View Full Version : Norm's Model IV covering Progress
Made some progress on my Model IV. Installed wires to the tail and through the vertical stab so I could cover. The wires might feed a strobe on the top of the tail for visibility. Then again might not but with the wire in I have the options open. Another wire goes to the back that might feed trim servos. Hard to say. My current plane I have lights in the wingtips that have been there for 6 yrs and never hooked up so who knows but I like to keep my options open.
Covered the sides and tail and put it away for today. Notice the snowblower safely tucked away under the tail. Chinook for the past couple days and the snow is melting but if I didn't have the snowblower I figure we'd get 10 ft of snow, so its my insurance against a big dump like the east coast got
So Far the back is uncovered. North of 49 is coming by for a visit tomorrow and in order to show him the Stewarts System I am leaving the last piece of covering off. Lots of tapes and then maybe shoot some paint.
DesertFox4
01-28-2016, 05:09 PM
Looking good Norm.:)
Thanks Steve
Gets me excited to see the covering go on. Gives me hope that it will see air under the wings, which are still in the hanger waiting for the old covering to be yanked off and recovered. 90 90
Northof49
01-28-2016, 07:42 PM
Nice job Norm ,
Looking forward to tomorrow.
Northof49
01-29-2016, 08:50 PM
A big thanks to Norm for showing me the ropes on how to 'fabric' and trusting me to not mess up all his good work. And after "class" he arranged for Kitfox Jim to take me up on my first flight in a Kitfox!!!😊 Thanks Guys for a great day!
Here is a picture of Norm and my handiwork.
Northof49
01-29-2016, 08:53 PM
And here is Kitfox Jim and his Model V. Thanks again, Jim😀
Here is a short video of KitFoxJim and North49 off my wing in the Winter Alberta air. It was a perfect day for an afternoon flight. Temps were about 45, 50F and the Chinook winds died down for the afternoon. It was great. Of Course with the Chinooks leaving the area, temps are going back down to the 30F range. Guess I can use the time today to put tapes in the Model IV. Oh here is the short video of us flying.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hI8MyjM5j_8&feature=youtu.be
It was great to have you in my shop Mike. Always nice to hanger fly with a fellow KitFoxer.
Watching the smile on a guys face the first time the fabric shrinks with an iron is always worth showing how easy fabric is to work with.
DF4 I was wondering if you did anything special at the bottom corners of the wide body mod where the door meets for the fabric to have some stress relief. Did you put cotton batting or tape or? Curious as there seems to be a lot of tension in that area and I have not done my final shrink yet.
Norm
I was not happy with the way the fabric was pulling on the door sill so I redid it with some polyester quilt batting. Then I put a circle of fabric over the batting. I will finish up with some tape in the area so I will have plenty of strenght. I am moving now so I just keep going when I can. Gotta try to have this ready to fly in the spring.
Got some tapes on the pilot side. Going slower than I want but making progress.
Northof49
02-02-2016, 07:15 PM
Hey Norm
Looks like you're making good progress. 😊
Mike
Pilot4Life
02-02-2016, 08:13 PM
Norm,
Not having covered a plane...yet...is that darker color on the belly due to additional adhesive or is it just wet? Looking more like a plane everyday:D...spring flying seems reasonable. Do you have a color picked out? Any sneak peaks at a paint scheme? I've always been fond of the simplicity and style of N851BH (New Picture Album) as the first paint scheme that I fell for when joining the forum years ago. Although, if time and talent permits, the designs by Esser (http://www.teamkitfox.com/Forums/showthread.php?t=3295&highlight=Paint+Schemes) (click name for thread) are appealing too. Let us all know and keep up the good work!
I am using stewart systems glue to attach fabric. It is a water based system with very little odor and good to work with in an attached garage. It is also pretty easy to use. There are many videos on youtube and here is a link to the using the system to put tapes on. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgXd2-FXtrM I am planning a Deep Yellow trending to orange for the main color. I was going to highlight with black but my grand daughters asked me to paint the plane Purple and Aqua-marine. I tested some paint swatches and the purple and aqua look ok with the yellow. My original plan was black on the round cowl and dropping down in a curve to the bottom of the doors. I am building this plane to introduce aviation to the grandkids so Purple might have to be the accent colour. I am hoping to have some colour on the plane by the weekend so I will get the photos up soon and show you the colour. Once the colour is on I mount the motor and start the firewall forward installation. Shooting for spring but it's good to make progress. The plane has been in the shop for 3yrs and now that I have a fire under my butt I want to keep going before I loose that zap.
Hey Norm
Looks like you're making good progress. 😊
Mike
Made good progress today. Got the first coat of paint on the belly. I had a friend from Phoenix stop in today to check out the KitFox. He buildt a Carbon Cub and had his first flight at Falcon Field last year. He pointed out a couple of things that I have to check. He is an exceptional builder and spent hours with an iron on his tapes. He had his wife use a cricut machine to cut quarter size dolys for his rivit heads. The plane paid him back for his extra work with a 130Knot cruise. Kind of a fast Cub. Hopefully I will get all my base coats done and be ready to start spraying on Thursday. Big Dreams Eh?
Norm,
..is that darker color on the belly due to additional adhesive or is it just wet?
I think it is just different lighting from the previous photo.
Norm,
I've always been fond of the simplicity and style of N851BH (New Picture Album) as the first paint scheme that I fell for when joining the forum years ago.
Would you mind putting a link to the paint scheme you like. I have not been able to find N851BH.
Got some of the colour on today.
jmodguy
02-04-2016, 05:58 PM
Looks great! Keep it going.... and going... and going...
Yep 90 90. 90% done and 90% to go. I am going to start installing the motor and start on the panel now. Once the fuse is done then I'll bring the wings in from the hanger and finish that up. Like you say just keep going and going and going.
Pilot4Life
02-04-2016, 07:56 PM
Norm...
I suppose better crew coordination would be in order...a bit more explanation...its in the New Photo Gallery on the KF Website.
Here you go... N851BH - Not everyone's preference but one that I fancy...
http://www.kitfoxaircraft.com/images/Web%20Gallery/KAphotogallery%20(21).html
Thanks for the link. Yes it is nice. Simple yet different from the norm.
DesertFox4
02-04-2016, 08:07 PM
Good progress Norm. Love that colour. I may be able to see your first flight all the way from Phoenix with that paint. ;)
Keep after it Norm.
rosslr
02-05-2016, 12:59 AM
It looks very nice Norm - are you going to keep it all yellow? I think that would be cool. enjoying the progress reports.
chers
r
Good progress Norm. Love that colour. I may be able to see your first flight all the way from Phoenix with that paint. ;)
Keep after it Norm.
That's the idea Steve. I usually fly with a group of guys and I want to make sure I am as visable as possible. Plus I have always wanted a Yellow Bird. I opened the doors on the shop yesterday and It was great in the sun.
I would love to see it in the Arizona sun. Maybe.
It looks very nice Norm - are you going to keep it all yellow? I think that would be cool. enjoying the progress reports.
chers
r
I was going to contrast with black and a bit of silver but my grandaughters have asked me to go with purple and aqua as trim. Of course grandaughters trump Grandpas every time. It will be some time before I get to that stage because I am moving on to engine install for a few days. (Weeks, or Months)
As soon as I get more colour on I will post the trim pictures.
Good progress Norm. Love that colour. I may be able to see your first flight all the way from Phoenix with that paint. ;)
Keep after it Norm.
Steve I never realized how close the color was to your plane. I was flipping through some pics on my computer and was surpized at how close the two colors are. I put a little more orange in mine hoping it would pop. I smile every time I open the door to the garage and see the bright sun colored airplane.
DesertFox4
02-14-2016, 12:19 PM
Norm, your flying buddies will love that color. They will never lose track of you on a cross country trip.
What brand of paint are you using?
Norm, your flying buddies will love that color. They will never lose track of you on a cross country trip.
What brand of paint are you using?
I don't know. Do you think I'll get lost is the crowd. These are a couple of my flying buddies
It has been a while since I have posted anything on this thread and I want you to know I have not given up. I have been working on mounting the engine and the little things that go along with the installation. I did a custom bet mount with KitfoxJim's help and all the engineering that goes along with that. I have all the lines installed and the sensors for the temp and oil pressure and getting closer to a engine start. I want to hear this run. Yes I know that Rotax recommends a single exhaust but the way everything fit allowed two cans but not one.. Lot of custom welding went into building the exhaust and I am not done yet.
As part of getting ready for a first start, I need a panel to run some switches for the mags. I guess i could have just put a couple of togels on a piece of aluminum but I also wanted to do some work on my panel. I was super unhappy with the old panel as it had grown into a monster after almost 20 years of life. Check out the shower drain cover in one of the vacant holes. Switches were mounted anywhere as things were added. One switch for a heater, then one for a landing light, another for a power source etc.
I am not quite ready to get a new panel built but I wanted to organize this one a little better. I have a Grand Rapids EIS and wanted in the middle as many have done. I put my FL760 where the shower drain was and I mounted switches with LEDs next to every fuse to power my needs. This is a test panel and I learned a few things doing it this way. I have some breakers for the new panel instead of fuses and they may all end up in the center with a glove box in the left area. I will use a supplier that does laser cutting to cut my final panel. Have done this on other projects. I love the way the LEDs light when the switches are turned on. Instant fuse check. The hole next tot the EIS was a landing light switch. It will be a light for warning system on the EIS. I moved the hobbs meter to where the volt meter was and put an oil pressure guage where the tach was. The EIS will provide the tach and the volt meter. Using an old school oil pressure guage for first start. That may change in the new panel.
Of course the plane will probably fly with this panel and that means it could be some time before the new panel is built. Time will tell
11004
Love the way the LEDs light up
11005
Wirig the back of the panel was a good experience using some quality connectors and good tools
11006
DesertFox4
05-21-2016, 06:57 PM
Good to see you making progress Norm. Love the shower drain cover.:)
Love my Grand Rapids EIS.
Stay well.
Lots of work this weekend The EIS died on me and while I may send it back for the factory to check, in the meantime I have put my panel together using the gauges and items on hand. I hate the three pack of guages on the right. I prefer a logical placement of four guages with two beside each other. If you only use three guages I still prefer putting the guages in a four pack cluster and leave the fourth guage blank. Oh well at least I got rid of the shower drain. This will get me in the air and then I will do a new well organized panel.
11322
Also put the fuel selector in a center console. North49 was over yesterday and gave me a hand laying this up. I prefer the direct route to the firewall instead of running fuel into the panel area. The console will also give me a great place to mount a fire extinguisher.
11323
I also got the fiberglass cowls into primer. Now a little wet sanding another coat and then final coat.
11324
Part of the panel rework was to rewire some of the gauges, radios, etc
I want to mention a couple of things that can help make your wireing look neater.
When you add wires to an existing run and are tying the wires neat, cut off the old cable tie and use a new one. Keeping the old tie in place after putting on a new one makes for less than a neat job.
11326
Also when you tie cables try to keep the wires in the same order as they move accross a tube. You will notice the red cable crossing out from the white. This makes the install look sloppy. I pushed the cables back in order before I tied the cable tight.
11325
Got some paint on the fiberglass parts today. This is the before shot of a couple of weeks ago
11352
Little better looking than it was a couple weeks ago.Looks much better now. Still more finishing (wet sand and polish) to do.
11351
I have an airplane. Kitfox Jim and I went to the hanger today and put the wings on. There is still a lot of little things to do but it looks like an airplane. I sold my Lil Buzzard last week so I need to get this firl airborne. I still can't get the smile off my face.
Esser
08-28-2016, 04:35 PM
Nice Norm!
Looks great! If you ever fly to Edmonton or need an excuse to, look me up. 780-721-9166
absolutly. You are on the passenger list. Might still be a month away.
DesertFox4
08-28-2016, 05:53 PM
Looking really good there Norm.
Wish I could say I was at the same point.;)
Congrats on the progress. Love the paint!
Thanks Steve I still fondly remember the ride in your model IV. I hope my perfromance comes close to yours. I'll let you know when she's airborne. Little far for me to return the ride but it would be nice. I was trying to get it ready for the Northwest Montana flyIn but maybe next year. Hope to see you this winter.
Norm
DesertFox4
08-28-2016, 06:48 PM
It will do great with the 80 hp. Rotax Norm.
I'll keep the Gretsch 5120 polished up for your return.
Noticed again your exhaust set up. I remember Tex using similar set up on a Highlander years ago.
11676
11677
Northof49
08-29-2016, 03:35 AM
Congrats Norm,
Looks really good .
Mike
In case your wondering what custom twin mufflers sound like on a 912 here is a short youtube video.
https://youtu.be/V6bgqG-gux0
Those sound great! who made those?
The plane had a 582 when I picked it up. The whole firewall forward is custom built by myself and KitFoxJim. I could not have done it without Jim's help. Yesterday was the first time to taxi the plane after a three year rebuild. Jim is doing the video. I thought he had to be there to see the first taxi. After flying two strokes for ten years these sound incredible. I have heard that I may have less performance by not going to a single muffler. Time will tell.
What a sound though.
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