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Cessna 421

Old 05-06-2009, 10:07 AM
  #11  
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Ditto to all that has been said.

Our company's luck with engines was not as good as the other folks that have replied. We were happy getting 80-90% of TBO while replacing fewer than half the jugs. The reason: our mission demanded we drive the engines hard (at or near max charted power) and our flights were short (mostly 40 minute legs). It didn't help that we flew in the desert alot.

Stage cooling cannot be emphasized enough for the 421. If you don't stage cool, you will buy a bunch of jugs. Once I had an oil line blow during climb out. I chose to shut it down (didn't like the idea of oil getting dumped onto a red hot turbocharger). All six jugs cracked due to shock cooling. $9000 worth of jugs for a $6 length of hose.

And if you want the turbos to last, be sure to give them time to cool after landing. I think Cessna recommended five minutes at idle; that may be a bit much, but definitely give them at least three minutes. (If I remember correctly, shutting them down hot would cause the oil in the turbo to cook, making sludge, that shortened bearing life)

I was not impressed with the hydraulic air conditioning. But again, half the year, temps on the ramps were triple digit.
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Old 02-16-2010, 01:48 PM
  #12  
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I've owned a late model 421B since 2000. Great airplane. Nice to fly and the PAX do like the quiet cabin. GTSIO-520 engines are not a problem if you treat them with respect. Old guys can take them to TBO with no major problems. Young throttle jocks will be doing overhauls at 500 hours or less! Smooth actions are the key words. Figure around $500/hour total at 2010 prices.
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Old 02-17-2010, 03:09 PM
  #13  
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Just to clarify, the B model does not have trailing link gear. And trust me when I say this as a former owner/operator of multiple Cessna twins,,, the "C" model of any Cessna twin is the way to go. Worth paying a bit of a premium. From engines, to fuel system, to gear, to GC, etc.

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Old 02-17-2010, 03:26 PM
  #14  
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Save your money and buy the 414 Ram V chancellor we are selling!

It has TSIOL-550A engines and is rated at 350 horsepower per side. Burns 38 or so gph in cruise and does an easy 205 knots true in the low twentys at 75%.

It is not geared so you can forget that issue and it is liquid cooled.

Not to mention with all of the mods and winglets it has a VMC that is lower than stall.

The best part...we are practically giving it away!
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Old 02-17-2010, 05:30 PM
  #15  
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great thread,all the notes on care and feeding,and doggy single engine performance remind me of the sweet 3 !
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Old 02-18-2010, 03:04 PM
  #16  
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Originally Posted by usmc-sgt View Post
Save your money and buy the 414 Ram V chancellor we are selling!

It has TSIOL-550A engines and is rated at 350 horsepower per side. Burns 38 or so gph in cruise and does an easy 205 knots true in the low twentys at 75%.

It is not geared so you can forget that issue and it is liquid cooled.

Not to mention with all of the mods and winglets it has a VMC that is lower than stall.

The best part...we are practically giving it away!
How much, and is it listed on Controller? N-number. I have a person that may be interested.
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Old 03-07-2010, 01:55 AM
  #17  
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Originally Posted by usmc-sgt View Post
Save your money and buy the 414 Ram V chancellor we are selling!

It has TSIOL-550A engines and is rated at 350 horsepower per side. Burns 38 or so gph in cruise and does an easy 205 knots true in the low twentys at 75%.

It is not geared so you can forget that issue and it is liquid cooled.

Not to mention with all of the mods and winglets it has a VMC that is lower than stall.

The best part...we are practically giving it away!
There is a reason that you are practically giving it away. Call RAM they may be interested in converting it back to air cooled engines and **** canning those voyager engines. I flew Swayze's airplane back into service after he had his landing accident several years ago. The did a full de-mate on it. What a pile of crap. They should have totaled the airplane instead of fixing it. We couldn't go for more than two hours in it without needing maintenance. At the time I was managing and flying a 1980 421C model. It made me appreciate just how much better a well taken care of 421 was.
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Old 03-07-2010, 05:19 AM
  #18  
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So far the airplane has been very reliable and a great performer in the 500 or so hours its been around us. We have normal routine mx but so far nothing associated with being liquid cooled.

Its days are coming to a close though, I am ferrying it to its new owner on Wed.
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Old 03-17-2010, 06:06 PM
  #19  
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I have about 500 hours in both B and C models flying 135 charter out of MI. I never had a problem with them. BABY the engines. If I remember right (it's been about 5 years) Start pulling back power at 25 miles to 23 RPM, then 20 miles out to 20-21 RPM, 15 miles at 18RPM and so forth. I believe you should be landing over the numbers with about 17RPM. I also had ballast in the nose as well.
Oh be careful with ice. The leading edge on the elevator is too thin for the boot. They are prone to tail stalls.

Hope this helps.
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Old 03-17-2010, 09:19 PM
  #20  
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Originally Posted by laluna1223 View Post
I have about 500 hours in both B and C models flying 135 charter out of MI. I never had a problem with them. BABY the engines. If I remember right (it's been about 5 years) Start pulling back power at 25 miles to 23 RPM, then 20 miles out to 20-21 RPM, 15 miles at 18RPM and so forth. I believe you should be landing over the numbers with about 17RPM. I also had ballast in the nose as well.
Oh be careful with ice. The leading edge on the elevator is too thin for the boot. They are prone to tail stalls.

Hope this helps.
If you have that many hours in the 421, then you would know it's manifold pressure you are changing (reduction), not RPM. Props generally stay set somewhere from 1700-1900 RPM all the time. Only time you would increase RPM (albeit temporarily) would be if you were flying high, very cold, for a long time. You have to exercise the hubs on the props with warm oil occasionally so they will respond when necessary.
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