Kitfox Series 7 Super Sport - Show Me Fox

[Jason Murphy]

Well, the majority of today was a poor use of time. I lost the drill chuck key for my air drill and checked at 4 different hardware stores trying to find a replacement and was unsuccessful.

Productive things which were accomplished?

Sanded my excess SuperFil. I believe the final product looks quite nice.

I have the wings flipped leading edge up and ready to varnish.

In my search for a chuck key I canvassed the air compressor section of the hardware stores and picked up some regulators and filters. I will need to begin improving my setup for paint. I will be using Stewart Systems and they specifically advise against the turbine systems.

I was planning on doing that tomorrow however I will be covering for a coworker so they may attend a sporting event for their child.

I also was placed on standby for a disaster deployment let?s just hope this next hurricane peters out.

With any luck my next work day will be Thursday when I get back from work.





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[Jason Murphy]

9/24/2024

Broke the sharp edges of the ribs in the tail feathers with sand paper in preparation for varnishing.


Reviewed the sample weight and balance data provided by Kitfox.

Used the tables in the instruction manual to create a weight and balance profile. With just me and full fuel the weight and balance calculation comes out to right in the center of the envelope.

How I have things currently figured I would be able to have a 200 lb passenger and 100 lbs of baggage. This would put the aircraft within gross weight of 1550 and quite near the aft CG Limit. A constant speed prop may potentially help with this situation. I need to get an estimate of the distance from the datum point a constant speed prop along with some weights.

I am also running the numbers to install the yaw damper. That will move the CG 0.3? aft with an estimated weight of 3 lbs at approximately 140?.

For some reason I am having trouble uploading photos again. Last time using the app resolved the issue. I have attached a screenshot of my weight and balance calculation from the profile I created on Foreflight. This will change after I receive the numbers for my plane. I consulted a friend who made a similar build with the 912iS, a DUC Constant Speed, and 21? bushwheels. He came in at 260 and a CG of 10.51. I expect that my weight will be similar if not a touch heavier.

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[Jason Murphy]

9/26/2024

Finished sanding on the horizontal stabilizer and the elevator.

Made a gentle radius on the ends of each component. Used the center of the hinge tubes as an appropriate radius.

Installed some new carbon filters in my respirator since the old ones are pretty old.

Applied the first coat of varnish to both wings and the tail feathers.

In some of the tighter locations I was able to use a pipe cleaner that I had folded over on itself about 3 times and twisted to reach into the lightening holes and apply varnish to confined areas. See photo example.

The varnish will cure until Saturday morning when I get off work. I plan on scuffing all of the surfaces and applying a second coat of varnish to all of the wood on the wings and tail feathers.

Big thanks to Danilo Masuelli who supplied additional varnish.

I was not a good steward of my varnish and struggled with some of my earlier applications.

Tried both a brush and a rag today to apply the varnish. The rag seems to apply a thinner coat and be faster to apply however the varnish will eat through nitrile gloves and you will need to double glove.

For some reason I am having trouble uploading photos. I have sent an email to support, my apologies. To see all of today?s photos click the link below.

https://eaabuilderslog.org/?s=ShowMeFox

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[jiott]

Good thing to use a respirator with new filters. I used the PolyFiber system for all my covering and found the Polyfiber epoxy varnish to be the nastiest stuff by far. The fumes are horrible and gave me headaches and cough for days afterwards. I brushed it on, and thought that since I was not spraying it, I could get by without a good respirator. Big mistake! Its great stuff though, very tough. I put 3 coats on like the book said, but that was probably unnecessary since it brushes on fairly thick.

[alexM]

I'm a big fan of three coats. Didn't you epoxy your spars?

Go peek inside an old rag and tube covered plane. The metal ages far better than the wood

[Jason Murphy]

I'm a big fan of three coats. Didn't you epoxy your spars?

Go peek inside an old rag and tube covered plane. The metal ages far better than the wood

I have not epoxied my spars yet? I plan to in the near future while the weather is mild.

Just finished the 3rd coat of varnish on the ribs and leading edge. I have some cleanup I need to do from the drips and runs.


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[Jason Murphy]

9/28/24

Another 12+ hour day. Arrived home from work around 8 AM and got started with scuffing and applying the varnish.

I was able to space things out enough to apply two coats today making the total of 3.

Applied 3 coats of varnish to the leading edge per the pre covering checklist.

I have a good amount of cleanup to do from my drips and runs.

I would like to prime the spars before setting them in the wing rack.

I will then circle back to the door joggles to rework them.




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[Jason Murphy]

9/29/24

We didn?t have a pilot at work today so I went home for a few hours watched my daughter?s first soccer game and installed the stabilizer / elevator trim actuator.

In typical Kitfox fashion the mounting tabs were not parallel with each other. I gave them some loving with some padded duckbill pliers. I was unable to get 2 full thickness 916 washers in there. I was able to do a 916 on one side and a 916 and 916L on the other.

Using the 365 nut specified in the instructions there were no additional threads showing so I will likely need to order a slightly longer bolt so I would be able to use the nut that has been called for in the instructions with proper thread engagement of the nylon nut.

This actually brought up another question. Because the trim actuator rotates around this bolt. The rotation is very small but any time the trim is changed there would be not only pressure but also rotation about the bolt. Shouldn?t it have a castle nut with a cotter pin? I would like to receive feedback from my colleagues on this one.




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[PapuaPilot]

That's a great observation & question. Standard practices would be to use a castle nut and have freedom of rotation for the actuator.

During inspections I always lube bolts that have castle nuts because they should have rotation. I also grab the pieces and make sure they rotate.

[Jason Murphy]

That's a great observation & question. Standard practices would be to use a castle nut and have freedom of rotation for the actuator.

During inspections I always lube bolts that have castle nuts because they should have rotation. I also grab the pieces and make sure they rotate.

The official reply was it doesn?t rotate enough to worry about. Regardless I have ordered the next 2 size longer bolts that have been drilled and I will shamelessly install a bolt with a cotter pin.


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