Half Fast
Touchdown! Greaser!
When I bought my Beech B23 last year, it had an old Val radio that was very noisy, had no memory, and no secondary monitor function. Replacing it was on my (lengthy) list of to-do items.
I decided to go with a Garmin GTR-200B radio and also do a little bit of panel cleanup at the same time. The plane already had Garmin GMA-340 audio panel installed and I didn't see any need to replace that.
Here's the "before" pic:
And here's the "now" pic:
Besides the radio, I also used some heavy-duty velcro to panel-mount my iFly 740 which interfaces to the Stratus ESG for WAAS GPS and ADSB.
Next, I wanted a back-up comm. I had the shop wire out the audio panel's COM2 lines and the coax for an unused VHF antenna to jacks on the panel above the transponder. I then fashioned a mounting bracket for my Yaesu 550 handheld radio that could be velcro'd to the panel and built audio interface cables.
With the 550 tied into the panel and connected to a good external antenna, it makes a very serviceable COM2 radio. Also, the Yaesu will receive VORs and display a CDI, so I have a backup navigation tool as well. I'm running it off aircraft 12V, but it has internal batteries so it will continue working even with a total electrical failure.
Finally, while the shop had the glare shield removed, I took the opportunity to repair some cracks in it and pretty it up a bit with some fabric:
Overall, I'm happy with the results. I believe I now have a very useful VFR panel with a good radio, a nice GPS display, and a backup radio/nav with an internal battery.
Next I'll probably find a spot for my Android phone. I have FltPln GO installed on it, and it would be nice to have it in view to keep a weather display up.
I decided to go with a Garmin GTR-200B radio and also do a little bit of panel cleanup at the same time. The plane already had Garmin GMA-340 audio panel installed and I didn't see any need to replace that.
Here's the "before" pic:
And here's the "now" pic:
Besides the radio, I also used some heavy-duty velcro to panel-mount my iFly 740 which interfaces to the Stratus ESG for WAAS GPS and ADSB.
Next, I wanted a back-up comm. I had the shop wire out the audio panel's COM2 lines and the coax for an unused VHF antenna to jacks on the panel above the transponder. I then fashioned a mounting bracket for my Yaesu 550 handheld radio that could be velcro'd to the panel and built audio interface cables.
With the 550 tied into the panel and connected to a good external antenna, it makes a very serviceable COM2 radio. Also, the Yaesu will receive VORs and display a CDI, so I have a backup navigation tool as well. I'm running it off aircraft 12V, but it has internal batteries so it will continue working even with a total electrical failure.
Finally, while the shop had the glare shield removed, I took the opportunity to repair some cracks in it and pretty it up a bit with some fabric:
Overall, I'm happy with the results. I believe I now have a very useful VFR panel with a good radio, a nice GPS display, and a backup radio/nav with an internal battery.
Next I'll probably find a spot for my Android phone. I have FltPln GO installed on it, and it would be nice to have it in view to keep a weather display up.
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