Engine install completion - lots of little stuff

Working on finishing the engine install, and planning on running it when complete.

First item is the starter.  Having a dual battery system with 2 master relays means I have to pull off the 'bridge' between the two relays for the starter (so I can start on either or both batteries).  Been debating for awhile how to accomplish this.  Finally decided on a 4 position terminal adel clamped to the engine mount close to the relays.

Next is the air / oil separator.  There is no 'good' location... but finally just did it and will adjust later if necessary.  Per the UL manual, you want an uphill slope from the engine breather to the separator, and a downhill slope from the separator to the return.  I think I have this figured.

Back to an old problem... there was an issue with the oil return line from the air/oil separator that goes back to the sump.  I think it was bent, and got a replacement.  But I never finished installing it for some reason.  Need to get this fixed before putting oil in.  I did not put the screw back in that secures it.  I think that was because the oil line for the turbo needs to come off to do so... so that will be a job.

EGT's and CHT's are all installed.  Vacuumed out the exhaust by removing the waste gate to get any chips out so they do not get into the turbo.  I didnt hear anything when doing this...  

I checked the EFIS to see what the sensors were reading, and they were all not reading anywhere near correct.  Asked Advanced, and there was a bug with UL engines and direct read from the EMS.  New software obtained that fixes it (AF5000VX161036B06-MV16.afz).  Installed today, and works like a charm.  All probes are reading 'ambient-ish'.

Plug wires... I have been dreading this.  Like really dreading.  Making them looks right, not be a dogs breakfast all over the place, and was super worried about the electrical connections, etc.

So far, initial impressions are UL has this figured out.  One end is crimped, and the other end (engine side) has like a screw terminal inside the plug wire housing.  You literally just thread it in.

I labeled everything... which ignition it is coming from, and what plug ig goes to.  On both ends.  Yes, this is overkill...  Forward plug is ignition 1, aft plug is ignition 2.  Finished one side (3 cylinders, both plugs) in an afternoon.

Another builder and I had toyed with using the cross bar of the intercooler to organize the plug wires with some 3D printed parts.  I decided to go cheap and fast and just use HD plastic.  Used the grommet from the engine kit that goes in the aft end of the baffle as a template.  Small piece of angle aluminum and an adel clamp, and its done.

Exhaust pipes back from the ceramic coating.

Need to secure the bottom of the exhaust.  Brackets on the exhaust already installed.  Used the RV 'trick' of a thick hose as the support brace, with some stainless tabs on the end.  Need to get the correct hardware.

Fit the cowl, spinner and prop.  Lines up pretty good.  Not quite perfect, but close.

I started torquing the prop... but then found out (thanks Paul) about Service Bulletins from Airmaster.  One applies to me... brushes on the pitch change motor.  Email sent to Airmaster... my serial number is on the list.  Need to determine if the whole things comes apart again or not.

Brake lines from the park brake out are complete.

Turned the engine over from the starter with 6 plugs out.  Turned over great!  But... no oil pressure reading.  Talked to Ray... I turned it over for about 20 seconds.  Needs more than that.  Adding to the to do list.

The engine ground wire location is beneath the starter on the right hand side of the engine.  Long wire, pain to fasten.  Found an M8 threaded hole on the left side of the engine... shorter run, easier to install.  Seems to work great.

All lines are secure.

Shortened and rerouted the engine ECU to throttle body line.

Last thing is to obtain more hose for the breather and install.

'Almost ready to fly' my ass.  This has been a lot of work, and a lot of custom work.  Between the cowl, bracketry, exhaust, electrical system changes, this beast has taken a very long time.

Now onto the rest...

Finishing / installing the firewall, rehanging the engine (for the last time fingers crossed)

 This has been a long journey.  The build overall has been long, but the 'engine' journey from idea, to fuel system design and fabrication, engine mount, electronics placement, firewall decisions, firewall construction, engine on and off, etc has been 2 years.  But, to see parts made 1 and 2 years ago come together is pretty darn cool.

While I am waiting for parts (more Ocrotek tape and 1 fitting), tidying up the wires, and adding a few more for later use.  Might as well do it now while it is somewhat 'easy' to get to.  Plus, tightening down and torque sealing all the bolts, brake fittings, etc.

Firewall went into today... hopefully for good!  Was relatively easy... just a bit of prodding here and there to get it to seat into the fuselage.

The hardest part was fishing the wires through correctly.  This wasnt that big a deal, except the EarthX battery jumper cables have to go through the opposite way because of the fusible link.

Next step is the fire barrier on the edges.  I am taping everything off in stages so hopefully I can just let it gel, then pull the tape and have a nice line.  I went with the 'gray' 3M Fire Barrier 2000+.  Hopefully it looks OK.

Clecos in (for positioning, not that it was a problem - it all lined up perfectly after some gentle persuasion with a fist or two) and 2 or 3 lines of tape all around.

Fire barrier inserted between the firewall flanges and fuselage shell.  I clamped in a couple areas where the clecos were not enough to snug it up enough.

Air deflector riveted and screwed in place (very thankful it still fit, as I drilled it over a year ago).  Also all gooped up with fire barrier.

Next is riveting the flanges to the fuselage shell.

I set somewhere around half the rivets on the flanges / shell, and replaced the hardware on the gascolator mount and safety wired the screws.  Working on hardware selection to permanently bolt the firewall frame up to the cage tabs.  Its starting to get 'real'.

Once the frame is bolted in, then I can (re)do all the power wires, place the batteries, etc.

Progress.  A couple of evenings and I have a lot of stuff bolted in, and wires (hopefully) run for the last time.

Its starting to look like something.  Lots more to do... but the weekend is here!  Hoping to get everything alive by end of day Sunday.

My inspector is really big on silicon boots (aka nipples) on all power wires... and of course I just ran out.  2 short.

Almost there.  Everything is functional at this point again (but only one battery).  Pumps work, new starter relay works, everything through the firewall, etc.  Lots of little things to do.  Some fasteners to install, couple holes to drill, some rivets, etc.  The interior of the panel can be reassembled as well.  All of the fittings on the aft side of the firewall are populated.  My goal is to get as much done as possible before the engine mount goes on.

Small issue with battery cables.

For my electrical configuration, the output of the main relays are bridged - IE they go onto a common bus.  Because I want to be able to start off of either battery, the cable between then is a 2 gauge.  Plus I have to tie in the engine bus, ACM, and fuse panel, plus the UL smoothing capacitor. Bottom line, there is a lot of stuff on the output side of the relays... and I have to add one more for the starter, and I just don't have enough threads left.  

The thought:  2 terminal distribution block that I can tie in the big 2 gauge lugs, and then split off to the starter.  All this means is the problem will not get worse.  Need to find one that can handle a couple hundred amps.  Then there is the issue of mounting location... I am out of room in that area, so it will probable have to be mounted to the engine mount with adel clamps.

Ready to re-hang the engine...

I took the opportunity to weight the beast before and after using racecar scales.

It wasnt quite perfectly level, but very close.  Doesnt really matter for these purposes... what I wanted to know was the engine weight.

And the numbers are....

268 lbs for engine, exhaust, induction, starter, alternator / generator, etc.  No baffles, intercooler, oil cooler, etc.  An IO-390 weighs 310 lbs bare (no exhaust, no alternator, no starter, etc).  Note:  I forgot to take off the front travel plate (that mounts to the floor of the crate) when i weighed it.  Its at least 2 lbs with hardware.

Couple points for anyone looking at UL:

• Turbo:  You need to adjust the angle of the turbo outlet before mounting the engine.  In my case, it was pointed straight up.  Also, you have to remove the oil return line in order to spin in.  Dont forget to tighten it back up (note to self).
• The main oil return line to the sump interferes with the right lower engine mount.  I need to 'finesse' it a little.  

Back in the garage, ready for the next steps.

Next steps are:

1. Engine umbilical to ECU, firesleeve, etc.  Retest wiring.
2. Oil cooler mount, cooler, plumbing, etc
3. Baffles / plenum / intercooler ducting
4. Intercooler plenum and hoses
5. Cowl (oil cooler opening), reshape cowl for larger spinner
6. Exhaust extensions
7. CHT / EGT lines
8. Plug wires
9. Fuel delivery and return lines

That's enough.  My head hurts.

Onward and upward...

Wiring / Cleanup

I have been working on cleaning up the wiring mess I created for myself.  I call it 10 lbs of poop in a 2 lb bag.  But realistically, if you add up the weight of all the avionics and wiring its probably closer to 30 lbs all in.  Not that I have weighed it.

Having a super light engine, my plan was to move as much forward as possible to help offset the weight.  Between the panel and the firewall are the following components:

• 2X 10.3" displays
• Backup EFIS
• Prop controller
• Advanced ACM
• UL ECU, boost controller and aux box
• COM radio
• Room for IFR GPS and NAV/COM
• Avionics backup battery
• Header tank
• Audio panel
• EMS
• ADSB receiver
• Hall effect sensor
• GPS 2020 receiver
• Skyview expansion bus
• And all the normal 'stuff'.

Add all that together, and its 10 lbs of poop in a 2 lb bag.

Top down view of the mayhem...

The relatively clean panel hides the mayhem that hides behind it.

The GOOD news is everything works.  All the avionics are connected, the ECU is talking to the EMS, all the controls on the sticks do what they are supposed to.  Radio / audio panel / audio all works.  Servos are talking to the system.  Prop controller has power and just needs connection to the hub.  All of the lights (nav, strobes, taxi, landing, panel, overhead) all work.  Pitot heat is ready to go once the wings are attached and wiring finished.  ECU indicator lights.  Circuits for the engine and transfer pumps.  It all works.  Yay me.

It's not 'pretty' like I hoped it would be.  But to move the weight forward and contain it all between the panel and firewall is an extreme challenge.  If I could get rid of the ACM and use CANbus only, it would be way neater - but that is not the path I chose.

Once the weather dries out a bit, the engine will come off and the real firewall will go in, and then I can finish up the firewall forward wiring (fuel pumps, batteries, relays, shunt sense wires, prop controller, etc)

I am tired of wiring, and look forward to building parts again (which is totally ironic).

Merry Christmas.

Update...

Progress is being made... albeit slowly.

The wiring on the 'Longnose' Sportsman is pretty much done.  The last bits remaining:

1. Wire fuel pumps from the switch to the pumps.
2. Alternate air switch / panel indicator
3. EarthX battery fault wires
4. UL regulator to main bus

And thats pretty much it.  Everything else is installed, wired an functions as expected.

I have the next 1.5 weeks on vacation, and have a few goals to accomplish:

1. Clean up the rats nest of wiring.  OK, its not THAT bad, but needs some TLC
2. Finish the last of the firewall penetrations and determine routing for the prop controller to prop cable, EGT's/CHT's, cabin heat cable, fuel injection return, boost controller lines, and thats about it (as if that's not enough LOL).
3. Pull the engine and put it back in the crate
4. Drill the 'real' firewall
5. Rivet the flanges on the real firewall
6. Adhere the firewall blanket
7. Install the firewall and rivet it in place.
8. Rehang all the firewall components (regulator, coils, fuel pumps, relays, batteries, etc)
9. Reinstall the engine

Is all that doable?  Maybe - we will see.  I think I can get 1 through 7 done before January 2nd, maybe more.  But you have to have goals, right?

IF I can get all of the above done, then its onto engine / firewall forward 'stuff':

1. Oil cooler mount and lines
2. Oil cooler opening in the front of the cowl
3. Intercooler mounting
4. Ducting for the intercooler
5. Air intake and filter mounting / plumbing
6. Alternate air inlet
7. Finish the exit air ramp on bottom of cowl
8. Cowl 'finishing'
9. Cowl fasteners
10. Windows (front, top deck, doors (x3), fuselage) - the front window will be last (and probably just temp bonded until after first engine run)
11. Brake lines from park brake valve to calipers
12. Throttle and engine throttle (capture) bracket

Once all that is done, its off to the airport.  Hoping for mid 2023, then its onto final wing integration (wiring, fuel lines, hatch covers, wing tips, lights) and final wiring, etc for the tail.

80% done, 80% to go.  Will be finished on Tuesday.  Just not saying which Tuesday... 

Control Sticks

I am at that point in the build where progress is frustrating because I have overcomplicated a lot of things.  I decided to go with the Infinity Stick grips, and load up on functions on the grip itself.  They are a really good grip it a lot of ways.  Easy of installation and wiring is not one of them.

Well, thats not fair I guess.  The installation is fairly straight forward... but you have to trim 1" off the stick to get it to fit under the panel, drill a big hole for a plastic bushing, and a slot for the wiring to pass through.  But it nicely clamps onto the stick...

First things first... you need to set the fore / aft position of the stick.  That means you need uphostery (which I ordered) first, then the sticks have to be drilled to the yoke.  This is the part I have been avoiding because I was unsure how to tackle the issue.  Since I have the fuel lines installed, you have to work around them.

So today after (what seems like months) of indecision (and talking to other builders), I tore into it.  The holes have to be drilled through the yoke and stick, but I couldnt get my alignement jig on the yoke, so that means freehand drilling, which is prone to errors, plus you have to line up the sticks and I dont have the wings attached to center the ailerons.  But, there is some adustment on the yoke, and turnbuckles.  So I decided to just center the yoke with some wood blocks, center the sticks with a board (per the manual), and carry on bravely.

After marking 3/8" in from the yoke weldments, I drilled 3/32" pilot holes through the top only (yoke and stick) and clecoed them in.  That should hold everything in place.

I dont have the right length drill bit for the forward hole, but did for the aft (again, working around the fuel lines).  So both aft holes were drilled and a AN3-14 bolt dropped in replacing the cleco.

With the right length bolts I can proceed.

To the wiring.  UGH.

The infinity grip the following options:

• 4 way hat switch
• Trigger switch
• Left and right thumb switches
• Middle thumb switch
• Pinky switch

After thinking a lot, and consulting the forum I decided on the following:

1. 4 way hat switch:  Pitch and roll trim
2. Trigger switch - Push to talk
3. Left and right thumb switches - Left(a):  Autopilot disconnect / CWS.  Right(b):  Momentary toggle - forward, COM1 flip flop.  Aft - COM2 flip flop.
4. Middle thumb switch - Audio panel swap from COM1 to COM2 and vice verse.
5. Pinky switch - Transponder IDENT

That equates to a whole bunch of wires.  Items 1, 2, 3a are handled by the ACM wiring to the 'control stick' port.  Items 3b, 4, and 5 need to be wired directly.  The transponder IDENT will be handled through the ACM using a general purpose input.

Here is the wiring diagram for just the sticks.

This is not going to be fun.  10 lbs of poop in a 2 oz bag.

Grips mounted to the sticks after drilling.

Sticks fully drilled, ends cut and filed, grips mounted and wires fed through.

The Infinity Stick Grips are very nicely made, as assembled really well on top of the stick.  After about 15 disassembles / reassemblies I am reasonable good at it.  The issue is the wires... there are so many wires, and if they get caught in the channel for the stick, or against one of the bosses that the screws go through it wont go together.  If any little thing is wrong, you are taking it all apart again. If you want a grip that you just mount on the top of a stick, this is not the one for you.

Next is to connectorize the cables from the sticks and integrate in the ACM, Dynon Radio, Audio Panel, etc.  I thought I had enough connectors, pins and housings, but apparently not.  Ordered from Digikey today.

Connectorizing was not fun (I have an aversion to connectors anyway, specifically getting pins out of shells - never goes well).  There is a colour code for the wires, but there are duplicates.  For the most part, black is ground (but not always), and there are multiple red and blue wires.

1. Sorted through all the wires and found the ground (using an ohm meter), and separated them from the pack
2. Tied all the ground together on the stick side using solder sleeves.  There are 6 ground - so 3 into 1, then 2 into 1, then that wire went to the connector.  Sleeves are hidden under head shrink.
3. Checked functionality of every switch at all points in the process.  Would really suck to get everything done and have a busted wire or bad ground.
4. Connectorized the end using a d-sub 15.
5. The connector will fit through, but without the shell, and it has to go through sideways.  I left enough bare wire to get it through.

Onto final wiring.  I have the ACM harness for each stick, but it doesnt come with IDENT, COM flip flops (x2) and Audio Panel swap.  These all have to be added to the harness.

So I cut open the pilot side harness, and added the 3 wires.  Oh what fun...

These 4 wires need to go to various places:

• IDENT:  Goes to a PFD input on the AC Rear Connector
• COM 1 SWAP:  Goes to the Dynon radio
• COM 2 SWAP:  Will go to the yet to be purchased GARMIN NAV/COM
• Audio Panel SWAP:  Goes directly to the Audio Panel.

I put everything together to test, and it all worked - except the Audio Panel COM SWAP.  It seemed like it would work every once in a while, but not like I expected.  I checked with both PS Engineering, and Advanced - but at the end of the day I just miswired it.  I had it connected to pin 21 on J2, when it should have been pin 20.  The issue was getting the connector apart on the audio panel without losing any hardware in the fuselage or panel.

To finally everything is done.  Sticks are wired, connectors attached, everything tested good.  Sticks are bolted in place.

Starting on the cleanup now.  It sure needs it.

BNC Connectors

I have an aversion to all connectors.  They always seem to make my life hard, and I mess things up and cannot get them apart.  The top of the list has been BNC connectors, because I didnt understand them.

A buddy of mine showed me how to put on a BNC, and still I messed them up.  You have to strip 3 times - center conductor, inner jacket, outer jacket - I get that - but how long does each of them need to be?

I have 3 types of connectors for the Sportsman

• BNC Male
• BNC Female Bulkhead
• TNC Male

I found it extremely hard to find the correct assembly instructions for each type of cable.  After searching, I found it for the Amphenol BNC male and TNC Male, but not the BNC Female Bulkhead.

So I measured everything and mapped it out (BNC Female Bulkhead).

Dimensions are available if you have the part number.  Below is the Amphenol TNC male.

This may be 'old hat' to some, but i was just inexperienced - and after wrecking some pins I thought there has to be a better way.  Now I can do a BNC and not waste any parts.

Happy days.

UL Power - ECU Wiring

I thought the UL ECU wiring would be simple, and in some ways it is simple.  But as always, the devil is in the details.

Power:  The ECU has 6 wires that all need to be attached to an ECU switch.

Ground:  The ECU has 5 wires that go to ground.

FPCR (Fuel Pump Control Relay(s)):  The ECU can control the pump(s).  I opted to do so, but there is a 2nd bypass circuit around the relays just in case.

Ignition:  Circuits for left / right or 1/2 coils to switches (or a standard key switch).  Grounded they are OFF, open they are ON - just like a mag.

Aux box:  Provides ambient pressure.  Plus other things, but this is all I am using it for.

Boost controller:  Control line from the ECU to the Boost Controller, plus power and ground.

CAN-bus:  Data lines to grab engine data via CAN.

RS-232:  Separate RS-232 connection for an EFIS feed, or to use the UL-READ software.  I need to order this cable.

Discrete engine inputs:  Separate inputs for Engine RPM and fuel consumption.  I am not using these, as they are provided over the CAN-bus.

Dummy lights:  2 LED's.  1 for 'check engine' (which indicates a sensor fault), and 1 for 'low battery'.  I planned for both of these in the panel.  The ECU only provides a ground to activate these LED's, power is separate.

The above is the basic lay of the land.

Current schematic below.

At present, everything is wired except the key switch.

The challenges:

• The ECU is mounted on a tray forward of the instrument panel.  If it needs to be removed, take out the MFD, remove the two harnesses, loosen the bolts and its free.  You should be able to do all this sitting upright in the seat.
• Making the above happen is a challenge.  I had to route all the wires in two consistent bundles (one firewall forward, and one for the cockpit interconnects) and not running in 4 different directions.
• To do so, I fabricated some wiring 'braces' that everything is tie wrapped to.  But its all very condensed. Hopefully this works out.

Progress:

• Everything is wired for the ECU, and it powers up (the LED's flash upon startup).
• The next big step is to see if the ECU connects to the CANBUS on the EMS221.
• The wires are not in their final position.  I want to make sure everything works before doing the final tie wraps (hence no pictures, it looks pretty ugly right now)

What's left to wire:

• Magnetometer:  Cable is run, but needs to be shortened (ordered it too long)
• Fuel tank probes.  Wires to the EMS, needs to head out to the wings.
• Sticks:  Sticks themselves are wired, just need to route them and connectorize from the ACM (plus the pull downs from the audio panel, com, and ACM aircraft rear connector
• RF / antennas:  VOR, 2xCOM antennas.

Probably forgetting something, but its almost there.

TO/GA Button

I had figured I would eventually figure out where to wire the TO/GA button (Take Off / Go Around).  That never happened, so I needed to ask Advanced.  Well, that feature is not available yet - coming in release 17 (current release is 16), with no planned delivery date that they would commit to.  Well I am not ready to fly yet, so no big deal.

The button needs to be wired to one of the PFD inputs on the Aircraft Rear connector:

From the Advanced Manual:

Will use PFD2, pin 14.

I was really nervous about opening up my AC Rear harness, but of course it was a non issue and took 2 minutes.

Last step is testing it, but that will have to wait until the displays are back in.

Dynon EMS-221 Wiring

As Advanced Flight Systems is part of Dynon, it stands to reason that Advanced would use the Dynon EMS (Engine Monitoring System) unit.  Dynon has 2 flavors - the EMS 220, which is the standard unit - and the EMS 221, which has CAN-bus connectivity.  I need the 221.

The EMS-221 has 3 connectors:

1. DB9 for the Skyview Network connection
2. DB37 for all of the engine wiring (except CHT and EGT)
3. DB25 for CHT and EGT probes

1 and 3 are straightforward.  2 is interesting.

The UL ECU passes most of the engine data over the CAN-bus connection.  From the UL manual...

Bottom line:  There is very little for the EMS-221 to do, other than getting the CAN-bus data from the ECU.  Here is the pinout (only yellow items are planned to be used)

Basically current, voltage, fuel tanks, and CAN-bus.  I have a question into Advanced on whether or not I can use the 2 voltage pins, as these are on the ACM as well - so these might not be needed).

Everything is wired, except for the tank sensors.  Kinda need the wings for those...

I put the EMS on the bottom of the right hand avionics tray, thinking this would be easy to get to. Yeah, right.  Its not impossible, but definitely not easy.  Removing the ECU makes it easier.

Fuse Panel

I have a couple circuits that I dont want to run through the ACM.  Why you ask?  Well, what if it fails.  Or, what if the current draw is high and the function is not essential?  

Things that are going to be fused and not through the breaker panel or ACM:

1. LED indicators.  2 for the UL ECU (Check Engine and Low Battery - the ECU does not provide power for these, only a ground to activate them).  Plus another for the Alternate Air Inlet on the airbox.  Dont need carb heat as the engine is injected, but need an 'emergency' air source if the filter gets iced up.  1A circuit
2. Header tank warning lights.  If the ECU dies, I want these alive and functional.  Another 1A circuit
3. Seat lumbar support.  It has a small pump and inflates/deflates the bags in the seat.
4. Seat heaters.  I am a wus.  I like seat heaters.  These draw more than the ACM has capacity for.
5. Other stuff down the road.  Will be nice to have a place to get power that is somewhat readily accessible.  2 spare circuits.

I found a really nice automotive style 6 fuse panel that is small and light, and has indicator lights as to their health.

The plan is to mount it on the starboard side of the fuselage, just above the rudder pedals on the side of the fuselage.  The original plan was to make a plate and attach it to the cage tubes with adel clamps.  Well, I hate adel clamps, and mounting it up there with the bulk of the avionics installed would be a nightmare - so I decided to bond the bracket to the fuselage.

The bracket is a simple hat shape.  The tabs pick up the holes in the fuse panel, and the bulk of the bracket will be epoxied on.  The below pic is the bracket clecoed in place, ready for bonding.

Because its winter here, I need enough heat to get the resin to cure.  Luckily I have a big heater in the garage, but it will cost me.  The bracket has already been fit to the fuse panel so it should just screw in once cured.  I waited until a relatively warm day (aka 10 degrees C) to do this.

Done and first circuit wired (power for LED indicator lights and header warning lights).