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  #11  
Old 12-17-2016, 10:27 AM
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dynonsupport dynonsupport is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by smash View Post
I would have to think any glass I put into a panel today would be lucky to last 5 years before replacement is required.
This is only true if you have the mindset that you need the very newest features or hardware. But this was true 30 years ago too when a company came out with a newer com radio or transponder that was different than the one in your plane too. Did every 172 upgrade to digital display com radios to replace the old analog turn dials?

There's nothing that requires you to replace your avionics, even if they are no longer sold or software updates have stopped. The equipment still does what it did the day before, just like that old com radio does what it's supposed to.

As another analogy, do you consider all the RV-7 airframes to require replacement because the RV-14 came out? And the 6's all got crushed when the 7 came out? Nope, those are still great airframes that still do what they were designed to. It doesn't matter that there's something newer out there.

Dynon still sells and supports the Dynon D10A, first sold in 2004. SkyView was first sold in 2009 and while it now has three products in the line (classic, touch, HDX), they are all still supported, getting software updates, new features, and are all still sold. So there's a lot of history that software based EFIS products enjoy much more than a 5 year lifespan. These are not products that require a connection to the internet and some server to keep working.

Define your mission and needs, buy the equipment that meets those needs, and enjoy your plane. While it is any competitive company's job to keep coming out with new products which make you want the newest thing, we also believe it's our job to make sure we build quality products that are designed to last the life of an airplane so it's your choice to upgrade, not a requirement.
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  #12  
Old 12-17-2016, 10:44 AM
Bill Palmer Bill Palmer is offline
 
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Location: Arizona
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Default Alluring Technology

Just an Opinion: In these days of alluring, constantly-improving glass panels driven by various CPUs, specialized hardware, competing software architectures, etc., the permanent panel, or at least the will to stay with a permanent panel, may be ?Mission Impossible!?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAYhNHhxN0A
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  #13  
Old 12-17-2016, 11:40 AM
Ralph Inkster Ralph Inkster is offline
 
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If the equipment you install today is still doing all you wanted it to do in 5 years, the tactic would be resist looking at the latest whiz-bang do-dad stuff in your buddies project, cancel your magazine subscriptions, walk thru OSH with blinders & think of the nice things you could buy your bride... & keep flying!

The more probable tactic would be plan now (build in easy access) for the unavoidable urge to update your panel in the future, arising more so from a do-dad issue rather than a unserviceable or obsolescence issue.
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  #14  
Old 12-17-2016, 12:15 PM
Bevan Bevan is offline
 
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I built my panel utilizing a hub system for this very reason. see...

http://www.approachfaststack.com/hubs.html

Makes upgrades in the future much easier. Also makes the first install much easier, neater and everything worked perfect first time just like a custom wired panel by an avionics shop.

Bevan
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  #15  
Old 01-17-2017, 09:22 PM
madhun madhun is offline
 
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My dad, hopefully I won't go to purgatory for mentioning an alternate Home Built, installed a lord mounted sub panel in his Mustang ii, with 3 removable fascias for ease of access to the instrument bays behind it. Makes it a relatively simple task to reconfigure to allow for future upgrades.

Last edited by madhun : 01-17-2017 at 09:57 PM.
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  #16  
Old 01-17-2017, 11:59 PM
crabandy crabandy is offline
 
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I bought my G3X right after the new GSU25 came out with AOA (4yrs ago?), the touch screens GDU's came out along with several software upgrades before I got my "outdated" G3X installed and flying. These new EFIS systems are all great and leaps and bounds beyond what most of us are used to flying with.

I spent most of today installing software and a couple more wires to take advantage of some new (free) functions offered, same ol' hardware just a couple new features that cost me a day of work cuz I'm slow.



Spend the time to find the equipment that best fits your needs and install it and the wiring with "maintenance/upgrades" in mind and you'll likely be flying the same system longer than a paintjob....
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  #17  
Old 01-18-2017, 01:48 AM
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Alan Carroll Alan Carroll is offline
 
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I think there's two parts to this problem, the desire to have the latest wizardry and obsolescence of components. The first part is completely under your control, but the second is not. Seems like there's no reason you can't fly with the same equipment for 30 years so long as the manufacturer will repair it. But will they? I've got an Apollo/UPS/Garmin GX60 in my panel, a perfectly good radio that Garmin will no longer service. I'm on my second unit actually; the display failed on the first one which sent it to the junk pile. Good used replacements are becoming scarce. Meanwhile countless KX170s from the 1970s soldier on...

I've also got a Trutrak EFIS that has been out of production for years, but which I hope will continue to be serviceable (so far it hasn't needed anything). A really excellent unit which I think is superior in some ways to the best of the current crop. I would describe its simple design as relatively timeless.
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Last edited by Alan Carroll : 01-18-2017 at 03:33 AM.
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  #18  
Old 01-18-2017, 11:07 AM
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KatieB KatieB is offline
 
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My first exposure to EFIS systems was flying the first production Diamond DA-40s equipped with the newly-certified G1000 in 2005. I thought, why would anyone want a computer in a plane? Computers are junk after 5 years. Surely these won't last as long as the round dials in that old 172 over there and when those fail you just pop out the bad instrument and replace it. And these screens are wired into all the systems in the plane, not just one. How could we ever replace it without spending as much as the plane is worth?

Well I had a lot to learn back then. Those G1000s are still going, with many new software updates I'm sure. We've built a lot of airplanes at our shop with both GRT and Garmin stuff since then and the only reason anyone that I know of has replaced a screen is to update it to the newest doo-dad like Synthetic Vision. Some updates are easier than others-- the new GRT screens have the same wiring as the old ones, so a screen update is not that big of a project. Other manufacturers are probably similar.

As others have said here, when you build your plane, keep the panel modular. Make sure the panel face is held in with screws so you can pull it all out if you need to. Design it so that you can remove items and replace as the airplane ages. Fly it and enjoy it! It will likely last many years longer than any piece of household electronics.
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