25 & 26 May 2024
Canopy lights / USB wiring, HVAC ducting, joystick interconnect fitment
Completed wiring for canopy lights and USB port in the canopy. Soldered negative leads and applied D-sub connectors to the ends of the positive and negative (female positive, male negative) to enable future replacement of the lights and USB fitting if required. Heat shrink tube was applied to the USB port's leads to complete the wiring and it was then screwed in place using 12mm countersunk allen head stainless steel M4 machine screws with a little Loctite 222 applied. Shrink will be applied to the light leads when ready for final installation. For reference the wiring colours are:
Position 1 - copilot - orange & white; position 2 - pilot - green & white; position 3 - right rear - blue & white; position 4 - left rear - white. Thick white is negative.
Riveted one side each (insides) of the left and right joystick control cover side plates, checked for free motion of the joysticks - still smooth. Left the other sides off to access wiring in future.
Temporarily positioned the inside side skins and measured for the side duct inlets and SCEET tube positions, along with the Aerosport Products NACA vent controllers. Marked the rear vent outlet position on the SCEET tubes and cut to suit. Trimmed the AveoAir Maxi SCAT tube adapter rings to suit the width of the SCEET tubes in the side channels. Installed the adapters and duct vents in the SCEET tube and secured with a combination of Flame Master and black automotive silicone sealant. The silicone adhered better to the SCEET tube than the Flame Master. Both were extremely messy to work with, some cleanup will be required.
Installed 2x M4 rivnuts with Loctite 277 on the rear of the control closeout ribs closest to the center console.
Fitted aileron interconnect pushrod. Aligned both joysticks to 90 degrees (vertical), which was time-consuming, and once achieved tightened the locknuts on the interconnect pushrod after applying Loctite 243.
Drilled rib 2 and the center console to accommodate LEMO headset jacks. I've decided to only fit LEMO jacks to simplify the wiring. Adapters to normal GA plugs can be used if required.
