What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Instrument Lighting Control

If you are handy with a soldering iron, you can make one with parts from Radio Shack.

1 ea LM317T voltage regulator
1 ea 50K Ohm Potentiometer, # 271-1716 (R1)
1 ea 5.6K Ohm resistor. (R2)

You can use the capacitors shown but I skipped them for simplicity and there is no noise and it works fine for the Nu-lite rings and the LED eyeball floods that are pretty common.

I used some shoe goo to glue the 317T and resistor to the back of the potentiometer.

Probably 10 bucks total.

Schematic example
 
depends on how much current you need. a lm317T in a to-220 package is good for max 1A and gets hot as h..l at that power. a 3055 transistor in a to-3 is good for about 5 amps.

both will require proper heat sinking

bob burns
 
No argument against a possible better IC.
In my case, I was controlling a trio of Nulites and a few LEDs. Max of a 1/2 amp worst case. No perceptible temp rise on the TO-220 case shoe Goo'ed to the potentiometer housing.
 
Scott,
I have been using a single channel dimmer from Aircraft Spruce
PN 11-06674.
They spec.
Single Channel PWM dimmer
12 v DC. 7 amp cap (97 watts)
$33.75
It controls the lighting to my Vertical compass,and MGL V6 comm and a Garmin GMA 240 Audio Panel

Jack
 
dhc2jeep1 said:
Buy the parts asap - Radio Shack is in bankruptcy and is closing 1100 stores already.
Click to expand...

An unfortunate testament to private citizens loosing skills to make things.

Shades of many science fiction stories of the future public reliance on machines they don't know how to fix.

Mooo.
 
rzbill said:
An unfortunate testament to private citizens loosing skills to make things.

Shades of many science fiction stories of the future public reliance on machines they don't know how to fix.

Mooo.
Click to expand...

id say it was due to the fact that they carried nothing but cheap **** that you can buy at any walmart cheaper. I needed a capacitor the other day that i was out of and they did not even carry them anymore.

bob burns
RV-4 N82RB
 
I just stumbled upon this article the builder put in my POH and then this thread popped into mind. I figured I would post it, but I do not know if this circuit is actually in my airplane, so I will not comment on how well it works. Next time I am at the hangar I will try to determine if this is what I have.

410914669.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top