For people who fly behind CMI engines, this is one of many useful on-line articles:
Continental's Cram Course: TCM's Aviation Technician Advanced Training Program - AVweb Features Article
Apropos of the function of the manifold on CMI engines, from the article:
The manifold valve is also a lot trickier than it looks. In addition to its basic role as a four- or six-way flow divider, the manifold valve is responsible for providing a clean fuel cutoff when the mixture control is retarded to the idle cutoff position. It takes a bunch of moving parts — a spring-loaded poppet valve and a spring-loaded diaphragm — to accomplish this function.
That’s why you need to take a close look at the bleed vent on the manifold during pre-flights. If there is blue staining, it indicates the diaphragm is damaged.
