6 hours.
Saturday and Sunday got the ELT installed. I’d been waiting for this thing for about 5 months, and it finally showed up.Of course this device goes back in the tailcone behind the baggage bulkhead, so it’s a lot of contortion and crawling around. I’m beginning to hate working back there almost as much as I hate painting. But it went fairly quickly, since I used the same technique I used for mounting the strobe controller, which is:
blind-rivet 2 angles along the J-stringers, then blind rivet a plate to that, with platenuts attached at the mounting points for the device. Easy. Only issue though is that the screws stick out far enough into the space between the side skin and the mounting plate for possible interference with the rudder cable. I’ll need to set it all up, but it’s not likely, and even if it is, I’ll make a guide of some kind. Somehow.
I also got my Odyssey battery charger and charged up my battery to full capacity. When the EFIS docs say 11-33 volts, they mean it. At 10.9v, my AHRS and compass no longer had sufficient power to provide data.
I’m still waiting on a connector kit from Steinair for my GMA340. When I get that, I can start wiring the avionics stack. Still not sure what to do about my stick grounds though. My PTT switch (the trigger) wants to be connected to the proper terminals on the audio panel and radio, but it’s currently got a positive and a ground, grounded at the airframe near the stick. This might have to change, because I’m not sure it’s cool to just pick up mic key ground from the airframe.
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