Raven (kitfox 2/3 clone) restoration

[knuckled62]

I am new to the forum and am in the process of restoring a plans built Raven.
The original builder who has past on did a very nice job on the original build.
The plane has past through a few hands and is a little worse for wear.
It was originally powered by a 532 but the last owner bought a low time 582 blue head to go in it.
I have compared this plane to a model 4 1200 gross weight and they are very similar in everything except motor mount, cowlings, and flap mixer.
The mount is the thing that i need help with as i feel it positions the motor to high on the firewall.
I would love to hear from anybody who currently owns a model 2 or 3 to see some pictures of their engine mounting and possibly send me some pictures.
I am located 1 hour south of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and would be willing to look at any in southern Ontario.
any help would be appreciated.

[Esser]

The best guy I can think of is Dave Fisher in London. He goes by the handle kitfoxflyer on youtube. Looks like he ussually has a few model 2's and 3's kicking around his place.

[Av8r3400]

…and at least one Raven.

x2 to contact Dave.

[kmach]

Yep he was the first guy I thought of too!

[kitfoxSwede]

From what can be seen on the photo I would say that the motor seems to sit in about the right height. The propeller usually comes out slightly high in the round cowl you have and if anything it seems to sit a bit lower then usually. But that can be that the angle the photo is taken from plays some tricks and make ut look lower then it actually is.

PM me your email adress and I can send you some photos of my MkII.

[tommg13780]

Here's an example of a model 4 with Rotax 503. I think the engine dimensions are very similar if not the same as 582.

[tommg13780]

A view from the other side.

[KFfan]

I just measured from the top of the 582 head to the top of the firewall on my KF2 is 5ish inches.

[av8rps]

I'm pretty aware of the Avid Flyer clone called the Raven. It was directly modeled after the B-model Avid Flyer with some influence from the popularity of the Kitfox. Obviously some people took some liberties in making changes that ultimately blended the early Avid design with some later Kitfox and Avid features, but I'd be really surprised if the airframe tubing components are anywhere near as strong / large as the Model IV Kitfox. But again, any of that could have been modified by the builder.

I still have a copy somewhere of the CD Cad drawings of the Raven in my old Avid stuff, along with a copy of an aviation magazine that has a letter to the editor from Dean Wilson stating he was a bit more than upset about the Raven plans being sold; how someone just copied his design, then put it into a CAD drawing, and was selling plans for the airplane he designed, with him getting no design credit or compensation for any of it.

Remember, Dean essentially had the same thing happen to him when the Kitfox was introduced, so I don't think anyone could actually blame him for being upset over everyone stealing his design and giving him no credit or monetary compensation.

Being "almost famous" as Dean is somewhat these days, isn't known for paying the bills. I just hope that one day history will fully recognize that Dean has created one of the best light aircraft designs in the 20th century, a design that will likely outlive all of us. So even if he never sees the monetary compensation he deserves, at least he might be recognized for the the genius he is. And if nothing else I hope he is at least flattered that his design was so good that people are willing to go so far as to steal it.

To the Raven owner, don't take any of my history explanation wrong. The guy that stole the design and sold the plans without Dean's approval or participation was the bad guy. Certainly not you.

Your Raven will make for a really fun airplane to own. I'm sure it is lightweight and will be a great performing airplane. The early airplanes were so much lighter than the later ones, so they were really performers. If your Raven retained any of those features it will be a blast to fly.

[knuckled62]

I must say that i don't agree with people ripping of other people designs, and i certainly did not go out looking for this particular plane i am very happy that i found such a copy of two of the best built kit planes out there.

This particular one was built by a retired NASA engineer who never got to enjoy it enough, he passed away shortly after he finished it.

It sat for many years and passed through a few hands before i bought it.

I can only hope that i can get it back in the air as well put together as he once had it.

I have only had the chance to compare it against a Kitfox 4 which it is very close too, the main structure is similar, but it looks to me that the engine sits lower in relation to firewall height.

Also the cowl is different, it is three pieces, and has a much larger opening in the front that i believe will just cause more drag.

i plan on getting a model 2/3 round cowl for it.

thanks