[Richard]

You're right on Skyking. I've seen some quality shops in Portland go from great work to "best guess". Flying back several times to a shop just to get a simple thing fixed, and fixed, and fixed. You're right, they cut corners. I can understand why though. It's quite clear. It's all a matter of "financial crisis". The owner is pressing the A&Ps to get the job done cheap...... "Get it done" Shops are competing for what little work their is in the GA world, so they bid low.... Then comes the expensive part.... the parts. Jacked up pricing on the parts leaves the shops with little room for what should be important.... the labor. You can make a really nice part into a crappy one in the "wrong" hands.

Doing it yourself seems to be a growing tend. (One I'm VERY happy about personally) Don't get me wrong. I love the people in the GA matanence. Great people. They just have their hands tied. I think it's refreshing to see people figuring out for themselves, they CAN do the work. They CAN use their own ideas, and with a little QC from friendly A&P's IA's. The work really turns out nice. I've seen some "non approved" work on planes that just make you say.... "Dang, why didn't they do that long ago."

What we are facing is an extinction of GA. Kit planes out sell certified planes (best guess) 100 to 1. Why? Because, if I put a newer tach in my plane.... who cares! I personally know of two skymasters who have been down for almost a year now because of one silly, stupid, unexplanable event..... they are needing a tach. Can't get them rebuilt anymore, can't find used, can't find a "approved" replacment. That's just silly. If GA is going to survive at all, things HAVE to change. If we all just sit and take it, your skymaster might as well be converted to a lawn mower.

Did you know the adverage age of an A&P is over 42 years of
age!

Sorry, didn't mean to get off topic. Just my sensitive side.

New turbo is really working well. Flew 5 hours today just to break it in. New one is much more effcient than the older one.