I've just recently purchased a 79 Arrow IV. It took about 1.2 seconds to really like the autopilot.
However, about 400 miles into a 4000 mile trip last month it acted up. It would roll left in any mode. So I had to do the flying for 3600 miles. Heck.
I had the autopilot serviced in Montreal today. Expecting the worst, I left three hours later only CDN$350 poorer with a working autopilot. Seems some of the connectors had degraded over the years. The female end had become too loose. The test being to put a male pin in and hold it upside down and vertical. The pin would fall out. He said that worn connectors account for 90% of the autopilot problems they see.
The avionics technician changed the connectors on the switch panel and the DG. The other connectors were fine. Unrelated to the immediate problem, he also suggested I make another appointment sometime in the future to have my server motor serviced. He said the activation voltage should be 2V, but it was requiring 3V which could cause some slow rolling across the course (which I had noticed). He said a properly serviced servo would hold the course rock steady.
I thought I would share this because I expected to take a major financial hit and he could have told me anything. What would I know?
Bad connections are responsible for a large % of ALL electrical problems. Although convenient, plug type connectors are a reliability problem in vibration environments. Crimped connections are better if you give it a good tug to check it but soldered and insulated are the best.
Most radio problems are due to bad connections, especially poor grounds. Most owners with a minimum of knowledge could save a lot of money if they understand the basics of their electical systems and look at critical systems on pre-flight.
The basic battery and charging system connections should ALWAYS be free of any dirt or grease. This stuff builds up over a long time. It doesn't take much time to keep it clean if you stay on top of it. You can also check for loose connections at each pre-flight.
Occasionally look under your panel for dangling wires and loose ground connections. Added equipment may not have been installed to the best standards. Wires that have not been bundled and clamped are more prone to loose connections because they can move and put stress on the connections.
If you ever have an electrically related problem alwasy suspect the connections first. The best piece of test equipment is your hand. WHILE ON THE GROUND wiggle the cables of the offending item. If you can produce any kind of change, chances are it's the connection.
Ive a Seminole based in the UK that was bought with an autopilot snag. Trying to find someone here that knows what they are doing is very difficult and I had some bad experiences esp with CSE. I had the components serviced by autopilots central which is in Texas(I think). In the end, the problem lay with the horizon which I bought in the States and since have had no problems.Akki Aviation have a good engineer and they are at Turweston,he is good with the older stuff.Most companies in the UK want to fit a new Stec unit and dont seem to be good at fault diagnosis on older units.Good luck
I bought a 76 Arrow back in December that did not come with a factory installed autopilot. After 200 hours without an autopilot I've decided that the time has come to add one. Does anyone have any suggestions for an aftermarket add-on? I have heard that the newer autopilots can now be coupled to GPS.
