Panel work

I continue to fight the panel layout. I decided to do some 'practice' cutting and fitting of the avionics using my old panel. First I cut out a hole for the EIS engine monitor. Then I took the panel in the house to see how the radios would look. Yesterday I decided to move the transponder over to the right side since I couldn't get everything to fit in the center. So I stacked the transponder, garmin panel mount box and a cut-out of the dynon and dag nabbit, there isn't enough room! It might fit but it would push the dynon clear to the top and the transponder clear to the bottom, so it wouldn't look very good. After trying a few other re-arrangments, I concluded that the panel mount garmin just isn't going to work. I confirmed with Sandi (since that is her side of the panel) what she wanted to do and she agreed that we can take the garmin out of the panel and just mount it diagonally somehow in the corner area of the panel. (Matt Burch did this on his RV-9A and it looked good.) So, in the center radio stack I'll have audio panel, KLN-89B, KX 155 and EIS engine monitor. On the right side in front of Sandi will have the Dynon and the transponder below it. This will also leave room for a small compartment for maps and such. It would be 6.25" wide and only a couple inches tall but that should be plenty. Some day it could turn into another radio slot or something if needed.

I removed all the instruments from the real panel and took it out of the plane, I should starting cutting holes for real this weekend. Debating whether to try and flush mount all the radios or leave them stick out like traditional panels do.

(Time: 2.5 Hours)