c/avionics-technicians

Fixed a stubborn ADSB dropout with a $12 GPS antenna reposition

Been chasing intermittent ADSB dropouts on a Cessna for two months now, finally relocated the GPS antenna away from the transponder coax at KLGB last Thursday and the squitter has been rock solid since. Anyone else had weird interference issues traced back to antenna proximity on your installs?

The pin pusher trick that made me feel stupid after 5 years

I used to fight with Deutsch connectors using a tiny flathead and swearing, until a guy from the 737 line showed me how a proper pin pusher tool saves the whole process. He made me try it on a stubborn #20 pin that I'd been wrestling for 20 minutes, and it popped out in 2 seconds clean. Anyone else have a basic tool they avoided for way too long before someone slapped sense into them?

Replaced my old crimp tool after 12 years of fighting with it

I finally swapped out my beat-up M22520 crimper for a new one last week, and honestly I should have done it ages ago. The old military surplus unit I had was fine for the big pins, but man, the small 22 gauge contacts were always a gamble with it. I used to have to squeeze twice and check with a magnifier every single time, which ate up so much time on pit jobs in Phoenix. The new ratcheting tool catches when the die is actually seated, no more guessing, and the first crimp I did came out perfect on the pull test. It cost me about 300 bucks, which stung, but the time I've saved on one harness rework alone already paid for it. Has anyone else held onto a worn tool way too long because it was 'good enough' for the old work?

The $400 harness tester that sat on my bench for 2 years

Back in 2019 I got talked into buying this fancy automatic harness tester from a vendor at the MRO show in Orlando. Thought it would speed up my bench work on the CRJ200 bundles, but honestly my old homemade continuity rig with the relay box does the same job in half the time. I used the new one exactly twice, then it just collected dust until I sold it for $150 on eBay. Anyone else bought shiny shop gear that ended up being more trouble than it was worth?

One look at the wiring diagram saved me a 2-day headache in Tulsa

Last month I was tracing a nav light fault on a Cessna 172 and this old timer mechanic, Dave, walked over and just pointed at the schematic. He said, 'You're chasing the breaker, but the real issue is the ground loop at the wing root.' I blew him off for an hour until I finally checked, and sure enough, a corroded connector was feeding back through the strobe power supply. That one conversation taught me more about reading prints than any manual I've flipped through. Has anyone else had a senior guy save their ass with a single observation like that?

Was dead set against using dielectric grease on avionics connectors for years

I always thought that stuff was just a mess and a magnet for dirt, especially after a bad experience with a Garmin GPS antenna on a Cessna 172 in Phoenix where the grease turned to paste. But after a 2018 King Air 350 had intermittent issues in the humidity down in Houston, an old Gulfstream mechanic showed me I was just using way too much of it. Has anyone else had that moment where an old-school trick you dismissed actually saved the day?

Took me 6 hours to find a bad ground on a Garmin G5 install

I was troubleshooting a Garmin G5 that kept losing heading data. Checked wiring diagrams, swapped connectors, even reloaded the software. Turns out a ground screw I installed was biting into a painted spot on the airframe. Six hours of my Saturday gone because I didn't use a star washer. Anyone else spend way too long on something that simple?

Veteran A&P at the FBO made me question my go/no-go call on a 430W

Last Wednesday I was pulling a GNS 430W out of a Piper Archer for a bench test. The old A&P who's been there since the 80s walked over and said 'you sure that's bad or are you just guessing?' He showed me how he checks the antenna coax and tray ground first before ever pulling the box. Made me realize I've been jumping straight to removing the unit on 3 out of my last 5 430W tickets. Anyone else ever catch yourself replacing gear when the real fix was something simpler?

That week where every wire harness I built passed first try

Last Wednesday was wild - I cranked out 4 complete harnesses for a Cessna 172 and every single one passed continuity and megger tests on the first go. Usually I'm chasing at least one cold solder joint or mis-pin, so I'm still trying to figure out what I did different. Any of you guys ever have a streak like that and accidentally replicate it?

Can we talk about that wiring issue at O'Hare last Tuesday?

I was out at O'Hare doing a routine pitot-static check on a 737 when the lead tech pulled me over to look at a nav unit that was acting up. Someone had used unshielded wire for a critical GPS antenna line and the interference was messing with the approach system. The whole thing came down to a lazy splice job from a previous shift that nobody caught during the walkthrough. I spent three hours rewiring that section with proper coax and shielding tape. Now I double check every single cable run even if the job ticket says it's just a swap. Has anyone else run into shady work like this from contract crews at big hubs?

Tried updating firmware on a Collins radio and bricked it completely

I was working on a KTR 908 in a King Air at the hangar in Tulsa, thought I'd do a quick firmware update to fix a squelch issue. Followed the manual step by step (or so I thought) and the thing just went dead, no power, no boot, nothing. Turns out I needed a specific loader cable revision that wasn't in the kit I had, and now I'm out of pocket for a replacement board. Has anyone else had trouble with Collins firmware updates not matching the listed hardware version?

Ran into an old instructor at Oshkosh who changed my thinking on test equipment

I was at AirVenture last week and saw my old avionics instructor from school. He asked what I used for troubleshooting and I told him I always reach for my Fluke 87. He said real skill is knowing when to put the meter down and just listen to what the pilot describes. That got me thinking about how I rely too much on numbers and not enough on symptoms. Has anyone else had a mentor tell them something that made them work different?

That $300 antenna analyzer I bought off Craigslist was a total dud

I picked up a used antenna analyzer from a guy near Oakland for some precision tuning work, but it turned out to be giving me readings off by 5 MHz. Cost me 2 days troubleshooting a perfectly good coax run before I realized the tool itself was busted. Anyone else ever get burned buying used test gear from random folks?

Heard a line guy at KORD say most radios are just mounted wrong

He was talking about how a coworker's comms kept cutting out because the tray wasn't grounded to the airframe right. Has anyone else seen bad grounding cause weird issues that get blamed on the radio itself?

Had to choose between a 709 crimper and a $40 amazon knockoff for a 737 job last Tuesday

I was standing in the hangar at BHM with a bundle of Deutsch pins staring me down. The Snap-on one was $180 but I figured the cheap one would be fine (spoiler: it was not). After fighting 3 pins that wouldn't seat right and wasting 20 minutes, I borrowed my buddy's real 709 and finished the bundle in 5 minutes flat. Anyone else ever get burned trying to save money on crimpers?

Rented a fancy oscilloscope for a week vs buying a cheap used one

I grabbed a rental Fluke for a tricky 737 nav issue, but ended up wishing I'd just bought a beat-up Tek on eBay for $200 after the rental fees hit $180 in 5 days. Anybody else feel like renting tests is a trap for stuff you'll only touch once?

Got burned buying a used test box off eBay, lost $400 and a whole weekend

I thought I was being smart snagging a used IFR 4000 for cheap, like $400 cheap. Figured it would be perfect for some radio checks at home, maybe save some shop time. Get it in the mail, plug it in, and the display flickers for five seconds before going totally dead. Spent all Saturday tearing it apart, found a blown cap on the power board but couldn't get the part locally. Now it's a paperweight on my bench and I'm out the cash. Anyone else have bad luck with used avionics gear from online auctions?

Chat with a retired Pan Am avionics guy got me thinking about old-school troubleshooting

He said they used to trace wiring faults with just a multimeter and a schematic before all these fancy diagnostic computers existed, and that made me wonder if I rely too much on automated test equipment now. Have you ever had a moment where an old-timer's method actually solved a problem faster than your usual go-to gear?

Talk with a 20 year avionics vet changed how I look at pin repairs

Was griping about a bad pin on a D-sub connector last Tuesday and this older guy told me 'you're not fixing the pin, you're fixing the signal path.' Made me slow down and actually check the crimp tool calibration. Anyone else have a simple comment that made you rethink your whole approach?

That guy at the hangar said I could skip the bond test on a coax repair

Last week in Phoenix, a senior tech told me I didnt need to bother with the bond test after fixing a BNC connector on a comm antenna. I listened to him and skipped it. First flight out, the VHF was dropping signal every time the gear cycled. Had to pull the panel again and redo the whole thing with a proper bond check. Anyone else ever get burned by bad advice from someone who seemed like they knew better?

Pulled a corroded connector from a 727 last month in Salt Lake City

We were tracing a intermittent comm issue on an old 727 that's been sitting in the desert. I opened a panel near the wing root and found a connector filled with green crust. Took me three hours to clean it up with contact cleaner and a tiny wire brush. The radio worked perfect after that. Anyone run into corrosion this bad on older airframes?

Just cleared my first solo wire bundle on a G1000 install and man what a feeling

Worst shift of my career happened last Thursday on a King Air 200

We had a radar altimeter glitch that took me 8 hours to trace back to a single corroded pin in a cannon plug under the floorboards. Has anyone else had a simple issue turn into a whole-day job like that?

Unpopular opinion: that $600 test set I bought off eBay was a total scam

I picked up a used DMM with cable cert functions for $600 from a seller in Phoenix last month. Turns out the calibration was 4 years expired and it wouldn't hold a zero on any resistance test. Anyone else get burned buying gear from random online listings?

Old timer at the avionics bench changed my mind about connector cleaning

Guy named Frank at the shop near DFW airport spent 20 minutes showing me how he uses isopropyl alcohol and a stiff brush on cannon plugs instead of that spray crap, said he hasn't had a single intermittent fault in 15 years. Has anyone else sworn off contact cleaner after trying this method?