She's almost done!

I went out to the airport again yesterday to check on the progress and take some more pictures. When I arrived, the engine was already mounted and the mechanic was getting close to finishing the job of hooking everything up. I chatted with him and also with Preston. I'll summarize the current status.

The annual is complete. There were a couple of things that need to be fixed, but overall it wasn't bad at all. The most expensive thing is the nose wheel that I described in my previous post. The tire and tube also need replacing, and they already have them ready to go for when the replacement wheel arrives. The main gear tires were replaced a couple years ago, shortly before I bought the plane, so now it's the nose tire's turn.

There's a bracket that holds one of the pilot-side brake master cylinders that needs to be replaced. It's a very simple thing that they can fabricate on the spot. If I understood correctly, there's a reinforcement plate behind the firewall where one of the engine mount bolts goes that needs to be replace, also something they can fabricate easily. Other than that, it's all good.

The bolts holding the engine to the mount are the old ones which they're using for now to hold in place, but they will be replaced with new ones. I think he said the same for the bolts holding the mount to the firewall.

There are no guarantees, of course, but it's possible it will be done sometime this week. If not, it'll probably be done the following week. Regardless, I think I'll take week after next off from work and, hopefully, I'll be able to get some good break-in time in. Assuming the weather cooperates, of course.

Seeing that engine mounted on my plane, I felt that it was finally real, that I was within sight of the end of this long and frustrating wait. Fingers crossed everything will work out over the next two weeks.

Here are some pictures:

First, here's the nose wheel. Though it's not quite in focus, you can see where the crack is; it's on the side of the hole where one of the bolts that holds the two halves together screws in.