Ragsf15e

Fly over to the coast and then up along I5. You can generally stay low enough to get in vfr or light ifr and you’ll be below any ice. Mostly. If you try going through the Columbia gorge, the minimum ifr altitude is 8-9k. I canceled a trip through there last june 15 for icing.

My 430 is computing density alt from baro and temp. My GTX345 doesn’t display it as it doesn’t get temp (even though the 430 does). Yes I have a g5 hsi with magnameter and that info along with baro is passed to the 430... but not IAS. Btw this is definitely a first world problem because all these inputs are easy to dial into the 430 manually.

My jpi930 sends temp data to my 430w and that auto populates on the air data page. Something else (myG5?or maybe gtx-345?) sends baro altitude because that auto populates too. Heading must also come from the G5s... however, IAS doesn’t?! WTH? Everything except Airspeed auto populates. You input the IASand it pops out the TAS, wind speed and wind direction. Seems weird they couldn’t just do airspeed too?

Nice job getting data. I’ve tried the lower rpm up around 10k and my sense was more like 3kts slower at 2400, but I didn’t get the data.

Ahh yes, that’s more difficult. I didn’t like doing it at 1000rpm with chocks and my wife on the brakes! I was able to check it at my power conditioner on the firewall through the oil dipstick door.

Showoff. I bet she’s still making 65% power too!

Supposedly the only way to get roller lifters is a factory new or rebuilt. You can get DLC coated lifters though and those are supposed to remedy the cam spalling issue just as well.

I recently had some low voltage issues and eventually traced it to a slightly worn/corroded connection from the battery to the bus. Easiest way for me to trace it was to take a voltmeter and work my way back from the alternator running at 14V to the power conditioner, to the alternator circuit breaker, to the bus, to the battery connection at the bus. Solid 14v all the way until the battery wire connection at the bus. Sanded it, reattached, problem solved. Be careful checking alternator output because the engine is running! Use some wire clips to stand safely away. Zeftronics and PP voltage regulators have troubleshooting guides on their website that have you check voltage from the battery through the system to the alternator without the engine running. This got me close but I wasn’t sure until I measured with the alternator on.

I’d say cost and fitting legacy panel space. If you want to remove a vacuum ADI and DG, and just pop in 2xGI275s, boom! You’ve got awesome, current avionics in the exact same holes. (It does take some integration wiring for autopilot, gps, etc). If you’re cutting a whole new panel, the G3x is an awesome option with lots of possibilities... built in engine monitor, pfd/mfd capability, integrated traffic and weather, bigger screen, etc.

Yes I definitely agree.

We’re getting in the “power curve” here. You can be “behind the power curve” and not stalled. In that case it actually takes more power to go slower (think slow flight). Theoretically, it will take less power to go faster but you have to get there first! In slow flight you have extra power available and can accelerate. At cruise you’re already at full. Assuming you are already at full power, you will not accelerate, you will have to descend to accelerate and then possibly to climb higher. I definitely wouldn’t think cruising less than Vy is gonna be very successful?

I fly an F in Washington state and down through Idaho, Nevada, Utah a lot. It will get up to the mid teens but it’s not really happy up there if it’s warm and/or you’re loaded anywhere near gross. Clearly you can get the airplane higher (see the post about going to FL220), but comfortable cruising ended for me through about 14,500 on a warm day (DA may have been much higher). Your engine is getting pretty close to about 50% power... 100hp! As @TTaylorsaid, somewhere around 9gph and 140kts is all you’ll see up there. Up that high, rich of peak and 2600+ rpm are your friends! Additionally, be careful around the mountains because your climb rate can easily be overcome by a good downdraft, rotor, or mountain wave (the sinking part obviously, the up part is awesome!).

It’s a good option, just factor in keeping or adding an appropriate AI backup like a gi275 or G5. By the time you add the backup and install, the g3x solution is definitely more than fitting 2xgi275s. Cutting the panel for the g3x is likely significant...

Imo, having two gps units is overkill. They are very reliable. If you lose one you’ll have to tell atc anyway (that’s a good thing) and they will help you get where you need to go. You should probably have some type of approach capability on your #2 radio like vor or ils. Realistically, you’ll probably have 3+ GPSs in the cockpit in order to navigate (ipads, phones, stratus, etc.). None of it legal, but it’ll get you home. Still want a backup approach though. I personally wouldn’t have counted my stratus as a backup AI. I did have it set up before I went with dual G5s and it could be used like that. It’s good situational awareness, but to me it’s a bit flakey once in a while. Maybe it was my older iPads fault? I now have my gtx345 as an ahrs ipad source but I would be in bad shape if I was down to that. I have read stories where people recovered on the stratus/ipad after Vac failure. I’d like something dedicated like the dynon pocketpanel or a certified rc allen electronic AI, etc. The avidyne solutions are just fine. Some like them better. They do everything Garmin does... however, if you’re eventually going to put in other Garmin equipment like transponders, g3x, g5s, gi275s, gfc500, etc then it’s best to stick with Garmin because it integrates better.

I think a backup AI is an excellent investment and can be swapped for the TC at a reasonable cost. Even an older electrical/mechanical one accomplishes the goal. It’s the new waas gps/com, multi-screen glass, and integrated ADSB systems that go way over the top of what we “need”. Are they nice? Heck ya! Should we be so exclusive in our little pilot community that we tell people without that kind of gear that they can’t fly IFR safely? Definitely not.

Two important points... 1. You want someone to be safer? How about supporting them getting their Instrument rating no matter their equipment? That rating and the improvement in your skill is about the best possible investment a pilot can make. Sure, should we fly solid IMC to mins all the time with minimal equipment? No. We can certainly spend opm and suggest great panels for people with all kinds of instrument missions, but regardless of their equipment, instrument training is a great idea. 2. If we make our own “rules” about what is safe or not safe in general aviation and these “rules” exclude 90% of the current fleet and exceed the budget of 90% of the pilot population, we are only hastening the demise of GA. I do not want to watch GA turn (further) into something only “rich” people can afford to do. There are certainly nice things people can spend their money on to improve their airplanes, but let’s make sure we know the budget, mission, and personal goals before we tell them what they “must” have.

I think Garmin quit doing the waas upgrades. I think you’re left with buying a used waas 430w if you want to “upgrade”. Im not sure of the exact timing on their announcement.

I’m sure waas is available in his area, but learning to fly an lnav and learning to fly an lpv separately isn’t really required imo. He’s gonna learn ILS for precision approach and he’ll learn 90% of gps approaches in lnav. Does waas add anything except going below lnav mins? He can do all the enroute stuff exactly the same. All the gps approaches work without waas. When he eventually flys with waas, he’ll probably nail the lpv because it’s likely easier than the ils. Would i train with adf and a single vor? Probably not. An airplane with an ifr gps and ils however is flying 95% of what he’ll use in the future anyway.

I’d do nothing for now. What you’ve got is plenty capable. Get your rating, learn more what you like or don’t like. Talk with people about what they like. Think it through and do it when you really know what you want. The 430 will give you rnav approaches to non precision mins and ils to 200’. You shouldn’t be flying approaches that low in the weather as a brand new instrument pilot anyway. You’ve got time to think.

So I’ll offer a contrarian view... what are you using the iPad for? Do you need it in your sight all flight or just to check once in a while like your sectional? So if you’re using it to display traffic from ADSB, you’ll want it mounted in plain sight. I have a mini on my right side for this. It is really too small to read anything well in FF, but you can see traffic, glide ring, and nearby airports reasonably. If you want to use it as a map, for checking weather on occasion, looking up atis freq, etc, don’t mount it. Put in on your lap or the copilot seat/lap. It will sit there most of the flight if you like to look outside. Sometimes I put mine in a bag on the floor right in front of my seat. If I’m flying an instrument approach I have it on my lap just like I would have the paper chart. I swear some of the whippersnappers these days fly the whole sortie staring at 2 ipads and a phone! The Ram mount is on the far right edge of this picture for my traffic display.

@PT20J has a good description in this recent thread about ammeters...

Keep in mind that your EDM (or original gages) is reporting amperage to/from the battery. It’s only the charging amps. Or, in the case of alt/gen fail, it’s the discharge from the battery. You shouldn’t really have a change or increase with “everything on”. Now it might be higher just after engine start, and lower in cruise after the battery is recharged, but it shouldn’t change significantly with load as long as your charging system keeps up (voltage stays constant) because your battery will accept the same charging amps. After start your amps are higher because your battery is slightly discharged. My jpi930 does fluctuate a smidge between about 4-6amps during cruise which I just attribute to the jpi reading very accurately and the system trying to keep constant voltage with the strobes cycling. If you have a very high amp draw it could be a battery that is discharged or bad. Or it could just be instrumentation. Or other gremlins?

Pictures too??

Interesting. What does it do if there are multiple IAFs with different routes to the faf? I.e. an rnav T shaped approach.

Yes, that’s what I meant, but I think that way even if I’m planning vtf. That’s the “guess” part. I’m planning vtf, but I’m loading more than that just in case I get sent somewhere else. There’s lots of approaches with multiple iafs or IFs that could happen even though the pilot planned vtf.