# AD 46-36-01: Piston Pins - Type: Airworthiness directive - Status: Current - Products: Continental Motors A-65-1, A-65-12, A-65-12F, A-65-12FJ, A-65-12J, A-65-14, A-65-14F, A-65-14FJ, A-65-14J, A-65-3, A-65-6, A-65-6J and 23 more - Superseded by: Nothing supersedes this AD - Product type: Engine - Registered aircraft: 9,761 may be affected, by airframe or engine model (OpenAirDocs) - FAA DRS: https://drs.faa.gov/browse/excelExternalWindow/381DCA58E13345C48625682C005A311E.0001 - DRS record last changed: May 30, 2024 - Page: https://openairdocs.org/ad/46-36-01 ## The airworthiness directive 46-36-01 CONTINENTAL: (Was Mandatory Note 8 of AD-675-2: 11 of AD-728-1; 2 of AD-751-1; 1 of AD-761-2; 6 of AD-718-6; 9 of AD-737-1; 1 of AD-759-3; 11 of AD-729-1; 8 of AD-720-1; 2 of AD-611-1; 9 of AD-725-1; 11 of AD-691-1; 9 of AD-703-1; 5 of AD-740-1; 9 of AD-725-1; 10 of AD-694-4; 6 of AD-709-1; 8 of AD-730-2; 8 of AD-746-1; and 11 of AD-696-3.) Applies to Aeronca 65-CA; 65-TC, 65-TAC, YO-58; O-58A, O-58B, SO-58B; 11AC; Air Products (Erco) 415-C, 415-CD; CallAir S-1A; Champion 7AC, S7AC; Commonwealth (Rearwin) 175, 180, 185; Northwestern (Porterfield) CP-65, CS-65; 75C; Piper AE-1, HE-1; J3C-65, J3C-65S; J4, J4A, J4A-S; J4E; J5A, J5A-80, J5C; Silvaire (Luscombe) 8, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E; Stinson HW-75, 10; Superior (Culver) LCA; Taylorcraft DC-65, DCO-65; Universal (Taylorcraft) BC, BCS, BC-65, BCS-65, BC12-65, BCS12-65, BC12-D, BC12-D1, BCS12-D1 Airplanes Having Continental A-65 Series Engines With Serial Numbers From 3456658 to 4109568, Inclusive; or Continental A-65, A-75, or A-80 Series Engines Which Have Had A-21422 Piston Pins or New 3-Ring Pistons Installed Since September 25, 1945. Compliance required immediately if possible, but in any event not later than 50 hours of engine operation after August 27, 1946. A certain percentage of piston pins installed in engines of the above numbers and distributed as replacement parts are subject to failure without warning. The weakness of these pins cannot be detected by normal inspection methods. Piston pin breakage can result in complete engine failure. It is the owner's responsibility to avoid this risk by making the changes outlined in (a) and (b) at the earliest possible time. (a) Replace piston pin P/N A-21422 (0.626 inch inside diameter) with thick wall piston pin No. A-25127 (0.5945 inch inside diameter). The engine manufacturer has given assurance that every possible effort will be made to supply the required quantity of replacement piston pins. (b) Simultaneously with (a), all pistons should be examined for skirt cracks and the necessity for rework of the bottom rib. This rework involves reducing the height of the rib until it is at least 1/16-inch wide and rounding all sharp corners. (c) As an acceptable alternate to (a) and (b), cam ground pistons, P/N 40731, which necessitate using piston pins of greater outside diameter, may be installed. This change will likewise remove the possibility of piston pin failure and piston skirt cracking. (Continental Motors Service Bulletin M46-6 covers this same subject.) ## Affected data sheets (3) (OpenAirDocs) The type certificate data sheets whose models the AD names. - [TCDS E-205](https://openairdocs.org/tcds/E-205): Continental Aerospace Technologies, Inc.; names 21 of 21 models: A-65-14F, A-65-8FJ, A-65-9F, A-65-14FJ, A-65-9J, A-65-12F, A-65-3, A-65-9… - [TCDS E-213](https://openairdocs.org/tcds/E-213): Continental Aerospace Technologies, Inc.; names 9 of 9 models: A75-3, A75-9, A75-6J, A75-8, A75-9J, A75-6, A75-8J, A75-8FJ… - [TCDS TC 217](https://openairdocs.org/tcds/TC%20217): Continental Motors Inc; names 5 of 5 models: A-80-8, A-80-8J, A-80-9J, A-80-5J, A-80-9 ## Registered aircraft it may apply to (OpenAirDocs) Matched by airframe and engine model; the AD's applicability may narrow it by serial number, part number or equipment. - Aircraft: 9,761 (0 by airframe model, 9,761 by engine model) - Makers: Piper 2,918, Aeronca 2,613, Taylorcraft 1,454, Luscombe 868, Ercoupe 439, Engineering & Research 317, Champion 180, Silvaire 91, Mooney 61, Interstate 51 Models with the most aircraft: - [Continental A&C65 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c65-series): 7,967 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A&C75 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-c75-series): 1,504 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A-65-8](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-65-8): 137 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A80 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a80-series): 54 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A-65 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-65-series): 32 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A-65-8F](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-65-8f): 24 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A75-8](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a75-8): 18 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A-75 series](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-75-series): 9 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A-65-3](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-65-3): 6 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A75-8F](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a75-8f): 3 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A-80-8](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-80-8): 3 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A75-9](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a75-9): 2 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A75-3](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a75-3): 1 aircraft (engine model) - [Continental A-65-8J](https://openairdocs.org/engine/continental-a-65-8j): 1 aircraft (engine model) All 14 models: https://openairdocs.org/ad/46-36-01/models.md Every aircraft: https://openairdocs.org/ad/46-36-01/aircraft.md Its text cites no advisory circulars or STCs. ## NTSB investigations that cite this AD (1) From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. - [NTSB CEN16LA218](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN16LA218), Jun 11, 2016: Aeronca 7AC (N82694), East St. Louis, IL, substantial damage. Probable cause: A total loss of engine power due to fracture of the piston pin, which led to fatigue cracking and eventual fracture of the adjacent connecting rod. --- OpenAirDocs.org is an independent research project of [Contrail Labs](https://contraillabs.com/). It is not affiliated with the FAA or the NTSB. Source documents are U.S. government works in the public domain.