Annunciator Overhaul PIREP

[cnoe]

My annunciator was going tango uniform with various symptoms recently such as incomplete indications pushing the test button during pre-flight. I was aware of the SB to replace resistors on the board to make the low-fuel lights more reliable, but that wasn't necessarily going to solve my other problems such as erroneous intermittent vacuum and voltage indications.

Having a nice JPI 830 I have no plans to install a new "primary" engine monitor and toss out the original annunciator anytime soon (or build out a new idiot-light system). I wanted to keep my annunciator, but to suit me it needs to be functional as I'm of the mindset that if it doesn't work it needs to be fixed. I'm not a big fan of "inop" stickers.

 So I began weighing my options. A couple of used annunciators were available for ~$250-$300 but how long would they remain functional?

On another MS thread or two there were discussions of self-service repair, non-aviation electronics-shop repair, and returning the unit to International Avionics Inc. for OEM repair. While I'm pretty handy with a soldering gun and can certainly pop a new resistor onto a PCB I'm no electronics wizard. I can run a multi-meter but not an oscilloscope. Next, I have a qualified electronics shop that repairs my music amplifiers etc. but they don't have schematics for my annunciator and I couldn't log the repair even if they got it right. There were conflicting posts about the manufacturer (IA) with one quote of $1,200 (IIRC) for overhaul and another person quoting $600 but stating that they had a serious personality conflict with the technician they spoke to over the phone. I certainly didn't want to pay more than a AMU for a simple repair but then again I liked the idea of getting it done right. Plus as somebody else put it "it's nice to know that IA is still supporting these aging Mooneys".

I decided to give them a call (they don't have a web presence) to inquire about getting my unit serviced and was quickly transferred to the person who would be doing the work (Kenneth). This person was a bit aloof I will say but he was not rude or condescending to me as one poster suggested. We discussed my issues and he convinced me that an "overhaul" would be in my best interest as the annunciator was 37 years old (1978 M20J) and he couldn't guarantee that it would be reliable otherwise. So I inquired about pricing and he said he could bring it to like-new condition for $550.00 + shipping. It sounded fair to me and I don't mind giving a little support to people who help keep our birds in the air, so off it went.

About a week later Kenneth called to say the unit was ready to ship and offered to ship it on my UPS account number which saved me a couple of bucks. The bill was exactly as quoted at $550. When the unit arrived I opened it up and was very pleased to find that the "overhaul" was an entirely "new" unit with the exception of the enclosure. The PC board assembly had been replaced with a brand new board and electronics. The bulbs were all new. The graphics strip ("gear, vac, fuel, volts, etc.") was new along with a new lens. The faceplate was original. And it seems to work perfectly so far!

It takes <15 minutes to remove/install including removing the glareshield so even with A&P labor it should be an inexpensive job.

Often times you get what you pay for, and in this case I got an essentially new annunciator, from the original manufacturer, including installation, all for less than $600. I found it to be a good deal. YMMV.

 

[Openwheeler3]

Good to hear...

[carusoam]

Great report, CNOE.

Best regards,

-a-