We decided early on to put one of the Advanced Flight Systems new EFIS/EMS combination instruments into our RV9A. After reviewing the smaller AF3400 and the larger AF3500, we decided to purchase the larger AF3500 device. After moving the switches to the center of the aircraft (a good move!), we placed the AF3500 in front of the pilots seat. We made the panel cutout based on the drawings supplied by Advanced Flight Systems on their web site (http://www.advanced-control-systems.com/Products/AF-3500/AF-3500.html) but not having an actual system, we didn't know if it would actually fit. However, this week we were able to obtain a non-working unit that we could use to test and verify the fit and position of the unit.The first thing we did was make sure the unit fit into our cutout. With some small adjustments it fit into the panel with no problem (the dimensions from the web site seem accurate). We then cut the four screw holes for mounting the unit and mounted the unit into the panel.With the unit mounted onto the panel, we tried to place the panel into position. The first issue we faced was interference with the F-721A left side rail. Cutting a small notch in this part allowed the AF3500 to then fit. The second issue was interference with the F-745L fuselage rib. To fix this problem we cut off the rib approximately 3/4 inch from the end and built an offset extension to allow the rib to be attached to the front panel. This necessitated cutting new screw holes in the panel for the rib extension. You can see the parts we made for this rib extension below as well as the AF3500 in place with the rib extension.
