bbs428 Build

[bbs428]

Received a certified letter from the FAA stating my ADS-B failed to broadcast the required-out elements and posed a safety risk. The flight in question was in March and I was somewhat perplexed as I had accumulated over 200 hours of flight time and from all indications was working correctly.

My pilot friends at the airfield and I verified that I was indeed broadcasting out and my "N" number, speed, vector and altitude were all being picked up correctly. I then used the public ADS-B report (PAPR) to verify that it wasn't just a fringe, or odd circumstance that had happened. My ADS-B did fail again, just like before and the exact same parameters were missing. They were NIC, SIL and SDA.
Which fell under Integrity and accuracy. All other data was good.

NIC = Navigation Integrity Category
SIL = Surveillance Integrity Category
SDA = System Design Assurance

A quick call to Garmin verified that those parameters are to and from the GTX45r and the GPS20A through a rs-232 serial line. We then verified the rs-232 line was correctly installed and configured to the correct pins. Mine happened to be on ch.3
Then we went into the Transponder page in "setup" and made sure that the ADS-B + was selected under Ch. 3, which it was NOT!

After another flight, I generated another PAPR report and within minutes we had a good report with no failures!


In other news...

I adjusted my NR prop to add another degree of pitch, from 16 deg. to 17 deg.

I was getting 5820rpm on takeoff @1600ft per minute, and at cruise I had to dial the throttle back to avoid going over 5800rpm. Cruise was about 103mph at 5200rpm.
Now I'm at 5560 at takeoff @ 1400ft per minute, and cruise has increased 10mph to 113 at 5200rpm. I'm happy with that!
Speeds are approximate and done in calm wind conditions. Weight with full fuel tanks and myself was about 1210lbs.

It took some getting used to, as the plane did not want to slow down as it did before but after a few days of pattern work, all is good and I'm now comfortable with the changes made. Takeoffs are not as exciting, but still very acceptable as the Kitfox still outperforms most planes at the airfield easily. I do like the increase in cruise speed as I do travel around the 4-state area quite a bit. Lot's to see out there!
Engine seems to be happy, and all indicators in the green. Temps did notch up a bit, so we shall see if it tends to overheat in the 90-100deg summertime now that it's working a bit harder.

Surpassed 233 hours and performed another oil/filter change.

Annual is coming up this summer and the only squawk I have to fix is an intermittent strobe light.
I will have to get into the wire bundle where the wire branches out to the wings. That is where I think the problem might be. Continuity checks indicate an open on the power wire, sometimes. Lol.
I hate intermittent problems!

All else is good and I'm enjoying springtime flying in Missouri/Arkansas... that is between the thunderstorms and tornado warnings!
My favorite time to fly is the "Dawn Patrol Flight." I have the airport to myself, and the air is calm (mostly). Good times!

Fair winds!

20240907_112050.jpg 20240926_172842.jpg 20241005_065140.jpg

[Geek]

Good on ya finding the ADSB/transponder glitch. The G3X is an awesome system but man is it the Hydra (many headed serpent) when it comes to set up. Ya think you got it and then there's that one more thing on a totally different set up page. I still can't make my transponder upgrade using the USB connections. Checked physical connections, software-wise and using three different computers - still no bueno.

Keep ducking those Willie Willies brother!

Gary

[jiott]

Go with the Dynon Skyview system; vastly easier installation and setup with all the same functionality as G3X and at a somewhat lower price. Just my opinion after reading all the gyrations you Garmin guys have to go thru to get a fully functioning system.

[bbs428]

"Good on ya finding the ADSB/transponder glitch. The G3X is an awesome system but man is it the Hydra (many headed serpent) when it comes to set up. Ya think you got it and then there's that one more thing on a totally different set up page. I still can't make my transponder upgrade using the USB connections. Checked physical connections, software-wise and using three different computers - still no bueno."

Lol - yeah, I hear you, Garry. I wish I could be of more help with your upgrade. When I did mine, I was shocked that it took the 1st time around and worked. Which goes to show you that a blind squirrel can find a nut!


"Go with the Dynon Skyview system; vastly easier installation and setup with all the same functionality as G3X and at a somewhat lower price. Just my opinion after reading all the gyrations you Garmin guys have to go thru to get a fully functioning system."

Well, the Garmin ship has sailed as they say, but tbh I'd do it all again the same way.
I love the G3x system and for me, it was an easy install. The setup is tough the 1st time around, especially for those of us (me) who do not completely comprehend the required reading material.
RTFN comes to mind...

The tech gurus at Garmin are the best and while I did have to call them a half-dozen times, they were always helpful and solved my issues. 100% of those calls were setup and software related questions.

[bbs428]

Woke up early for the Dawn Patrol a few days ago!

Flew from Bolivar to Lebanon, Mo. just because I could.
Beautiful spring morning. The cool, stable air was smooth as glass.
It was fun exercising the Garmin GMC 507 autopilot. I was kicking back and enjoying the flight while the 507 did its job.
I'm not going to win any awards at the video thing, but it turned out ok for an android phone vid.

SW Missouri is a beautiful place...most of the time, lol.

https://youtu.be/i7Qo47QUwTY?feature=shared



20250512_195802[1].jpg

[Dave S]

Brett,

Thanks for sharing. Those morning shots with fog in the valley are precious!

[bbs428]

Urika my friends! I found the issue with the strobe light. A bad splice was acting like a resistor. Used a solder splice this time on all the wing lighting circuit splices. Checked 4.0 on deck. Happy days!

The mid-west has been deluged with rain lately, so all my favorite grass fields are a swampy mess.
Our local EAA Young Eagle fly has been postponed a few times due to the rain and might be again!

I'm getting restless thinking about another build. The kitchen remodel is almost done as well as some other projects. Not sure which way to go. Another Kitfox would be tempting as I might do a better job or at least build it quicker than 5 years! Lol. Zenith CH750 is a nice platform, but to ugly imho. The Ruckus 912 is promising as I might go smaller and more open cockpit. Not sure about my legs being out in the slipstream. The Dawn Patrol and winter flights would be a might too chilly for this old cloud buster.

Anyhow, the reason for all this plane speculation is that I was able to procure a 300-hourTT 912uls out of a flying pulsar III for a very reasonable cost. The owner disassembled it and is selling off the components, citing liability issues.
I was lucky enough to have a hangar across from him, have seen it fly and hear the engine run, as well as looking at the logbook.
It's now sitting in my hanger over in the corner under a tarp awaiting its final destination!

Please chime in on your thoughts for a home for the 912uls!

Pic is from Boonville Missouri.

20250505_100330.jpg