Blu wrote:If you are flying in Colorado and want to save gas, much better a big engine dialed back than a small one running full out. plus when you are at 13000' on a hot day even a big engine is only making 60% if your lucky so fuel burn isn't that bad anyway. Manys the day at up high I wished for more power..... Can't remember wishing for less.

Don't we all always want more power? I would really like a bolt on turbocharger stc for some key engines! More power from a small engine. Definitely agree power is great if you can afford it.

On that same hot day a glider can fly all day. Learn to use lift and you can add lot of power for free. I could give a dissertation about this, but standard mountain flying concepts should help a lot, plus add a few soaring concepts and you are in business. Use cloud streets, avoid virga, and rain, and seek to fly the path in the sky that gives the best energy line. It's easy to say this, but if you study soaring concepts and apply them, you can fly a lot higher and faster if the sky allows.

If it was me I would go with the 220 Franklin or something other then 178 hp or the 190 hp. There has been a lot of problems with the pistons. I am working on the 0470 Continental what will put 230 hp on my Stinson. VGs are a great add on to the Stinson as well. Good luck and safe flying.

Ken 108-2 Super Stinson

Soar07 wrote:

Blu wrote:If you are flying in Colorado and want to save gas, much better a big engine dialed back than a small one running full out. plus when you are at 13000' on a hot day even a big engine is only making 60% if your lucky so fuel burn isn't that bad anyway. Manys the day at up high I wished for more power..... Can't remember wishing for less.

Don't we all always want more power? I would really like a bolt on turbocharger stc for some key engines! More power from a small engine. Definitely agree power is great if you can afford it.

On that same hot day a glider can fly all day. Learn to use lift and you can add lot of power for free. I could give a dissertation about this, but standard mountain flying concepts should help a lot, plus add a few soaring concepts and you are in business. Use cloud streets, avoid virga, and rain, and seek to fly the path in the sky that gives the best energy line. It's easy to say this, but if you study soaring concepts and apply them, you can fly a lot higher and faster if the sky allows.

I agree, more power is no substitute for a good mountain flying technique. But a little extra can sure be nice and I think it adds safety to. Not that you can't fly safely on marginal power. But human nature being what it is, if you just spent 30 minutes in a long slow hot climb it's tempting to tell your self your high enough.

My desire for power is infinite, but my pocketbook is not.

I agree with your points however. Managing the desire to get somewhere can be very challenging for any pilot given the wrong set of circumstances. Been there done that!

I just wanted to post a follow up on the guy being incorrect on saying he has an STC for higher compression mod. It came up on the Stinson group to see if anyone wanted to tell him it's illegal to do that to the engine. Well one of the guys from the ISC contacted him to get a copy of the paperwork and it turns out the compression / horsepower is the same. He took the higher compression pistons from the helicopters and milled them down to the same as the regular pistons (which is legal to do). But for some reason he advertised it as higher horsepower. So while it sounds like he's done the legal part of putting those pistons in, he is falsly advertising. OR....he didn't mill them down and the paperwork shows they were. In either case, stay away from that guy and plane