Cowl alignment tabs.
Cowl alignment tabs.
"Somebody said that carrier pilots were the best in the world, and they must be or there wouldn't be any of them left alive." Ernie Pyle
Brett Butler
Flying: N46KF, 1998 Model 5 Outback, 912ul 110hp, G3x with 2 axis a/p, Beringer wheels & brakes, SS7 firewall forward, NR prop, Custom paint
My personal opinion is that you still need the tabs that you cut off for the screws that go thru these tabs to help securely attach the top cowl.
Jim Ott
Portland, OR
Kitfox SS7 flying
Rotax 912ULS
The original hardware is still used and works fine with the new tabs. Just not installed.
"Somebody said that carrier pilots were the best in the world, and they must be or there wouldn't be any of them left alive." Ernie Pyle
Brett Butler
Flying: N46KF, 1998 Model 5 Outback, 912ul 110hp, G3x with 2 axis a/p, Beringer wheels & brakes, SS7 firewall forward, NR prop, Custom paint
I ran no attachment screws or camloks on the front of cowl or the side front tabs. Did not see a need. If you fit it tight the side are plenty sufficient to secure. I ran a couple layers of fiberglass on the front taps to re-inforce them after I broke them to fit better. I think you still want the tabs to keep the front of the cowl shifting?
Dustin Dickerson
Building 7ss STI x 2
Oratex
29" shock monster
EP912STI 155hp
Garmin
N33TF......FLYING!
N53TF......FLYING!
Here's what I did. Just fabricated new tabs. Fits good after a ton of work!
Removable Boot cowl will be done with Skybolt fasteners.
Still needs bodywork done and a good sanding.
"Somebody said that carrier pilots were the best in the world, and they must be or there wouldn't be any of them left alive." Ernie Pyle
Brett Butler
Flying: N46KF, 1998 Model 5 Outback, 912ul 110hp, G3x with 2 axis a/p, Beringer wheels & brakes, SS7 firewall forward, NR prop, Custom paint
I cut off the fiberglass and made new tabs out of aluminum also, Brett. Riveted and bonded them on with Hysol. I used standard nut-plates. It worked well. The tabs help keep everything aligned... I've seen several similar cowl designs on other aircraft that have tabs in the same locations. They may not be needed, but it feels right to me.
John Evens
Arvada, CO
Kitfox SS7 N27JE
EAA Lifetime
Chap. 43 honorary Lifetime
Agreed that the tabs feel right to me as well and keep the cowl snug and aligned behind the spinner.
Question - I'm not sure how I feel about the cowl bulging out between the fasteners. Is the only solution is to add more fasteners? Does the cowl relax after awhile?
"Somebody said that carrier pilots were the best in the world, and they must be or there wouldn't be any of them left alive." Ernie Pyle
Brett Butler
Flying: N46KF, 1998 Model 5 Outback, 912ul 110hp, G3x with 2 axis a/p, Beringer wheels & brakes, SS7 firewall forward, NR prop, Custom paint
A shout out to all The Vet's out there who did and did not come home. On this Memorial Day, I'm grateful I can live my dream because of your sacrifices!
With the warmer weather and most of life's curve balls solved or deflected It feels great to delve back into the Kitfox. It seems life is conspiring to keep me out of the air. It won't work! It always amazes me how anyone finishes an airplane, juggle a job, a wife and children! I'm retired, all the kids are gone, my wife's is very supportive and still I struggle to make progress!
Made another standoff stringer for the bottom of the fuselage from seasoned straight grain pine as I used for the razor back mod. Strengthened the tailwheel mounting plate and reinforced the left side rudder pedals. If you do this - exercise caution welding the reinforcements on. The tubing is very thin. I used .023 wire and a the lowest heat setting possible. Did a few practice welds before I was satisfied I wasn't going to screw it up! Tig would be a better choice here and have a better looking weld imho. Kitfox also has a kit that requires no welding. Overall I'm happy with it.
I bought all the poly-fiber chemicals last year at Oshkosh from Wicks saving the horrible hazardous shipping costs. I'm following the entire poly-fiber system with no deviations as a certified aircraft would have to. Topcoat will be Aerothane. Colors are Insignia white, Pontiac red and Eagle blue. To get the best results I purchased a full face fresh air respirator and an Apollo Hvlp power 5 paint system. Painting polyurethane is hazardous. Every precaution needs to be made for safety. Working previously in a boatyard with Stirling polyurethane products gives me an edge... I hope! Lol.Building large RC airplanes also helped when it came to covering. Many of the same skills and techniques are used. Already had the small heating irons. Bought a cheap non-auto shutoff iron from a local thrift store for ten bucks! lol. It barely hits 345 deg. but for this job it's fine. Calibrated all the irons to 225, 250 and 350 deg. Bottom cover is on and hope to be done with the rest of fuselage this month. Oretex is looking real good atm but my labor is cheap and the money saved will go to the G3x system.
Cya next time. For now it's back to the salt mine...
"Somebody said that carrier pilots were the best in the world, and they must be or there wouldn't be any of them left alive." Ernie Pyle
Brett Butler
Flying: N46KF, 1998 Model 5 Outback, 912ul 110hp, G3x with 2 axis a/p, Beringer wheels & brakes, SS7 firewall forward, NR prop, Custom paint
It takes a lot of hours to do the fabric and paint, but it is one of the most rewarding parts of the build. Sounds like you are doing things right and taking the proper precautions. Keep at it and post some more pics when you can.
BTW you are using the same colors I chose.
And yes, a shout out to all of our veterans and those who have lost loved ones for our country. Words cannot begin to express the sacrifices you have made to defend our freedom.
Phil Nelson
A&P-IA, Maintenance Instructor
KF 5 Outback, Cont. IO-240
Flying since 2016