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RV-8 Panel Weight

flickroll

flickroll

Well Known Member
I'm finishing up a new panel for my -8, see the link below. The weight of the panel as seen in the link is just under 10 lbs., which does not include the SL 40 VHF or GTX 327 transponder. The SL-40 and GTX 327 however are supported additionally at the rear of the units by the horizontal Z-channel so I'm not too concerned about that additional weight. Does anyone have any thoughts on the maximum permissible weight of a finished -8 panel? Is 10 lb.s OK? I could take the battery out of the 696 which would shed a pound or so, but would rather not do that. I spent all day designing/fabricating/installing the 696 and mount and it is fairly robust and adds good rigidity to the panel. I have seen other -8's with just as much or more stuff packed in, however maybe there was additional panel support that I could not see. FWIW, with all of the aluminum around the 696 it is not getting a good GPS signal...will need to use the remote antenna which is not a problem... Thoughts/comments appreciated. Thanks

Jim Shannon
RV-8 N52VV
Charlottesville, VA

http://picasaweb.google.com/flickroll/RV8Panel?pli=1#
 
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I can't tell you what mine weighs Jim, but I can for sure tell you that its a WHOLE lot more than yours! Nice, simple package you have there!

I think you'll be just fine.
 
Thanks for the comments Paul. I do wish the -8 had a wee bit more panel space. In spite of how it may appear, this panel took a LOT of time to plan and lay out (or it wouldn't all fit!). I do wish there was room for a couple of steam gauges for redundancy's sake, but it's not to be.... Like everything else, a trade-off...

Jim Shannon
RV-8 N52VV
Charlottesville, VA
 
Love it!

It's almost identical to mine except I have a D180 on top with plans for a 100 for the bottom. I also used a horizontal HS34 to the left, above the radios and audio panel.

The weight is a surprize but I'm sure those with conventional intrumentation are much heavier.


flickroll said:
I'm finishing up a new panel for my -8, see the link below. The weight of the panel as seen in the link is just under 10 lbs., which does not include the SL 40 VHF or GTX 327 transponder. The SL-40 and GTX 327 however are supported additionally at the rear of the units by the horizontal Z-channel so I'm not too concerned about that additional weight. Does anyone have any thoughts on the maximum permissible weight of a finished -8 panel? Is 10 lb.s OK? I could take the battery out of the 696 which would shed a pound or so, but would rather not do that. I spent all day designing/fabricating/installing the 696 and mount and it is fairly robust and adds good rigidity to the panel. I have seen other -8's with just as much or more stuff packed in, however maybe there was additional panel support that I could not see. FWIW, with all of the aluminum around the 696 it is not getting a good GPS signal...will need to use the remote antenna which is not a problem... Thoughts/comments appreciated. Thanks

Jim Shannon
RV-8 N52VV
Charlottesville, VA

http://picasaweb.google.com/flickroll/RV8Panel?pli=1#
Click to expand...
 
This is one of those things I wouldn't worry about if I were you. There are an awful lot of panels that weigh 5 times what yours does and don't have a problem. Your 696 mount while very nice is strong enough to hold a truck! :)

So, in the end - don't worry about it.

Cheers,
Stein
 
SteinAir said:
Your 696 mount while very nice is strong enough to hold a truck! :)

So, in the end - don't worry about it.

Cheers,
Stein
Click to expand...

Actually it was designed that way for a reason. Because I was trying to cram a lot of wide things in an -8 panel, there was not much room and I wound up with narrow strips of panel between devices that made the panel quite flimsy. To make everything fit at all the Dynons are shifted to the left from center by 0.2". The Dynon trays stiffened up the center section, and the radio mounts stiffen up the left side of the panel. The hole cut out for the 696 in particular is huge and resulted in the panel being pretty flimsy on the right side. The mount I came up with transfers loads across the opening and really stiffens up the right side of the panel. If I had a 696 opening in the midst of a lot of real estate I'd have gone with standoffs for the mounting arrangement and not worried about it. Thanks

Jim Shannon
RV-8 N52VV
Charlottesville, VA
 
Total finished panel weight is just shy of 20 pounds, including all avionics and other assorted gizmos. One last time, does this sound OK? That's a lot hanging off the -8 panel support, although the radios also attach to the forward Z brace. There's not much I can do about it though :D I have added a picture of the finished panel to the link, although there are 3 small LED idiot lights I'm gonna add below the ELT controller.

Thanks in advance for comments...

s/ Jim the Worry Wart....

http://picasaweb.google.com/flickroll/RV8Panel?pli=1&gsessionid=rXu7uzW8MoZ6gXJv7UcxyQ#
 
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