Quote:
Originally Posted by Rick Erwin
Has anyone here ever successfully tested one of your EL panels by connecting the two small gauge wires coming out of the back of the panel directly to 120V AC line voltage from the electrical grid?
Rick
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Rick,
According to Cessna Pilot's Association Mag (Vol 16, No 12, December 1999), in an article by Steve Ells titled
Cessna's Transistorized Instrument Lighting Systems, he writes: "EL panels can be tested for operation by plugging the leads to a 110V AC wall socket."
For those of us trying to repair transistorized lighting:
1) CPA Article above
2) CPA Article (Vol 19, No 1, Jan 2002) by Mike Busch titled:
Lights...Rheostats...Transistors
3) Cessna Service Information Letter SE84-19 titled:
Instrument Light Dimming Circuit Troubleshooting
--in SE84-19, Cessna recommends against 2N3055 transistors, and instead using 2N6576 transistors since they have higher gain thresholds.
Inverta-Paks are available from Cessna at $900 or so, or often found on ebay in untested used conditions.
If you choose to completely rip out the existing lighting system wiring and start fresh, Seaton Engineering makes MicroDim solid state controllers that can run all three circuits (EL Panel, Flood lighting, and post lighting) without the need for the heat-sink and transistors and existing rheostats. Still need the darn inverta-pak, though. After fussing with my lighting for 3 months...I think I'll order some miniDim controllers (1 dual, 1 single) and remove the heat sink and run new wiring to the floods, the EL panels, and the posts. If it works as advertised, that'll be the end of the lighting woes.