Leon Promet wrote:

Hi Finn,

I'm a bit slow,  (Paul and Bob Durrah are not the only ones who suffer from
the 'old, grey and hard headed" syndrome),  but the penny finally dropped
when I read Chuck's post.  If the water pressure dropped to zero,  then
that means the gauge wasn't working ... right?  That's why I asked you if
it was mechanical or electric.

I assume that when you checked the water level after you landed, and there
was residual pressure in the cooling system?    I also assume you are
running a pressurised system with a coolant recovery tank as in a car?

If so,  my first SUSPICION would be that if the gauge stopped working,  and
as it IS an electrical gauge,  then you have an electrical problem.  I'd be
going right over ALL the electrical connections before I went up again.
 I'm not a gambler but one of the short priced favourites is an electrical
fault!  Multimeters at the ready!

This would also explain the miss if there is a power supply problem.
 Faulty switch, relay,  fuse or circuit breaker? Bad earth?,  Corrosion?
 Poor crimp joint?  Dry soldered joint?  Cracked joint? Broken wire or
loose connections? ... Who knows?

Also,  with your carb set up,  it shouldn't change the mixture that much by
closing the centre one,  (unless of course there was a fuel supply
problem).  No different to the standard 4 barrel set up on the cars.  The
carbs should meter the correct mixture (more or less) depending on the air
speed.  If the centre one is closed,  the two outer ones should more than
feed the engine happily in descent.  I'd also be running a big airbox to
let the carbs feed on equal pressure.

Keep us posted!

Leon Promet

 
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