Matt's RV-8 Project



Matt Dralle's RV-8 Project
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Date:  2-27-2010
Number of Hours:  0.50
Manual Reference:  
Brief Description:  Spark Plugs & Ignition Harness - Part 1

Well, that first engine start is closer than ever before and so its time to start putting the finishing touches on the firewall-forward (FWF) components. I had to special order the Champion, all-black ignition harness to replace the bright red one that came with the engine (ack). Black just seemed like it would look so much better and would be in keeping with the black and chrome theme under the hood.

The first step was installing the eight spark plugs. I have a little tool specially designed for gapping aircraft spark plugs and so I gapped them all to .018". Once that was complete, I added some graphite-based, anti-seize compound to the threads of each spark plug, and then torqued them to 35 foot-pounds, making sure that I remembered to install the copper washer! The aircraft spark plugs take a 7/8" deep socket. I picked up a 1/2" drive socket to match the torque wrench I have and installation went fine. The 35 lbs torque seemed just right. That being said, I would have put them in a LOT tighter if left to my own devices. Good to read the manual.

Once the spark plugs were all installed, it was time to install the new ignition harness. Traditional aircraft engines have two spark plugs per cylinder and there is generally one on the top and one on the bottom of each cylinder. These are strategically interconnected to the left and right magnetos. The caps on the ends of the harness are labeled "T2", "B1", etc indicating which spark plug they are suppose to be connected to. T2, for example, would indicate cylinder #2, TOP spark plug.

After the harness was installed, I dressed all of the cabling using high-temp, Teflon wire wrap, leaving enough slack to allow the engine to move around a bit with vibration.

Overall, the installation came out great. It really feels like the test flight is getting close with the spark plugs and harness complete. Wow, to think I could fire that baby up now! How exciting!
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Spark Plug Installation Stuff

Spark Plug Installation Stuff

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Torque Wrench Set To 35 Foot-Lbs

Torque Wrench Set To 35 Foot-Lbs

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Anti-Seize Compound

Anti-Seize Compound

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