Wear rate

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Mbanys
Airman Basic
Posts: 3
Joined: 20 Jan 2019, 09:46

Wear rate

Post by Mbanys »

Hi all, the A2A Cherokee was my go-to, everyday plane in FSX for years, and after having taken about a year off from simming, I just started up again and upgraded to p3d. Now that I’m back into it, there was a question I always had and just never got around to asking regarding the “wear and tear rate”. What I mean is, I only fly maybe a couple hours per week, so as long as I’m not pushing the plane around or hitting a hard landing, the plane, when originally started from a brand new, overhauled state, basically stays in excellent condition forever. I’m started out this new adventure from a used state so I’m dealing with some worn parts now, but I was wondering how many hours generally speaking it takes with the default settings to wear out parts on the plane?

Additionally, is there a way to accelerate the wear rate so that at my limited hours of flying, the plane actually ages as it might if I were a more frequent pilot who owned this plane?

Thanks!

Mike

Hook
Master Sergeant
Posts: 1358
Joined: 31 Dec 2012, 01:38
Location: Bonham, Texas

Re: Wear rate

Post by Hook »

I had a trim hinge repair at 27.5 hours, a right flap actuator repair at 43.9 hours, and oil leaks fixed at 64.4 hours. I have also changed the oil twice and the filter once. The left flap seems a bit loose and has been that way for a while but isn't flagged for repair. I currently have 71 hours on the airplane.

Hook

Mbanys
Airman Basic
Posts: 3
Joined: 20 Jan 2019, 09:46

Re: Wear rate

Post by Mbanys »

Thanks! I'm still curious to learn about changing wear and tear rates if anyone knows.

Hook
Master Sergeant
Posts: 1358
Joined: 31 Dec 2012, 01:38
Location: Bonham, Texas

Re: Wear rate

Post by Hook »

It looks like your only option is to set the aircraft to a USED state in the Shift-3 Control panel.

The times I mentioned in my previous post were for a new aircraft.

That left flap is even looser now at 96 hours.

Hook

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LZ-WIL
Master Sergeant
Posts: 1370
Joined: 23 Jun 2015, 13:59
Location: LBSF

Re: Wear rate

Post by LZ-WIL »

Hello Mike,

A2A planes age even when the sim PC is off. Wear and tear also depends, like you mentioned on the way we treat our aircraft and where they are flown.
I usually had the first signs of wear on all my planes around 40 hours of usage. A2A team also said, that in the sim the ageing is accelerated in comparison to the real world.

Cheerz,
Vladi
Bonanza, Skylane, Skyhawk, Cherokee, Cub, Texan, Mustang, Warhawk, Spitfire, Flying Fortress

Mbanys
Airman Basic
Posts: 3
Joined: 20 Jan 2019, 09:46

Re: Wear rate

Post by Mbanys »

Thanks Hook and Vladi. Yeah, I ran into the “wear while the pc is off” thing when I just started getting back into simming a month or two back. I fired up the Cherokee and just dropped it onto the runway and took off. A couple minutes in, I started losing engine power, and that quickly turned into the engine seizing because it had no oil after sitting in storage for about a year. :)

Hook
Master Sergeant
Posts: 1358
Joined: 31 Dec 2012, 01:38
Location: Bonham, Texas

Re: Wear rate

Post by Hook »

That sounds like accelerated wear to me! :D

Lessons learned:

Use the checklist (the oil gauge should have indicated pressure after start)
Perform the pre-flight inspection (a low oil level should have been obvious)
Use additive in your oil (less oil deterioration if not flown often)
Talk to your mechanic once in a while, especially if you haven't flown lately

The A2A Cub has an option for an 1800 hour overhaul or a 300 hour overhaul. I guess no one ever used the 1800 option and all planes are set to 300 now. A2A would have to verify this.

I was a little surprised when after changing the oil at 25 hours and 50 hours that I didn't get told to change it again at 75 and I'm currently at 96 hours. There were times when I wasn't flying the aircraft.

That left flap is *really* loose now. I hope it shows a problem during pre-flight or my mechanic catches it before it fails in flight.

Someone posted a video of a real V tailed Bonanza earlier. The pilot said he had the plane for a year and a half, while a picture of the original cockpit compared to the new cockpit showed a difference of 164 hours on the meter. A couple of hours per week and he mentioned needing to fly it for his business as well as whatever recreational flying he did.

Hook

FlyingsCool
Airman First Class
Posts: 98
Joined: 29 Jun 2009, 16:12

Re: Wear rate

Post by FlyingsCool »

Typical plane is lucky if it flies more than say 50 hours/year. That's about an hour a week or 4 - 5 hours / month.

I think I've already got about 4 - 5 hours on the plane, I'll keep my eye on it a little more sharply now. I wasn't expecting any wear on the hinges. Never saw any on my plane in 5 years of flying it. But that's cool :) I'm even gladder I've been doing my walk-arounds and tie downs before and after every flight now. Well, tie-downs after, un-tie before...

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