Friends,
On the topic of MGL, 601 builder and pilot Andy Elliott wrote:
A partial counterpoint – I have been running an MGL Ultra EFIS in my plane since day one. I was, in fact, attracted by the experimental and highly customizable nature of the system. Plus, the MGL remote data acquisition unit (RDAC) minimizes the number of instrumentation wires that have to go through the firewall, especially compared to the Dynon units.
I also knew, as an early adopter to the Corvair platform, that I would have to do some constructive engineering along the way. Note that this is much the same reasoning that led me to choose a Corvair over a Jabiru or a Continental. MGL had zero guidance on how to hook their EFIS to a Corvair (or any other distributor-driven ignition) at the time.
I claim that it absolutely *is* possible to use the ignition grounds as a reliable source for the tach signal. I have been doing that for ~440 hours, and have never had any trouble at all. However, in order to get the system to work with two ignitions, I needed to add couple of diodes to the wiring to prevent them from shorting each other out. Seemed pretty obvious to me, but perhaps not to everyone.
As William says, getting useful advice is not always easy. I get a lot of mine from him! But I would have been happy to send anyone my wiring diagram, along with the caveat that it worked for me and might not for you! I do agree that plastic sensors have little place in reliable fuel systems. I’m happily measuring my fuel flow with a Flowscan transducer. [Flowscans are all metal-ww]
That’s why they call it Experimental aviation! FWIW,
Andy Elliott
Andy: The setup in Shayne’s plane did not have the same resistors and diodes. While your system obviously works, I still prefer to have builders use a system like Chris Smith’s that is divorced from the ignition. Thanks for the input, all perspectives welcomed. -ww
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On the subject of new brackets, Buttercup builder and CC veteran Daniel Kelley asked:
Hi William, will the new bracket work with Roy’s 5th Bearing?
Thanks, Daniel Kelley
Daniel: As long as your starter has a bolted on ear, not a welded one, the bracket will work. It takes a slightly different length spacer, but this isn’t a big deal. Roy makes a tail bracket for builders using his bearing that fits right up against our Gold Front Starter Brackets in a very neat installation.-ww
Corvair College #22 veteran Vic Delgado wrote:
I like it! I saw one at CC#22 on the engine you finished and really liked the simplicity and the functionality of it. Great Job William, no doubt I will be purchasing one too.
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On the post about Alan Uhr’s 601-XL(B), 601 builder and pilot Phil Maxson wrote:
Congratulations to Alan! This is a very nice looking plane. If your experience is like mine, it will bring you many hours of pleasure in the future. William’s point about relying on a proven design is right. The way to move from building to flying in the quickest and safest fashion is to rely on a proven configuration. Happy flying!- Phil
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