Hangar Flying

I personally have not checked with Cleveland, but have read about others who have. Cleveland seems to say that they would be all right, if not superior, except in extremely cold weather. Typical New England weather would be OK, but perhaps very cold Canada would not be an ideal climate. Apparently, only reason Cleveland does not outright recommend them is simply because they don't want to go thru the certification hastles.
There has been much talk and justification for using Viton in brakes, especially in the RV crowd, but I cannot seem to locate someone who actually has used them. I will try them, bit I'ld feel better hearing from someone who has already tried them.
Waldo-I would be surprised that if the brakes got hot enough to harm Viton O-rings that you did not also melt/deform your gear legs. It would be interesting to see if Grove does use Viton. Tolerance to these high heat situations is what using Viton O-rings all about.

Nice writeup as usual, Bill. This is Ye Olde Rope Trick except done with compressed air instead of a rope to temporarily hold the valve. My question is How come I'm never so lucky to find a mechanic who both knows his stuff and charges a reasonable (i.e., non- "opportunistic") price?

By the way, the best internet pictorial I've managed to find on this method is at
 http://www.theleftseat.net/stickyvalvereaming.html

In my case, I wish there was such a pictorial for the "Wobble Test" which would diagnose impending valve sticking or valve guide wear before it became a problem.-

It is highly recommended that a plane of this type be hangared. Sure, the fiberglass is mostly impervious to weather given proper finishing and appropriate treatment with carnauba or better non-silicones like Rejex, but the plane has a multitude of little metal parts that will suffer. These planes are typically not water-proofed against rain and condensation and moisture will find its way to the metal eventually. This is especially bad near the salty coasts.
Now, having said that, I keep my plane on a tie-down. It has a cover and during the worst of the winter, it will be taken off airport and stored in my garage. Hangar space is almost not available and if it were, I couldn't afford the $600/month rent. So it basically comes down to do you want to own this plane or not. I did, so it is on a tie-down and I will be facing much increased maintenance and possibly more frequent replacement/repairs of parts and equipment. Not the best situation, but not the worst either.

Yes, the transponder is still available.

Repeated damage to our props is a fact of life with our Pusher planes. One best get used to owning several props.

By the way, RAF always recommended against metal props and constant speed props. Pusher harmonics were not flight qualified on this plane, though obviously they have been qualified on other planes such as the Cessna Skymaster. I would think a metal prop would weigh much more than a wood/composite and ruin your basic empty weight or W&B.

Don't most Velocitys use a composite/wood MT constant speed prop? I know the Velocity people are quite friendly with the MT prop people in Deland, Florida. A Velocity is balanced quite differently from a Long Ez. The canard and CG are configured for extra weight on the nose. That is why they can sit on all 3 gears without a worry, unlike the LongEz. So what applies to a Velocity does not always apply to a Long. A metal prop on a Velocity I would think is a more viable option, especially with their larger engines, but still, most use the Composite/wood MT 3 blade props.

My take on the prop situation for our planes is that all-wood props were definately the proper choice when the plane was designed. They still are, especially factoring in the price/performance issue. However. wood props with engineered carbon/glass layering (i.e., not just a cosmetic/anti abrasion layer of cloth) is probably the best way to go now. IMHO, their extra cost is offset by greater durability/safety, if not also performance. The next step is an all plastic, coreless prop such as the ones now being made by Sensenich. I can't wait for people to start using these Sensenich props on our planes and report their findings.

Excellent condition transponder with tray and FAA req'd Mod 5 AD done.
I purchased this transponder a year ago from Ebay. The project fell
through so I never installed it nor tested it, but was sold to me "in
perfect working condition". The unit has an "Authorization for Return
to Service" tag from Terra Corporation dated May 22,1995. I payed a
lot for this unit ($670) because it is one of the few of the type that is
legal to use because it had the Mod 5 AD done.  If someone is interested, please PM me. The great benefit of these TRT250 units is that they are very compact and lightweight, like the Microair or Becker units. Perfect for the cramped panel of a VFR Long or Vari.

Bear in mind that ACS lists a small and large O-ring replacements for this cap. Maybe you just need these replacements at just a couple of bucks?
I need to replace one of mine because it got misplaced and the one being used in the interim is just too uglky!