I bought an elastic type air filter that fits tightly over my carb. I have gotten some strange looks at the field. Some guys say you don't need them, others say they just steal power. The reason I installed it was to keep grass clippings out of the engine. But since I installed bigger tires I have not been cutting the grass. So am I the only guy paranoid enough to need a filter?



Any expert opinions

I can't tell the difference in power with, or without, the air filter. Anyone who wants to challenge you: prove it with a Tach. The numbers don't lie.[sm=wink.gif]

Ogriv, you are not paranoid to use filters. You probably don't really need one since you fly off a grass runway, but if the runway has a lot of loose dirt that flies into the air they are nice to have. They help keep all of the dust out of your engine. I have never heard of them reducing an engines power, but as Ed said you can always use a tach to make sure.

I had the same question when I started flying about a year ago. I got the same response, most seemed to think that it reduces power and is not needed.

I decided to try one and I dont think it reduced the power but I did have to change the settings a bit.
I did not run it for long because it would sometimes get bumped off and it was a pain in the you know what to put on.

Well right after I took it off I came in for a not so great landing, the wind picked up and pushed me off to the side of the runway. I ended up putting the nose in a nice big dirt clod on the far side of the runway.

Filter would have saved the clean up of the carb, but on average I really think its more of a hassle than anything else.

I still have it in my pit box but never use it.

Like previous post, If you fly in a dusty field it might be a good idea, other than that its just more to deal with.


Dbow

From time to time I operate my planes from dirt strips, and they are very useful, as one can see the dirt stuck on the filter. I dont use it on other strips, but I can assure you there is no power loss, I only play with the mixture a few clicks to compensate the air flow

All good points and well taken. I will leave it in my field box for future use.