Interesting find

It's easy when you know what you're doing. It's $#%#$ witchcraft when you don't.

It's something I can learn, sure, it's just not something I wanted to learn on the fly.
One of my A/P instructors was an old fart from back when they flew Mustangs in anger. He passed out a booklet called "The Hydraulics Of Electrics" that he claimed he wrote, maybe he did, I don't know. It helped to understand the electrons when you'd old picture them as a fluid, or at least it helped me because the most complicated wiring I'd ever done was installing a car stereo that would occasionally for no apparent reason drain the battery. If I still had it I'd copy it and send it to you. As far as zip ties go, they do have their place, if you dig deep enough you can find the correct Gulfstream P/N in the IPC. But if you decide to use them buy a set of flush cut dikes, if they aren't cut flush they turn into fish hooks with razors on the ends and you'll end up looking like you got in a fight with your cat if you ever have to get back in there. The proper and more difficult, time consuming method is Adel clamps, just be ready sure no one is around when you first start using them because you'll be cussing. A lot. Good luck.
 
One of my A/P instructors was an old fart from back when they flew Mustangs in anger. He passed out a booklet called "The Hydraulics Of Electrics" that he claimed he wrote, maybe he did, I don't know. It helped to understand the electrons when you'd old picture them as a fluid, or at least it helped me because the most complicated wiring I'd ever done was installing a car stereo that would occasionally for no apparent reason drain the battery.

Ohms law (not really a law), Thevenin and Norton equivalents, parallel equivalents and voltage dividers are probably the only electronics concepts you need to know troubleshooting anything airplane related. Those are all covered in the first 2 chapters of any textbook covering lumped circuit analysis (1st year EE stuff).
 
Ohms law (not really a law), Thevenin and Norton equivalents, parallel equivalents and voltage dividers are probably the only electronics concepts you need to know troubleshooting anything airplane related. Those are all covered in the first 2 chapters of any textbook covering lumped circuit analysis (1st year EE stuff).
You don't need to be an engineer to troubleshoot an airplane, and those aren't the basics. I'm glad you're happy with your degree but unless you're bench testing avionics it's not required. If someone can operate an analog Simpson or a Fluke digital multimeter with a bit of proficiency they'll be able to figure out most issues. It has more to do with experience and knowing how to use those tools to figure out what you are or are not looking for, it's time on the floor.
 
You don't need to be an engineer to troubleshoot an airplane, and those aren't the basics. I'm glad you're happy with your degree but unless you're bench testing avionics it's not required. If someone can operate an analog Simpson or a Fluke digital multimeter with a bit of proficiency they'll be able to figure out most issues. It has more to do with experience and knowing how to use those tools to figure out what you are or are not looking for, it's time on the floor.
Wait what? You’re suggesting that it’s not necessary to understand ohms law to troubleshoot DC electrical systems?
 
Wait what? You’re suggesting that it’s not necessary to understand ohms law to troubleshoot DC electrical systems?
No that's not what I said, the post I qouted said Ohms Law isn't really a law anyway and then listed some terms that I'm not familiar with or I've forgotten. My point was having a basic understanding of DC electricity and to a lesser extent AC and being able to use the most common tools available (maybe a Simpson is a bit outdated but so is a Wheatstone Bridge right?) will be enough to solve most aircraft electrical issues. This is not engineering, it's basic...
IMG_0551.GIF
 
One of my A/P instructors was an old fart from back when they flew Mustangs in anger. He passed out a booklet called "The Hydraulics Of Electrics" that he claimed he wrote, maybe he did, I don't know. It helped to understand the electrons when you'd old picture them as a fluid, or at least it helped me because the most complicated wiring I'd ever done was installing a car stereo that would occasionally for no apparent reason drain the battery. If I still had it I'd copy it and send it to you. As far as zip ties go, they do have their place, if you dig deep enough you can find the correct Gulfstream P/N in the IPC. But if you decide to use them buy a set of flush cut dikes, if they aren't cut flush they turn into fish hooks with razors on the ends and you'll end up looking like you got in a fight with your cat if you ever have to get back in there. The proper and more difficult, time consuming method is Adel clamps, just be ready sure no one is around when you first start using them because you'll be cussing. A lot. Good luck.

I've got the free world's supply of adel clamps in various sizes, and a WONDERFUL tool for compressing them and aligning them when you try to get a screw through. It's basically a set of channel-locks with a u-shaped "duckbill" on the end.

Anyway....I've got the basic concepts in my head, I just have to apply them. Like, I'm going to be switching from a keyed ignition to a pushbutton. I've got Pmags from emagair. I *think* I can follow the wiring diagram, but I'll be damned if I wouldn't be more comfortable getting some help from someone on that. So I'm going to.

The rest of the avionics stuff I can do. Research has shown me that - at least at the experimental/GA level - it's not that much more complicated than wiring a telephone system, and I've been doing those for years.
 
I've got the free world's supply of adel clamps in various sizes, and a WONDERFUL tool for compressing them and aligning them when you try to get a screw through. It's basically a set of channel-locks with a u-shaped "duckbill" on the end.

Anyway....I've got the basic concepts in my head, I just have to apply them. Like, I'm going to be switching from a keyed ignition to a pushbutton. I've got Pmags from emagair. I *think* I can follow the wiring diagram, but I'll be damned if I wouldn't be more comfortable getting some help from someone on that. So I'm going to.

The rest of the avionics stuff I can do. Research has shown me that - at least at the experimental/GA level - it's not that much more complicated than wiring a telephone system, and I've been doing those for years.
Just make sure the prop arc is clear the first time you hit the master after changing that ignition switch….
 
I know a mechanic that was working on a Citation V that was having strange intermittent avionics and inverter problems. He found a piece of metal laying between terminals on the AC and Avionics master switches. The airplane was new to the shop and owner. I do not think they ever found out where the metal came from.

Elec problem.JPG
 
We had a G-IV that was acting up once, we ended up pulling the PDB and I found a 12 point 1/4" drive 1/4" socket floating around in there when I disassembled it to replace one of the "big" contractors inside. I also found one of the terminals on the contactor overtorqued and it had broken the housing allowing intermittent contact. I was not a happy camper. The Power Distribution Box is the heart of the electrical system on those airplanes where all of those 8 gage wires finally meet up in the lower R/H radio rack and it's a headache to remove and install, but you can't access it unless it's removed. Oh well, water under the bridge.
 
Just make sure the prop arc is clear the first time you hit the master after changing that ignition switch….

Yup. This is why I seek adult supervision from my local A&P whenever I tackle things like this.

I’ll let you know how it all goes. :)


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I wonder if these days there aren’t online tools you can use to learn some of the basics we went through in DC electricity class. Seems like a DC troubleshooting training app wouldn’t be hard to do. Just remember, in DC Ohms law rules all.
I'm sure Youtube will come to my rescue.

This maybe the educational equivalent of using a sledge hammer to hang a picture, but MIT offers free online courseware. This is the closest I could see related to basic electricity. They also have aerospace engineering courses, if you're so inclined.

 
I've got the free world's supply of adel clamps in various sizes, and a WONDERFUL tool for compressing them and aligning them when you try to get a screw through. It's basically a set of channel-locks with a u-shaped "duckbill" on the end.

Anyway....I've got the basic concepts in my head, I just have to apply them. Like, I'm going to be switching from a keyed ignition to a pushbutton. I've got Pmags from emagair. I *think* I can follow the wiring diagram, but I'll be damned if I wouldn't be more comfortable getting some help from someone on that. So I'm going to.

The rest of the avionics stuff I can do. Research has shown me that - at least at the experimental/GA level - it's not that much more complicated than wiring a telephone system, and I've been doing those for years.
I bought a pair of those adel clamp vice grips a long time ago, I think I've only used them a dozen times over the years. You're right, they work beautifully on a bench, but it's been my anecdotal experience that there's rarely enough room to use them properly. Something like this will actually be more handy and you can make your own...
 
This maybe the educational equivalent of using a sledge hammer to hang a picture, but MIT offers free online courseware. This is the closest I could see related to basic electricity. They also have aerospace engineering courses, if you're so inclined.

Way overkill - and more focused on AC power. This one covers all of the basics, including the how to use a meter and scope stuff:

 
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