BK1 Oshkosh 2005 - Oshkosh Is Also A Great Learning Experience

What do you do 1200 miles from home with a broken VW engine with no tools? Panic, of course! Run, not walk to the Great Plains booth and beg for help. Steve wasn’t there, but his wife listened with great empathy to my frantic sentence fragments, “EEK! Broke it! Water! No compression! Feels like gravel! Sky falling! Help!” etc… She was so calm at a time when I needed panic. She told me Steve was doing a engine building seminar about half a mile away. Took off like a cartoon character, you know, just POOF! All that was left was a cloudy outline as I zoomed over to the seminar area. Upon arrival, you guessed it, seminar over, no body there. At least this was a great way to get exercise. Dragged myself slowly back to the plane, too winded and dejected to care anymore. Just donate the bird to the EAA Museum (they wouldn’t want it, but they got a big dumpster) and buy a ticket home on one of those flying buss things.

Just as I was about to start bashing my head on the spinner, there was Steve Bennett pulling up and unloading a big tool box next to the plane. Felt like they I was in an old war movie when the good guys are making their last stand against overwhelming forces. Then suddenly the sky is full thousands of our of planes. Steve said, “What can I do to help?” Now that’s service, got the guru of flying VWs here to help, but there I went back into the sentence fragments again. He was so calm too, must be something in the water.

Since it was Wednesday and the big rains came on Sunday and Monday, could only imagine the inside of the cylinder’s looking like an old junkyard full of rusty metal. First out come the spark plugs, and they looked awful, tips lightly rusted and soaking wet. Imagined what it would be like to do a top overhaul at Oshkosh. Steve said we should check the valves to see if any are stuck. Popped the valve covers and checked, all the valves were working and had lash when closed

Still curious how so much water got in. The carburetor and air intake are on the bottom and mainly go uphill. Looking at the front exhaust pipes, there were a few fine lines of soot indicating a little leakage on both front pipes. Did not look like it would be anywhere near enough to let in the massive amounts of water that squirted out of the exhaust pipes. But, at this time it was all we had to go on, so took off right pipe. Just as it came loose, and tilted the front down water poured out of the carburetor heat muff all over my feet. The other side was the same, must have been about a cup of water in each. Used Tony Bingelis' “Firewall Forward” book and the split pipe welded over the exhaust pipe method for carb heat, along with most of his air box design. The Hummel Bird’s ducts stopped about a inch behind and under the front cylinders. They never had a rain collection problem. On the BK1 the design was “improved” by making the ducts a couple of inches longer, you know, to get a little more heat. They are long enough so they are no longer protected by the front cylinders, in fact perfect for collecting rain water. Once the water in the ducts was deep enough, it flowed down the skeet ducts and filled up the intake manifold. Pull it through, suck it into the cylinders, then ejected it out the exhaust pipes. Amazing how the simplest change can have such unexpected side effects.

Could be worse, at least that meant that there was actually no water in the engine block all those days. What about the gravel feel and rusty plugs. Guess the concentrated moisture from the water in the manifold was doing its dirty work for about three days. “Steve! Does this mean my cylinders are messed up?” Still so calm so sure, when he said, “Squirt a little oil in the cylinders, pull it through a while, and it will be fine. Take whatever tools you need and let me know how it comes out tomorrow.” Have to admit to being a bit skeptical, but how many VW airplane engines have I put together, two. Steve, who knows in 20 years it must be a bunch.

Not much else I could do today except use the dipstick to transfer some oil into the cylinders, to coat them a little. The rest would have to wait until tomorrow, all I have to do is find some VW parts 1200 miles from home with no transportation. If you have been following these adventures for any time you have probably already guessed that I am the most blessed person around. Bill Day was there ready to help. We got to know each other by email after meeting on the Yahoo AirVw Group. He is building a MiniCoupe and you should check out his great work and progress at:

http://members.bellatlantic.net/~vze2gw5q/.

Bill came down to visit last spring and like I said, there are no strangers building airplanes. We are all members of huge support group, or 12 step program depending on the point of view. The next day Bill, who was camping in Camp Scholler, drove me all over most of Wisconsin to get the parts and supplies needed. Finding a pair of cork VW valve cover gaskets and VW spark plugs around Oshkosh was no piece of cake even though the people at the parts stores could not have been nicer and more helpful. He would not let me gas his truck, but at least I got to buy him lunch for his trouble, any restaurant outside the gates of AirVenture seems like a real bargain. Driving back to Whitman Field you could see the acres of tents, RVs (the Winnebago type), and planes as far as the eye can see from the freeway. Wonder what the locals think of this invasion each year.

Most of a can of penetrating oil divided 4 ways and uncounted pull throughs later the gravel feel smoothed out. Completely drained the fuel system, including the carburetor into a 5 gallon gas can bought just for that purpose. Somehow lost the lid to the can, so here we are trying to find a place to get rid of about 3 gallons of water contaminated gas. Finally the airplane parking guys took it, said a little water wouldn’t hurt the Gators. Think of that if you ever consider buying an after Oshkosh Gator special. Then in front of a huge crowd, Bill held the tail and I started hand propping my BK1. It started right up but, as all that oil in the cylinders burned off it belched more smoke than a worn out radial. The “Masters of Disaster” (bless them) would have been proud. I got to back away and not breath all the crud. Sorry that Bill got the worst of it holding the tail, but with friends like me…... Bet the people though this was one of those air show comedy acts.

Steve, was right, the engine ran just fine. Along with Bill Day’s help the BK1 was fixed and all was right with the world again. Pulled the skeet heat ducts off so the next rain would not fill her up again, of course it never rained again. Once home going to drill some drain holes. Oshkosh is also a great learning experience.

Thank, Bruce King

www.bkfliers.com

bruce@bkfliers.com