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engine choices for bearhawk 5

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  • engine choices for bearhawk 5

    hi - i'm planning to build a BH5, and I must confess my lack of expert knowledge on 6 cylinder lycomings

    I have 300 hours, have owned 3 aircraft, all had lycoming IO360 or O360


    my questions to you all are:

    1. what are the various lycoming 540 model options that any of you have chosen already, and why did you make that choice?

    2. are some models easier to install and maintain, in terms of physical location of certain parts of the engine, eg mags, sump, accessory case etc?
    the reason I ask, is I heard someone mention in this forum that a foward facing sump is desirable - can anyone explain what that is, and the relevance of it? do you mean the sump drain, when it comes to changing the oil, is forward facing?

    I also heard that a IO540-L1C5 is an option -

    3 - what are the pros and cons of buying a new engine, vs getting a used one overhauled ? is it a false economy ? or is it actually a very sensible option?
    the reason I am asking you all, is that i would like to assess all options, from a brand new engine from lycoming, be it a 540 or a 580, to getting a used engine, and paying for it to be overhauled. Though I am also not sure if this is actually a false economy, or not.

    where I live - New Zealand - we have a problem, in that our NZ dollar is weak, but here are very good engine overhaul shops here, so sourcing the right used engine and getting it overhauled is a possibility, though a slow one.

    4 - what are the pros and cons of injection ? my cessna has a carburetted lycoming O-360 my super decathlon has an injected AEIO-360, which on occasion can be a pain the neck to start cold.

    obviously I wont be doing aerobatics in the bearhawk, but I dont know whether a carburetted one is a pain, and most of you have gone for injection?



    all opinions and advice gratefully received,

    many thanks, Pierre from new zealand
    Last edited by pierre; 06-21-2023, 04:36 AM.

  • #2
    Hi Pierre, I think you'll find that many of these points are matters of opinion rather than consensus. Mike Meador is Bob's friend who has been in the Bearhawk community since it consisted of him and Bob. Mike is building most of the R&B engines these days and I have overheard him explaining these options in the past. He's not on the forum but I have sent him a message to see if he's willing to write a few words, or receive a phone call so that I can write them. If you were in the US I'd encourage you to call him but I know the overseas phone logistics can be a challenge. He may respond to your Facebook post.

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    • #3
      thank you all - way more info than i was expecting - really kind of you.
      I'm signed up for a lot of overtime shifts at work.......
      cheers, p

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