Knuckledragger

Sounds great! I like the color too.

12v USB Chargers in general generate TONS of RF noise.  If you find one that doesn't add noise to your radio (even the radio in your car), hang on to it.

Guys, thanks for the great feedback!

Sed, et al:  Those are great questions and some I can answer, some I definitely need to work on - especially the ambient temperature one.  Living in Florida makes that one a bit more tricky.

The unit will use ship's power, 11-14VDC.

It should sense and calculate altitude well above where most of us fly, but to keep costs down, its designed for non-pressurized cabins.

The magnetometer is in the unit.  But I'm interested in your thoughts about remote mounting the mag. 

I'll work on a better video soon.

Jim: let me think on the minimum order quantity for a group buy.  I've been thinking about a Kickstarter, which would offer a discount for all who wanted to pre-order units.  With Kickstarter, if enough orders are placed, would enable me to start manufacturing in quantity sooner.

One other note:  Since I'm the creator of the firmware that drives the display, I can work with people to provide custom units.  One thing that seems popular is the splash screen when the unit boots up.  I'm talking with a couple of a/c manufacturers and will put their logo in the splash screen for use in planes they build.

Robb

Guys,  I've been chained to the desk since early January working on this project.  Its a fully functional EFIS that I plan to sell at a fraction of what similar models cost.  It's pitot static driven, so no artificial GPS altitude and airspeed.

Please watch the short video and give me your comments, ideas, requests, and most important to me: your criticisms.  Also, if you like what you see, please help me spread the word in other forums where this would be appropriate. 

I've developed several intuitive visual cues that allow you to fly with the display without having to "study" it just to see if you're flying right.

The model in the video is a benchtop prototype.  I fly with it as well, but the point is the finished product will be more refined and cleaner looking.  It has a 3.2" (measured on the diagonal) screen and will fit neatly over a 3 1/8" gauge space.  There is a picture in the video that shows it standing next to a standard altimeter to give you a sense of size.

I plan to retail this for around $359 complete.  Nothing extra to buy.  Hook it up and fly.  If there is enough interest, I can arrange a group buy for members of the forum to keep the price under $300 per unit.

I'm working with a manufacturer now to design the final product.  We hope to have units to sell by summer.

Thanks for your time!

Robb

I've used a coat hangar with duct tape or gorilla tape wound sticky side out wound around the end.  Bend the end of the wire in a 1x1/4" U shape.  use a tiny zip tie to secure the tape just above the U shaped part.

I'll be around tomorrow and again on Friday.  I'd love to meet up if anyone is around.  Send me a text (520) fo fo niner - 4274

Robb

It looks like stratux has evolved nicely!  Joey, you can save a little weight and power by eliminated the fan in your RPi case.  It will never get hot enough to need it.  Even if you sit on it for a 70 min flight (or so I've heard, ahem..).

It's nice to see this in kit form now, and a very reasonable price too!  I built mine from code I downloaded, edited, and compiled locally, then flashed to an RPi similar to the one Joey has, then tuned a couple of cheapo antennas, fashioned a ground plane out of an old hotel key.  I bought a china cheapo SDR(Software Defined Radio) and flashed it with code available on the 'net - this handles the demodulation of the incoming ADS-B.  RPi is the little computer in the clear plastic case - RPi = Raspberry Pi

I can connect to it via WiFi from my Ipad and Iphone.  From there it integrates very well with Foreflight.  I can also bring up a web page that the stratux software publishes on any of my devices and see a great deal of information regarding the various planes and such in the area.

RE: the transmitter portion.  The problem with making the transmitter is the encoding format is horrendously complex.  Receiving and parsing the incoming signal is trivial in comparison.  I looked into adding the transmit capability to an RPi based receiver I cobbled together last year.  Yeesh! 

I thought if I could reverse engineer the SDR,I could come up with a way to transmit.  But unfortunately there's way more to it.  Not to mention transmission of signals can involve some of the F agencies, like FAA and FCC.

Yes, a Mk4.  I sold a bunch of stuff to a couple of brothers from RI (I think).  I wish I remembered their names, but alas I was still pumping the narcotics pretty hard when they came down.  I remember they were great fun and reminded me of a lively radio show   I still have a pair of wing tanks and some tall/long landing gear legs & axles of some sort, a few other odds and ends.

It's not me selling it though.  Friend of mine, owns Aero Adventure which was Aventura before that, Buccaneer before that.  I think he just needs the hangar space, so if anyone needs some spare metal parts...

I'm not sure I agree with him on his statement about the wings.  I watched a couple of (lifesaving) 4"-6" pine trees explode as the wings tore through them on my way to the scene.

There was one wing tank, but it was starting to leak a couple of weeks prior.

http://www.barnstormers.com/classified_1169739_AVID+MARK+IV.html

+1 Dusty!

Excellent video editing too!

I liike yer muddy tailwheel...

this video got my attention because it mentioned a noise.  So I listened but I don't think it's sounds like what I was hearing in my plane. 

I think I agree with leni about it sounding like the camera mount,  except...  was the camera set up to capture the sound? Thus implying the sound was there before the cam?

Barnstormers desparately needs an update.  It appears they programmed it to where it is 15 years ago and left it like that.  it could be a lot more and SO much better.

Who cares where the seller is located when the airplane/property/whatever is in some other part of the country?

Outside of canned forums its a rare thing to see an aviation website that isn't simply horrible.

That's my rant for the day.

I have a set of the main gear legs with axles.

Great pics!

I like the EXPERIMENTAL placard on your plane Joey.

+1 V bulletin

I've run a few websites and forums over the years.  I also develop software for more years than I care to admit to. 

I looked at this forum behind the scenes. It's very limited in what an admin can fix/adjust/change making you reliant,  perhaps too reliant, on the host.  

  I think it could be worthwhile over the longer-term to change the platform to something more broadly used.   Even with my experience, I found this forum to be somewhat clunky and difficult to administrate. I can only imagine how difficult it probably is for those to whom computers are only a necessary evil.

 There exists several inexpensive used web hosts that can provide free forum software easy to install, Customizable, and broadly used. The trick would be migrating all of the posts and information from this forum over to a new platform  

 If all you need to do right now is upgrade this using FTP and a few shell commands, I think I can give you a hand with it 

Albeit, not in an Avid/'Fox.  I really felt like I was flying when i took the doors off the Avid and although there were a few interesting avid and kitfox planes while I was shopping, nothing seemed to pop up in my corner of the country (Florida).  I found a Super Drifter at Sebring airport this month.  The aircraft was a well known entity with both my flight instructor, Jeff, and Shane, my preferred A&P.  Jeff owns a Drifter and has several thousand hours in them.

I spent the week with Jeff and Shane nearby going over every inch of the plane and engine ensuring correct hardware, proper adjustments, trim etc.  Jeff spent about  6 hours flying time instructing me in both his plane (a 582 Drifter) and mine (100hp 912s).  During this time I earned the tailwheel endorsement. 

Soon I'll install the Lotus 1650's that came with the plane and return to Jeff for seaplane instruction.

I'm not one to use hyperbole very often... Guys, open cockpit flying is spectacular!  That 100hp fan motor provides more grunt that I can use most of the time.  I can only imagine what this will be with floats.   This time of year the air temp is 65-80 while the sun is out.

This plane doesn't have the quick, sporty feel I loved about the Avid.  So when my wallet recovers from this I'll still be searching for something to replace 72MT.

Here is a short 8min video of my solo after finishing up with Jeff.  The flight was about 50 min. of gentle, low -n- slow soul flying during sunset around Sebring airport.  Air temp was 75.  

Those black snakes are as good as any barn cat at keeping the rodents away.

I feel your pain Joey.  It didn't take me long to find the bleeding edge of the flaperons.  I love the noodle idea.

Brilliant pics!  Sounds like a great adventure.

Wow!