EFWD Build

[Kitfox Pilot]

Looking good Eddie. Be sure and check where the o ring runs for a small imperfection of some kind. An o ring should last longer than that especially at low pressures like a brake system. I work on a lot of hydraulics and there is almost always a reason an o ring fails like a scratch in the cylinder wall or something.

[efwd]

thanks Harlan. I looked at everything and found nothing. I can't say I got the best visual on the interior of the cylinder since I didn't take it out of the airplane. I finished the annual today and just got home from doing nearly an hour in the pattern. It is still dry at the moment. So happy to have it back up after three weeks. I have missed a couple of great flying days here recently.

[Kitfox Pilot]

Glad your back in the air. We've had really crappy weather here but its that time of year for us. You have some great flying weather out there the best I can tell. Haha

[efwd]

I now have added to my shutdown checklist due to what I experienced on this latest inspection. I rotated the tires. Of course you have to flip the inner tube so its valve stem remains on the outside. I removed the valve from the stem so that the air could be evacuated. Put it all back together and lost half my air from one tire over night. So, I had to remove the valve again so that I could add a touch of thread sealer. While the airplane sat with one flat tire I nearly got a shower of fuel as it came streaming out of the vent in the fuel cap on the left wing. I have a valve on the left fuel hose so I shut it off but it doesn't stop the stream immediately. I suppose I would have lost a hell of a lot of fuel had that tire gone all the way flat over night. So now I turn that valve off when I turn the main fuel shutoff after shutdown. When I installed that valve I only considered the possibility while parked on uneven surface. I had not considered having a tire go flat while in the hangar. Something to consider.

[airlina]

Good idea Eddie, over the years lots of Kitfoxes have lost lots of fuel because of our open fuel system . Many times over the years while walking the flight line at fly ins, I have watched unashamed kitfoxes peeing out in the open . I added 2 tank to header s/o valves due to this shocking behavior. I keep a big red streamer clipped to my master switch whenever I close one of these valves,. I am going to adopt your suggestion, never thought about a flat tire situation. Bruce N199CL

[efwd]

The bigger the tires the worse the situation can become. It really pours out quick.

[Eric Page]

Hey guys, I haven't installed any of the fuel plumbing yet so I'm a little dumb on this system. Are you putting shutoff valves in the lines from each wing to the header tank? If so, then am I correct that if the airplane tips and fuel runs out the filler cap vent tube, it will eventually create a vacuum in the tank due to the closed valve, stopping, or at least greatly diminishing, the fuel loss?

[efwd]

Nah, it isn't going to vacuum unless you suck on the vent. As stated, some people put a valve on each of the fuel lines. I only used one. I believe you will only get fuel to come out the vent by means of transferring fuel from the other tank. One valve on either tank will prevent that. The main fuel shutoff will keep the circuit closed off from the engine should a fuel line be open to air somehow maybe during maintenance or something.

[Eric Page]

Ah, OK, got it. Air comes in the vent on the high side wing as fuel transfers across to the low side and escapes from that vent. A valve on either side stops the transfer happening.

[efwd]

My 19 year old and I made it out to Chicken Strip at Saline Valley in Death Valley this past weekend. Could not have turned out better. No wind and mild temps, clear skies and a full moon.IMG_2073 (4).jpg