How to start a 337

[kevin]

Ken's thread about fuel flow indications has a nugget in it about starting procedures. He refers to the book starting procedures. Those procedures never worked well for me. Below is the procedure that my mechanic taught me for a cold start. This procedure has worked very well for me for years, both on my '65 C337 and my '73 P337.

After master and mags and that stuff:

1.) Throttle full forward, mixture full forward.
2.) Electric boost pump to full until fuel flow reaches 80 lbs (on the '73. On the '65 I don't remember the figure, but the pointer is in the same place, about the four o'clock position for the rear engine, 8 o'clock for front). This should take two seconds or so normally, although for reasons I have never understood, sometimes it can take five or six seconds.
Now, quickly:
3.) Throttle to idle.
4.) Start.

My engines would both start in 2 or 3 blades most every time using this procedure.

Only exception is a hot start. If the engine had only been shut down for five minutes or so, or if it was a cool day, I would try the same procedure, but only blipping the boost pump for a second or so, to the 5/7 o'clock position on the fuel flow gauge. If that did not work (often), or if the engine was clearly hot, I would use the same procedures as above, except that at step 3, I would move the throttle to idle and the mixture to idle/cutoff, and start cranking. When the engine fires (in three to six blades), I quickly move the mixture to full rich, and blip the boost pump if the engine begins to falter, to keep it running. That procedure worked for a hot start every time for me.

My experience, for what it is worth to you. Use these procedures at your own discretion and risk.

Thoughts/suggestions from others?

Kevin