DMJones Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 My wonderful KFC150 is failing the self test. I've been through the various threads here, and done some trouble shooting, as well as visiting the local avionics shop. The locals were helpful, but are NOT a King dealer and don't have the appropriate test gear to adequately diagnose the specific problem. They did let me know "it's broken"... So, I'm looking for a reputable King dealer in/around metro Atlanta. I've tried Precision Avionics in Griffin, but Scotty's so backed up, he won't even let me schedule an appointment for the next month. Epps (KPDK) sounds good over the phone, but I have no experience with them. I have spoken with Autopilot Central in Tulsa, but that's a looooong way to go for what will hopefully be an easy fix. If not, I'll head over there. Any others, or recommendations? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldguy Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 One of the Mooney pilots here in Alabama has used Stark Avionics in Columbus (KCSG) with success on his AP. I have used them for other avionics-related work and also had good results. Did AP Central say you needed to have the plane with the unit or could you just send it in to them? Usually I read of folks sending their unit in for repair rather than flying the plane there. I will say you may come out cheaper to fly to Tulsa, have AP Central repair it and fly back then taking it to Epps based on some of the experiences I have read here on MS. The Search function on MS is your friend.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LANCECASPER Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 29 minutes ago, DMJones said: My wonderful KFC150 is failing the self test. I've been through the various threads here, and done some trouble shooting, as well as visiting the local avionics shop. The locals were helpful, but are NOT a King dealer and don't have the appropriate test gear to adequately diagnose the specific problem. They did let me know "it's broken"... So, I'm looking for a reputable King dealer in/around metro Atlanta. I've tried Precision Avionics in Griffin, but Scotty's so backed up, he won't even let me schedule an appointment for the next month. Epps (KPDK) sounds good over the phone, but I have no experience with them. I have spoken with Autopilot Central in Tulsa, but that's a looooong way to go for what will hopefully be an easy fix. If not, I'll head over there. Any others, or recommendations? Thanks Before taking it to Epps runs a search of Epps on Mooneyspace (all content). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMJones Posted March 2, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 4 hours ago, Oldguy said: One of the Mooney pilots here in Alabama has used Stark Avionics in Columbus (KCSG) with success on his AP. I have used them for other avionics-related work and also had good results. Did AP Central say you needed to have the plane with the unit or could you just send it in to them? Usually I read of folks sending their unit in for repair rather than flying the plane there. I will say you may come out cheaper to fly to Tulsa, have AP Central repair it and fly back then taking it to Epps based on some of the experiences I have read here on MS. The Search function on MS is your friend.... Looks like Epps has some issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMJones Posted March 2, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 4 hours ago, LANCECASPER said: Before taking it to Epps runs a search of Epps on Mooneyspace (all content). Hmmmmm. Looks like I'm flying it to Tulsa. Unless there's another option.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldguy Posted March 2, 2017 Report Share Posted March 2, 2017 17 minutes ago, DMJones said: Hmmmmm. Looks like I'm flying it to Tulsa. Unless there's another option.... When you spoke with AP Central, did they say you needed to bring the plane or did the discussion get that far? When you say it fails the self test, what are the symptoms? We all love to diagnose someone else's problems and then spend their money to fix it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlthig Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 Does anyone know anything about Precision Air in SC? They are listed on Mooney as a service center. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMJones Posted March 3, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 3 hours ago, Oldguy said: When you spoke with AP Central, did they say you needed to bring the plane or did the discussion get that far? When you say it fails the self test, what are the symptoms? We all love to diagnose someone else's problems and then spend their money to fix it. We talked on the phone twice today. They need some more info, but it's looking like one of the servos is bad. It's possible I may just be able to send them the part. The a/p has been working fine until a few days ago, but I've always been in a hurry, so I haven't gone through all the various "diagnostic steps" to discern what's specifically wrong. When i run the self test, the thing beeps continually and the trim light stays on. There's more, so I plan on heading to the hangar on Saturday to detail the symptoms... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan1016 Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 RainAir over in Birmingham, AL helped me with a bad remote gyro. Gary McCall is the guy. I recommend him. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldguy Posted March 3, 2017 Report Share Posted March 3, 2017 14 hours ago, DMJones said: We talked on the phone twice today. They need some more info, but it's looking like one of the servos is bad. It's possible I may just be able to send them the part. The a/p has been working fine until a few days ago, but I've always been in a hurry, so I haven't gone through all the various "diagnostic steps" to discern what's specifically wrong. When i run the self test, the thing beeps continually and the trim light stays on. There's more, so I plan on heading to the hangar on Saturday to detail the symptoms... That would be great except for the removing the darn thing. What a pain! Good luck. I have read they are usually able to rebuild servos over there. 14 hours ago, Bryan1016 said: RainAir over in Birmingham, AL helped me with a bad remote gyro. Gary McCall is the guy. I recommend him. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk I have had Gary do some work on my first couple of planes (brand C) and will chime in as someone I trust to work on my avionics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMJones Posted March 24, 2017 Author Report Share Posted March 24, 2017 Major victory today. I decided to wait until I could get in to see Scotty Collins, Precision Avionics, Griffin, GA. They got right into the aircraft, and spent about four hours trouble-shooting every aspect of the autopilot. After extensive digging around, one of the techs rebuilt the yoke trim switch ON SITE! Re-installed it and it worked like a charm. After hearing estimates in the "several thousands" of dollars, my bill came to $397. Total. Boom. These guys are awesome. It was worth the wait, and worth the trip down there. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whiskytango Posted March 24, 2017 Report Share Posted March 24, 2017 2 hours ago, DMJones said: Major victory today. I decided to wait until I could get in to see Scotty Collins, Precision Avionics, Griffin, GA. They got right into the aircraft, and spent about four hours trouble-shooting every aspect of the autopilot. After extensive digging around, one of the techs rebuilt the yoke trim switch ON SITE! Re-installed it and it worked like a charm. After hearing estimates in the "several thousands" of dollars, my bill came to $397. Total. Boom. These guys are awesome. It was worth the wait, and worth the trip down there. That is great news! I am at KSAV and will keep them in mind when I need avionics work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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