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View Full Version : David’s STI Build N413KF



iflywhatevr
10-23-2020, 06:43 PM
I am going to run both a thread here as well as a log in the EAA Builders Log site since it generates such nice PDFs https://eaabuilderslog.org/?s=KitfoxSTI so here we go:

Ordered my S7 STI at Oshkosh in 2019 (our whole family goes every year I believe my three kids still hold the record for youngest EAA Lifetime Members the oldest who is now 7 became a lifetime member at 6 weeks old and the other two who are 6 and 3 became lifetime members literally the day they were born while still in the hospital ).

My tires were delivered by FedEx on 21 October 2020 which was a surprise when the driver said “hey I just put two giant tires in your garage.” I had no idea they were coming thought it was the wrong address until I saw them.

My kit was delivered by Stewart’s Transport on 22 Oct 2020 I was stuck flying a trip that day that I couldn’t get out of so my wife, father, and my son happily unloaded the kit along with the driver. When they told me freight was 3100.00 to MA I considered going to get it or shipping via another carrier but in the end it was well worth the money to have it shipped by Stewart’s they handled the kit and took their time as if it was their own.

Got home from my trip today (23 October 2020) and spent about a half hour on paperwork replacing Builders Manual pages with updates or corrections as directed by the factory as well as verifying serial number and just opening up boxes and laying out parts so that they can be inventoried tomorrow. So far everything appears to be very well packaged and protected from damage.

I’m waiting on an electrical connection by the power company (could be tomorrow could be 2022 the way they work) as well as final concrete floor being completed on a new 40x65 barn I built as a build area/hangar so In the meantime I’m using half a 3 car garage as my workspace.

I’m leaning towards the Rotax 915is at this point but obviously have a lot of time to make that final decision.

I plan to use Silver Oratex so if anyone wants to buy the poly fiber supplies that are included in the kit let me know.

I included a screen shot of part of my invoice so everyone can see what options I chose for the build.

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rv9ralph
10-23-2020, 09:27 PM
Cool! and so the journey begins.

Ralph

bbs428
10-24-2020, 12:00 AM
Great start! I Enjoyed your backstory.
The list of goodies on your order sheet are what dreams are made of...

Enjoy!!

Shadowrider
10-24-2020, 09:13 AM
Looking good! Not sure if kitfox is advertising their "secret menu" yet, but a few that come to mind. Static port kit, pitot mounting kit, autopilot servo mounting kit, hinged turtle deck kit, stainless steel door protectors, butt rib close out, butt rib filler. Cant remember the technical names and I am sure I forgot a few. Don't forget you can buy a wiring harness for avionics now and have your avionics up and going in hours.

iflywhatevr
10-24-2020, 10:26 AM
Looks like I’m going to have to do some more research on these items! Thanks for the tip.

jiott
10-24-2020, 03:16 PM
Quite a few of their optional items that are not shown on the ordering price list are in the Accessories Catalog which you can download.

Shadowrider
10-25-2020, 09:43 AM
Another couple that I just thought of. I would also order the banjo fittings for the fuel tanks. Makes it so you can tighten the fittings tight and not worry about the direction the 90 is facing. It may not make sense right now, but it could save you time down the road. One of our fittings started to leak after 100 hours and I had to go back and fold the wing, perform surgery, and install a banjo fitting.

The next thing I would switch is the fuel cap seal. I think the STI is much more sensitive to this, is the fuel cap not sealing completely. Both of our planes would get uneven fuel balance. When its cold it effects it more. I had multiple flights that one tank was completely full and the other tank that was empty. I have even heard of another STI that was venting fuel out one tank while one is empty. What I think is happening is one tank is pressurizing and pushing fuel into the other tank, that the cap is not sealed, and fuel is being pushed into that tank. I switched caps and the imbalanced followed. Switched out the gaskets and we have not had it happen since on both of our planes.

mercedes part number 68832370317

iflywhatevr
10-25-2020, 06:42 PM
Thanks this is why I love forums for stuff like this!

iflywhatevr
10-25-2020, 06:52 PM
I have about 2.8 hours on inventory so far probably another 2 to go. So far everything that was supposed to be in each box has been there clearly labeled and well packaged to prevent damage. No shortages of anything so far and no extras. Who knew there were so many pieces required to build an airplane?!? Lol

My wife didn’t complain at all when I told her I needed to move the wings into the dining room for a couple days while I got tractors and things moved in the garage and inventory completed.

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Mark123
10-25-2020, 07:49 PM
David,

I completed 2 hrs of inventory today. I’m with you, amazing how many parts there are. I went with quite a few options per recommendation of others. (Thanks Dustin) I’m hoping to finish up inventory this week. So far everything is as marked. I plan to create my STi build log tomorrow.

iflywhatevr
10-26-2020, 12:22 PM
3.1 more hours on inventory today.

Completed the inventory of the kit.

Missing items:
91148.000 Washer Flat AN960-10L missing 3
91064.000 Nut Elastic Stop AN364-1032 missing 6
Both items from the Rudder Pedal Kit

Waiting on drop shipment of windshield from LP Aero

Back ordered Items:
98293.000 3M Scotchseal 560
65-231 or 131 Wheel & Brake Assy Hvy Duty Dual Piston
98069.000 Valve Parking Brake Grove

Emailed missing item list to Kitfox for replacement.



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iflywhatevr
10-27-2020, 05:52 PM
First day actually working on the airplane! 1.5 hours to pull all the hardware for the horizontal stab and elevator section, try to do some reaming, realize it wasn’t that easy and I needed to modify the reamer as others have mentioned here. Ended up grinding it down with an angle grinder until it was small enough to get a box wrench on the end. Painters tape came in handy to prevent scratching the finish on the elevator and stabilizer.

Not sure why they send a reamer that is supposed to be chucked when you can only really use a drill to get a couple locations (unless you’re ok with reaming crooked) but that’s ok all part of the fun of using some creativity.

Looking forward to my first attempt at hysol tomorrow on the ribs!

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iflywhatevr
10-28-2020, 02:04 PM
I got half of the ribs fitted on the horizontal stabilizer I sanded by hand and went slowly not knowing what I was doing exactly. 7 out of this 9 I added rib stiffeners to prevent warping. The other two are against metal so no need there. It was my first attempt at Hysol ... Mixed up way too much but I guess that’s part of the learning process. I was conservative with the amount I used. Going to let these ribs cure and tomorrow start on the other half but I think with the dremel sanding drums this time now that I know what I’m looking for. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20201028/e71bfff3500708f9323fa416c9f61392.jpg


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bbs428
10-28-2020, 02:13 PM
The fun begins! Sure like the black powder coat.

Kitfox Pilot
10-28-2020, 07:20 PM
You are started, good luck. Just keep doing one page at a time is what they told me. I'm still at it ..... You learn a lot, right after your done lots of times. haha

patrick.hvac
10-29-2020, 11:13 AM
Woah the rudder has pre-welded supports now? I was wondering when the airfoil design would become a weldment. Hopefully that gets expanded to all the pieces that require airfoil.
I saw a highlander not too long ago with a welded airfoiled tail and thought they were on to something great.

iflywhatevr
10-31-2020, 07:28 PM
About three hours today checking the fit of the horizontal stabilizer ribs, sanding, scotchbrite on the frame in the area they would be hysoled to. Cleaned everything up with alcohol let that dry and started with the hysol checking measurements as I went. First thing I realized is that my fat fingers result in anything but a “neat” appearance of the hysol although it got a bit better as I went. I’ve done a lot of painting and caulking in my time which turns out nice but this is a little different working with the angles of the ribs and frame and tight spaces. Cleaned up the excess with a rag with a bit of alcohol on it so it wouldn’t look like a complete disaster but didn’t sweat it too much since my main concern was that the ribs were firmly attached and straight. No one will ever see any of this again after the Oratex is on!

I ordered a 36 inch piece of balsa from Aircraft Spruce yesterday which I plan to use on the stabilizer and elevator wingtips. I’m flying a trip the next couple days so I will let this harden up and then move on to the elevator when I return.

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Meyer
11-01-2020, 07:30 PM
Good luck on the build!!

Hopefully you lined up the ribs on the elevator before you glued those down on the HS so that you are sure they will line up with each other. On mine, I measured like the manual said originally but if I had secured them that way the ribs would not have lined up identically with each other between the elevator and HS.

iflywhatevr
11-01-2020, 10:01 PM
I did I had to shift the HS ribs in two locations slightly from the book measurements to make sure that they would line up with the elevator ribs and not be blocked by the metal components.

alexM
11-02-2020, 08:39 AM
I got half of the ribs fitted on the horizontal stabilizer I sanded by hand and went slowly not knowing what I was doing exactly. 7 out of this 9 I added rib stiffeners to prevent warping. The other two are against metal so no need there. It was my first attempt at Hysol ... Mixed up way too much but I guess that’s part of the learning process. I was conservative with the amount I used. Going to let these ribs cure and tomorrow start on the other half but I think with the dremel sanding drums this time now that I know what I’m looking for. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20201028/e71bfff3500708f9323fa416c9f61392.jpg


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Yesterday was the first time I ever mixed up the correct amount of Hysol. And yes, the technique of not getting it all over the place takes a few tries. I'm certainly glad it all gets covered up.

Shadowrider
11-02-2020, 09:17 AM
CA glue with activator is the key to getting your ribs set quickly. Put a drop and then spray with activator and seconds later they are set.(ready for hysol) I find most guys building are RC guys and know that trick.

iflywhatevr
11-02-2020, 02:27 PM
Never touched an RC anything in my life so good tip!

iflywhatevr
11-07-2020, 08:41 PM
Well the tip about using model glue to tack the rib first made all the difference in the world. Just a drop on each end of the rib to hold it in place and then went back with a 10ml syringe of hysol to secure all the ribs on the elevator today. Much better looking finish and a lot less hysol used with this method. Once this dries I’m going to hit it with varnish and then move on to forming the tips with the balsa wood I picked up from Aircraft Spruce. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20201108/60fe07ca5c1d2b2b43122582afc1af09.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20201108/774d299f24ed1a3344d3b64eb427d300.jpg
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Kitfox Pilot
11-09-2020, 09:18 PM
Looking good. I cut a slot in my balsa for the tips and glued them on and worked them down together. Worked real good.

iflywhatevr
01-15-2021, 11:42 PM
Been slow going on the airplane end of the year is always crazy busy for aircraft sales with clients trying to get those last minute tax benefits. But back to work on the project.

In the last week I have formed the elevator and stabilizer tips out of balsa, attached them with structural adhesive, and then once I did some fine tuning of the shape coated them with structural adhesive for strength.

I did a couple test pieces of balsa that I coated with hysol, sanded and then perfected with superfil on top of that to eliminate any imperfections. Even smacked with with a big box end wrench a few times to see it’s resistance to hangar rash and it seems to hold up well so I will finish off the tips with supefil this week when the weather is a bit warmer and I don’t have to run the heat full blast to keep the garage at 70 which is the recommended cure temp for the superfil.

I moved on to pressing the bearings into the horizontal stabilizer and used the method I saw mentioned on here of a bolt with a washer on each end that could be tightened to press in the bearing. I had to sand down the outside of all 7 bearings despite having the holes reamed to the correct size in order for them to fit snugly. No way they would have ever been able to be pressed in without deforming at their original thickness. Found that chucking them in a drill and using some 220 grit sandpaper did a nice job and then I checked with a micrometer that it was a uniform size. Sealed in with the loctite 680 as recommend.

Attached the horizontal stabilizer to the fuselage and worked on the slider blocks which is a cool solution for allowing the stabilizer to be trimmed. Attached the stabilizer struts.

The elevator is currently just hanging from the fuselage I need to do a lot of work on the bushings to attached the elevator to the stabilizer. The one bushing needed to attached the stabilizer to the fuselage took about 30 minutes to chuck in a drill and a lot of trial and error to get just the right fit. Ended up starting with 80 grit sand paper then 220 and finally 400 to give it a smooth finish. The others should be a little faster now that I know what I’m doing but certainly time consuming none of them are very close to their necessary size.

All of the hardware I am just barely threading the nylock nuts on since I know I will need to pull off the stabilizer and elevator to cover the airplane. The slider block hardware is the only thing that has had its final tightening down at this point since it doesn’t need to come off.

Looks a little bit more like an airplane now!


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iflywhatevr
01-16-2021, 08:37 PM
Got the electric trim on today and the bushings for the elevator fitted so it could be attached to the fuselage. Trim went together pretty easily other than having to backtrack because I did not ream out the attached point holes ok the stabilizer and the bolts would not fit due to the powder coating. Use of a small pick to sneak the washers in between the various components helped a lot. Onto the fuselage portion of the binder tomorrow!

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bbs428
01-17-2021, 11:04 AM
Sure like the black powder coat. Nice work!

Nothing on the plane is really that hard to do but add up every task, some good old head scratching, a few dozen re-read's of the build manual and you end up with your spare time being traded for one of the best flying planes on the planet. Some are more efficient with the time than others... I'm in the latter group. :)

iflywhatevr
01-18-2021, 10:13 PM
Elevator is on after LOTS of sanding on the bushings in order to make them fit they were all very oversized. Moved onto the fuselage portion of the binder starting with the control column and reaming various mounting holes on the fuselage. The tip in the instructions about using a dab of superglue to hold various washers in place so they can be slid into place without fighting with it for hours was key! It made a huge difference moving things along particularly on the rod ends where they connect between the two control sticks where access is very restricted. Had to order a different .1875 reamer off of Amazon that could be used with a t-handle as the access to many of the mounting holes on the fuselage doesn’t allow enough room to use a drill with the reamer designed to be chucked that came with the tool kit from the factory.

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iflywhatevr
01-26-2021, 07:08 PM
Reamed all the bolt holes, and bearing locations on the fuselage the flap one way a pain due to the location impossible to access with a drill and reamer and took a long time to do by hand. All the others were painless. Installed the flaperon mixer bearing onto the fuselage.

Got the control column installed in the fuselage. No major issues other than having to sand down the bushing for the control column that runs through the mounting bracket quite a bit in order or obtain a proper fit. Drilling the aluminum mounting bracket was fairly easy just had to mark it to ensure that first hole was drilled in such a way that the column would be “straight” so equidistant from the fuselage structure under where the seat sits.

Torqued down both the bracket, column attach bolt, and bearing. Everything moves very nicely and smoothly so pretty happy overall.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210127/f7b0457766615747be74ee7bb80f4331.jpg27027

Mark123
01-26-2021, 08:49 PM
Nice progress, David. Glad it’s going well. I’m right behind you. I just finished my varnish coats on the ribs. Hope to start on the fuselage this weekend.

iflywhatevr
01-26-2021, 09:40 PM
So me the little bit of the fuselage so far has been a lot more fun than messing with ribs!

iflywhatevr
02-01-2021, 08:23 PM
Lots of work on the Flap and Aileron bellcranks, the bellcrank idlers for the aileron and elevators are on as well as the flap handle. Overall everything is moving along nicely only difficulty was on the aileron idler bellcrank somehow I ended up damaging the thread on the bolt while trying to position the part so ended up delaying progress for a few days while waiting for a replacement from aircraft spruce. The most difficult part of this portion of the build is trial and error testing whether to use the “thin” washer or the regular one to get the proper fit without any excessive play. Having a ton of fun with it and feel like I’m actually getting something accomplished.

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iflywhatevr
02-15-2021, 07:59 PM
Making some slow progress on the project while enjoying one of the best snowmobile seasons we’ve had in years.

Elevator and flap push tubes are installed their full length. Floor has been fitted, drilled, and varnished I have all the parts pulled for starting on the center console.

I was pleasantly surprised that the floor pieces required very little trimming (just on a couple corners) to achieve a proper fit. Clecos and spring clamps were very helpful for the final fitting and drilling. I applied two coats of epoxy one reduced and one full thickness which seems to have turned out well.

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iflywhatevr
02-17-2021, 04:03 AM
Got the center console brackets installed for the flap handle and adjustable rudder pedals. I had to file down the notches on the flap handle bracket quite a bit to get the flap handle locking button too be easily moveable (and what I consider to be appropriate in “feel”). The brackets as they came from the factory were simply too close in tolerance. This portion was fun but took a lot of spring clamps and lots rechecking positioning before finally drilling, hysoling and riveting in place. Pulled all the parts for the adjustable rudder pedals and brake install which is next on the list.

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bbs428
02-18-2021, 05:15 AM
Really nice close up pics! They show everything in great detail. iPhone has one remarkable camera.

iflywhatevr
02-19-2021, 06:24 PM
Started on the rudder pedals last night. First step was fabricating the retention straps for the four pulleys. Took about 2 hours of actual work ..... I didn’t count the 5 hours in the emergency room for some stitches in my finger.... live and learn. I don’t have a drill press and was making do with a hand drill and on drilling the second hole in the strap material the 1/4 drill bit slipped went into my finger nicked the bone and shoved some aluminum shavings in there. Yes embarrassing felt pretty dumb about it but they dug out the aluminum shavings that showed up on X-ray and stitched me up and sent me home. I finished up the work today happy to report no more injuries. I did not add the $200 ER copay to my project total. Lol

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iflywhatevr
02-27-2021, 09:29 PM
Adjustable rudder handles are fabricated and installed. Rudder pedals are assembled and installed on both sides and the brake master cylinders for both sides. The rudder pedal were a bit confusing with the instructions jumping from the fuselage portion of the manual to the appendix and back but overall very fun to get this section done with just the perfect amount of mental effort mixed with building! Biggest challenge was chasing down components that were in box 5 and box 6 of the kit but same part numbers and was tough to find them all versus where I expected the parts to be located.

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iflywhatevr
11-27-2021, 09:14 AM
After an 8 month break due to construction on my shop and work. Finally back at it made the move from a single stall in my garage with no room to work to my 2600 sq ft shop that is heated and has all the light and space I could ask for. Took a little while to get everything moved drop various spots in the basement to the shop and everything setup but I’m resuming where I left off routing rudder cables to the back of the aircraft. I fitter the rudder and ensured the measurements between the vertical tail and the rudder were correct it’s there temporarily as will need to be removed for covering and rib work. I started fitting the ribs on the vertical tail and realized I’m going to be short on the birch stiffeners that will go on the ribs to prevent warping so will need to order some from Kitfox. Did everyone stuck with the 25 degree rudder travel recommendation I have not yet messed with filing the stops but will probably be doing that soon as I’m waiting for the stiffeners.

Geek
11-27-2021, 09:38 AM
........... Did everyone stuck with the 25 degree rudder travel recommendation I have not yet messed with filing the stops but will probably be doing that soon as I’m waiting for the stiffeners.

You are ahead of me on the fuselage but I do have my vertical and rudder dialed in. Don't file the rudder stops. I did and after installing the fairings and such, had to turn out the bearings a couple turns to get clearance on just that. Now my stops are more like 30 degrees. Then others have mentioned on my build that when they covered the vertical and rudder, the skin required that the bearings be turned out even more and those that had filed the stops like I did, had to shim them to get the 25 degree number back. There was no real reason for dialing in the 25 degrees where the instructions say to do it that I could see after finishing the assembly.

Geek

iflywhatevr
11-27-2021, 09:49 AM
thank you! I will leave it alone and come back to it later on!

efwd
11-27-2021, 11:19 AM
Unfortunately I think the build manual proceeds as though you are building without upgrades. Being that the fiberglass stuff you will install on the vertical as well as the rudder are all speedster upgrades, things change. Gary has you heading the right direction.

Kitfox Pilot
11-27-2021, 11:59 AM
I third the DO NOT FILE TIL DONE advice. Many have failed when following the manuals advice on that point. Glad your back at the build.

jrevens
11-27-2021, 07:25 PM
I didn't file anything off of mine and when I installed the rudder , and got it fitted with just the clearance I wanted (with fiberglass installed of course), I actually had excessive movement of the rudder to the right when against the stop. The left was perfect. Go figure. The way I took care of that was to add a piece of stainless steel of just the correct thickness to the surface of the rudder horn that contacts the stop, with Hysol and rivets.

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