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 Previous Item - All that Cruises Down the River is not a SearRey, nor a Ship
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First Searey "Delivery" Flight |
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Bob Gibson - Apr 05,2021
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A couple of years ago, I helpled a friend deliver a 1953 Piper Tri Pacer from Niles MI to Clearwater Airpark (KCLW). During March 19-21 I made my first delivery of a Searey from Zephyrills (KZPH) to Grosse Ile, MI (KONZ) for the new owner. No panel-mount GPS, No NAV radio, one COM radio . . . I did all the navigation on a Garmin 396 portable and FlyQ on my iPad. About 900 NM, 4 fuel stops, Two overnight stays be for delivery on Sunday March 21. I had THREE DAYS of nearly PERFECT weather! But WINDS . . . for the entire trip, I averaged 58 knots. Bob Gibson
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Dave Edward - Apr 06,2021
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Congrats Bob.....flying with the basics is more fun anyway, and the headwinds
just gave you more time to enjoy a wonderful life.
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Don Maxwell - Apr 06,2021
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Well said, Dave!
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Bill West - Apr 07,2021
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I made a very similar flight 10 times over 5 years. Ft Myers to Troy Field in Detroit. I had some slow legs but never the
whole trip. With one exception, being fogged in in London Ky for a full day, I always made it in 2 days. Great adventures and
a great trio of partners in the Searey
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Don Maxwell - Apr 08,2021
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My own favorite was flying Charlie Pickett's Searey from Massachusetts to X61 near Orlando while Charlie trundled along below on I-95 in his huge motor home. All went well until we hit headwinds in the Carolinas. I landed at Walterboro SC (KRBW) just before dark. We conked out in the motorhome expecting to make Orlando the next day. Charlie was in a big hurry to be on time for an appointment at PA to get the Searey overhauled. But the wind was much worse in the morning, and I wasn't happy about getting up into it. Charlie started getting really annoyed--evidently thought I was a real wimp. Even he had given up on making X61 on the Searey's 18 gallon plastic tank. But St. Simons Island, he said, was only 115 miles. We could at least get THAT far.
So I pulled out my flip phone to see what Pilot MyCast had to say about the wind.
"IMPOSSIBLE" it said. Not enough gas.
Charlie threw something, I don't remember what, and uttered several submariner oaths he had learned in the navy. But we had a lovely time in Walterboro that day and night--Walmart, the Tuskgegee Airmen memorial, Dairy Queen, Fat Jack's for dinner. Nowadays we each check in with the other by phone whenever we zoom past Walterboro on I-95. He called a few days ago on the way to Sun 'n Fun.
(Pilot MyCast was bought by Garmin, which turned it into Garmin Pilot and and made it heavy. It doesn't say "impossible" any more.)
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Bob Gibson - Apr 10,2021
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I just HAVE to tell you the most interesting story from this trip . . . I stopped in London, KY for fuel. After topping off, I
discovered one of the muffler springs was broken. I did not have any spares, because in the 3 years I had been flying this
plane, I never had one fail. Fortunately, during the last Annual, we had threaded a safety wire through the center of each
spring, so that broken pieces would not fly through the prop. The safety wire was still intact, so it did it's job.
I called the new owner in MI to explain what had happened. It was a Saturday, but I was able to contact an A&P who
came out to examine it and offer an opinion.
At this point, I need to note that a few hundred yards away, there is a manufacturing facility for KOLB aircraft . . . they
use a lot of Rotax engines.
The A&P thought I would be OK to complete the flight without the spring, and offered to install a second safety wire on the
exhaust pipe with the failed spring. I authorized him to proceed.
About that time, a friend of the A&P, "Tom" showed up. Tom is a machinist AND a test pilot for KOLB! Tom saw the
problem and said, "I might be able to find a spring for you." At this point, I'm thinking, 'Great! He probably has a key to
the Kolb facilities and can pull a new Rotax spring out of the parts bin.'
I was wrong . . . Tom produced a replacement spring FROM THE BACK OF HIS TRUCK!!!! And he refused to take any
money for it. I called the new owner and told him he should go purchase some Lottery Tickets ! ! !
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Ken Leonard - Apr 15,2021
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I just saw something yesterday that really surprised me. Someone had used heatshrink over their springs.
I would have thought the exhaust heat would melt it but it seemed tight and a great way to keep potential broken pieces together.
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Russ Garner - Apr 13,2021
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Bob along with the safety wire if you use some of the orange colored high temp RTV on the spring ends it helps
with vibration on the metal to metal contact that is really why the springs fail anyway.
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