Custom Electrical Installations for Aircraft: First Power Up
I’ve spent the last few weeks installing all the electrical provisions, ramping up especially the last few weeks over the holidays to reach a safe-to-apply-power state. I successfully powered up the airplane for the first time this past weekend and it was nice to finally see the panel all...
HVAC System and Panel Progress
This is a long overdue update on my project, but I’ve been quite busy on a few different aspects. First major update is that the custom HVAC system is about 90% complete. I’ve gone through so many iterations of the design over the last 3 years, but earlier this...
Avionics Work
I’m slowly but surely getting all the avionics connected, and along the way, creating brackets and similar provisions for securing bulkhead connectors and wiring bundles. Here are a few photos showing how I created a plate that holds two circular connectors (TE CPC series 2) for passing most of...
Avionics Component Mounting
Over the last few weeks I’ve been splitting time between avionics and engine plumbing while I wait for some hardware to arrive. There are quite a few remote avionics boxes to mount, and I quickly determined I needed to create a few brackets to make more space. I am...
Instrument Panel Arrived
I’ve been fiddling with the instrument panel layout for at least 2 years now, but finally arrived at the final design. And thanks to the awesome team at Midwest Panel Builders, I now have the real thing in my garage! Steve at MWPB did a great job with the...
Aileron Trim Kit
It’s been a little bit since I posted, but there are a few exciting developments to share. First, I got word that my firewall forward kit arrived in Torrance CA last week and is on its way to me! This is the long-awaiting custom kit that will allow me...
Custom Overhead Console
I’ve created yet another custom piece of cabin tech, this time it’s an overhead light console. The panel has a dome light, swivel adjustable map lights, and red ambient light projectors. I used RGBW LEDs to allow the lights to be set to any color and brightness, adjusted using...
Update on Flaps Controller
I’m waiting on the circuit cards to come back from the fab, likely slightly delayed due to the holidays. In the interim, I worked on honing the process for painting and etching the fascia panel. My second iteration is looking better than the first, but I still need to...
Fabricating Flaps Controller
I shared the design concept for my custom flaps controller a few weeks ago, and I got some great feedback from other pilots & builders. I’ve taken that feedback and made a revision 1 of the hardware, to include: Stand-alone operation (no additional parts needed, connects directly to the...
Flaps Controller
I prefer controls that provide visual cues of their current setting. I have a minor in Human Factors from my undergraduate days, and one of my professors was quite passionate about aircraft. As a result, I really don’t like using up/down toggles that are so commonly used on experimental...