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Magneto Ignition Harness Conversion to 8.5mm Super Conductor Automotive Spark Wire

V

Vansrv7arob

Well Known Member
Hi Guys,
Thought I'd share some photos and progress updates as I move through this mod.

Im not going to share all the details as they can be found on the G3I website.http://www.g3ignition.com/magmod.html

Photo of G3i control box mounting, yes the zip ties will be replaced by p-clamps...



The first thing to do is remove the old ignition leads.

Then drill out the holes to size to suit tap easy on a bench drill.

I found the best way to mount the mag caps was to screw them to a bench top.


Lots of boelube, the trick to a good tap is start slowly and carefully to get the tap started and straight. Then about 1/8 to 1/4 turn and then back off 1/2 turn to break chips, rinse and repeat until your through.


I'll post further updates as i move through the process.
 
I'm following

Curious as to why you chose this mfg vs others (I'd not heard of these guys until your post).

Your thoughts on this are appreciated.:)
Thanks
 
Rob. Your gonna love the G3I. I helped my buddy install it on his IO-360 Cozy MKIV we built and it really performed as advertised. He has over 300 hours on the install. It was on my short to do list had I kept my RV-10.
 
Deburr edges - promise it will get more interesting soon...

Mani,

Nomex suit on.....

It was a pragmatic one, about 18 months ago when i was rebuilding my own engine (with very experienced and knowledgeable support to the TOP of factory new limits) I found myself with 2xL and 2xR very low time magetos <200hrs. (4 in total)

I had already been eying off the G3i and was just about to purchase new, a good friend who is an early adopter had recently replace the system with p-mags and was out of work at the time and had 1 for sale.

The fly wheel i had didnt accomodate a fly crank sensor for light speed etc... so additional cost there..

I was on the phone with Clint discussing custom exhaust after speaking with Tom Shpakow, Clint said just wait a minute as the plesant sound of an RV was overhead "hes just landing, have a chat to Larry and see what he says" well.... Larry was very happy with his install, we had a great chat about his exhausts and the G3i system and that was good enough for me.

Its not everyday you get to chat with special people who design, build, supply and fly their own gear. From my perspective as a sales professional (medical and pharmaceutical scientist) customer service and data is king, if you can answer all my plesant but probing questions (dont bull**** a bull****ter SCIENTIST) and I still trust you I buy.

Trust me I know alllllll the tricks.....

Both Larry and Tom were awesome and honest to deal with, sometimes you just buy great products from great people you trust.

Yeah, p-mags are great, variable timing etc etc. but... everything is a compromise, circuit boards fail, in the little market of straya (Australia) the APs/LAMEs are few and far between.. anything more than a Slick or Bendicks and they look at you like a space man and charge you like you are David Bowe while they work it out, Larry and Tom know there products and are great to deal with if a G3i fails your on good old mags every barn wrenching AP knows how to fix. I know friends that keep a third p-mag on the shelf so they are never grounded while they do the international freight slow waltz.

If i was buying a new engine and didnt have 4 new mags on the shelf, yeah I might have spent the extra 5KAUD on p-mags, but I did and so I'am, I dont mind doing things differently, some of us do.... but its not for everyone.

Most builders I meet I'd suggest just buy the plug and play P-mags, light speed's are awesome also if you cover your bases.


 
9GT said:
Rob. Your gonna love the G3I. I helped my buddy install it on his IO-360 Cozy MKIV we built and it really performed as advertised. He has over 300 hours on the install. It was on my short to do list had I kept my RV-10.
Click to expand...
Thx Dave, I actually havent heard any bad reports, its going to be fun!!!
 
Ok thanks for the thought patterns Rob. Very interesting. I've got one Slick already for my motor build but gotta do something for the other side. Looks like its probably a Pmag, but its good to know theres a path using said gear to better performance should I want it. I'll keep watching what you do.

BTW you dont happen to know Allan Aaron? Hes one of our M2 brethren in Sydney; of course Sydneys not a small place haha.

Thanks again
Cheers Mani
 
Interesting trying to find the correct rivet inserts here in OZ..... found em eventually.... tip: if you live in the US of wall building A, buy the kit from Tom at G3I..... if you live in OZ, Mexico or Canada ;), send me a pm and I'll flick you details of where to find everything locally....
 
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Strip back the insulators to conductor core and use a 5mm socket to seat the rivets/inserts, invaluable. Trim conductor core once they are seated.



This little hollow security driver was awesome for pushing/seating the conductor spring pins....


 
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The 8.5mm MSD Super Conductor Wire and MSD spark plug boots are awesome. I converted a Bendix mag and never had a problem with the boots working loose, although I did have one of the NGK plugs with thread on ends unscrew a little and make radio noise.
The boot was firmly secured to the spark plug, so I can't figure out how the spark plug cap un-threaded enough to make EMI? So get the plugs with solid non threaded caps.
A side note; The older Bendix distributor cap has threaded gland seals for the plug wires. These do not require drilling and tapping. You just pull the wire thru the hole, create some packing material, and screw the gland nut on.
The inside of the cap still needs the adapter (sleeve of a pop rivet) and spring mod, then you are good to go.
 
I just completed this mod on a slick mag harness this past week after seeing the initial post in this thread. Kudo's to G3i for coming up with such a "slick" :) setup! It was really easy to convert, probably cost under $100 total including new 18mm automotive spark plugs, and I needed to repair or replace a couple of damaged leads anyway so it looks like a win-win. Of course, I haven't flown it yet, so I can't really say anything about performance. I'm running a straight slick without the G3i electronic aspect and Autolite 18mm spark plugs gapped to .025 and will post an update when i've had a chance to do some ground and ultimately flight testing.
 
SHIPCHIEF said:
The 8.5mm MSD Super Conductor Wire and MSD spark plug boots are awesome. I converted a Bendix mag and never had a problem with the boots working loose, although I did have one of the NGK plugs with thread on ends unscrew a little and make radio noise.
The boot was firmly secured to the spark plug, so I can't figure out how the spark plug cap un-threaded enough to make EMI? So get the plugs with solid non threaded caps.
Click to expand...

Hi Scott,

It's not uncommon for screw-on tips to unscrew in certain environments; that's why they make the non-removable ones. You found one of those environments. Still glad you left the dark side? :)

Charlie
-7 FWF HMMMM, in progress
 
Charlie;
I changed missions with the RV-8, and compete in IAC aerobatics now. The 13BT Rotary engine is sitting on my hangar floor waiting for a new job.
 
Rob, I am using the G3i system also. I have standard slick wires and fine wire plugs. What I don't understand is why you would want to change over to the automotive wires and what benefit you would get from them. Could you elaborate?

:) CJ
 
CJ;
I'm not Rob, but I can answer your question from my point of view.
I converted an IVO-360A1A Helicopter engine for my RV-8. The ignition harness was bad, and the plugs too cool. I converted a Bendix 200 series mag to MSD 8.8mm super conductor wire, and NGK BR8ES plugs with 18mm-to-14mm adapters because I could do it in the same time as ordering a new harness & aircraft spark plugs, I saved close to $400, And It was fun. It runs fine.
In your case, I would use those fine wire plugs and slick harness until they need changing.
No sense throwing away perfectly good parts.
 
Scott, thank you for the reply. I only have about 600 hours on my set up now and I do expect it to last for a while longer. I now see why the original poster would have done the conversion.

:) CJ
 
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