put it back together; EVEN after applying it carefully (male thread only, and sparingly).
Can you tell, I'm a retired amateur lawn mower mechanic? Nothing better to do than beat dead horses to freaking death. ....See ya, I'm going flying in my death machine!

[jrevens]

Hey Floog,

I use teflon tape occasionally (yes, on my airplane) also. I don't really like that 9AR stuff, but did use it on the fuel tank fittings with the fiberglass. I have found teflon tape to be one very sure method of sealing threaded fittings on refrigeration systems in the field, especially if there might be a light oil film that is hard to clean off without polluting the system. But that's not what we're talking about. I've used it, especially on brake fittings that are probably never going to be removed. I'm very careful & particular about how it's applied, as I'm sure you are too. If I have to remove a fitting, I will usually use a tiny round brass brush (like you'd use with a small bore firearm) and carefully insert, then rotate it against the female threads counterclockwise to clean & remove residue. Have there been incidents of teflon contamination with aircraft? Yes, but I believe it's because of not being careful enough. Like I said, how often do you have to remove fittings after they're installed? Whatever you use it has to be used correctly & carefully. Maybe the pastes are more "fool-proof".

I really like the Permatex High Temp thread sealant, & use it a lot. It contains PTFE, so it is a good thread lubricant like teflon tape (very desireable with tapered pipe threads). It's so much more convenient & less messy than 9AR, & cures anerobically so you don't have to mess around waiting for solvents to evaporate before & after installation. If it's good enough for modern automobiles for fuel, hydraulic fluids, coolent, etc., it's good enough for me. Not recommended for plastics, so again, I used the 9AR on the tanks.

[jiott]

Another comment on the dead horse: in my 40 year hydraulics career we nearly always used a Loctite product called I believe Hydraulic Thread Sealant. It is a red anerobic product that worked flawlessly on systems up to 7000 psi. I wonder if its similar to what John mentioned.