Franken-Plane

[ozziecat35]

Ferried this ..."thing" to Arkansas this weekend for paint and we picked up 2 ex Riddle 172's with G1000's to come back. I thought the G1000's I normally ferry were glass heavy, then I ran into the shops avionics demo plane. I don't think this old 1976 M model 172 ever thought it would be supplying this much electric power. Supposedly the thing eats alternators, gee I wonder why?


Garmin G500. GTN750 and full digital engine monitoring. I will say the touch screen GTN750 spoils a guy. They put an autopilot in this thing too, not my money I guess, :shrugs:

 

[Roger Roger]

If it eats alternators it's probably because they're POS hartzell engine tech rebuilds. That whole stack probably pulls about as much current as the pitot heat and 1 KX175 boat anchor.

 

[ozziecat35]

If it eats alternators it's probably because they're POS hartzell engine tech rebuilds. That whole stack probably pulls about as much current as the pitot heat and 1 KX175 boat anchor.

Interesting, I'd have honestly thought it pulled a lot of current.

 

[Roger Roger]

Interesting, I'd have honestly thought it pulled a lot of current.

I just ran a load analysis on one of our planes. The full efis stack (dual screens, dual ahrs, dual adc, dual gps, adsb) was maybe 6 or 7 amps, the same as one pitot heat. modern stuff is mad efficient especially when you're comparing it to stuff like an electric pitot heat or even an old school flashing beacon.

Now an autopilot can suck down some juice, for example an old school KFC150 draws pretty close to 10 amps.

Of course the problem on an old school 172 is you're dealing with a 12 volt system so that 60 amp alternator only produces half as much power as a 28 volt plane.

 

[ozziecat35]

I just ran a load analysis on one of our planes. The full efis stack (dual screens, dual ahrs, dual adc, dual gps, adsb) was maybe 6 or 7 amps, the same as one pitot heat. modern stuff is mad efficient especially when you're comparing it to stuff like an electric pitot heat or even an old school flashing beacon.

Now an autopilot can suck down some juice, for example an old school KFC150 draws pretty close to 10 amps.

I guess with Solid State tech that makes sense. Weird thing with this plane was the beacon was causing a weird hum/beeping while in operation. Thought it was the transponder at first, but luckily was the beacon which we were happy to turn off.

 

[Roger Roger]

I guess with Solid State tech that makes sense. Weird thing with this plane was the beacon was causing a weird hum/beeping while in operation. Thought it was the transponder at first, but luckily was the beacon which we were happy to turn off.

Cessna beacons do some weird stuff sometimes. Should see what one does when it's hooked up to a battery charger and there is no battery in the system.

 

[kryan11]

I flew an Archer in a similar situation that was an avionics demo plane. I thought it was overkill, but that Cessna definitely takes the cake. The GTN 750 is really nice, throw on some music, turn on the autopilot, explore all that glass, and you'll forget there's a window to look out of.

 

[derg]

Looks neat, but if I ever bought an airplane, I'd have a basic six pack.

IFR, of course, so when I screwed up and misforecast the weather, I'd be able to land, but if it's not sunny, smooth and I had all the time in the world, I certainly would be out flying.

 

[somewhereupthere]

Overkill much? More $$$ in avionics than the value of the hull? More $$ than sense

 

[derg]

Overkill much? More $$$ in avionics than the value of the hull? More $$ than sense

Like a beat up Buick Regal with a $10,000 dollar stereo and $3,000 rims that keep spinnin' at the stop sign.

 

[Cptnchia]

Like a beat up Buick Regal with a $10,000 dollar stereo and $3,000 rims that keep spinnin' at the stop sign.

Because this statement needs a visual:

 

[derg]

Because this statement needs a visual:

That is sad. But that guy has probably seen a lot of tail.

 

[Roger Roger]

Overkill much? More $$$ in avionics than the value of the hull? More $$ than sense

Remember, this is an avionics demonstrator.

 

[somewhereupthere]

The one and only true franken-plane.. I present the frankenotter.. This was pieced together from something like 4 different Twotters.

 

[RRPower]

The one and only true franken-plane.. I present the frankenotter.. This was pieced together from something like 4 different Twotters.

Looks like the old ZW paint job in the middle. I thought we only had dash-7's. Maybe a twin otter was thrown in there too!

 

[Cptnchia]

The one and only true franken-plane.. I present the frankenotter.. This was pieced together from something like 4 different Twotters.

Typical jump plane.

 

[hammerhat]

I will say the touch screen GTN750 spoils a guy.

You liked it? I found it's difficult to use in turbulence, I'd much rather have physical knobs and buttons.

 

[ozziecat35]

You liked it? I found it's difficult to use in turbulence, I'd much rather have physical knobs and buttons.

For sure its a pain in turbulence. Actually hit some bad stuff over northern Arkansas. Still have a welt on my head from hitting the roof. You have to stabilize your hand with a finger on the side of the unit, def. not ideal in bumps.

 

[milleR]

You'd think they'd have found a more interesting plane to use. At least something with a turbo to show off the functionality of the EDM.

 

[gotWXdagain]

For sure its a pain in turbulence. Actually hit some bad stuff over northern Arkansas. Still have a welt on my head from hitting the roof. You have to stabilize your hand with a finger on the side of the unit, def. not ideal in bumps.

Look at the bottom of the 650 (and 750) screen, how there's that edge that sticks out. Really helps as a grip to stabilize your hand during turbulence. 650 moreso than 750 just because of the size of the thing, but the 650 crossfills and the 750 allows you to do drag-and-drop flight plan editing.