Geek's STi Build

[Shadowrider]

Garmin is great to work with. Had a servo go bad and they sent a replacement out to swap out ours. Questions on wiring I would just call them, or stein to get answers. Also had an issue with firmware upgrade and garmin was helpful in rolling back the firmware.

[Geek]

Garmin is great to work with. Had a servo go bad and they sent a replacement out to swap out ours. Questions on wiring I would just call them, or stein to get answers. Also had an issue with firmware upgrade and garmin was helpful in rolling back the firmware.

Thanks Dustin. I tried the calling thing and had really poor luck there (over an hour on hold and then it just hung up). BUT I did send them an email and got a response this morning. They are going to do a swap on the unit. No issues with the wiring - checked correct pins and voltage/grounds present - all good. Having that VPX which will show you the current draw on each of the circuits was king. Powered the avionics up and the GTR circuit had zero current draw. Remembered your early on issue with one of the VPX circuits so I swapped the radio over to another known good working circuit. Same result on that one. My GAD460 firmware upgraded perfectly so was real happy with that for certain.

Gary

[LetMeFly]

We now have Garmin support right on the forum! Check out this thread:
https://teamkitfox.com/Forums/thread...or-Team-Kitfox!

[Shadowrider]

Our VPX have been solid. Love the amp draw and how well they play with garmin. Easier to trouble shoot. Also alternate way to turn on or off things. Switch fails, you can manually turn any circuit using g3x. You will love the vpx. Cory had a voltage regulator go out and it caused a voltage spike. VPX took the alternator offline and alerted him. He flew home on the backup alternator, no big deal.

[Geek]

Our VPX have been solid. Love the amp draw and how well they play with garmin. Easier to trouble shoot. Also alternate way to turn on or off things. Switch fails, you can manually turn any circuit using g3x. You will love the vpx. Cory had a voltage regulator go out and it caused a voltage spike. VPX took the alternator offline and alerted him. He flew home on the backup alternator, no big deal.

Yup I've been impressed with it so far. I really like the options it provides (like the alternative switching) and I am a man who likes his options. With the 912is the B alternator set up is a bit different than the 912ULS or 914. I'm going to pulse the VPX guys to see if they have any insight/opinions on how I might best control the B while having the external out there. Back when I started this whole fun filled trip, I read pretty much all the build logs to try and get a sense for what I was in for. Yours was a good source and still is. When I was trying to make an engine decision and balance my checkbook with my wants, you and I got to talk on the phone and not for just a quick call. Thanks Dustin for all the help you provide to all of us. It's a solid don't you know.

Gary

[efwd]

I very much appreciated my VPX when it advised me of a power draw problem on my landing light on the right wing. One call to AeroLEDs and procurement of a welders helmet was pretty much all I needed. Stare into the bulbs with the helmet on to verify equal intensity in the bulbs then simply cleaned all the contacts in the connector. Viola. Thanks VPX!
Whish it had been able to tell me, of my radiator problem that wasn't actually a problem, before I replaced it. Now I have a few $$$ sitting on a shelf waiting for a true radiator issue.

[Kitfox Pilot]

[QUOTE
Whish it had been able to tell me, of my radiator problem that wasn't actually a problem, before I replaced it. Now I have a few $$$ sitting on a shelf waiting for a true radiator issue.[/QUOTE]

What was your issue if it wasn't the radiator?

[Geek]

While everything powered up correctly on my panel (other than the radio) there was an issue with the CANBUS on the Garmin G3x. Doing the system checks, sometimes the individual LRUs would start to log on correctly but then they would not. Only thing that would show as online was the primary flight display. Pretty much for the last week I have been troubleshooting the system and narrowed it down to the CANBUS high channel was sometimes shorting to ground. Normally this wouldn't be too big a deal to find. Just split the bus into two halves and see which side of the two was grounding. Split that section into two and so forth till you narrow it down. But in my case, the short was there, then it wasn't, then it was. Literally took every connector apart and checked the wiring for the short. About the time I would think I had it, the short would show up again. Took the complete bus apart three times and I guess the old adage of "Third time is a charm" was right on. On the third disassembly, I found one hair wire that had slipped outside the pin as I slid it on to crimp it. That one hair was moving around and intermittently shorting against the connector. Clipped the hair and the Garmin system logged on all its LRUs. Finished tying up all the wiring that I had taken apart in my trouble shooting, I installed the external alternator and the associated wiring to get the main electrical bus hooked up. I also installed the pitot system and AOA tubing that will run from the wing root to the panel. Last but certainly not least, I received my replacement radio from Garmin and it plugged right in to the panel and shows up correctly on the bus. To say that was an easy fix and that Garmin was right on it would be an understatement in my mind.

Panel Power.JPGPanel Wiring.JPGAlternator 2.JPGPitot Tubing.JPG

[Shadowrider]

Looks good! Always like a clean install!

[bbs428]

Glad you found your problems and Garmin came through as well.

Looks like a keeper Gary, nice work!