Instrument Panel Rear Door

Alternator all Wired Up!

The Plane Power 60 alternator. 12volt- 60amp w/ internal voltage regulator and overvoltage protection.

Rear view. The small red wire is the Alternator Enable(field switch). The small white wire is the optional "Alternator Out" lamp wire that I will run to the panel. The larger 6mm stud is the output terminal. I will place a rubber nipple over the stud and torque it to 50 in. lbs. soon.

New Battery Box Installed

I found a light weight aluminum battery box for my Odyssey PC680. No need to drill out lightening holes, like the guys with the steel boxes... Plus this one has a nice protective black powdercoating on it. There was a bit of F&M (Fab and Mod)to get the box fitted, but it all work out. Get yours at http://www.tnrbatteries.com/ item-HD680B.

My Custom Relay Tray

Here is the aluminum tray after the intial drilling,bending, and fitting. It's held in place with 3 #6 screws/mini-nutplates on the fwd main spar flange and 2 #8 screws doubled to the fwd L seat ramp support. I also drilled out holes to eliminate any interference with the existing main spar rivet heads. The black dotted line represents where I initiated a slight bend down to keep everything nice and flush. finally, I bent up the fwd and aft ends for added support.

After paint,everything was reinstalled. The relay boards(blue)were stacked as well as two of the 3 teriminal strips. The top relay is used to speed up or slow down the trim motor, while the bottom relay is used to control the electric elevator trim on both pilot stick and panel rocker. I had to buy 2 IN4001 diodes, as per the Ray Allen diagram, to make both switches work together. The molex connectors allow for easy removal in the event something fails in the future. The inspiration for the tray came from Mike Stewart's super8 page. Thx Mike. *click pic to zoom in.

Forward view looking aft. The tray is hidden under the forward seat ramp. Anti-chafe tape was applied to the small lip flanges.

All hidden with easy access.

Rear Stick

Ray Allen single PTT for the rear seat. I will have a switch up front to turn off the rear PTT when the kiddos are riding...

Pilot Stick Grip

Here is the Tosten grip I decided to install for the front seat/pilot. It has 8 different functions, which is more than I need, and is $50 cheaper than the infinity grip I was considering buying. There is a china hat switch(trim) and 2 aux buttons on top followed by a trigger and index finger button below. Find out more here - www.tostenmanufacturing.com

I also purchased the aircraft extras relay board w/ airspeed switch and a Ray Allen servo speed controller(adjustable voltage regulator). This will automatically adjust the elevator trim speed to make pitch trim adjustments at High and Low speeds a breeze.

Panel Wiring Getting Closer! Pt.2

I still need to wire up a panel mounted Garmin 396, but that's about it. The fuse block on the access door is for each of the avionic instruments. A finished front panel pic is coming soon... The extension wire inside the velcroed tube allows for easy PC serial interfacing. It will be used to upload checklist, aviation data, and free dynon firmware updates. I also need to run the pitot/static lines and connect the scat vent lines..

Antennas Installed!

Here you can spot the Comm and Transponder Antennas. After they were installed I sealed each one with proseal. The ELT antenna will be mounted under the empennage fairing.(Pic coming soon)

Interior L.E.D. lights Installed

Remote Compass Mounted

I chose to mount the Dynon Remote Compass, on the rear deck, in the tail section of the aircraft. This area proved to have the least amount of magnetic disturbances and was fairly accessible. It's hard to tell from the pics, but I fabricated a small bracket and set the tilt to within 1 degree of the EFIS angle on the panel. Yes, I used a digital level and brass screws/nuts for mounting. I also used 2 all alum pop rivets to mount the front end of the compass to the bracket. The aluminum bracket is bent at the front and bolted in place, while the tilt was set in the rear with two nuts, not counting the washer and nut used to secure the rear section.

Side Console and Fwd Aux Input/Output Plug

UPDATE- I had a trophy shop fabricate a black switch plate to better highlight the switch labels.

I didn't want to take up anymore room in the gearbox, so I fabricated a bracket for the aux 12vdc outlet. In addition to it's normal uses, I will also be able to reverse trickle charge the battery from this point.

Let's Get to Work on the Wiring! Pt.1

Don't Worry! It will all be nice and neat soon enough.... Let's call this, "The Before Picture."

Started Fitting Instruments...

Instrument holes have been cut out of the panel using a waterjet. I will also add eyeball vents on the sides along with a few other small items.

Here you can see the new Digital MGL V10 transceiver w/built in VOX/VOGAD intercom. It only weighs 7.6oz. and has a full 6w@1.2amps Nice! find out more here- www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhsIBV6AxqM .I also went with the Garmin GTX327 transponder.

The transponder brackets were custom made by myself. Needless to say, It took a considerable amount of time to get everything precisely drilled for a nice tight fit. I wanted the transponder to be as flush as possible on the front of the panel.

Electric Elevator Trim Motor

The electric trim servo. I got some Dean connectors from the local Hobby Town to connect the tiny 26 awg wires. I decided this was the best option for allowing me to disconnect the servo for future aircraft painting. You could use a D-sub connector as another option, but that seemed like a bigger pain.

Trim wire. I ran it through the tiny relief hole in the bottom corner of the elevator. I soldered and heat shrank all the wires. Yes, it was difficult to solder those little wires....

All connected. I will wait to trim the push rod to length...

Ignition Switch and Trim Rocker/ LCD Indicator

Ah, the keys! Here is my ignition switch from Vans.

Here you can see the elevator trim rocker switch, flap switch, and LCD trim indicator. I used a dremel tool (with a cutter bit) and files to cut out the holes.... The rocker switch will be the back up trim, primary will be on the the stick.

Rear view of ignition switch

Flap Switch

Simple momentary switch that Vans sells, nothing fancy. I will be installing an Air Vent and Trim indicator above it on the left side on the panel.

Rear View

Switch/Breaker Panel

Switch/Breaker console all done. I will add labels later...

Battery Box Installed

Here the Battery Box has been primed, painted,riveted, and bolted into place. You will also notice that the Master Relay(left) and Starter Relay(right) have been mounted.
*UPDATE- I decided to abandon this box in lieu of a smaller, lighter, Odyssey battery box. This box will still be fine if you plan on using the Concord battery, but will need to be modified if you plan on going with an Odyssey PC680. -See my FWF section for details...

Fabricated Battery Box and Terminal Block

Battery Box on firewall.

Terminal Block behind fwd baggage bulkhead. The two post on either side of the block are grounds.