Between studying breaks, I am able to tinker on the helicopter. Per the manufacturer’s requirements, I drained and changed the transmission fluid after 20 minutes of operation.
I had missed the installation of the 90-degree barbed fitting on the bottom of the transmission, so I had to install it while the oil was full. I was not looking forward to this because I knew that I was going to get oil everywhere. I came up with an elaborate plan to catch the oil while I removed the plug and I was ready for it to come gushing out, but to my surprise, the oil barely moved and I didn’t spill a drop during the exchange.
In addition, the oil was in great shape. I also pulled and cleaned the magnetic plug that will catch and hold anything produced during the break-in period. It’s normal to have glitter for the first 50-100 hours, but you don’t want chunks like poor Tom experienced with his failing transmission. This is why you don’t replace the magnetic plug with the chip detector until 100 hours.
