Citabria 7KCAB engine failure doing spins

[PeterR]

It's reported that it's sometimes difficult to start I-O 320 when hot.
That's probably true, but with my 600+/- hours flying a 7KCAB, I've never had a difficult start.
That could be because I never needed to start when the temperature was above 90F.
However numerous times I've had to restart the plane on the ground when the engine was hot.
For example when refueling.
At least three times I've had the engine quit while doing spins.
The first time it quit, I was about 8,000ft AGL.
I pulled out of the spin and resumed level flight gliding.
Then I put the mixture full rich, the throttle to about half position, and put the plane in a very steep dive.
At 155 mph, the prop began to turn and the engine immediately started.
The engine was obviously hot.
In subsequent engine interruptions, I remembered that I had a starter, and just pushed the start button.
On each occasion the engine immediately started.
Now I always do counter clockwise spins, and increase the RPM from 800 (idle) to 1000 RPM.
This greatly reduces the likely hood of interrupted power.
I'm not an A&P, nor a CFI, so I very much welcome other's opinions and experiences.

 

[Big Ed]

I've spun Decathlons hundreds of times without the power ever cutting out. AFAIK you have the same inverted system. IMO you have a problem that warrants attention from an A&P/IA.

 

[Bob Turner]

PeterR has posed questions about Champs that indicated his desire to own one someday. A pilot with 600 hours in fuel injected Citabriae would probably not need to ask those kinds of questions. I bet I have not much more than 600 hours in Champ-type airplanes, and I have owned one for 17 years.

 

[Bartman]

It's reported that it's sometimes difficult to start I-O 320 when hot.
That's probably true, but with my 600+/- hours flying a 7KCAB, I've never had a difficult start.
That could be because I never needed to start when the temperature was above 90F.
However numerous times I've had to restart the plane on the ground when the engine was hot.
For example when refueling.
At least three times I've had the engine quit while doing spins.
The first time it quit, I was about 8,000ft AGL.
I pulled out of the spin and resumed level flight gliding.
Then I put the mixture full rich, the throttle to about half position, and put the plane in a very steep dive.
At 155 mph, the prop began to turn and the engine immediately started.
The engine was obviously hot.
In subsequent engine interruptions, I remembered that I had a starter, and just pushed the start button.
On each occasion the engine immediately started.
Now I always do counter clockwise spins, and increase the RPM from 800 (idle) to 1000 RPM.
This greatly reduces the likely hood of interrupted power.
I'm not an A&P, nor a CFI, so I very much welcome other's opinions and experiences.

it isn't hard to start when it is hot outside, it is when the engine is hot because the fuel vaporizes in the lines and can be difficult to dislodge. a flying airplane has too much airflow through the cowl to allow the fuel lines to overheat so it wouldn't be a hot start that you are talking about.

a hot start is typically after a plane has been run and then parked allowing the engine heat to penetrate the fuel lines in the still air under the cowl. when it is still very hot and you go to start the engine, it can be very difficult although some people have a routine that works well for them.

are you a current owner of a 7KCAB Peter?