netsurfr
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2014
- Messages
- 1,311
- Reaction score
- 132
I've found that the rear baffle seal in my Dakota does not seal 100% against the top cowling. I stuck a flashlight in the inlet and could see small gaps. My CHT's are in the mid 350-370s during cruise in cool temps but numbers 5/6 reach 400F during takeoff climb so now I'm wondering if these small gaps in the seals are enough to be reducing proper air flow.
I'm posting a couple of pictures but they are not the best quality so you would need to zoom/enlarge to see the rear baffle seal and one of the gaps. It's all the way down close to the engine mount dampener. You can see the baffle seal does not sit flush up against the cowling. There is a similar gap on the right side of the engine as well.
So my question is would a gap this size create enough of a cooling problem that I should absolutely fix it?
If so - At what point does it make sense to replace the entire baffle kit w/ a new one from Airforms (which I've heard good things about) vs. just getting new baffle seal material to put in the OEM baffle plates? Plane is going into annual today so I'd like to address this if possible.
Thanks!
I'm posting a couple of pictures but they are not the best quality so you would need to zoom/enlarge to see the rear baffle seal and one of the gaps. It's all the way down close to the engine mount dampener. You can see the baffle seal does not sit flush up against the cowling. There is a similar gap on the right side of the engine as well.
So my question is would a gap this size create enough of a cooling problem that I should absolutely fix it?
If so - At what point does it make sense to replace the entire baffle kit w/ a new one from Airforms (which I've heard good things about) vs. just getting new baffle seal material to put in the OEM baffle plates? Plane is going into annual today so I'd like to address this if possible.
Thanks!
