After getting the physical panel installed on the frame, I started thinking about how to get electrical power from the battery to the panel…..and through everything else that requires power. I looked at MANY builder sites and posts on VAF to get ideas of how other builders were accomplishing this. I found a few ideas from both sources, but ultimately decided to use what I learned to develop my own “bracket”. I started the whole process with these four parts:
- G3X Shunt
- ANL Current Limiter Base (x2)
- B&C Standby Alternator Regulator (SB1B-14)
Decision #1: Where would these four parts be mounted on the airplane? I found that some builders mounted each of the four parts directly to the firewall (on the pilot side), but I didn’t want to drill/add any “extra” holes in the firewall. I even saw a few installations on the engine side of the firewall. Another consideration for the mounting location was the distance apart the four parts would be….length of wire runs, obstructions to the wire runs, gauge of the wire, wire management, etc. Taking all of that into consideration, I decided to mount all four of the parts together in one location…..on the custom bracket I was going to fabricate.
JVL Aviation’s Electrical Power Bracket
Decision #2: Where on the airplane would this electrical power bracket go? I decided it would go on the left side (pilot side) of the sub panel between the sub panel and the firewall. You will be able to see this visually in later posts during the actual installation.
Now, to start designing the bracket. First, I took a bunch of measurements in the location I decided to mount the bracket. Then, I ordered two pieces of sheet aluminum from Van’s to fabricate it. One sheet was AS3-040x8x18 and the other was AS3-063x12x18. After playing around with each of the two “sizes”, I decided on the thicker .063 sheet…..solely because it was stronger. This picture shows the four parts arranged on the aluminum sheet…..with some additional aluminum sheets used to gauge the bracket plate size.
After consultation with some maintenance brains I trust, I decided this would be the final layout for the four parts.