A couple of weeks ago, I started to crimp a FASTON receptacle onto a wire for my Bede BD-4C airplane when I stopped just in time, realizing that I was about to build a wire which could have connected something directly to the fuse… almost forgetting that I needed a switch, too. That made me realize that it was time to stop cutting up wire and start actually planning the electrical system for my plane. I have spent the last few weeks making wiring diagrams.
Today was a red letter day on my calendar, seeing about 700 feet of wire arrive.
If I had whole spools of wire, storing them would be easy. I would run a dowel through the hubs of the spools and rack them up. Dispensing would be easy, just like in the hardware store. Since I have relatively small amounts of each type of wire, I decided to try something different. I put each size+color into a large paper envelope and filed them in alphabetical order. I think it will work for me.
Feel free to check my diagrams and let me know if you have any suggestions. They are online in two forms:
Art
After spending much time with both the E.A.A tech advisor and a Boeing electrical engineer, I have made plans to use a grounding block system rather than grounding at each end of an item. By doing this it allows home runs for power and ground and eliminates having to search several areas on the day something isn’t working due to a ground or power issue.
Another tip i received from them was to use clear heat shrink and a word document using 8 point font to mark the descriptions on the wires.
Food for thought and if interested in the parts here is the link.
http://www.bandc.aero
Todd,
I agree completely about the grounding block system. That appears in the wiring diagrams as a triangle with “PG” inside for “panel ground,” a grounding block behind the instrument panel. There are a few devices with “LG” for “local ground” but most use the panel grounding block.
— Art Z.
I have a nice DYMO Rhino PRO 5000 label maker you can use. This is a DYMO heat shrink tubing label maker. Being able to label every wire will make your harnesses neat and organized.