Aircraft Lighting

Discussion of aircraft electrical system design, construction, and problems.

Aircraft Lighting

Postby pfhoeycfi » Thu Aug 02, 2018 8:01 am

I am curious as to what type of aircraft lighting builders are installing, ie landing & nav/pos/strobe. I'm getting closer to skinning the wings and need to start consider pulling wire to the tips. Also what is being used for conduit in the wings?

thanks again...lots of great info here,

Peter
Doylestown, Pa
SNB0021 in progress
Peter Hoey
SEL Pvt, Comm Glider, CFIG, Pawnee & L19 Towpilot
Philadelphia Glider Council
Sonex B SNB0021, N561PH, Taildragger, Aerovee Turbo, MGL MX1, First flight Dec 18, 2022
Also built Sonerai IIL N86PH
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Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby Bryan Cotton » Thu Aug 02, 2018 10:43 am

I used Whelen Orion 600's.
http://m.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/elp ... kkey=22748

For landing lights I used Fresh Aero:
https://www.freshaero.com/m.tlrlight.html

For conduit I used a couple runs through the existing 1/4" tooling holes in the forward rib.
Bryan Cotton
Poplar Grove, IL C77
Waiex 191 N191YX
Taildragger, Aerovee, acro ailerons
dual sticks with sport trainer controls
Prebuilt spars and machined angle kit
Year 2 flying and approaching 200 hours December 23
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Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby pfhoeycfi » Thu Aug 02, 2018 10:52 am

Bryan Cotton wrote:
For conduit I used a couple runs through the existing 1/4" tooling holes in the forward rib.


Did you pull your conductors thru poly or plastic tubing?

thanks,

peter
Peter Hoey
SEL Pvt, Comm Glider, CFIG, Pawnee & L19 Towpilot
Philadelphia Glider Council
Sonex B SNB0021, N561PH, Taildragger, Aerovee Turbo, MGL MX1, First flight Dec 18, 2022
Also built Sonerai IIL N86PH
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Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby Bryan Cotton » Thu Aug 02, 2018 2:36 pm

1/4" OD poly tubing.
Bryan Cotton
Poplar Grove, IL C77
Waiex 191 N191YX
Taildragger, Aerovee, acro ailerons
dual sticks with sport trainer controls
Prebuilt spars and machined angle kit
Year 2 flying and approaching 200 hours December 23
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Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby mike.smith » Thu Aug 02, 2018 10:34 pm

I have wingtip LED nav/strobe lights from Aveo Engineering. Landing light is a Duckworks with HID lamp (no longer available). Note that if you plan to fly at night your lights MUST be TSO'd units to be legal (one of the only things on an experimental that needs to have a TSO). And if you install on the wingtips you need to put them on pods so they meet the angle requirements for viewing: https://www.whelen.com/pb/Aviation/Syst ... ystems.pdf.

I highly recommend you run dedicated ground wires from your lights back to your ground block and not use the airframe as a ground path.
Mike Smith
Sonex N439M
Scratch built, AeroVee, Dual stick, Tail dragger
http://www.mykitlog.com/mikesmith
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Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby pfhoeycfi » Thu Aug 09, 2018 6:09 am

Ok great. Have builders been running shielded or non shielded to the wing tip lights and landing lights? I'm think an 18/4 to tips and an 18/2 to the landing light.
Peter Hoey
SEL Pvt, Comm Glider, CFIG, Pawnee & L19 Towpilot
Philadelphia Glider Council
Sonex B SNB0021, N561PH, Taildragger, Aerovee Turbo, MGL MX1, First flight Dec 18, 2022
Also built Sonerai IIL N86PH
pfhoeycfi
 
Posts: 384
Joined: Wed Jun 28, 2017 3:45 pm

Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby Bryan Cotton » Thu Aug 09, 2018 7:07 am

I used shielded wire. Makes it like pulling a single wire through the conduit.
Bryan Cotton
Poplar Grove, IL C77
Waiex 191 N191YX
Taildragger, Aerovee, acro ailerons
dual sticks with sport trainer controls
Prebuilt spars and machined angle kit
Year 2 flying and approaching 200 hours December 23
User avatar
Bryan Cotton
 
Posts: 5496
Joined: Mon Jul 01, 2013 9:54 pm
Location: C77

Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby tx_swordguy » Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:40 pm

just a quick question. I am a sport pilot and cannot fly legally at night. I have nav lights and strobe lights on my sonex. My nav lights are not functional at this time and I have not had time to investigate. Is that something that MUST be operational if it is installed (for condition inspection) or is it an optional item since it is not required to be on the plane to begin with?
Mark
Mark Whiddon
T25 Aero Estates
Sonex N889AP
jabiru 3300 solid lifter
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Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby mike.smith » Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:42 pm

pfhoeycfi wrote:Ok great. Have builders been running shielded or non shielded to the wing tip lights and landing lights? I'm think an 18/4 to tips and an 18/2 to the landing light.


My setup did not require shielded wires and so I did not use any. No issues in 4 years.
Mike Smith
Sonex N439M
Scratch built, AeroVee, Dual stick, Tail dragger
http://www.mykitlog.com/mikesmith
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Re: Aircraft Lighting

Postby mike.smith » Thu Aug 09, 2018 8:45 pm

tx_swordguy wrote:just a quick question. I am a sport pilot and cannot fly legally at night. I have nav lights and strobe lights on my sonex. My nav lights are not functional at this time and I have not had time to investigate. Is that something that MUST be operational if it is installed (for condition inspection) or is it an optional item since it is not required to be on the plane to begin with?
Mark


I don't know the "legal" answer, but my DAR insisted if if was on/in my plane then it had to be functioning. And even though an ELT is not a requirement during the 40 hour single pilot test phase, he said I had to have a functioning unit installed or he would put in my operating limitations that the plane had to be reinspected prior to the 40 hour sign off. And that would be another $250. So I went ahead and put it in :-)
Mike Smith
Sonex N439M
Scratch built, AeroVee, Dual stick, Tail dragger
http://www.mykitlog.com/mikesmith
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