Hi Gary,
I am the owner of the fist Europa Motor Glider flying in the UK
and am in the unbelievable position of still trying to get a valid Permit to
Fly, so far it has taken about 7 years! (We don't have an experimental
category here. Yet). The present problem is trying to get an increase in
maximum all up mass from 1370 to 1470 lbs. Noting the equipment you have in
your machine I wonder if you could tell me what mass you operate your
machine at, and if you are aware of any handling issues at high masses? Do
you operate with a restricted C of G range and or restricted VNe? We am
currently limited by the LAA to 127 knots VNe, C of G limits between 58" and
62.5"but the reasons for this seem to have been unspecified or lost in the
mists of time. The current empty mass of my machine is 989 lbs at a C of G
60".
If you prefer to come back off line my e-mail is iancook_1@hotmail.com
<mailto:iancook_1@hotmail.com> .
Look forward to hearing from yourself and very interested in any operating
issue advice that you can offer to help justify the current work going on in
the UK.
Best Regards
Ian Cook
From: owner-europa-list-server@matronics.com
[mailto:owner-europa-list-server@matronics.com] On Behalf Of Gary Leinberger
Sent: 21 April 2016 23:06
Subject: Re: Europa-List: Avionics heat
In the attached picture you can see my panel. I (with the terrific help of
Bud Yerly of Custom Flight) made the panel easily removable - takes about 10
minutes to remove the entire panel. This has paid off some many times, and
makes doing IFR 2 year checks very easy if the inspector wants to check
everything.
My plane is IFR with a Garmin 430W, a 330 GTX Mode S transponder, a Grand
Rapids HX, an engine monitor, a Tru-Trax 2 axis autopilot, and several steam
gauges. Yes, it all fits but it is tight. And it is heavy - 42 lbs. for the
panel. And it produces a great deal of heat. So we put in a three hose fan
drawing air from the passenger foot well, and two exhaust fans - original
two inch (as shown) but now one is a 4 inch fan. The top fans are on a
thermostat and a timer, running off the secondary battery. When I land, if
the temps are up in the panel, the fan goes on for about 45 minutes.
The three hoses from the fan go to the HX, 430W, and the EXP buss box (on
the right side of picture with all the plugs over top of it). The box was
made to improve cooling and keep stray wires or dropped tools from causing
shorts in the EXP buss). The two hoses - to the Garmin and to the HX are
not in the picture.
The secondary battery also runs the radio and trim and autopilot through a
"soaring" buss for use when the engine is off for soaring (I have the glider
wings also), and can be used for clearance delivery on the ground so you
don't have to run the engine (and possibly overheat) or wear the main
battery down when getting your clearance. I do have the top mounted, belt
driven 45 amp alternator as well as the standard 20 amp Rotax alternator.
Even if I lose the HX or the main battery I still have the Tru-Trax to keep
wings level and to get heading. The steam gauges give me altitude, speed and
climb/descend rate. And in extremis the Foreflight gives me an additional
backup.
I do have a spare handheld ratio with its own antenna with a connection to
the secondary battery if I lose the Garmin. It is not tied into the intercom
system so I have to plug it into my headset if I want to use it.
After getting the system up and running I have had no problems keeping the
heat down behind the panel. I did originally have panel heat problems when
doing my flying off time in Florida in the summer - outside temps at
altitude above 95 degrees F.
Good luck. I think the work necessary to make the panel removable is worth
it. I would also recommend making the connections to the engine easy to
disconnect so you don't have to cut anything when the engine needs to be
removed.
The system works great and the Europa is great IFR platform, except I could
occasionally use another radio - but no room. Just takes some planning.
Gary Leinberger
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