Groovy MT…

Well, she’s on… Was already to give her a test this weekend but was hobbled with snow and crap WX here in New England. Fingers crossed for tomorrow.

The primary reason I pulled the trigger on the MT was to save some weight and move the CG back, so I was obviously anxious about the data.

In the end, the MT spinner (with 2 coats of added single stage color) was actually 1 lb heavier than the stock Mac I removed. Total taken off was -59lbs, total added was +46lbs, so the net savings was a paltry 13lbs. For sure this was an expensive 13lbs, and we all know the folks who say “Just toss survival gear in the back.” True indeed, but the fact is oz’s = lbs, and although not the 20-25 suggested, 13lbs is 13lbs.

As for CG: The prop lives at -40″ of arm, so in the end, the loss of the 13 moved the empty CG aft 0.54″. Epic? Not really…

What happens to the A/C CG empty is merely interesting. The real marker is what happens when calculated as light as you would ever conceivably fly… single pilot, reserve fuel, rear seats, and perhaps even front pax seat removed. The “theory” people talk about is to set up the A/C as light as possible w/ the CG as legally forward as possible so you can stuff her full and never worry about busting aft.

In my case, with me behind the wheel and 11 gal of fuel (45 min of reserve at a conservative 15gph) the movement difference of CG between the stock prop and the MT is still only 0.50″.

To put that into perspective, (with the stock prop on,) I could have gotten the same effect by tossing 12 lbs in the extended baggage. The argument for the proverbial “bug-out-bag.”

The net/net…. I removed 13lbs on the nose to avoid 12 lbs in the extended baggage. A ton of cash for an otherwise easy fix, but then again, that would have meant an additional 25lbs, and 25lbs is 25lbs.

Hopefully I’ll get her up in the air tomorrow and have a better all around feeling for the swap. Fingers crossed for a performance inducing smile.

Stay tuned..