Imagine if you had this pile of custom-built turbo plumbing to put on your airplane. How long do you think it would take to get it on your engine and running in fine tune?
Think you might do it in one day?
Admittedly the battalion of pilots, engineers, family and motivated youths making up the One Moment Racing crew is far more than a single happy builder carefully assembling his kit plane, but they did change all this kit in one day. The way it went down was a turbo failed, so the complete dual turbo system was removed from their big Continental six-banger and the old turbo system developed and raced in 2018 and kept as a spare was installed. This was so Findlay could fly the airplane in qualifying to get into the show at a leisurely 331 mph.
New replacement turbos for the current system were ordered and took overnight to show up.
Then there was the chance the Stihl-sponsored One Moment Lancair would have to run a heat race the morning the new turbos showed up. The new turbos are larger and more powerful, but the 2018 system would do to get through a heat race, so the team left the airplane intact.
Of course the heat race was scrubbed due to wildfire smoke limiting visibility, so then the team turned out in force to remove the 2018 system and install the replacement “big” turbos. This is so the Super Legacy would be ready for another heat race Friday morning. In the photo taken around dinner time Thursday evening One Moment thermodynamicist Mark Voss is organizing the oily bits while the remainder of the crew is out of frame swinging wrenches around the engine.
And in fine racing tradition today’s heat race was scrubbed due to wildfire smoke. But the airplane was all buttoned up and ready to go first thing this morning and stood at the ready with the rest of the Sport Gold racers all day today. There’s nothing quite like the glamour of big time air racing.
Once again, Tom Wilson’s eloquent writing is poetic and sincerely appreciated.