Folks,
In the grand tradition of putting the cart before the horse, I'm doing
some panel planning even though I won't be starting my Europa kit for
another 4 or 5 months. I've decided to go for a basic IFR panel that
will let me get up and down through the occasional basic crud.
Here is my dilemma. I've heard the horror stories about vacuum systems
and vacuum driven instruments being a weak link in an IFR set up. I
won't have room (will I?) for a backup vacuum system. That being the
case, an electric panel sounds better. I'm also considering an HSI to
save precious space. Unfortunately an electric HSI costs about $US
6,000, nearly 25% as much as my entire kit! Am I barking up the wrong
tree here by going all electric? Is the incredible expense of these
compared to vacuum instruments worth it? Since I'm not planning on
doing a lot of IFR flying, is an all electric panel even cost
effective? How can a knife be "self-sharpening"?
Looking forward to some really subjective comments :-),
Steve Genotte
Dallas, TX
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