• If You Are Having Trouble Logging In with Your Old Username and Password, Please use this Forgot Your Password link to get re-established.
  • Hey! Be sure to login or register!

Ammeter relocation

txpacer

SPONSOR
Iowa Park, TX
For the electrical geniuses out there...

We are restoring another Italian L-21. After seeing one of the photos in Steve's presentation last week, we've decided to move the electrics from the wing to the panel. I'm going to leave the switch panel and ammeter in the wing because it is in Italian and will look right, but it will be non-functional. That means there will have to be a working ammeter in the panel unless I run current up to the one in the wing. That would defeat the purpose of moving the electrics in the first place.

My question is: Is it possible to use an external shunt to keep the main juice behind the panel and just run two small wires to drive the internally shunted ammeter in the wing? That would achieve the goal of moving the power while keeping the original look. The external shunt ammeters I've found just wouldn't look right.
 
That will work but only with an ammeter designed for use with an external shunt. That's the point of using an external shunt; Place the shunt where needed and connect it to the ammeter with small wires.

If look is important, try looking at gauges used in automotive restorations. Worst case scenario, find someone that will open up an old school ammeter and remove the shunt element for external mounting. Also keep in mind that the shunt needs to be made for the meter. They're NOT interchangeable.

Web
 
That's what I was thinking. I'll keep looking for a good looking external shunt meter, or just cut another hole in the panel. I don't think I want to do ammeter surgery.
 
Last edited:
Don’t forget to use circuit protection devices on those little wires running from the shunt to your gage.

To be legal, how are you going to indicate the switches and other non functional stuff are actually non functional? They would all need inop placards.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
To be legal, how are you going to indicate the switches and other non functional stuff are actually non functional? They would all need inop placards./QUOTE]

Something to consider. But, if they're not labeled in English, do they need any additional labels to be inop?
 
I don't think Chris will let anyone fly her airplane when she is done much less someone fluent in Italian although there are a lot at Sheppard. 8)
 
I don't think Chris will let anyone fly her airplane when she is done much less someone fluent in Italian although there are a lot at Sheppard. 8)
I don't think any will meet insurance requirements. I'll only get to fly it enough to make sure it's rigged right.

Any restoration is a compromise between practicality, legality and originality, especially one like this. My L-21 was easy - I modded it the way I wanted and didn't worry so much about being original. Chris wants to keep hers as stock as we can, with exceptions for safety related mods. We bought it with the original Italian logs and lettering, she wants it to keep it like that.
 
... how are you going to indicate the switches and other non functional stuff are actually non functional? They would all need inop placards....

Maybe some inop placards in italian, in the same font as whatever's there now?
 
Back
Top