Hi Mike!

On Sun, 13 Mar 2005 18:51:10 -0800, Mike 'Flyin'8'
wrote:

Dave,

Thanks for your input! So if I mount the AM1000 on the Yoke, it does
not block any of the instruments in the cockpit?

I am 5' 9" , partner is 6'4". He says no, the knob on the mount
blocks the 0 -800 RPM portion of the tach for me if I sit perfectly
straight..shift my head to the right an inch or two, and my answer is
no as well...

When you turn the Yoke, does the AM1000 stay vertically aligned, or
does it turn with the yoke?

It turns with the yoke..


Since the AM500 and AM1000 are pretty much the same unit (Except for
size) Is the extra $200 a good trade off for screen size?

Yes, absolutely for us...

I have not
seen either of these units in person so I am not sure how dramatic the
difference on the screen is... I drew out two boxes that are the exact
size of the units, and the AM1000 is quite a bit bigger... I am
certainly leaning toward either the AM500 or AM1000, but trying to
justify the money in my head... If the AM500 does exactly what I
want, and the screen/button size is usable then I would be happy. If
however, the buttons are too small to be easily used during flight,
then I would be very disappointed. My currrent solution is jsut not
working... The PDA using GPS software and a CF card. It is just not
practical. How the heck am I supposed to use the little stylus during
flight... :-)

I don't know either... the AM 1000 has large widely spaced buttons,
easily reached with your thumbs while firmly holding the yoke.

We tried several, and the most difficult was a Garmin 196 mounted at
arms length in the center of the panel. OK on the ground, but in rough
air, just try to push a small (correct) button at arms length with
you (and your hand) moving opposite to the panel in rough conditions.


Obviously you thought the cost was worth the extra size on the
screen... I am just afraid the size of the unit would block some of
my view in the cockpit.

As above, not an issue with us on our 1974 "M" model

What about using this AirMap 1000 on a
suction cup mount connected to the lower left side of the front
windscreen? Workable?

Yes, should work OK, but when it gets bumpy, having your
thumbs/hands/buttons/GPS and yoke locked together takes the pain out
of the operation..

..
We REALLY happy with the AM..But that is just us, YMMV!

Good luck..

Happy to answer any other ???? U may have...

As you may guess by now, we tried several (in other 172's) and we
shopped hard

Dave