securing wings for travel

[Abender]

anyone out there have a set of the wing clips for securing the folded wings to the empennage at the tail section for travel and or a tow bar for towing from the tail to a trailer hitch?

[Esser]

Strap your flapperons together with bungees so that your flappers are pointing down, get some moving blankets and put them on the tail where the wings will hit when folded back, then take a ratchet strap and pull your wings together at the strut attach points each wing. Don't forget that you NEED the wing supports at the front. I made some out of 1/2 steel pipe

[avidflyer]

You can make some tubes with some 1/2" conduit and a drill fairly easy. I would never trust them by themselves though. I always tie the flaperons together as well. The first Kitfox 3 project I bought had one wing come loose and swing out into a road sign. That was before I got it. I've heard of several others doing that as well. JImChuk

[Abender]

Strap your flapperons together with bungees so that your flappers are pointing down,...

Thanks for the tips!!!

[neville]

Purchase the transport kit from the factory. I have trailered to/from the airport for 5 years with no problems. I did add a foam covered batten for the elevator as it tends to move up/down when big trucks go by.

[oldfox]

don't forget to get gas out of tanks full tanks will leak :confused:

[Hockeystud87]

I store my kitfox with the wings folded year round (model 4). I use two old T shirts to protect the tail from the trailing edge of the flaperons and a bungee cord around the two counter balances on the other side of the tail. For when I traveled I used that green cellophane springy wrap stuff for packaging around the wing in the back. Held very well. Also if you're not moving 1/2full on the tanks is fine but 100% empty for travel.

I don't use wing braces as I've hear with teh 4 it's not needed. 5+'s may be a good idea.

[avidflyer]

You didn't mention it in your first post/question, but I'll bring it back up here. Make sure to use some gust locks on the elevator and rudder to keep them from flopping around, especially if you are pulling backwards. 1" x 4" boards with foam on them works good. When a big truck goes by you, it really rocks your world. I've sold a couple of elevators to guys that didn't have gust locks in place and trailered their planes. I've towed 6 of these planes over 3000 miles without any damage to any of them. JImChuk

[ken nougaret]

I've been fine with 2/3 tanks. But my wings are level down the road. I let the elevator push UP against the flaperons.

[Abender]

You didn't mention it in your first post/question, but I'll bring it back up here. Make sure to use some gust locks on the elevator and rudder to keep them from flopping around, especially if you are pulling backwards. 1" x 4" boards with foam on them works good. When a big truck goes by you, it really rocks your world. I've sold a couple of elevators to guys that didn't have gust locks in place and trailered their planes. I've towed 6 of these planes over 3000 miles without any damage to any of them. JImChuk

Thanx for the info

[Abender]

I've been fine with 2/3 tanks. But my wings are level down the road. I let the elevator push UP against the flaperons.

Thanx for the info

[Flyboy66]

Can someone post pictures of the hardware used for transport. I am thinking about building the braces. Any advise? And if that advise is “just buy them”, then I am good with that too.

Steve

[Esser]

I don’t have close up pictures but you can look one page back on the efwd build page to see my plane on the trailer.

I took 1/2” steel tube, crushed the one end and bent it. Then I drilled a hole it it and wrapped foam rubber around it. That’s the end I bolted to the wing.

On the bottom I put a straight edge from the fuselage, drew a line on the tube and cut on the line. Then I welded a piece of flat bar with a hole in it. I bolted that to the strut attach point. I think the real ones have a pin that goes through the channel at the attach point but the way I did it worked fine too and was easier to make. Cut the pipe 1/4” longer than you think. Mine ended up being short and the wing is better to flex up slightly since it’s sinking a bit from the weight than to torque it down more. Even if it is short like mine was, you can put a bunch of washers between to wing and the brace.

Hope that all makes sense.

[efwd]

I posted pics of the brand new travel braces I got from Kitfox someplace here in reply to someone else asking the same question. Maybe they can guide you to their thread.

[ken nougaret]

I've got some pics under "loading and unloading trailer ....." sticky towards the top.