Paul 5r4

Paul 5r4

Well Known Member
I've recently installed the Dynon AP servoes and AP74 in my RV 7A. Here are my thoughts so far. This is the only AP I've ever flown with so I have nothing else as a base line to compare. I was told by a few experts that if I was going to actually use it for hard IFR, (I'm a VFR only flier), to install the TT otherwise I'd probably be perfectly happy with the Dynon. They were right! I've now flown a few hours with it and can say in all modes, it functions flawlessly! I have a Dynon D100 and D120 along with an ifly 720 for situational awarness. After installing the servos which was easy as pie even in my already built aircraft, then hooking up everything with the harness supplied by Stein Air which was also a piece of cake.... cake/pie, I can't decide... everything worked almost perfectly! The only thing that needed fine tuning was the rate of turn in degrees. I had it set for 3/sec with a max bank angle of 25 degrees. This caused a bit of "wandering" in the turn. I read on VAF to set the degrees per second to 0 and let it turn on it's own. Now it's perfect! I have about 1100 hours and 265 of that in the RV. As easy and delightful as these airplanes are to fly, it's really a JOY to let the AP do some of that work and concentrate on other important task... traffic scans, naviagating etc. Another big plus is the safety margin it adds for a VFR only guy like me. If I were to ever find myself in a not so visible situation, you can bet the very first act would be to engage this thing. It has the 180 degree safety feature for just this purpose, push and hold for three seconds and it'll take you back to the hopefully still VFR weather you came from. In each mode it tracks altitude close enough for me to report dead on! The heading is pretty close as well never wandering more that a degree or two from the assigned heading. It tracks the ifly GPS perfectly as well. Like I mentioned, I have about 1100 hours and now have a couple with this autopilot... I didn't know I had been working way to hard.
I hope this helps others in their decesion making process.
 
I agree! I've just put 20 hrs on mine and I am thrilled! Of coarse I've never had an AP before either. Although I have not gone very far away from home base, it is very handy when leaning the engine or playing with the Navigation and moving map. I'm in phase 1 and it is nice to turn on the AP on for a minute and just sit back and think about the tests I have and will perform next. We have had pretty rough air the past several weeks and it seems to handle it fine.
 
Paul 5r4 said:
... I was told by a few experts that if I was going to actually use it for hard IFR, (I'm a VFR only flier), to install the TT otherwise I'd probably be perfectly happy with the Dynon...
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I would disagree with this statement.

One advantage of having your EFIS drive your AP is that it knows your attitude.

Try engaging the AP while doing some unusual attitudes and report back what the Dynon does.

The AP works even better when driven by the SkyView!
 
N941WR said:
I would disagree with this statement.
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As would I. The "experts" in this case are expressing brand loyalty and nothing more.

My Dynon autopilot has worked well enough, in both VMC and IMC conditions, for me over the last several years and trips that I have zero complaints or reservations about doing it.


N941WR said:
The AP works even better when driven by the SkyView!
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This is actually one of my bigger reservations about going to SkyView ... that they did something that goons up the autopilot.
 
ChiefPilot said:
N941WR said:
The AP works even better when driven by the SkyView!
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This is actually one of my bigger reservations about going to SkyView ... that they did something that goons up the autopilot.
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The SkyView has more processing power and can get "feedback" from the servos, so it is much smoother and just an all around better AP experience. (I've flown a number of hours with both systems and can't say enough good things about the SkyView.)
 
More experienced pilots than my almost 70 hours have said you should not use the AP in turbulance. Let the airplane ride the waves without the added stress of the AP trying to maintain altitude and attitude.
 
Raymo said:
More experienced pilots than my almost 70 hours have said you should not use the AP in turbulance. Let the airplane ride the waves without the added stress of the AP trying to maintain altitude and attitude.
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There's turbulence and then there's TURBULENCE. Ok to use the a/p in "small t" turbulence like surface heating updrafts. Where you usually hear about disconnecting the a/p is when you're caught in convective turbulence. In that case, just keep the wings level and let the altitude vary to avoid over stressing the airframe. Not as simple or easy as all that of course, but better than letting "George" get you into some sort of phugoid oscillation inside a cloud.
 
The statement about ifr use had to do with redundancy, not how well the autopilot worked. If you loose your EFIS, will you be okay with losing your autopilot too? The formal rules require no redundancy or backups. How much you choose - from zero to triple backups, or more - is up to the individual to decide.
And yes, everyone expresses brand loyalty, because we all think we made the best choice. I know I did! -:)
 
AP

Excellent comments. Brand loyalty... nothing wrong with that. I was a little concerned before making my choice as I had read that Dynon had some teething issues early on with their AP's. I did speak with Stein before the purchase and he stated Dynon had pretty much ironed out all the earlier AP problems. Having the D100/D120, I had wanted to stay with Dynon if at all possible and as reported in my initial post I'm very happy with everything. I can just imagine the SV is a superior platform to work from. If I'd made my avionics purchases a year later then I'd probably have it in the cockpit. Overall, I'm very VERY pleased with all my Dynon products. From everything I read about TT, they are and excellent choice as well. To me, it's just amazing the technology we have available to us. I can guess that we're flying behind cockpit setups that are far superior to commercial airliners of not so many years ago. Rambeling on a bit here but I completed my 7A and first flew it April 1st of 2012. I've come to believe that our RV's are serious cross county machines. With the range and cruise speeds not to mention the avionics package available to experimental airplane builders... well you'd have to spend a few hundred thousand to get the same numbers from a certified airplane. I'm still wearing my RV grin!
 
With Dual Skyviews and the Dynon Autopilot it works well. Occasionally in a hour of level flight it will begin oscillate in pitch with what seems like the unit chasing the altitude about 40 feet either side of the desired altitude...I generally disconnect the Pitch mode and then reengage the autopilot and all if fine until the next time.

I will say... on GPS approaches coupled with the GTN 650... it will split a runway centerline... I am extremely impressed with it's capabilities.
The VNAV Reference will vary a bit... but generally it does a great job.

It is not a 200,000 autopilot FMS system like we have in our Challenger and Hawker but for what you pay for your getting a lot for the buck. The entire system beats either our Hawker of Challenger when you consider the SYN Vision. ADS-B. LPV approaches, and has many of the same items... like hold the HDG and you get SYNC. HOld ALT and it will SYNC and a few items we don't have like hold the AP disconnect button during takeoff and the AP engages wings level. holding the VS you have established. ...items... that might never exist for our
Challenger 601-3A.... It might become a boat anchor in 2020

Smilin' Jack
 
I am very happy with the SkyView autopilot in my -10, especially after switching to the linear pitch servo. The AP was my biggest concern, and I have no regrets and would do it again. The control module would be nice but I have dual screens side by side which gives me three knobs for the autopilot and one for the map so I doubt I'll ever get the module. My "other" autopilot is a Boeing.
 
Glide slope

I've had the Dynon autopilot from the beginning (now have 700 hrs, lots of cross country, and 6 years) and am quite happy except for glide slope. I have D100 and D120, not Skywiew and Dynon has given up on them and does not plan to update so the system will fly the glide slope. Very disappointing since Skyview has that feature and it would make their "older" systems complete.
Makes me feel like they really don't care about their customers that much after they sell you the goods. Confusing to me because their other backup, Mike in particular, has been outstanding.
 
In our -10 we started out with a Dynon D-10A and D-10 EMS with a Truztrak Digiflight II-G. Then we upgraded to the VSGV and upgraded our 430 to WAAS. We were extremely happy with that setup. That was in 2005/6. Then a few years later we upgraded to the D-180 and not long after that we installed the Dynon servos, the HS-34 and the AP-74. At first it wasn't nearly as stable as the TruTrak, but it greatly improved with time. This was the first Dynon installation in a -10. We were still happy with it, but missed the glideslope. We liked some features more than the TruTrak. Then we upgraded to the Skyview system and loved the features as hey we're added. Having only one screen and before the AP Control Panel and Knob Panel, it required a fair bit of button pushing to couple things up on an approach while being stepped down and vectored. Then we upgraded to the Skyview Touch, which simplified things greatly. Then adding the AP Control Panel and Knob Panel make flying with the Skyview a dream. I have installed many Dunon Auto Pilots by now, and am extremely happy with them. We have had a few installations that seem to go through servos, but overall I am very happy with their system.

They likely won't upgrade the D-series software to include vertical coupling, but the features on that system, IMHO, are on par with that system, very stable and medium level features. If you want the advanced features, then the Skyview is the system for you, and the upgrade is easier than most would think. I can upgrade a D-series panel to a Skyview panel in 3 days all told.

Dynon still sells and still supports their D-series product line. They have just gotten them to be so stable and feature rich for that level of system that they likely don't spend a lot of engineering time on a system that is good enough as it is.
 
Skyview autopilot settings for RV6

Cannot seem to get my Skyview autopilot pitch settings right so it is not chasing altitude all the time. Anyone got settings that work for an RV6?:D
 
The first thing I would check is the static system for a leak. Then, just change the activity a lot at a time and see if it gets better or worse, then spit the difference until you find a happy place. I don't have settings off hand for a -6, sorry.
 
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