Upgrading the GlaStar: All the Parts and Pieces

Let’s talk panel. I mentioned in my first article for this GlaStar upgrade series that my husband and I decided it was not reasonable to separate the engine and the panel upgrade timelines, since the desire for more horsepower was more urgent, but the ability to track and monitor the health of our new engine would not be possible without at least a partial panel upgrade. The original panel had the bare minimum engine monitoring equipment, and no provisions for a constant-speed propeller, namely, a separate manifold pressure gauge. Not wanting to sink money into any temporary fix, we decided to wait and plan both to occur at the same time. I knew from the beginning that the Dynon Skyview HDX was high on my list due to my actual experiences flying behind the system. Then, when I discovered the Advanced Control Module (ACM) setup during my research, I was completely sold. The ACM came about as a facet of Advanced Flight Systems, a local Pacific Northwest brand that remains very prominent for experimental aircraft builders. In fact, it is the featured avionics suite in the Van’s RV-15 prototype. When Dynon acquired Advanced in 2013, it begat interoperability between the companies, allowing me to install the Dynon Skyview HDX utilizing Advanced’s incredible ACM product, which simplifies avionics installation like never before.

Avionics have always been prohibitively confusing for me. Piecing together my own package of every sensor, wire, and interface I needed by endless research and gathering part numbers just to realize I was still missing components has always led me to a point of exasperation. The ACM ended all of that for me. As they advertise, it is a “plug and play” system that I like to call the “giant brain box,” which handles the communication and interface between systems seamlessly. Not only that, but it features electronic circuit breakers that can be controlled through the EFIS … very similar to the Embraer 175 I fly for work. (In fact, the only physical circuit breaker I had designed into the new panel was for the alternator.) These abilities were only the very beginning of my joy; as I was to find out, Advanced truly shines in its “full service” mentality toward its customers. My husband, Eric, and I were able to work one-on-one with Kyle George from Advanced over a series of video calls to piece together our dream panel, which was then prepared for us as a complete plug-and-play package. Every wire, harness, antenna, and sensor that I needed was included in one order. What a concept! If you are more of a DIYer, Advanced offers differing levels of service, from the basic jump-start kit to a complete, ready-to-drop-in panel.

Kyle began the process by sitting us down and getting the needs and nonnegotiables out of the way. We knew we wanted an efficient and affordable IFR-capable panel with two screens for redundancy, so we could feel comfortable flying it from either seat or when flying together. I am an old-fashioned aviator at heart, and it was a nonnegotiable to still be able to fly in green needles—that is slang for VOR, LOC, and ILS capability—and not be limited to RNAV GPS approaches and navigation. Kyle came up with the perfect plan and an aesthetically pleasing layout, utilizing the GPS 175 for an IFR GPS Navigator and the GNC 215 NAV/COM to still tune a green needle. The PAR200B Audio Panel’s built-in COM radio also satisfied our stipulation for two radios in what may be the most efficient setup ever. My old aviator started showing up again when I wanted the audio panel on top of the avionics stack, but Kyle’s experience weighed in as he explained the ergonomics of reaching for things in turbulence and the blanking out of information that hands tend to do when they are punching buttons. I eventually agreed it was best to have the audio panel on the bottom. We walked through more renditions when it came to USB chargers, standby instruments, and how to organize the side panels. What we finished with was a winning design that I fall more in love with every day and can’t wait to start using. With the green light from Eric and me, the team at Advanced started production on the panel and had it ready to go in short order.

Picking up the panel was less glamorous than I hoped, due to the nature of being a regional airline captain and line check airman with little time off. I ended a four-day trip in Denver and caught the next available flight to Portland, Oregon. Advanced’s own Rob Hickman graciously agreed to meet me after hours so that I could pick up the panel just before 7 p.m. and get trucking—err—rental carring. (While they offer shipping, I thought it best to pick it up in person.) The crew there had been kind enough to set it up on the bench and snap a photo before packing it up, so I could ogle and share with friends before I had to drive it up to Arlington. They even preprogrammed customized options I would need, such as four fuel tank readouts—two for auxiliary tanks and two for main tanks.

After dropping off the panel, I had to leave it in the trusty hands of Ephraim Carter at Experimental Aircraft Services before I once again headed off to fly Embraers and train a new generation of airline pilots. Without Ephraim’s help and expertise, I am convinced it would have taken an eternity to complete these upgrades solo—but at least the panel would have been made easy thanks to Advanced and Dynon! Ephraim went right to work fitting it up to our panel blank and even got it staged in the panel and in the aircraft. He also fitted the new Tosten MS control sticks, and suddenly the vision that started on a computer screen was made tangibly real.

To support the four-tank fuel gauge system, we had to do some heavy work to the fuel tanks—most notably, the auxiliary tanks, which were basic and did not have a place to mount a fuel sender. Before I left, I drilled out the rivets that held on the outboard wing ribs, which allowed the aux tanks to be taken out—but not without certain challenges, such as cutting and installing a new inspection panel to allow for access to the tank.

Once the tanks were removed, they then had to be cut and sent to a welder to install the boss to mount the new fuel senders. I decided on using CiES senders due to amazing reviews and recommendations, as well as a great experience I had at their booth during EAA Oshkosh AirVenture. The GlaStar being Experimental/Amateur-Built meant they had to do a little extra research and even have their engineering team draft up two new senders that would work with the index at the 9 o’clock position. They were happy to do so, and their customer service was very responsive.

Another piece we tracked down was getting the correct prop spacer. Working with Saber Manufacturing, we settled on a 1 1/4-inch spacer, sizing down from a 1 1/2-inch spacer, and re-hung the prop. Some of the last dust to settle has been taking measurements and ordering a custom exhaust through Custom Aircraft Parts, deciding on dual studded heat exchangers to ensure we will never be chilly flying through Colorado winters.

Before I left Ephraim’s shop earlier this month, he had completed the conversion from electric flaps to manual flaps, and the system was fully operational, down to the safety-wired turnbuckles. Many people have raised questions as to how this is an upgrade, but the fact remains the GlaStar was never designed for electric flaps and in fact it was not recommended at all. This was due to the likelihood of overspeeding the flaps, since the manual design made them harder to deploy at unsafe speeds and prevented accidental deployment by hitting the wrong button on the stick, which was very easy to do! The manual flaps are also a more robust, reliable, and lightweight system compared to the heavy wires and duct-tape-mounted RV-8 flap motor that had run the system before. The manual flaps are also arguably better suited for short takeoff and landing (STOL) operations. The manual system is in now and the flaps work beautifully!

The upgrades are quite literally flying by at a blistering pace. So much so, that I have already begun looking into engine break-in procedures, avionics refamiliarization, and flight testing. The next time I travel to Arlington, we should be buttoning up the final items and hopefully running the engine. It looks like we may be heading to EAA Oshkosh AirVenture this year in our little yellow aircraft after all, so if you see us there, or otherwise flying around this summer, be sure to check in and say hi!