Tonight I finished a few small tasks and powered up the panel for the first time. No smoke or popping sounds, and everything worked exactly as expected. This felt like a significant milestone in the airplane’s life.
The prep tasks included plugging in the few remaining items (CO detector, battery, OAT), and double-checking all the wiring. I had developed a checklist to follow to ensure I didn’t miss anything critical. Then it was time to power up the ground power module, and hit the Battery switch. Note, the panel doesn’t have a Master switch, as the alternator is switched independently. (Typically the Battery plus Alternator switches make up the Master switch.)
The “thunk” of the battery contactor closing, and subsequent coming-to-life of screens and switches was awesome. Plugging in my headset and hearing the crisp and clear audio intercom and radio transmissions of aircraft was exciting and rewarding. Mostly I felt relieved that everything worked as expected, so I can move forward with tidying up the wiring and checking the various subsystems (lighting, engine monitoring, autopilot etc).
Powering up the panel. This was before I configured the VPX page to disable lighting circuits etc. at this point the avionics master is “off”, which is why the G750 screen is blankWith avionics on
Tonight I got started on the ELT mount. I’m going with the 406MHz unit from Artex, and mounting in the regular location. The unit ships with a mount plate that fits the hole pattern on the aft deck. The only thing I need to do is wire up the harness, mount the buzzer (an audio alarm that sounds when it activates), and it’s good to go.
I made a mount bracket for the buzzer, and ordered some #8 screws and associated washers and nuts to mount the ELT tray.
I also installed the panel ground pigtail using an AN5 bolt.
ELT and mounting try in background ELT mounting tray. #8 hardware will secure this to the airframeELT buzzer mounting trayPanel ground connection
Tonight I made and installed a ground point for the instrument panel ground leads, and wired up the FlyLED “The Works” controller board.
The ground point is on the sub structure between the firewall and the instrument panel. Since the rib in that area is thin, I installed a plate on each side of the rib, secured with rivets in each corner. Before installing I removed the primer from both sides of the rib. Tomorrow I should be getting a bolt in the mail which will fit nicely here, securing the ground wires. This was the first time I needed to go on my back, up under the panel. It sucked. I removed the passenger side stick and used a cushion, but it was still very cramped and uncomfortable.
With that job done, I wired up the FlyLED controller board. I’ll need to mount this behind the panel somewhere, so I’ll be doing more crawling under the panel to install I’m sure.
Ground plateGround pig-tail that will be bolted to the ground plateFlyLED controller board
Tonight I made a fitting to hold two cushion clamps, which will support the pitot and AOA pneumatic lines as they enter the fuselage from the wing.
I also made a corresponding fitting to help guide the Nav antenna on the right side of the fuselage.
I considered installing a bulkhead fitting for the pitot and AOA lines, and eventually decided against that option. I needed some way to prevent the lines chaffing on the aft gear brace assembly, and since the tail dragged doesn’t use part U-01402, I used the two AN5 holes to mount a fitting with two cushion clamps.
I made one of these for each side, the left side for pitot lines and the right side for the Nav antenna.
For the Nav antenna fitting, I epoxied a plastic zip tie holder to the aluminum fitting.
The AN5 holes for the mountTest fitting the fittingThe fitting after priming and riveting the two pieces together. AN3 bolts with self locking nuts hold the two cushion clamps in positionFinal installPitot lines routed. In-line push-to-connect connectors ready to receive the lines when the wings are mountedThe lines have enough clearance, for now. Out of caution, I installed spiral wrap to protect the linesSpiral wrap installed. P = Pitot line, A = AOA lineOn the right hand side, the epoxied zip-tie tie down ready to guide the nav antenna over this absticle
Tonight I installed most of the panel components in an effort to test-fit everything. I wanted to ensure I identified any interference issues, and verified I had enough length on the various cable runs.
I started by installing a bulkhead attach for the Nav antenna in the right wing. To make this as strong as possible I installed a bulkhead fitting under the passenger seat, where there will be no sheer loading on the fitting or the rib. The fitting from the wing will be too wide to pass through the outer rib without taking the snap bushing out, so I cut a slot in the snap bushing to allow it to be removed, the cable and fitting installed, and then the snap bushing can be opened up to go over the cable, and be reinserted in the hole.
Next I started installing components. I started with the switch panel, which required some adjusting around other panel screws, but eventually fit perfectly into position. I installed the flap switch handle and plugged in the connector from the ignition switches.
Then I installed three PFD, no problems. Then the G5, which again went in without difficulty. Everything looks good on the pilot side. I took the opportunity to power up the G5, since it has a standalone battery. It was cool to see the airplane “come alive” for a couple of minutes.
Switching to the passenger side I installed the MFD, and noticed a problem. The d-sub connector on the back of the MFD is very close to the connector on the back of the engine monitoring box. There clearance will be ok if I can find a way to route the MFD connector cable around the outboard side of the various equipment boxes. There’s just not enough length on the connector to do that right now. It’s possible once the wiring harness is in its final location that I can do just that.
Switch panel installedBack of the switch panelIt’s alive!Passenger sideIn the center of the image, the MFD cable is routed between the two connectors on the right. If I could route the cable towards to camera (outboard), I could fix the issueThe panel, just missing the G750 and autopilot panel
Tonight I routed three GPS & XM antenna cables, and the NAV antenna cable through the fuselage, installed, tested, and connected the BNC and TNC fittings.
I started with the GA-35 antenna cable which connects to the back of the G750. I also installed snap bushings in the tunnel where I plan to run these cables and the pitot static lines. To avoid interference, I am routing the GPS cables on one side of the tunnel, and the ADSB, NAV, and COM antenna cables on the other side. This should help minimize interference with the GPS and satellite signals.
Next I ran the two cables connecting the GDL-51 antenna. One connection goes to the satellite receiver, and the other to the back of the G3X display unit.
Then I ran a length of cable for the NAV antenna from the back of the G750, down the tunnel, under the passenger seat, and near the edge of three fuselage. I plan to install a bulkhead BNC connector on the outermost rib, which will (hopefully) make for an easy connection after the wings go on.
XM inputGPS and XM on the left and ADSB on the rightThe current mess of cables in the tail section. This will all get tidied upNav cable under the passenger seat
Tonight I started work on the antenna cables beginning with the com radio antenna cables. I watched a Stein Air video on the simple process for crimping the BNC (and TNC) connectors. I had previously ordered a bunch of connectors and cable from Stein, so I had it all on-hand.
I ran the Com2 (passenger side) cable first. This follows the control stick cabling under the seat and into the tunnel. I routed it from the antenna to the remote radio box and then installed a BNC connector on the radio end. Then I estimated the length of cable I will need, and cut the cable to length at the antenna end. At that end, I installed a 90 degree fitting to keep the cable clear of the control stick and laying flat against the floor.
A repeat for the pilot side, except the cable crosses over to the right side of the tunnel to keep it clear of the GPS cables that will run on the left side of the tunnel. The panel end connects into the back of the G750.
About 60 feet of cableThe 90 degree fitting. Testing for any shorts with a multimeter The 90 degree BNC fitting on the antennaThe BNC connector plugged into the remote radio box
Last night and tonight I worked on the G750 installation. This is the IFR nav radio unit, where flight plans are entered and managed. It sits above the autopilot module, and extends a long way back into the subpanel.
This unit has a rack much like the other Garmin equipment. The task of mounting the rack was a little tedious as I was trying to ensure the frame of the unit fit nicely on the panel, so I did numerous test fittings and fine adjustments. The forward attach points were challenging because of access, and proximity to the sub-panel. In hind-site, I should have moved the unit aft slightly to improve the location of the forward mounting holes, but I’m happy enough with how it ended up.
The aft edge (the front of the unit) frame attach holes. I ended up creating slots so I could adjust the height of the unit, giving the right amount of clearance The forward (back of the unit) attach points, with screws temporarily installed. This side was relatively easy, the other side was hard because I have permanently installed shelving that blocks access. Lack of planning on my partThe backing plate on the left side. I decided to rivet this into place on the left side to act as a doubler, increasing strength of that area. This was too hard to do on the right side, so I didn’t rivet the plate into position on the right side One of the many test fittings of the rack. In must have installed and removed the G750 unit a dozen times before finalizing the mounting location for the rackRacks finally installedHow it looks with the autopilot and G750 installed. Note, the 750 screen has a plastic protective sheet on it, and the screen is not scratched
Tonight I worked on installing the autopilot module in the center radio stack. I noticed an issue with the panel which I’ll have to address, but otherwise this went ok.
The GA-507 autopilot module will sit at the bottom of the center radio stack, under the GA-750. It has a rack that fits nicely inside the center stack, with two screw attach points on each side. Most of the work was to make a doubler plate with nut plates, and to line up the holes correctly. After some fiddling and experimenting I had a solution that seemed to work well.
The issue was with the left-hand most switch location. It is too close to the edge of the panel, and contacts the rib, pushing the center panel out of alignment. I emailed David who made the panel cutouts and I hope he can make a new plate with the hole moved over slightly.
It was cool to see the autopilot panel installed, the buttons and knobs have a great solid feel to them.
The go-around switch is too close to the edge of the panel, contacting the rib and pushing things out of alignment. David is remaking the center panel and will ship a new oneTaking the switch out allowed me to continue working for nowThe autopilot rack temporarily taped into position so I can locate the screw holesOnce I had the rack screwed into position, I could install the autopilot panelOne of the backing plates with nut plates
Tonight I installed the WAAS GPS antenna. I’m placing the one behind the GA-35 GPS antenna, and offset to the right, just over 12 inches apart.
The process was the same as the other GPS antenna, although this one is slightly larger and has two 5/8 size holes for the connectors vs just one on the GA-35. Using the back-plate (purchased separately from Stein Air) as a template, I carefully selected the right position making sure it was parallel to the longitudinal axis of the airplane, and clear of the sub structure (j channels, ribs, bulkheads). I used the centerline of rivets to ensure it was parallel, and calculated the required clearance from sub structure, then placed it as far aft as I could. This location gave me just over 12 inches distance edge-to-edge from the two GPS antenna.
I drilled and reamed the holes, and used the step drill to step up the two large holes to 5/8.
Deburring the inside of the holes and then stripping the primer from the underside of the top skin was a challenging step. I had to climb into the baggage compartment then reach back to complete the tasks, which was doable with enough patience.
Dimpling the holes in the skin was also a challenge. I had to use my pop-rivet dimpler, which doesn’t give the best results on a good day, because there’s no other way to access both sides of the skin. I used a step stool to get up off the ground, and then I found I could reach back enough to inset the nail into the hole, and support it while putting the pop riveter into position. it was fiddly, but not hard.
I made quick work of the necessary countersinks, installed the nut plates, and then pop riveted the backplate into position.
I used some silicone and the rubber gasket to install the antenna.
The template in positionDuring the drilling processHoles drilled. Starting to final size the #30 rivet holes, here I have the forward row completeNutplates installed. These are awesome, the threaded portion “floats” underneath the clasps on each corner. This allows the bolt to thread into the nut plate much more easily, and remain verticalTop side of the backing plate with countersunk holes visible Backing plate riveted into positionAntenna installedUnderside of the antenna. Despite how it looks in this picture, the backing plate is clear of the j channel, the closest point in the corner is approximately 1/8 of an inch clearRelative location of the two antenna. This will add some drag, but hopefully not too much.
