GTN650 without efis

[drmax]

Hello. I'm a bit torn in what to actually do as $ is an issue. 1stly, is anyone here running a gtn 650 with an efis setup? If so I'd like to chat with you. I'm about to pull and old kln89b and have installed a gtn650. I'd also be replacing my bk 155 with 209 cdi for a garmin 106 cdi. also need to upgrade my TT a/p with a vizion 385. I get the "why not just go with an efis and it's not much more". I don't have "that much more". I'm just needing to get by and the 650 would be a huge step to that future (if ever happens) efis upgrade. I need to start my ifr training as the written is out of the way. So no time to save up to upgrade. I want a certified nav source. The 650 will be a tight fit so the 750 is outta the question. Anyone out there? THx, DM

[sailvi767]

The 650 without a EFIS will give you a extremely capable aircraft. I would have no hesitation going that route. The 650 can give you many efis like functions including wx, terrain, traffic ect.. It's a fantastic unit.

George

[rzbill]

Don't rush into your plan.

If you are buying the 650 new and the CDI new and are upgrading your A/P, there is a REALLY good chance you can buy an EFIS with servos, sell the A/P to a friend with steam gages for a good price and come out ahead of your proposed plan.

Get familiar with the common Efis selections like GRT or Dynon.

[drmax]

not rushing into a plan. been on the drawing board for 6 months. i'll be getting with my installed as soon as the runway melts off! i understand that the cost difference could nearly be equal, but then there the additional modules required and the pnl and wiring labor. it's over my head and not doing this on my own.
i want to keep some of my redundancy, if i were to go that direction.

[Don]

Originally Posted by drmax

but then there the additional modules required and the pnl and wiring labor. it's over my head and not doing this on my own.
i want to keep some of my redundancy, if i were to go that direction.

I thought the wiring was over my head, too. I'm still building and paid to have the fast stack hub folks do the basic wiring for me. They are great people to deal with, affordable, in my opinion, and do fine work. However, in hindsight, I think I would wire the stack myself if I were to do it again. I had to totally rewire my GRT AHARS and the magnetometers. I was expecting a nightmare to ensue and it was actually educational, enjoyable, and everything worked the first time I turned it on.

The wiring looks more mysterious than it actually is. It is very doable...really. Once you learn how to crimp a D-sub pin (Stein has a video), and you know the pinouts, the rest is just a matter of doing it. I was a babe in the woods when I started wiring and I'm pretty confident I could do it on my own now.