A year and a half ago I bought an older trainer, 1968 PA-28 140B, that had been forgotten on a ramp for over 15 years and have been slowly bringing back to life. Prior to it being left to sit, the engine was overhauled. Now 16 years later, it is flying again and I am trying to get a feel for this plane. I just recently flew it on a very long cross country which would give me the opportunity to get to know the plane. So here are some questions I hope someone might be able to answer.
- There was a blast of hot air on the inside on the floor where a metal trim strip is located at the feet up against the center assembly. It exits on both sides next to the flap handle. Extremely hot. What can be done to block this flow and why is it there?
- In cruise, I used the rudder trim and trimmed the airplane for coordinated flight and placed my feet flat on the floor. The vibration on the floor between the pedals and the seat was uncomfortable. I am pretty sure it wasn't the engine. I suspect it was the slipstream from the propeller striking the underside. Anyone know the cause?
- It has the HORTON STOL kit on it. In trimmed hands off flight it is pretty good for lateral stability when not disrupted however any disruption shows that it has a almost a negative static stability and it doesn't come back to its original attitude and tends to quickly enter a steeper and steeper bank. The dihedral on this plane is large compared to heavier planes so this is quite surprising. Anyone have a thought on why this might be?
