Restoration Questions
Posted: Sat Feb 17, 2024 7:09 am
Hi all,
I’ve decided to double down on my insanity with my annual-turned refurbishment/restoration. While replacing my gear box extrusions, my IA pulled my front floorboards and it afforded me a little better glimpse up front with the rudder pedals and associated bits out of the way.
I planned to do a vacuum system delete and replace the boot cowl since the venturis on my airplane were installed on the wrong side, and while I’m doing that I have ruminated on my displeasure with the state of my firewall and lofted the idea of replacement. While I’ve got everything exposed, I decided to go for it.
Never one to not go for broke, I decided to upgrade to the later model heater manifold, largely driven by the fact that Preferred Airparts had the later model firewall in stock.
I bought a salvage firewall manifold and measured it, drew it up in CAD minus the defrost duct outlet and had it cut and will take it to my mechanics to bend and then paint and install.
My issues are these:
1. How have folks addressed the difference in the mixing valve ducting with the older plenum-style baffling? There isn’t a lot of room beside the blast tube to add the fresh air intake with the lower profile of the plenum and I don’t want to mutilate my brand new powder coated AirForms baffles which have increased in cost 44% since I bought mine less than a year ago. Could I relocate the blast tube mount? Is the later style blast tube different from the early style? I assume both blast tubes are directed at the oil temp probe? The only person I recall seeing do this is Richard Pulley and he had a scab plate made and put the mixing valve over his old one on the left side of the fuselage.
2. Are there drawings or dimensions or does anyone have any factory original upholstery backing panels that they wouldn’t mind loaning me for non-destructive duplication for the heater ducts for the later model heater system?
Unrelated to the heater system, I’ve got two instrument panel questions.
At the next annual I plan on an avionics update. I was lucky to get a fixed piano key style panel that’s in excellent shape to use at the basis for my upgrade. I will be using Aerospace Logic gauges in place of the 1 7/8” gauges and want to replace the keyway for the clock. I’ll obviously have to remove some of the radius to allow the slightly larger gauges to fit, but I want them to be round holes. I’m hoping someone has a damaged panel or one they cut out for a center stack upgrade that they wouldn’t mind selling one of the lower instrument holes so my metal guy can use that to weld the repair rather than him having to form it.
Lastly, I’m looking for a piano key bracket 0412475 to borrow to draw up some circuit breaker mounts. Alternatively, if someone could give me the diameter of the switch holes and the fuse holes, as well as the distance between them and an approximate bottom corner radius, I’d be forever grateful.
Kindest regards,
Ryan
I’ve decided to double down on my insanity with my annual-turned refurbishment/restoration. While replacing my gear box extrusions, my IA pulled my front floorboards and it afforded me a little better glimpse up front with the rudder pedals and associated bits out of the way.
I planned to do a vacuum system delete and replace the boot cowl since the venturis on my airplane were installed on the wrong side, and while I’m doing that I have ruminated on my displeasure with the state of my firewall and lofted the idea of replacement. While I’ve got everything exposed, I decided to go for it.
Never one to not go for broke, I decided to upgrade to the later model heater manifold, largely driven by the fact that Preferred Airparts had the later model firewall in stock.
I bought a salvage firewall manifold and measured it, drew it up in CAD minus the defrost duct outlet and had it cut and will take it to my mechanics to bend and then paint and install.
My issues are these:
1. How have folks addressed the difference in the mixing valve ducting with the older plenum-style baffling? There isn’t a lot of room beside the blast tube to add the fresh air intake with the lower profile of the plenum and I don’t want to mutilate my brand new powder coated AirForms baffles which have increased in cost 44% since I bought mine less than a year ago. Could I relocate the blast tube mount? Is the later style blast tube different from the early style? I assume both blast tubes are directed at the oil temp probe? The only person I recall seeing do this is Richard Pulley and he had a scab plate made and put the mixing valve over his old one on the left side of the fuselage.
2. Are there drawings or dimensions or does anyone have any factory original upholstery backing panels that they wouldn’t mind loaning me for non-destructive duplication for the heater ducts for the later model heater system?
Unrelated to the heater system, I’ve got two instrument panel questions.
At the next annual I plan on an avionics update. I was lucky to get a fixed piano key style panel that’s in excellent shape to use at the basis for my upgrade. I will be using Aerospace Logic gauges in place of the 1 7/8” gauges and want to replace the keyway for the clock. I’ll obviously have to remove some of the radius to allow the slightly larger gauges to fit, but I want them to be round holes. I’m hoping someone has a damaged panel or one they cut out for a center stack upgrade that they wouldn’t mind selling one of the lower instrument holes so my metal guy can use that to weld the repair rather than him having to form it.
Lastly, I’m looking for a piano key bracket 0412475 to borrow to draw up some circuit breaker mounts. Alternatively, if someone could give me the diameter of the switch holes and the fuse holes, as well as the distance between them and an approximate bottom corner radius, I’d be forever grateful.
Kindest regards,
Ryan