Well, today’s purchase wasn’t the most expensive component I’ve bought for this airplane, but it’s up there.

But before I get into today’s bank account hemorrhaging, let me recount my engine saga: The original engine that I had decided on was a Mattituck TMX IO-320.  I had worked fairly extensively with Mike Yousik from Mattituck to figure out the configuration of my future engine.  In the late summer of 2012, I made a phone call to Mattituck to get some info on the TMX IO-320.  It was then that I had learned that Mattituck Engines had gone out of business.  So why I am recounting such a seemingly sad tale? (Which it isn’t by the way… I’m very happy to have gone the ECi builder’s assist route!)

Well, the significance of my Mattituck TMX IO-320 “no more” story is that I had already extensively researched the fuel injection servo that Mattituck used on their TMX series engines: The Silver Hawk EX.

One key feature that the Silver Hawk EX fuel injection system has is that it does not require a fuel return line.  Now, I know a lot of folks will balk at such a crazy notion that a fuel injection system does not require a return line to the tank.  The Airflow Performance (AFP) system uses it!  I know, and I accept the fact that I am flirting with near certain death due to my return-less fuel injection system.

Ok, all snarkiness aside, as I mentioned before, I did A LOT of research on this long before I pulled the trigger on this system.  [BTW, Aircraft Spruce hornswoggled me as well by offering a pretty good holiday sale!  Also bastards!]

I had talked with engine manufacturers, engine shops, builders (read: Vance Atkinson) and of course the makers of the Silver Hawk system, Precision Airmotive, at Sun ‘n Fun.  And of course I can’t forget the myriad of feedback I read on this system on the Van’s forums…. overwhelmingly positive.

So essentially every bit of my research and all the planning I had done up to the point of learning that Mattituck Engines had gone out of business was predicated on the constant that a Silver Hawk fuel injection servo would be used on my engine.  Since I liked the features of the this fuel injection system, I uncharacteristically just picked it so that I could move on to other important decision points I need to made for this project.

Another BTW: I am in no way slamming AFP–I think they have a fantastic product and I might have just as easily have gone with them if I wasn’t already sold on the features of the Silver Hawk system.