First Engine Start

Well, there was an onerous beginning to this short saga....and no photographic evidence either, as I failed to follow through with all of the busyness of the engine's initial ops.  My first attempt at the start up resulted in a brief but intense shower of high pressure gas spewing from the fuel line that connects the fuel flow transducer to the flared AN fitting on the firewall shelf.

After safely shutting everything down, I drained the 5 gallons of fuel and removed the offending fuel line from its two end fittings.  What I found was that the fuel line's flared end had cracked, I would surmise due to work hardening or some such negligence on my part during the installation.  It was probably 1/16 - 3/32 inches too short in length as well.

At this humbling juncture, I made some more measurements and contacted Tom Swearengen of TS Flightlines and had him manufacture a braided steel, teflon lined unit for me.  So no more stinking aluminum flared fittings made by my hands!  Everything now in the high pressure portion (downstream of the fuel pumps) of my fuel system is steel (with the exception of a couple of fittings on the fuel filter and the body of the fuel filter itself).  I feel much better now about the integrity of the fuel system.

The short clip of the first start up is posted below.  There is a lot of background noise prior to the first start: a landscaping crew at work across the street and my large pedestal fan behind me running at full blast.  Also, I managed to shoot the video in a portrait orientation, so just tilt your head for the full effect. :-)

To say the Viking engine is smooth is an understatement.  It is a thing of beauty to behold when running.  Granted I have not run it up to any significant RPM yet, but if idle is any indication, it will be a real treat at the higher speeds.