Buying a used/recon Garmin 430WAAS
 

Hi All,

Like a lot of people I am faced with replacing box 2 on my aircraft with something that is 8.33khz compatible. As I also want to upgrade my airways kit to include B/PRNAV approval I thought I might kill two birds with one cheque and add a 430WAAS to the straight 430 already installed.

Apart from importing from the States via Ebay and Mendelssohn's does anyone have a lead on who might regularly sell them in the UK or Europe? Whilst the cost of importing is slightly cheaper I would prefer to know where the set is coming from and avoid having to pay import duty.

As always any help appreciated.

BB.

A good plan but....

It would appear that a huge number of the non-US 430W adverts are fraudulent. Be particularly careful of anyone with a gmail address.

Best of luck

Caution - a WAAS and a non-WAAS unit won't cross fill data. Also, a dual 430/W installation requires an STC for installation approval.
Best if you also upgrade your existing unit to WAAS as well ($3300 from Garmin in Southampton) and then you can get the necessary STC from Gama Aviation at Fairoaks. They have a separate STC which then approves the WAAS units for BRNAV, PRNAV and LPV.

The original plan was to upgrade the existing 430 and get the STC as mentioned but when you add another £3k plus to replace the second radio you are almost in the same price bracket as simply putting in a 430W and buying the STC that way.

Do both 430's have to cross fill data?

As mentioned above I have already come across 'offers' of well priced units asking for money to be sent to people with nothing more than a gmail account. There was one on last weeks UKGA add list. Beware!!

BB

Did you talk to a Garmin representative on the issue? When I was looking into WAAS upgrades they offered trade-ins for 430 <-> 650, which in the end were less expensive than the 430 -> 430W+STC due to the AML mechanism for the 650.

I thought all GNS 430's are 8.33 ready just need reprograming on the maintenance page.
We had twin 430 28volt early ones I am sure I saw it in setups many years ago, does anyone know? If so no need to change them.

For the Garmin GNS430, you have to select the AUX page group, then select SETUP 2, enable the cursor, scroll down to 'COM Configuration', select that to view the channel spacing field, select 8.33 and press ENT.

Don't you have a GNS430 Pilot Guide? They're freely downloadable.

In my opinion the 650 is a poor choice as an upgrade. The screen is too small especially if you want to use the touchscreen function. For my money I'd go for the Avidyne IFD440, it's an up to date, state of the art, plug and play replacement for the 430 and 430W

Try Brian at Bournemouth Avionics. He usually has Garmin units in stock and is good to deal with IMO... He can also install etc.

Our C182 Group went the existing fitted G430 to the G430W upgrade route. (The basic G430 comes with 8.33, ref Beagles informative post)
Not a cheap upgrade, but perfect for the job.
We looked at the 650 but as mentioned, thought the touch screen too small, and difficult to use in turbulence. The G750 the way to go if you have deep pockets!!

Thanks Motorizer. My aircraft is currently at BOH being painted so I will ring BOH avionics.

I already have 8.33khz on the existing 430 but adding a 430W to accompany it kills two problems with one (BIG) cheque.

Our PA28 currently with Bournemouth Avionics. For the avoidance of doubt, they're located at Lee-on-Solent, not BOH.
We decided not to go the 450W route as we already have a moving map GPS panel-mounted. We're replacing a lovely Bendix/King KX165 with the only box that will directly replace its function (though needing a new tray and wiring) - Garmin 255A.
We had a 2 1/2 month wait for a slot. If you leave it 'til this time next year, you'll be WAY too late!

TOO

GNS430
 

I would save your money, Garmin have stopped supporting the 28v unit, how long before they stop supporting the 14v?.
The graphics are very poor to what is now available, the extra cost to upgrade to a 650 would be better spent as some people are charging like a wounded rhino for the recon 430 units.
The 650 unit is great if you have a decent autopilot to connect to, the biggest problem I have found with the 650 is there are no VRPs in the software yet only airway intersections etc.

My choice on the next installation will be a couple of Garmin GNC Nav/Coms and the cheap and brilliant SkyDemon with great updates and planning tools, Cost of Nav/Data upgrades for 12 months on the 650 is just over £500.

We run 3 PA28s and have gone through most options.
Regards
PB