Red Hot Tach Cable

[Rolf]

I was cruising along yesterday, when suddenly smoke started pouring out from my dash. I chopped electrical power and commenced an immediate landing( fortunately I was over a lake). No circuit breakers were tripped. The smoke stopped, I kept the engine turning, and I took off one of the blanks on the panel, but I could not see anything wrong. I took off for home with the master off, and it started smoking again, I reached inside the panel and burned myself on the tach cable. Apparently it was coming into contact with the plastic lining of the insulation, so it still smelled kind of electrical.
I gave some boaters a thrill while performing my "Screaming Eagle" descent. I can attest to 50-55mph and 48 degrees. there may have been some slipping involved also.
Anyway, I am supposed to take my wife on a Canadian fishing trip next week and would like to know what size that thing is so I can order it ASAP, because every time she want to go, the plane either needs service or the weather is bad.
I never would have thought of smoke from a non electrical source from the dash.
Rolf Halstensen

[UP-M5]

just order it from the maule parts dept.
but make sure you specify it is urgent , and have it sent red label. they usually take a day or two even if they are in a hurry.

[a64pilot]

Call back the next day to shipping and ask for a tracking number. Sometimes even though parts understands the urgency, shipping may not. Different departments and different people.

[210TC]

Rolf,
Thank you for sharing. I have my dash and windscreen removed and I will be pulling my tach cable for lube and inspection.

[210TC]

For pete's sake or Murphy's law you should pull yours out (Got to anyway)
and measure it. Then not even the factory could make a mistake.
Check the tach to make sure it turns freely and was not the culprit of the cable failing.

[Rolf]

Thanks everyone,
I am gonna pull it tomorrow. the only question will be how many screws or assorted parts will I drop in the water!
I am still amazed that that got hot enough to ignite that plastic, I would have thought that it would have broken long before it got to that point.
I thank my lucky stars that that didn't happen in the bush, and even more that I did not have to use the fire extinguisher.
Oh well, a cheap fix, a tach cable and a seat cover, no big deal.
Rolf
N235TT

[210TC]

Hey, has anbody heard if Rolf got to change his fishing note??

Have plane, will fish.
TO
Have plane, gone fishin with my wife.

[Rolf]

I got a new tach cable( the solid gold one from the factory) and we went merrily on our way North. What happened to the cable was a couple of strands broke and proceeded to form into a small ball inside the cable housing. Tach still worked okay , but the friction from the balled up strands heated the cable to red hot and started melting stuff.
Just a FYI, the cable is a 32 inch and the tag read for a pa 22.
Rolf