Flying on the Cheap - Instruments
Richard Riley wrote:
RS, it pleases me greatly when I find I've come to the same conclusions
as you.
I'm just finishing work on a cheap slow flier. It's a departure from
standard, at least for the wing, so I've overengineered the safety side
(BRS, 5 point harness and a pilot's parachute). But for
instrumentation, I'm minimal. Handheld GPS and com (since I'm in the
busy traffic of So Cal, I'm addicted to com)
EGT and CHT for the single cylender 2 stroke. RPM. Fuel level is
visible. Altimiter - So I can get a good idea of rate of climb.
Airspeed is a plastic tube with a red plastick floatie disk. That's
it.
OTOH, I have the Uber Panel in the expensive fast flier. Two missions,
two solutions.
I guess I'm a hard headed old coot. (well, DuH!)
I simply won't fly a two-stroke without an EGT.
Problem, though, is that the EGT runs so (you favorite explicative) high
anyway that a micro seizure can put it over the limit in a mater of seconds.
You'd almost have to be staring at it to notice a needle or two width jump.
Specially on the little 2: gauges with a short swing!
I've always wanted to ask Jim if there was a simple circuit that could
monitor the EGT and notice the RATE of increase that would indicate a pending
problem rather that an already existing one. Maybe blink a light, ring a
bell, or apply electric shock as needed?
Jim, anything in you S&M cap that might work here?
Rich(OUCH)ard
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