Today I worked on installing the "forest of tabs"(FOT) that are what is called "Fast-on" tabs that you plug the ground wires on for all the electrical appliances in the aircraft. Best design stipulates that a single grounding point works best and the firewall area that accepts the engine ground and battery ground should be optimal. At least that is the theory.
I bought a forest of tabs with 48 tabs on it. That may sound like a lot, but after looking at the electrical system I felt that it may barely be enough. Sure I could double up on some grounds if I needed to....but that is not optimal. I (mistakenly) ordered two of the 48 FOT and was hoping to probably return one when I got around to it. I began to ponder and decided it is better to have extra tabs then come up short and double up on ground wires. So I measured and cut the second FOT and mounted it above the other one using the same brass bolt. I now have an additional 26 tabs to work with now or in the future if anything is added to the system. I upgraded the forest of tabs to the National Forest of Tabs...haha.
The location for the FOT was the best for what I had to work with. It may be a little difficult to identify "what" wire I want as the labels may be a little difficult to see....but they are accessable to remove and a good diagram should allow me to count and pull the right one during maintenance. Also....it will probably be few and far between that you ever deal with the grounds....at least that has been my experience.
Final process was making up the engine ground with the -2 Tefzel wire I have in my kit supplies. I decided to purchase the crimper for large wires.....it worked very well with a few bangs with a hammer. I removed the voltage regulators for FOT installation and will reinstall later on in the process.
