Model 5/Series V

[Ramos]

Why is there so little information 'out there' on the Series V? I have found some but, that is after almost wearing out Google. Tons and tons of info on the 4's and 7. My understanding is that the 5 is the oldest model with the larger fuselage. More room sounds appealing but, I am not well heeled enough to be shopping for the super cool 7 Series. I have looked at 4's and older in person but, have yet to come across a 5 or newer. If anyone here can enlighten me, or head me in the right direction, I would be most grateful. And yes, to the best of my abilities, I have also searched this site.

[jmodguy]

Ramos
The 5 is basically the predecessor to the 6 and 7. The fuse is pretty much the same with the exception of the strake in front of the fin and that the 7 can switch from tail dragger to tricycle. The SS may be different.
You can pick up a 5 project if you are patient. They pop up about once a year or so. I picked mine up from this site in Aug of last year. There was one on barnstormers about 6 months or so ago. Be prepared to go get it...
I spent 12 hours in a 20' UHaul to get mine...
The guy I bought it from did a really good job on the areas he completed and that saved me a bunch of time!
My plane is the jmodguy in the model 5 section of the albums. I am a bit further along and will be starting the fuse covering tomorrow.

[kmach]

I have a model 5, it was/is technically called a Kitfox Outback. This may be why you can not find much info on a series 5.

There used to be a history page on the old Kitfox factory website that gave info on the different models.

Maybe a computer guru or a site administrator/moderator can provide the history info into this thread or new one ?

There where early 5's with a 1400lb gross, later ones have the 1550lb gross.
A few different names were used to differentiate mostly the landing gear configurations.
I believe Safari and then Outback for the taildragger . ______ and Vixen for the Tri gear variants .
The 5's come in one or the other and don't have the switchable landing gear configs. The model 6 was the first to have the ability to switch gear configs. If you buy a 5 kit you could add the weldments to the airframe before covering to make its gear convertable.

I was told that you could add most of the current model 7 features/upgrades to the 5 airframe, best would be on a kit not started or on a complete restore situation.

Upgrades that I think of are: the new firewall forward, engine mount and cowling. The larger elevator . The ability to switch gear configs.

There are some control changes that I can't remember the full details on, I believe the elevator control pushrod setup is different and maybe the flaperon profile ?

These are some things that I remember.

[PapuaPilot]

I have a KF5 Outback that was built in 1999. I found it secondhand in 2013 on Barnstormers and snatched it up quickly. It is a tailwheel and not convertible, but I'm OK with that. My gross weight is 1550 pounds. The one I bought had a the airframe with every option available, a new Continental IO-240 engine and a Warp Drive prop that I sold and replaced. It also came with the one piece plexiglass turtle deck, which I really like.

I upgraded to the current (larger) elevator due to the heavier engine that came with it.

The elevator pushrod is different than the current production, I believe the new way allows for an extended baggage area.

[t j]

Here's the link to the Kitfox History page. http://www.kitfoxaircraft.com/home/KitfoxHistory.htm

The new Kitfox web site has a link in the FAQ section but it seems not to work.

[Ramos]

Thank you all for the added information and links. I did manage to find a bit more on the web by searching Classic IV and Outback. As far as I can tell, the cabin width was increased from 39.5" (Classic IV) to 43.0" (Outback). Does this sound about right? I will try to call Homedale tomorrow and see if I can get actual spec sheets on these two models. The factory could very well yield all kinds of useful information that I have yet to even consider. Thanks again and, feel free to add any thoughts.