MiG-23 Lubrication

From our friends in Poland... details of the MiG-23 lubrication items.

Engine Oil:
Turbonycoil 210A
or Mobil Turbo 319A-2
or Exxon Turbo Oil 2389

Hydraulic Oil:
Aeroshell Oil 390
or Aeroshell ASF-41A

Wing Pin Grease:
SVINTSOL-01
or Aeroshell Grease 17

Wheel Bearing Grease:
CIATIM 221
or Aeroshell 15A
or Aeroshell Grease 22

Batteries:
15 SCS 45 - 2 batteries - 24 volts

Unclear at this point what the difference between the above hydraulic fluids and 5606 (Aeroshell Fluid 4) or AMG-10 is. Our current understanding is that 5606 is explosive in a mist form and at very high working pressures (which occur in the MiG-23 more so than they do in some of the slower aircraft) a pin-hole leak makes a very good mist cloud.

Bud's assessment of the battery situation:

Battery - Original equipment is a Silver-zinc oxide, expensive and high maintenance.
Battery alternate (1) - Ni-cad alternate for Migs is available, heavier, less capacity, still high maintenance and short life.
Battery alternate (2) - Odyssey (2x925MJ) same weight as ni-cad, better characteristics than ni-cad, need to check altitude spec.

The original equipment battery appears to be a 45ah silver-zinc battery (ag-zn-02, pdf attached). The factory, Krusik in Yugoslavia was heavily damaged during the "NATO aggression" in 1999. SBS in Wisconson carries both a silver zinc and ni-cad battery for the Mig23 (sbs aviation pdf attached).A number of countries (especially India) seem to manufacture or use alternate batteries in the 25ah capacity range.

Silver zinc is a very (very) high energy to weight ratio battery. It is typically used where space/weight is a premium and cost is not an issue. The Krusik specification would imply that the battery could provide (3) 700 amp start attempts and run 20a of on-board avionics for 2 hr. Design life is 120 (engine start) cycles. Based on the battery spec, each start attempt would be an equivalent of 24 sec at the 700 amp draw)

This silver-zinc battery is a wet battery and it is vented. Individual cells can be replaced as they fail. "Forming" a new battery or new cell is a critical process in order to obtain full rating. Typical comments of a life of 25 to 30 cycles are found in other general references to silver zinc batteries. Because of the different chemistry, full battery voltage is only 22.5 vdc.The battery is very light (17.5 kg) and powerful when operating at rated capacity.

There are several start-up companies re-inventing the silver zinc process for laptop and cell phone use. Their projection is that 2009 will be "the year of the silver-zinc battery". Nothing is readily available from them to be repackaged yet. Silver zinc is "greener" than Lithium Ion.

Ni-cad alternates are heavier (23.5 kg) and less powerful (25-27 ah). The ni-cad battery does not appear to provide as much starting current (300 amps+ for 30sec), If there are two batteries in the A/C that would about get you to a 700 amp start. (we need aircraft/engine manual to know start draw). Ni-cad has its own pecularities for charging and obtaining maximum life and performance.

Two Odessy 925MJs will fit in the required replacement profile. These are the batteries we are using in the Mi-2s and the Mi-24 (as well as L29 and L39). The 925 is a 28ah battery capable of one start cycle of 700 amps for 30 seconds. The battery fits the temperature range profile but I have not found an altitude spec (we will be going higher and it is a non-vented battery). I can probably get that from the factory.

Note that we probably want to standardize in the future on the 925MJ's instead of the 925MJT's because of the slightly smaller profile (The T has an automotive terminal, the non-T has a screw mount).

MiG-23 Assembly Equipment

The MiG-23 assembly equipment (wing dollys, tail dolly, engine dolly, etc.) arrived on January 2nd. We were able to offload the equipment and put it together in a few hours. By the evening of the 2nd we had the MiG-23 wings up off the floor and onto the dollys.

Mi-2 Going Back Together

Skin back on the airframe.



Working inside.



Working outside.



Taylor filming with the high-def video camera.

How the Blog began - Mi-2 work pictures

In mid 2008, restoration of CWAM's Mi-2s was underway when corrosion was found on the bottom skin below the fuel tank. After inspecting the other Mi-2's and making calls, we found that this is a common problem with former military Mi-2s. Removing the fuel pumps, fuel bladder and bladder support structure in 214 uncovered areas of severe corrosion in the fuel compartment. After consultation with an airframe representative, it was determined that the bad skin would be removed and replaced.



As work progressed, a series of e-mail "newsletters" with pictures was sent to the Directors and Volunteers to keep them informed of work progress. Eventually we realized that this was a valuable and interesting part of the museum story. As an alternative to a newsletter, a blog allows readers to interact with the museum through questions, comments and shared information. We hope this experiment succeeds and that you not only enjoy the pictures and narrative we provide, but share information with us as well.

The Mi-2 story continues below.


Because the skin is a major component of the strength of an aircraft and because we would be removing most of the external stiffeners ("hats"), the aircraft was supported by an overhead frame as well as jacks. The main gear was removed to allow removal of the corroded skin and to allow inspection and treatment of structural components.


After the skin was removed and the hats, doublers and filler neck were recovered, the extent of the corrosion could be seen. We are fortunate in having the service of an expert aircraft repairman, Charles, who could remove, duplicate and replace the skin structure.


Hats, Doublers and the machined neck piece for the fuel pump were salvaged from the old metal and reused on the new.