The Sweetest Smelling Little Trainer Around.

[Peter Beeney]

 

   This is a little tale relating to a new model which may be of some use to anyone perhaps assembling a model for the first time

   Recently I’ve put together a Boomerang, and one thing I invariably do is pressure test the fuel tank before installing it. For some reason on this occasion I didn’t. I’d just test flown it and I was not completely happy with the way the tank was filling, some fuel droplets started to come up the exhaust pressure feed because the two outlets were too close together in the tank. So I decided to slip it out and adjust it. This was indeed extremely fortunate, because the first thing I noticed was that there had been a slight leak already. The second was that the clunk tube had removed itself from the plastic outlet tube, and was swanning around loose inside. This must have happen after I’d finished flying, because I’d drained the remaining fuel out ok. So I fixed that first, by sliding the silicon tube back on with a small keeper made from the fuel tube, an old trick which I’ve never known to fail. Then an under water pressure test and instantly a steady stream of bubbles from under the head of the centre clamp bolt, in the outlet bung. Unusual, - I’ve not seen this very often.
   A small fibre washer would have been ideal but I didn’t instantly have one to hand, so I cut a small patch from an empty milk carton in the recycling box, made a small hole, wound it onto the bolt, trimmed the excess off, reassembled, separating the filler and pressure pipes in the tank, and a two minute pressure test revealed neither a bubble nor a squeak.
   After puffing in a generous squirt of talcum power into the tank compartment, to try and absorb most of the damp on the bottom of the fuz, it was only a small amount anyway, plus a piece of folded paper kitchen towel at the front, I popped the tank back in and it now fills without a sign of any fuel making it’s way up the pressure pipe, at least until it’s full. I shall be whipping the tank out again shortly, and the paper towel will be an immediate tell-tale as to whether it’s been leaking again or not.
   The talc is highly perfumed, so I might no doubt get some funny looks, but I think the tank will remain dry. I’ve got some students anxious to get their hands on it, so it will get a good test. It does fly very nicely though, even a a couple of well seasoned grizzled old pilots remarked on it.

   I’ve had very little trouble with new fuel tanks leaking in the past, so I’m considering that the obvious moral to this story is that the one I fail to check is always going to be the one with the leak!

Should anyone wish for anymore info. on this or the Boomerang generally, I have it all to hand.

 

   Hope this is of some use.                         PB

[Former Member]

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[Stephen Grigg]

The Boomerang did me proud,a good sturdy model

[Hugh Coleman]

Mine too, until I plowed in into terra firma from 150 feet after losing orientation.
My boomerang tank also leaked.  I found that the problem stemmed from the 3mm tapped hole in the plate that goes behine th rubber bung having stripped, so no matter how tight I tried to make the screw, it would not seal.  An additional 3mm nut epoxied behind cured that.

 

I always pressure test my tanks now.

 

Hugh

[Stephen Grigg]

Mine really did do  the job. Id had a frustrating evening ,a year ago when I lost My  New Super Air when I lost signal.Having walked everywhere It was suggested I have a fly with the Boomerang.As I carried my tired and worn looking Boomerang out for its last flight from being retired,someone said, look at the state of that,boo hoo.I had a good flight and decided to give it a low flat out pass before landing.As I came across the trees ,Bang,Gone into them.It took 2 days to find it,$0 feet up dangling from th tail.The wings were gone.When I finally got it down it flopped to the ground the fuselage all broken up,sad end.

[Stephen Grigg]

PS,My tank never leaked and when I got it down still had half a tank.Do not like the plastic fuel pipes always use metal ones.

[Former Member]

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