I used Autozone. Whatever route you go make sure it is a continuous duty solenoid and able to carry the load you have planned.
 
It seems to me that there is an obvious leader in the trio you proposed.
Of those, I would buy the B&C because it is a way better price than the Lamar and comes with the snubbing diodes missing on the Experimental unit from Spruce.

What about the master relay from Vans? I imagine there are a few flying so that is a mark in its favor. Its is cheaper than any of the three you proposed and can be set up with snubbing diodes on your own.
 
Funny, of all the places to look for parts I completely forgot the main place to look, Vans! Duh. I'm glad I posted the question and will look at the Skytech one as well. I'm all ways happy with Vans stuff but guilty of looking for the supposed best thing going. Perfect example is I put the Andair fuel valve in because it got rave reviews and no fuel flow interruption while switching tanks but also knowing the Vans valve would work fine as well.

https://www.vansaircraft.com/cgi-bi...2-494-366&browse=electrical&product=master-sw

Thanks

Mike
 
The master contactor is a REALLY important component, generally speaking you get what you pay for, so make your own judgement on which you want to use (I use the Lamar personally).
 
SkyTec

pilot2512 said:
Don't mean to add to your list but skytec has some as well, that I was going to post if anybody has any experience with.

http://www.skytecair.com/Solenoids.htm

I'll be watching...
Click to expand...

Probably no experience yet... the part is only a month or two old from SkyTec.

I believe they came out with it (and the starter relay) as STC items due to old parts manual for certified planes calling out the long gone S-W part.

As far as prices go, it's quite reasonable for a certified part. :)
 
Vans

I've used the ones from Vans for 8 years and 800 hrs. Just changed them with new ones from Vans along with a new PC680 battery only because I just updated my panel and 8 years sounded like a good time to replace. If the lower cost stuff works, no reason to spend more. If you just want to spend the extra money you might as well buy a certified plane then your gurantied to get the high cost replacement parts.
 
Last edited:
Funny that this thread just came up... My original Vans-supplied master relay failed this weekend when I was about to fly to Gainesville for some BBQ. It is a Cole-Hersee brand, looks to be part# 24106. Total time on it is about 460 hours over 12 years. I ordered the White-Rodgers replacement from Spruce. The Lamar has much better amps ratings but is $33 more. If the W-R lasts as long as the original, I'll be happy with it.
 
Last edited:
Neal@F14 said:
Funny that this thread just came up... My original Vans-supplied master relay failed this weekend when I was about to fly to Gainesville for some BBQ. It is a Cole-Hersee brand, looks to be part# 24106. Total time on it is about 460 hours over 12 years. I ordered the White-Rodgers replacement from Spruce. The Lamar has much better amps ratings but is $33 more. If the W-R lasts as long as the original, I'll be happy with it.
Click to expand...

I wonder how much that $33 savings will cost you when are stranded away from home base somewhere :confused:
 
On my particular RV which is equipped with an "EXP BUS" load center panel, a master relay failure wouldn't necessarily leave me stranded either since I carry a small emergency tool kit with me and I can always bypass the big master relay and move a couple wires around and be on my way using the EXP BUS internal master switch feature. If I wasn't also buying a new battery too (current one is over 3 years old and thus more likely to be the culprit that actually strands me), I probably would've sprung the extra $33 for the Lamar, but I'm on a tight budget right now.
 
DaleB said:
A trip to Auto Zone and thirty bucks or so?

How often do these things fail, anyway?
Click to expand...

When I'm traveling with the wife keeping track of the nearest Autozone is definitely not part of our trip planning.

I think we can agree on the fact that we value the importance of dispatch reliability differently. In the airline we strived for about 99.5%, my personal goal is 100%, which is what's its been so far. I like to think that reliability has not been by accident.

Your mileage may vary and I understand not everyone thinks like me.
 
DaleB said:
A trip to Auto Zone and thirty bucks or so?

How often do these things fail, anyway?
Click to expand...
I think about that one time when you trying to get somewhere, or worse, get down from somewhere. I've never had one fail in 15+ years of RV'ing. But I replace mine every 5 years (~500 hrs) or so. Why 5 yrs? Just a guess.

I keep one of the old ones pulled out of service in my tool bag. Just in case.
 
Last edited:
I'm not arguing - I've just never heard anyone talking about having had one fail, and was wondering if failures of the master contactor were common or not.

While it's true in a general sense that you get what you pay for, in electronic and electromechanical parts items priced in the 99th percentile are often no better than those in the 50th. I wouldn't trust a $5 version of one of these, but I'm not sure an $80 part is significantly better than the $30 part. It'll have a PMA sticker on it, though. Point is, simply paying more for something is not a guarantee of better quality or increased service life. I have enough experience with that sort of stuff to be able to make a call whether a particular part is something I'd trust or not, but not everyone does.
 
Food for thought... White-Rodgers makes a 200 amp continuous duty, 600 amp inrush at 12vdc solenoid/relay that McMaster is listing for $48.16. White-Rodger pn# 586-902, McMaster pn# 7995k31. Seems to be a popular upgrade for the glow plug relay in F350 diesel pickups.

edit: McMasters catalog page says $46.16 but the product detail page says $57.95 for this relay
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.