Princeton fuel probe

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Princeton fuel probe

Postby Mike53 » Sun Aug 02, 2020 11:51 am

Hi all.
Does anyone know why we are supposed to cut 2" off the probe? I didn't and am wondering if it has anything to do with the fact I can't get the led's in the control box to light up.

I have a GRT EIS and a Belite fuel gauge.

I didn't wire it an avionics shop did and his assumption is the control box is defective.Of course he obviously didn't test the system when he was finished the job.
Needless to say It's the last thing I need to figure out before inspection.
Thanks,
Mike
Mike
I know but one freedom, and that is the freedom of the mind.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
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Re: Princeton fuel probe

Postby WaiexN143NM » Sun Aug 02, 2020 1:31 pm

hi all, mike,
i have the princeton guage and a dynon 7in skyview. fuel reads very accurate. legacy waiex tank. i dont remember
cutting the fuel probe. Maybe for onex fuel probe needs trimming. is the princeton probe compatible with the belite fuel guage?
a few people tried to use the belite fuel sensor with efis , didnt work. my guess is belite fuel sensor only works with belite fuel guage.
good luck, let us know your results.

WaiexN143NM
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Re: Princeton fuel probe

Postby XenosN42 » Sun Aug 02, 2020 2:06 pm

Mike53 wrote:Hi all.
Does anyone know why we are supposed to cut 2" off the probe? I didn't and am wondering if it has anything to do with the fact I can't get the led's in the control box to light up.

I have a GRT EIS and a Belite fuel gauge.

I didn't wire it an avionics shop did and his assumption is the control box is defective.Of course he obviously didn't test the system when he was finished the job.
Needless to say It's the last thing I need to figure out before inspection.
Thanks,
Mike


Hi Mike,

Two good questions.

First why cut 2" off the probe? If you install the probe before the tank is installed in the OneX you don't need to cut off the 2 inches, and it's better if you don't. If you install the probe after the tank has been installed you'll need to cut off the top 2 inches. Why? There isn't enough verticle clearance between the bottom of the tank (where the probe is inserted) and the cabin floor.

Second question. The first thing that I'd check is the connector between the probe and the control box. I had your problem when I first installed the probe in my OneX. I played with the connection, it was loose, pushed it together and reinforced the connection with electical tape. Worked well.

If that's not the problem I'd look at the simple causes first. Power and ground tested? Signal wire properly connected to the RDAC or where ever it should be connected to the GRT EIS?

BTW - You can still have your plane inspected before you resolve this issue. The inspector won't know and probably wouldn't care. It's mostly just checking paper work.
-- Michael
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author of the 'Flight Data Viewer'
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Re: Princeton fuel probe

Postby XenosN42 » Sun Aug 02, 2020 2:27 pm

Mike53 wrote:Hi all.
Does anyone know why we are supposed to cut 2" off the probe? I didn't and am wondering if it has anything to do with the fact I can't get the led's in the control box to light up.

I have a GRT EIS and a Belite fuel gauge.

I didn't wire it an avionics shop did and his assumption is the control box is defective.Of course he obviously didn't test the system when he was finished the job.
Needless to say It's the last thing I need to figure out before inspection.
Thanks,
Mike


Mike,

What is the model number of the Belite fuel probe?
-- Michael
OneX N169XE
author of the 'Flight Data Viewer'
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Re: Princeton fuel probe

Postby Mike53 » Sun Aug 02, 2020 4:42 pm

Lots of Michaels here. I thank you both for your help.
I cut a hole in the floor and covered it with a plate so that if I ever had to remove the probe it would still come out .
To be clear I don't have a Belite fuel probe just the gauge . The probe is a Princeton.
Good to know i don't have to remove it and cut it down.
I will check for loose connections . I'm comfortable building a plane or anything else for that matter but I have always had a mental block when it comes to electronics,Thats why I had the avionics proffesionally done.
Thanks again.
Mike
Mike
I know but one freedom, and that is the freedom of the mind.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Reserved C-FONX for the 80th Onex,Hummel 85HP ,Tri gear,GRT Mini X EFIS,and EMS,iFly 740 GPS
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Re: Princeton fuel probe

Postby Mike53 » Sat Dec 19, 2020 8:54 am

Mike53 wrote:Lots of Michaels here. I thank you both for your help.
I cut a hole in the floor and covered it with a plate so that if I ever had to remove the probe it would still come out .
To be clear I don't have a Belite fuel probe just the gauge . The probe is a Princeton.
Good to know i don't have to remove it and cut it down.
I will check for loose connections . I'm comfortable building a plane or anything else for that matter but I have always had a mental block when it comes to electronics,Thats why I had the avionics proffesionally done.
Thanks again.
Mike

Have been away from my build for a while. I finally got back to it and I just wanted to put the word out about the service at Princeton electronics https://www.princeton-electronics.com/
They sent me a new control box(at no charge) when I explained my problems. I was having problems calibrating with the new control box to my Belite fuel gauge, so called Princeton and Pat walked me through the whole process and it worked beautifully. So a special thanks to Princeton and Pat in particular for superb service.
I remember Robbie had a similar experience a while back.
Cheers,
Mike
Mike
I know but one freedom, and that is the freedom of the mind.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Reserved C-FONX for the 80th Onex,Hummel 85HP ,Tri gear,GRT Mini X EFIS,and EMS,iFly 740 GPS
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Posts: 480
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Re: Princeton fuel probe

Postby Sonex1517 » Sat Dec 19, 2020 10:36 pm

Mike is correct. I had a BeLite probe and gauge. Couldn’t get it to read accurately.

I put in a Princeton probe and hooked it up to my GRT remote EMS. Works great.

I’m thoroughly impressed with Princeton. They actually helped me on a Sunday afternoon once.
Robbie Culver
Sonex 1517
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First flight 10/10/2015
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