My old foreman told me to always check the cannon plug first on a nav system fault

I spent two hours tracing wires on a Citation's GPS dropout issue last month. He said, 'Nine times out of ten, it's just a pin backed out in the connector.' I finally listened, pulled the D-sub at the MFD, and sure enough, pin 14 was barely hanging on. Crimped it back, system came right up. Anyone got a better method for checking those things without pulling the whole rack?

4 comments

4 Comments

the_parker26d ago

Honestly, I used to think starting with the wiring diagram was the only professional way. That line about it being "gospel" is dead on, though. After my third job chasing ghosts, I finally gave in and just started at the connector. It feels backwards, but it works almost every single time. Now my pin probe is the first tool out of my bag.

pat_murray5325d agoTop Commenter

Right? Connectors first, always.

rowanw1120d ago

Man, I learned that the hard way on a stubborn CAN bus fault last week.

matthew87826d ago

Yeah, that "pin backed out" line is gospel. I mean, I've wasted a whole morning on a G1000 before I finally wiggled the connector and the whole screen flickered. Now I just grab a pin probe and check continuity before I even pull a wire diagram. Saves so much time.