May 04, 2024     Sweet... - (2.5 hours)       Category: Avionics

Jameson & I headed to the hangar early this morning to begin the installation of the new 4-pin micro harness. According to Tim at Stein Air & the technicians at Garmin; they feel certain that the harness must now be the issue since the module chip apparently was not.

Before I began removing too many components, I did a continuity check to verify the status of the original harness. To my delight, it was faulty. The yellow wire within the harness proved to be the problem. The reason I say "to my delight" is because an intermittent electrical problem is a pain to troubleshoot & I am far from being good with electronics.

Feeling a bit more confident, I dove into the swap out. The Dsub pins were removed one-by-one & replaced with the new harness pin of the same color, Tim's recommendation. I checked the continuity for each pin as I completed the exchange. After tidying up the connector & placing a couple of strips of fresh silicon tape to the wire bundle, I closed the connector & proceeded with reassembling the panel just enough to perform a test.

The result was sweet – no error message reading: “pfd config module missing”..!

Over the next couple of days, I will re-install & secure the panel. I may change a few things along the way. One item in consideration is the antenna coaxial cable connection to Comm 2. It's a straight in connector, whereas a 90 degree would be better suited.

The assembly continues…

  May 03, 2024     UPDATE: PFD Configuration Module... - (0.5 hour)       Category: Avionics

No Luck...

It was a NO-GO regarding the PFD configuration module test this morning. After all that work, the new chip replacement apparently was not the answer to the error message. So, what's next? Disassemble the panel again & this time swap out the 4-pin connection harness. The wiring of the module is tiny & subject to fault. So, this is going to take some time...

The upside..? Well, at least I am now better understanding how to remove & replace avionic components in a fairly efficient manner.

  May 02, 2024     Chip Gone Bad Replacement... - (4.5 hours)       Category: Avionics

Spent a good amount of time removing a large portion of the avionics on the pilot's side of the panel. This needed to be done to have access to replace the faulty PFD configuration module. The left side of the panel is tightly packed; the right.., not so much. My luck.

This morning, I had the new chip in hand & headed to the hangar to finish the replacement. The process went smoother than I had anticipated, primarily due to the great feedback I have been receiving from Tim at Stein Air. Thank you Tim..!

I have not yet tested the installation, but hope to do so tomorrow. I need to triple check all my connections before applying power to the electronics.

As a FYI - According to the technician at Garmin, the purpose of the module is to back-up the display's settings. It is mounted within the harness backshell & the system backup is completed after every panel shutdown. The chip's isolation from the display unit allows for all the settings/configurations to be automatically transferred to a new display unit should that need ever arise.

  Apr 30, 2024     Magnetometer Calibration, etc... - (2.4 hours)       Category: Avionics

Began the magnetometer calibration & it went smoother than I had thought it would. Although a slow process, it all came together in the end with a "Passed" notation on the display. I will recalibrate the unit when I am able to tow the aircraft to an open, unobstructed area on the tarmac.

Emailed Tim at Stein Air to question the practicality of me performing the repair of the “pfd config module missing” issue in-lieu of sending the unit back to Stein. He replied: "The problem with that is that the Config Module is in the connector (inside the backshell) of the PFD so if you sent the screen, it would likely work as expected here and you would have the same problem there. Let's continue on with the plan of sending you a new Config Module as that will probably fix the issue." So that makes sense now that I understand the faulty chip is in the harness & not within the display. Hopefully, I can handle that task. We will see...

Tinkered with the wiring of a 3-way switch for the under panel lighting. Fill-work...

  Apr 28, 2024     The Beat Goes On... - (2.8 hours)       Category: Avionics

Well, that Sucks…

I have been getting an error on my PFD that reads: “pfd config module missing”. I performed a software update that I hoped would clear it, but it did not. Time to call Tim the Technician, at Stein Air. Found out that apparently Garmin has had a rash of these & has kept it somewhat quiet. Tim is offering to send a replacement IC chip, but that means I'll have to disassemble the PFD & insert the new chip. That is something I am not comfortable doing & I believe that would also void my warranty. Option 2 is to remove the PFD & ship it to Stein Air for repair. I prefer this route.

So, tomorrow I will reach out to Tim & see if we can get things rolling towards a fix. From what I can tell, the MFD is functioning properly.

Pulled the bird out of the hangar this morning a configured the AHRS. It's not perfect, but good enough until she's approved for flight testing. I had wanted to also align the magnetometer, but it became too windy by 10:00am to fool with the process.

Prior, I stuffed fire sleeve into & around the wires that protrude through the firewall. What a pain in the butt. For the next assembly I'll be stuffing the fire sleeve first, then feeding the wiring through it. Hopefully, that will be less of a headache.

  Apr 19, 2024     Fairings, Vents, Seals & Seats... - (4.8 hours)       Category: Wings

Over the past few days, I managed to finish the installation of the wing root fairings. The gap seals are installed & look good. Ideally, I would have liked to have eliminated the need for the seals, but the parts provided by Vans left too wide of a gap at the spar. In the end, it all worked out.

I cut the required 45-degree angle on the fuel tank venting tubes & installed those. The wing walk pads are installed & tacked in place to the upper spar, left & right. All wing root fairings, seals & hardware are back on the shelves until after the final DAR inspection.

Also installed the two-shoulder harness attachment cables to the fuselage bulkhead. Found out that Crow Safety sent me the wrong belts. I need the “Y” system single-point shoulder belt attachment. They mistakenly sent the straight individual mount type. A quick call to their facility got things squared away & the correct shoulder harness belts will be in next week.

  Apr 10, 2024     The Beat Goes On... - (4.2 hours)       Category: Wings

Again, another project that has become time consuming. Luckily, I'm not in a hurry.

The wing root fairings have been a hassle for me. I am disappointed with the gap around the spar. As stated in my previous post, I can remove material; I can't add it. As others have done, the only solution I see to conceal this problem is to use a gap seal.

On these bottom fairings, Vans need to give us a bit more material to work with.

  Apr 04, 2024     Root Fairings... - (2.1 hours)       Category: Wings

The wing root fairings are being a bit of a pain. Running along the fuselage, Vans stock fairings are a tad to narrow in some spots & too tight in others. Too tight is fine as I can file it to fit, but too narrow is an issue - I can't grow material.

At the main spar area the fairing is just narrow enough to look sloppy & is therefore unacceptable. The only solution, other than trying a replacement part, is to use a rubberized strip of U-shaped material to conceal the flaw. Afterall, this is normal practice on many production models & on most of Vans. However, the RV14 was designed not to have a gap seal at the root fairings. Guess that is going to change.

The progress continues.

  Apr 01, 2024     Next... - (1.8 hours)       Category: Lighting

Finished the installation of the strip lighting, etc. Wrapped all wiring in flex tubing and/or shrink wrap. Next...

  Mar 31, 2024     Glare Shield Lighting... - (4.0 hours)       Category: Lighting

Spent several hours installing the strip lighting for the glare shield. The 36" length of strip was finally cut down to 28". Any longer & the lights bending around the brow interfered with one's vision. Clothes pins are used to hold the adhesive strip in place for a 24-hour adhering period. Based on the initial contact, I don't believe this lightweight strip is going to come loose easily.

Started wrapping the wiring bundle into 1/4' flex tubing. Once the adhesive bonding time is up I will hard-wire the glare shield strip to the wire bundle & finish the flex tubing task. Only two more wires to connect; the baggage compartment overhead light & the footwell lights. Those two may wait until after first flight – or not…