wangmyers said:
I have done very few GPS approaches, and none with the Garmin 430. I'm flying Friday, and if there's a chance to get into the Saratoga, this approach is the order of business for the day. I will be getting a preflight briefing from my double I, of course, but would anyone be willing to give me a pre-pre?
Download the Garmin simulator and manuals from their web site and play with them.
Basically, if you just want to do practice approaches into your departure airport, press the Direct-to button and use the inner knob to select letters and the outer knob to move the cursor. Hit "Enter" when you're done entering the identifier.
Next, press "PROC" and use the inner knob to choose the approach you want to fly, then press Enter. Next, choose the transition you want, or vectors-to-final if that's what you'll be getting. (I'd suggest at least one vectored approach and one full procedure.)
Note that the 430 has some nice features even for non-GPS approaches. If you select an ILS approach, it'll guide you to the IAF and show a purple line (it'll also warn you that it's for monitoring purposes only) but it'll also automagically tune the localizer frequency. G530 and G1000 will even identify navaids that you have tuned - Very cool. So, you might want to try that as well.
Then, take a longer cross-country flight with a safety pilot so that you can have a chance to just play around with the G430. This is, for me, the best way to truly learn the knobology. I learned a ton about the 430 in our 182 on my way to Gaston's and Houston this past summer, and I got to learn quite a bit about the G1000 in a 182 I rented for 6.3 hours yesterday to go to Key West.
(Post about that will be in Hangar Talk as soon as it's ready.)
Now, go download that simulator, punch in your home airport, and load an approach. That'll give you a good start.
Enjoy the flight!