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<< Lancair Builders' Mail List >>
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Tom asks about installing landing lights in the stub wings of a 320/360:
I elected to install small halogen lights in the wingtips. There was no room
for anything in the cowl. I looked at automotive lights but could not find
anything small enough to fit in the wings. There's less space in the wing
stubs than you might think when you consider the needs of the outboard wing
spar and cushion for installation and removal with damaging a light. Someone
on this list put me on to the small halogen lights. These are the 2-pin bulbs
commonly available for a variety of uses including overhead projectors. The
holder is a standard unit, QLV-1 Socket. The bulbs offer different beam
angles, I use the narrowest available in the 65 Watt range. I mounted two
lights, one in each tip. Actually, they are located just inboard of the most
outboard ribs. I cut into the wing leading edge similarly to other wing/light
installations. I made the lenses out of flat polycarbonate stock easily
available and used the removed leading edge plug as the form for the lense.
This was a lot of work - a little more work than installing the tip lights
and lenses.
I like the wing tip location because this gives the best illumination of the
runway that you can actually see in the flair. I've found that the runway
immediately ahead of the plane is blocked as you bring the nose up, so you
need peripheral illumination. As you move the lights outboard, you improve
this kind of illumination. You need good light projection ahead so that the
touch down zone becomes illuminated before you transition into the flair. For
this you need a narrow beam and it needs to be aimed properly. Once this is
done, the takeoff needs are well covered, which is good centerline
illumination. The left side light does the most good since you see much more
of the runway on that side. The right side light just serves to illuminate
that edge of the runway and little else.
On balance, I would like narrower beams than I have (13 degrees is the
narrowest available it seems) but it's workable. The bulbs and sockets are
about $20 for the set (I've got two sets). I've got about 200 hours on the
plane and have yet to have a bulb burn out. I use landing lights for all
takeoffs, initial climbs, approaches, and landings.
One other thing about wing tip mounting: It looks cool. From the ground and
from the pilot's seat.
Best Regards,
Ed de Chazal
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