Recording this as 50 hours, though it was probably more. Because the SkyView system takes up most of the instrument panel, I designed a custom switch panel to mount centered below the instrument panel. It angles out towards the occupants at a 45 degree angle and then bends back to vertical for the engine control cables. I did this towards the philosophy of being able to easily fly the airplane from either seat. I fabricated the switch panel with riveted stiffeners and powdercoated it for durability.
I bought Carlingtech Contura V sealed rocker switches with LED lights and customized actuators. I got these from RockerSwitch Pros. I also got from Digikey 2 ON-(OFF) push button switches for testing the Left and Right PMAG alternators. The roll trim is not located on the switch panel, but rather I wired it to sit between the pilot and co-pilot seats.
Wiring was a bit of a challenge as the 7 SPST switches have separate dependent lights to indicate when the switch is "ON." The challenge was that the VP-X electronic switches do not produce enough current to power these LEDs. I soldered jumper wires from the independent lights to power the dependent lights. Following the VP-X installation manual, I had to install diodes on the switch inputs and outputs to ensure current could only flow from the switch to ground and current could not move between the switches via the ground wires. It was probably 25 hours of researching and experimentation (and several trips to the local electronics store for diodes and connectors) before I got it working properly. I also bundled the wiring into a 15-pin and 9-pin dsub connector, along with a 4 pin molex for the larger P-mag wires. This will allow me to quickly detach and lower the switch panel if needed for better access to the underside of the instrument panel.
Combined Switch Panel/Engine Control Mounting Plate
