My RV-7 G3X Installation

A forum to discuss installation of avionics such as GPS, NAV & COMM radios, audio panels, auto pilots, etc.
clreding
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Post by clreding »

CJ seems like you are making terrific progress! definitely inspiring!

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captain_john
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Post by captain_john »

Yes Craig, things are progressing nicely!

I will stop down to see you when my 40 is flown off!

:) CJ
RV-7
Garmin G3X with VP-X & a TMX-IO-360 with G3i
It's all over but the flying! 800+ hours in only 3 years!

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BSwayze
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Post by BSwayze »

I'm rootin' for you, too, CJ! Can't wait to see your first flight! I'm not too far behind. I recently got my top aft skin (right behind the baggage bulkhead) riveted on, and my rear window installed.

Now to really get this wiring wrapped up!
Bruce Swayze
Portland, Oregon
http://www.BrucesRV7A.com
RV-7A Working on Firewall Forward

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captain_john
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Post by captain_john »

Thanks Bruce! We are rooting for you too!

I will be nailing on the aft skins this coming week. I just got all the wiring secured back there, installed the seat belts and tied down the AP servo wires last night!

The G3X antenna doublers are manufactured and ready to be riveted onto the skin!

The panel placards are being made as we speak and I need to paint the panel yet.

I will have some pictures to show you guys soon.

Soon I will hit that big switch!

:) CJ
RV-7
Garmin G3X with VP-X & a TMX-IO-360 with G3i
It's all over but the flying! 800+ hours in only 3 years!

stevewiz
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Location: appleton,wisconsin

Post by stevewiz »

Captain John, The electrical side of your build is very intimidating to this newbie. Your work and thought process is very impressive. Hopefully when we get to this point in the next4 years or so, I would have read and studied discussions like this to feel confident about it ourselves. Started our build in October and were about 85% complete with the empennage now and loving every minute of the process. Once again I would like to thank you and others for taking the time to discuss your builds for the future benefits of others.
RV-7 N71SW reserved
Started on 10/8/2013
Working on Fuselage as of 5/10/15 95%done
started finish kit on 7/1/16
engine on order from Barett.Will be shown at their EAA booth and then delivered to us after show

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captain_john
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Post by captain_john »

Steve, Thanks for the kind words but it ain't nuttin'!

This has been a year in the making for me and I am finally doing the part of the build that I have been eager to do for nearly a decade!

This has given me lots of time to think it over and, I dare say that this is the best iteration of my thoughts to date!

The wiring is possibly the easiest and most fun phase of the project according to most builders, regardless of electrical experience!

The VP-X makes it really easy. Perhaps you might want one of those when the time is right?

Stay tuned. Tonight I nailed on the aft skin and will be painting the panel this week. My placards will be done soon and I will then hit the big switch and see what color the smoke is!!!

I can't believe this is actually going to light up soon!

It is a dream come true!

:) CJ
RV-7
Garmin G3X with VP-X & a TMX-IO-360 with G3i
It's all over but the flying! 800+ hours in only 3 years!

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cjensen
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Post by cjensen »

Pics man! Pics!!! 8)
Chad Jensen
Missing my RV-7...
Vertical Power support
920.216.3699
http://verticalpower.com

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BSwayze
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Post by BSwayze »

stevewiz wrote:Captain John, The electrical side of your build is very intimidating to this newbie. Your work and thought process is very impressive. Hopefully when we get to this point in the next4 years or so, I would have read and studied discussions like this to feel confident about it ourselves. Started our build in October and were about 85% complete with the empennage now and loving every minute of the process. Once again I would like to thank you and others for taking the time to discuss your builds for the future benefits of others.


Steve, for what it's worth, I'm just like you! I'm not an electrical guru at all. The wiring and electrical stuff, right from the start, has always been the most intimidating part of this whole project. I'd like to pass on something that someone told me about 10 years ago before I started.

I got involved with a local chapter and started going to monthly meetings, always at someone's shop, hanger, or basement each month. I was in the dreaming stage at that point, not sure if this was something I could do or not. It was fun to see projects in various stages of completion and hang around with the guys. As my confidence grew, I realized they were no different and no better than me. They were just AHEAD of me. That's all.

At one of the first meetings I went to, the guy was in the middle of wiring his RV-6. I saw a forest of wires going everywhere and all I could do was stand there and shake my head. He must have seen me, because he pulled me aside. I told him this was the only thing that was very intimidating to me, not being an electrical type. I'll never forget what he told me... he said "don't look at the forest. Think of just one wire at a time, each one has a starting point and a termination point". I said "Yes! I can do that!"

Fast forward, here I am, finally in the middle of wiring. Like CJ said, it's not that bad and I'm actually really enjoying this! I wholeheartedly agree, look at the Vertical Power system when the time comes. Who knows what else will be available down the road when you're ready. I'm doing just what that guy told me, way back then. One wire or sub-project at a time. So as of this writing, I have my a/p servos wired up, wires run through the fuse for the trim tab and tail lights, the ELT wiring in place, the antenna for eventually installing an ADSB system, my flaps and flap position sensor are wired up, baggage lights are in, fuel pump is wired, and several other things. I started at the tail (where it's simple) and I'm going forward from there. Next, I'll be wiring the sticks and coordinating all the wiring for the wings. It's getting more complicated but I now have the confidence to go on. By the time I get up there behind the panel, I might actually know what I'm doing!

Mainly, just enjoy the ride. I love every minute of this. You will, too. Keep hammering those rivets! Cheers!
Bruce Swayze
Portland, Oregon
http://www.BrucesRV7A.com
RV-7A Working on Firewall Forward

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leffler
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Post by leffler »

Bruce hit the nail on the head.......

Two other key tips are planning and documentation. These aren't hard either.

Draw your schematics in advance. I did three separate schematics to keep things simple for me. One for power, one for data, and one for audio. I used Viso, but any drawing application will work just fine. Paper and pencil works too!

I used Excel to during my planing phase. I had a sheet for each device that was to be installed. Each row was a pin on the connector. I then determined what device and pin it needed to be connected with. Not all pins will be used. I also noted what wire size (and color) was needed and guess at the length the wire needed to be. This creates was some people call a wire book. It's the basis for you documentation and will help gratly in troubleshooting along with the schematics. It also helps you place your first wire order.

There are two ways to think about schematics, logical (which is most common) and physical. I got hung up on an issue one time and Marc Ausman reminded me that each wire has two ends. Many times, it doesn't make a difference which end you connect to if branching or splitting circuits. I found it help for the power schematic to also draw it on what looked like a top down view of the aircraft.

The weather we are currently experiencing is a great motivator to stay indoors and do this type of planning. It pays off greatly when it comes time to actually pull the wire.

I don't know about the other models, but in a RV-10, you can install the upper fuselage assembly (the panel and glare shield) out of order and much later than the plans call. This allows you to build the paenl harness on a table (I used the dining room table where I was much more comfortable) and it's much easier that in the aircraft.

Bottom line, if guys like Bruce, CJ, and I can do it, so can you. Just start with that first wire, define where both ends go, then move to the second. In no time, you'll have a complete schematic for your aircraft. Even more important, you'll have intimate knowledge of how everythigng works and is connected.
Bob Leffler
RV-10 - Flying
http://mykitlog.com/rleffler

stevewiz
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Post by stevewiz »

Thanks for taking your time for your thoughtful responses. I have many years till I am at that point but am always trying to keep myself informed of what will be coming up in the build and when I get to that point I’m sure I will be ready. Love Bruce’s comment (one wire at a time)Sure sounds easy that way. Documenting wire runs ahead of time should and will be a must. I did put a pull string in my vertical stabilizer thru some grommets in case some day I would want a beacon or camera on the top of it. Again, thank you to all you veterans of this site for your input. Steve Sr
RV-7 N71SW reserved
Started on 10/8/2013
Working on Fuselage as of 5/10/15 95%done
started finish kit on 7/1/16
engine on order from Barett.Will be shown at their EAA booth and then delivered to us after show

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leffler
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Post by leffler »

Steve,

Although you have a couple years before you have to install and/or purchase the guy, my advice is to start planning now. Granted it will take a second seat to building. But when you have some down time, in between kits, etc, start your planning. You'll have a learning curve. Doing it slowly over a long period of time will keep the anxiety minimize.

Don't worry about if you made all the correct decisions or about that new fangled device that may announced at OSH.

I was laid off for a brief period of time and took the opportunity to design my panel. It had three GRT EFIS, Trutrak AP, CO Guardian, Dynon D6, Garmin 430, PSE 7000, Garmin SL30, Garmin 330, and a VP-200.

Things change......

I ended up with three AFS screens, AFS Pilot, Garmin 650, Garmin SL40, Garmin 327, PSE 8000BT, Trutrak Gemini, Navwork ADSB, VPX, and a CO Guardian. It took me less than a couple hours to make the changes to the documentation and schematics. Yes, the pinouts are different, but they all interconnet in a similar fashion.

The other option is to pay SteinAir or Aerotronics $6-8k to do your harness. But then you won't know intimately know the system. That's a lot of fuel money you can save by taking the time over the next couple of years to do your planning. If you wait until you need it, the anxiety levels will be much higher due to the rush to get things done.

Besides, it is just like most of the project.
  • Who can say they built their own aircraft?
    Who can say they flew their aircraft's first flight?
    Who can say the designed and wired their aircraft from scratch?
The answer is you! I can tell you the sense of satisfication is tremendous.

bob

p.s. You even have Chad nearby. I'm sure if you install a VPX, he would be glad to provide some mentoring. Knowing Chad, he would probably help you even if you didn't. There aren't very many RV-7s that are nicer than the one he built.
Bob Leffler
RV-10 - Flying
http://mykitlog.com/rleffler

stevewiz
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Post by stevewiz »

Bob, I see your point about it never being to early start to plan the electrical end of things, even if some of the components change that would not be a big deal or hard changes to make to my documents.
After watching a few of the vertical power videos on their site, it seems to me that, the VPS unit would clean things up considerably. A lot to look at and research as time goes on. Heck, what’s another grand or two. LOL
Also I spoke with Chad a few months back to see when would be a good point for us to have him over to take a look at our work and we are just about there, so I will also be able to talk about VPS with him.
RV-7 N71SW reserved
Started on 10/8/2013
Working on Fuselage as of 5/10/15 95%done
started finish kit on 7/1/16
engine on order from Barett.Will be shown at their EAA booth and then delivered to us after show

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cjensen
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Post by cjensen »

Absolutely Steve! Happy to help any time.

...and thanks Bob!

8)
Chad Jensen
Missing my RV-7...
Vertical Power support
920.216.3699
http://verticalpower.com

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captain_john
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Post by captain_john »

Yah... Sooooo...

I painted my panel and I am installing my gizmos right now.

This is how it is looking so far.

Image

8) CJ
RV-7
Garmin G3X with VP-X & a TMX-IO-360 with G3i
It's all over but the flying! 800+ hours in only 3 years!

stevewiz
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Location: appleton,wisconsin

Post by stevewiz »

SWEET.. Looks great. I bet you are supper excited seeing it in the plane. Can’t wait till the day we mount some gizmos. LOL
RV-7 N71SW reserved
Started on 10/8/2013
Working on Fuselage as of 5/10/15 95%done
started finish kit on 7/1/16
engine on order from Barett.Will be shown at their EAA booth and then delivered to us after show

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captain_john
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Post by captain_john »

Hey All,

I thought that I would upload some recent BETTER QUALITY pictures! That iPad takes terrible pictures but it is convenient.

Anyways, here they are:

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

I need to compete the rest of the switches. I will have that placard tomorrow. Once that is installed and a few other things are in place, I should be able to hit the big switch!

Stay tuned!

:) CJ
RV-7
Garmin G3X with VP-X & a TMX-IO-360 with G3i
It's all over but the flying! 800+ hours in only 3 years!

clreding
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Post by clreding »

CJ looking great! your progress is great motivation!
I see that you put in a compass, I am still trying to figure out if I can get away without one. Just in case what is the depth behind the panel of that compass?

Bill H
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Location: Pembroke, MA

My RV-7 G3X Installation

Post by Bill H »

Looking good. placard was made fast. Hope the spelling correct .lol!
 
In a message dated 2/6/2014 7:15:21 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, support@rivetbangers.com writes:

Hey All,

I thought that I would upload some recent BETTER QUALITY pictures! That iPad takes terrible pictures but it is convenient.

Anyways, here they are:

Image

Image

Image

Image

Image

I need to compete the rest of the switches. I will have that placard tomorrow. Once that is installed and a few other things are in place, I should be able to hit the big switch!

Stay tuned!

Image CJ



RV-7
Garmin G3X,TMX-IO-360, G3I ignition
It's on the ropes now!


rivetbangers.com - Discussion topic http://www.rivetbangers.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=42074#42074
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captain_john
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Post by captain_john »

Craig,

That whiskey compass is just for show. It isn't required but dammit... I like it!

It is very shallow. Perhaps 2.5"?

Billy, I will have you proof read all the placards! Lol

I like the "militaristic" look of the gray and black!

:wink: CJ
RV-7
Garmin G3X with VP-X & a TMX-IO-360 with G3i
It's all over but the flying! 800+ hours in only 3 years!

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captain_john
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Post by captain_john »

I have the other set of switches installed now!

Image

I might just fire this thing up tomorrow!?!

:mrgreen: CJ
RV-7
Garmin G3X with VP-X & a TMX-IO-360 with G3i
It's all over but the flying! 800+ hours in only 3 years!

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