When I started to build my RV-6A back in 1997 I decided that a good 6-pack of steam gauges were relatively inexpensive, reliable, easy to install, and companies had been around since the Wright Brothers. Glass was new, no clear indications the companies would be around for service, and as a aero/mechanical engineer, glass had way too much electrical stuff to learn about (I shy away from electronics like other do fiberglass). My flying is VFR with limited cross country so I have never needed anything fancy. With the advent of the iPad, I added glass on my knee with all the great charts and ADS-B weather and traffic. Now after 8 years of building and 10 years of flying I have seen the light of glass.
Below is a picture of my panel. I still like it and would not even be thinking of changing except items have begun to fail (vacuum pump and flight data recorder) and maybe instead of repairing/replacing, it is finaly time to upgrade.
The only "advanced" item on the panel is the Flight Performance Recorder from Pegasus Technology (just to the left of the breaker sub-panel). I love that thing as is collects (or calculates), displays, and records:
- airspeed (IAS, CAS, TAS, ground speed)
- Altitude (Pressure and density)
- course
- Manifold Pressure
- RPM
- % Horsepower
- fuel flow, fuel used
- Date and time
- Lat and Long
- OAT
- Gs
The software that came with it was great to create all my perfomance plots and playback flights. Unfortunately the recorder finally died last week. Pegasus Tech sort of dropped off the experimental scene 3 years before I flew (13 years ago) so no one around to help trouble shoot the unit.
Also, yesterday my vacuum pump quit working so the artificial horizon and directional gyro are in-operative.
What I would want is something that fits into the spot of the Artificial Horizon and directional gyro and provided typical EFIS functions. Not looking at doing an entire new panel, just plug some glass in spots of current instruments. Aspen appears to be the only one I have found that fits that form factor but they are pretty pricey as they only have stuff that is certified. I would like something for the experimental market that is not quit so pricey. The Dynon D10A also would fit where a single gyro was removed.
The other requirement I have is that I would like to have the EFIS record my flight including most of the parameters I listed above. In the online literture I have not found what parameters any of the EFIS may record and are able to download to my computer for plotting.
I would appreciate any recommendation for options to give me some glass and data recording capability without redoing my entire panel.
Below is a picture of my panel. I still like it and would not even be thinking of changing except items have begun to fail (vacuum pump and flight data recorder) and maybe instead of repairing/replacing, it is finaly time to upgrade.
The only "advanced" item on the panel is the Flight Performance Recorder from Pegasus Technology (just to the left of the breaker sub-panel). I love that thing as is collects (or calculates), displays, and records:
- airspeed (IAS, CAS, TAS, ground speed)
- Altitude (Pressure and density)
- course
- Manifold Pressure
- RPM
- % Horsepower
- fuel flow, fuel used
- Date and time
- Lat and Long
- OAT
- Gs
The software that came with it was great to create all my perfomance plots and playback flights. Unfortunately the recorder finally died last week. Pegasus Tech sort of dropped off the experimental scene 3 years before I flew (13 years ago) so no one around to help trouble shoot the unit.
Also, yesterday my vacuum pump quit working so the artificial horizon and directional gyro are in-operative.
What I would want is something that fits into the spot of the Artificial Horizon and directional gyro and provided typical EFIS functions. Not looking at doing an entire new panel, just plug some glass in spots of current instruments. Aspen appears to be the only one I have found that fits that form factor but they are pretty pricey as they only have stuff that is certified. I would like something for the experimental market that is not quit so pricey. The Dynon D10A also would fit where a single gyro was removed.
The other requirement I have is that I would like to have the EFIS record my flight including most of the parameters I listed above. In the online literture I have not found what parameters any of the EFIS may record and are able to download to my computer for plotting.
I would appreciate any recommendation for options to give me some glass and data recording capability without redoing my entire panel.
Last edited: