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Old 07-27-2006 | 02:15 PM
  #6  
TestPilot6
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From: San Francisco, CA
Default RE: Idle Dipping

The engine should not speed up much at all if you pinch test at idle - perhaps just a few rpm then it should quit in, oh, 2-3 seconds [ever notice how things work when you do them but describing the procedure in writing is a challenge?]. Do you pinch the fuel line at idle to check this? Some folks only pinch test at WOT but I find it a vey helpful tool at idle as well, once you get an ear for it.
Yes, I do this. It takes a few seconds before an rpm change if any, unlike the top speed pinch test which is instant. I've read somewhere the idle pinch test increase should be 50 to 100 rpm.

The factory rep says below 2500 rpm idle is detrimental for the smooth transition and mid range.

I noticed if I set the idle mixture too rich, the engine tends to quit when you try to rev up suddenly from idling.
Also if I set the idle too rich, the transition becomes rough. The sweet spot seems to widen with increased idle speed.

I'm very curious about the present condition, where the rpm creeping up after a sudden idling. I have a feeling this is something to do with the combination of the high speed mixture and idle mixture. I notice it when I rev up for half to one second , then cut down to idle. The rpm gradually increases taking about 20 seconds to reach a steady state. I haven't really tried to see what happens if I continue to operate at the full throttle for longer than 10 seconds, then suddenly cutting it down to idle. I'm sure I have done this before. Probably it's not worse than short bursts.

I'm setting the high speed mixture definitely richer than the recommended (4 - 600 rpm rather than 300 rpm) to make sure it's not going to be too lean when I go vertical. The problem might be something to do with this rich high speed mixture. The engine seems to operate more reliably when the idle mixture pinch test is higher (2 - 300 rpm).

In my club, no one else (at least the ones I meet when I go there to fly) uses SuperTigre. Most of them even don't touch their idle mixtures. Whereas I have to do it almost everytime the conditions change. To me, this is a challenge and fun.