First on the docket. The flaps still aren’t working as they should. They work perfectly in calibration mode but not in normal mode. According to the interwebs this means the flap switch and flap motor wires need to be swapped. Ok. So i did that. Still no joy. Now they work properly at least – except only for like 15 – 30 seconds. Then they don’t work at all.

I had to call Garmin for this one. Savannah asked me to send my configuration file as well as a screen shot. In the end – the problem was I only had a maximum airspeed set for full flap deployment. It also needed the partial flap speed set. Man. Too smart for its own good sometimes.

Next up. Bleeding the brakes. This went awesome. Until of course. It didn’t. I borrowed a pump from my buddy Woody across the way. Plan was to bleed from the bottom up. I set up an overflow pipe and container to catch the excess fluid.

First issue. A small leak at the master cylinder for one of the nylon compression fittings. Turns out I had a bad sleeve. Luckily this is a part that is available in the aviation aisle of Lowes. So a quick trip and that was fixed. Good thing that was my only issue.

Except it wasn’t! Inspecting the brake lines for torque – I forgot that unlike the fuel vents, the brake lines have a connection as they leave the fuselage for the gear legs. Guess what wasn’t fully torqued? You guessed it! Result. Brake fluid all over the place in the cockpit.

Great. Well that was a good stopping point for the night. Drain the brake fluid. Get some kitty litter. Attack again the next day. First step was a thorough cleanup of the spilled brake fluid. Next – torque the fittings. Now, start the brake bleed process again. This time 100% success!