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Pros/cons/other thoughts on trimming the bottom of the panel

N546RV

Well Known Member
OK, I've seen at least one other case where someone did this, but the thing that got me thinking about it was watching some Stu's Aircraft Factory vids on Youtube this past weekend, where he's added a slight relief at the bottom center of his panel.

The way I have my panel laid out, specifically how I'm pushing everything as high as possible up towards my sightline, I'll have probably 1.5" of empty space all along the bottom of the panel. I'm considering adding a relief in this area, as depicted in the attached images. Obviously I'd need to rivet some pieces of angle to retain the stiffness normally provided by the lower flange, but that should be straightforward.

My main motivation here is that I'm a tall dude with long legs, and I figure this may make it a little less awkward getting in/out of the aircraft. It should also provide better access to my fuse blocks, which will be on a hinged shelf behind the panel that can pivot down into view. Finally, I can maybe make the stick a little longer, though the upper aft brace might still be an issue (not sure if the stick will go that far forward once all the control travels are set up).

The only reason I can think of to not do this (besides the generic "it's extra work" thing) is that if I want/need to add switches down the road, that panel real estate could be a good place. Any other cons I'm not thinking of?
 

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Consider:
- I have long legs and the bottom of the panel is not an issue for getting in and out of the plane.
- At some point (perhaps sooner than you would think) you will want to do a modification to the panel. My first 8A panel was modified three times before I had to replace the aluminum blank and cut new holes. So if you trim the bottom the odds of even a simple mod forcing cutting a new panel is higher. No big deal, just ~$26 for a new blank, some time cutting holes and paint.
- As you are a fuse guy, consider if taking a hybrid approach makes sense. Fuses but some breaker for those few things you would want to see pop in flight. If so, this area is a good place for those breakers.

Carl
 
Nice panel :D

I've done a similar cutout and it's been enormously helpful comfort wise for longer flights as well as ease of getting in and out.

I'm 6'5" with a 36" inseam so every little bit helps. No cons for me after 2+ years - I have all the switch space I need, plus a spot for my iphone - but then again I don't have big glass on top like you do either.
 
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