As I was setting up my garage I was building a peg hole cabinet and landed on an idea to make rather simple shelves like this... http://www.azshowersolutions.com/Shop3.html
Dan
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As I was setting up my garage I was building a peg hole cabinet and landed on an idea to make rather simple shelves like this... http://www.azshowersolutions.com/Shop3.html
Dan
Spray Lube Nozzles
Those skinny tubes that come with spray lubricants often pop out and find their way into an invisible hole. I discovered they have less of a tendency to pop out if you cut them in half. Perhaps it's because it doesn't bump into so many things on the workbench. The shorter spray nozzle works fine for reaching into most locations. I save the other half when I lose one.
After cutting with scissors, poke a needle into the end to open the hole and improve the spray action.
After a few cans with modified nozzles I find I have extras for when I need the full length.
John Pitkin
Greenville, TX
One of our site sponsors, SteinAir ,out of Farmington Minnesota, has produced videos for builders that are available on their website. Visit SteinAir periodically for new videos. Current videos available are about hand tools used during aircraft electrical work, wire terminals used in experimental aircraft and a basic overview of connectors. Browse his site for all kinds of great products for Kitfox building. Remember to support our site sponsors and tell them you saw their adds here on TeamKitfox.
Milling Machines
Make friends with a mill owner. Somewhere in your area is a hobbyist who owns a vertical mill. The owner may be a motorhead, a tool junkie or a retired machinist. In any case, it’s to your advantage to be on a first name basis. Most home shop mill owners are happy to show you how to machine parts.
Vertical mills can make short work of otherwise difficult tasks. The accuracy of milling machines is fantastic.
Here’s a milling operation cutting a bird mouth in the spar inserts. This job would take a lot of elbow grease with a hacksaw and files. It took less than five minutes on the mill.
Ask around and you’ll be surprised how many private machine shops are tucked in garages and barns.
John Pitkin
Greenville, TX
Here's a tool you can use to quickly shape aluminum sheet metal, especially when you have curves. I've used it on long sheets too, but on the Kitfox most of the aluminum skins are fairly short. The tool shown here is made from a standard vixen file, used by body shops in shaping bondo-ed surfaces. It works on the thicker aluminum parts too. There's almost no final dressing when you finish contouring with the Vixen file.
Making Rudder Cables –( Model 7 with foot wells.)
The Kitfox does not use turnbuckles for matching the rudder cable lengths. If a thimble is swaged on a rudder cable out of position, one pedal will be ahead of the other when the rudder is neutral. Here is how to get them perfectly aligned.
When you are ready to swage the thimbles on the rudder cables, clamp everything in position. Clamp a board across the forward fuselage to hold the rudder pedals even with the firewall. The foot pedal springs should be installed on the adjuster pulleys to keep tension on the assembly. Clamp another board and shims to hold the rudder in line with the vertical stab.
Plan on swaging the full length master cables first. When the master cables are taut, you can follow with the co-pilot spliced cables.
Take up any slack in one cable and clamp it just aft of a fairlead near the rudder. A quick clamp or vise grips work well. [refer to picture 1]
Now to crimp the thimbles. Hold a thimble between the rudder horn links and insert a bolt through the links and thimble. No need to attach a nut as you will remove it in a few minutes. Pass the cable through a Nicopress sleeve, then around a thimble, then back through the Nicopress sleeve. Take up any slack in the cable. Next make an index mark on the cable and the loose end next to each other. Use a red felt pen for marking. Black on stainless cables is hard to see. [ refer to picture 2]
Now remove the thimble bolt. The cable will be easier to swage without having to hold all of the pieces in tension. Line up your index marks and slide the Nicopress sleeve as close to the thimble as you can. This ensures the thimble stays captive on the cable. Slide your Nicopress tool onto the sleeve. Just before you compress the sleeve, double check the index marks. [refer to picture 3]
If you mark things carefully you can get the rudders matched within 1/8 inch.
When you do the co-pilot cables, attach the full length cables to the rudder to keep tension on the cables. Once again, use a red pen to make reference marks.
John Pitkin
I don't have the manual in front of me, but I seem to remember being told not to swage the aft cable ends until after fabric. I assumed this was to avoid a large hole in the fabric.
Rudder cables - Before or after covering - All Models
The manual says to wait until after covering to swage your rudder cables, without explanation. I don't think it makes any difference. The rudder cable thimbles are small and a piece of reinforcement tape over a small slit in the fabric is hardly going to be noticeable under a cable. If you install fairleads at the cable exit points, they will cover the slits.
Also, if you are re-covering an aircraft, you wouldn't toss out the existing rudder cables and make new ones just because they had swaged ends. You would simply simply work around them.
To avoid getting any of the finishing materials on the cables, just tape the ends and retract the cables into the fuselage as far as they will go. Cover and spray normally.
JP
Swaging Rudder Cables - Model 7 and maybe some others.
Correction:
The Kitfox [kit] does not use[a] turnbuckle [in the standard package of parts for the Model 7SS with adjustable rudder pedals option] for matching rudder cable lengths [because, in this builder’s opinion, it would only be used once, never being adjusted again during the life of the cables, add unnecessary weight and expense of two turnbuckles, four thimbles, four sleeves; and, add potential failure points.]
So, if you might have difficulty swaging the cables at the proper length read my previous post [at your discretion] prior to swaging the cable ends. It may, or may not, be helpful.
If you do decide to add a turnbuckle on the Model 7SS [with adjustable rudder pedal option], note that you will [likely] only require one turnbuckle per side. The springs on the adjustable pedals [are supposed to, i think] hold the cable tension.
A single turnbuckle on each side, pilot and passenger, may be used to match all four pedal positions to the others [You may use more turnbuckles if you wish if you like the look but they are not needed]. At least one turnbuckle must be located forward of the “Y” in either cable in order to be able to match both sets of pedals unless you don't care about the person, or animal in the other seat.
Please note that all tips posted here, by me, are for your amusement and reading pleasure only and in no way should be considered as instructions of how to build an airplane, car or boat. The use of any of my building tips for anything other than a doghouse without signed authorization is not permitted and may result in injury, illness and/or death.
I hope this clears up my previous posting.
Thank you,
John Pitkin
Greenville, TX
I suppose when reading these tips one should take into consideration which model ( if applicable) is being referred to. In this case, the building world I float around in is the IV and John the SS. It sounds to be big differences in the way the cables are run between the two. For me, The turnbuckels were (in my opinion) a good addition to the IV. I also have the tabs with different holes for position attached to the peddals, but liked the added adjustment to include the buckels. They were added aft just before rudder attachment and have already proven to be an asset in adjustment of the peddals and or tension. I believe the V thru SS all have the pedal adjustment (didn't think of that). Guess I should withhold correction statements for at least 0600 hrs and not 0400 ;)
Swaging Rudder Cables - Model 7 and maybe others.
Yep, the cable routing is different on 7's with the optional adjustable rudder pedals.So is the tensioning method. But one thing is constant. Swaging those cable ends is a lot easier if you clamp and mark the cables first.
I really like Dan's tip that got buried in his reply. Put multiple holes in the cable end links. You might consider making the links longer to accommodate 2 more holes. It's a lot cheaper to make new links than to purchase new cables if you already swaged the ends and things aren't perfect.
John Pitkin
Greenville, TX
For doing the cables I used two of the temporary cables clamps shown per side. This was after painting and all else was done and allowed me to check rudder alignment, full travel clearance and the adjustable peddle range. As a result of doing this I turned my break cylinders 90 deg to get more leg room and was confident of the setup once I got to swaging. When I had the setup I liked I marked the cables with a sharpie (as John did) which has the added benefit of providing an easy visual inspection for pre-flight (I covered the free tails with clear heat shrink).
I would like to comment on Dan's post. It is a fact that we builders have a world of help in mind when we repond to posts or make suggestions. On another forum as I type this is a note responding to a charging issue with a Rotax 912 UL with a lengthy post on alternator issues - copy/pasted- "Another thing that can generally go wrong with the alternator is the field coil can burn open". Sorry, but as this Rotax doesn'st have the optional alternator - no field coil, so what's the point. These posts are not helpful and don't necessarily refect well on the poster. I have also read posts which clearly stated aircraft model and engine type and responses not applicable to either and then follow up questions asking exactly what this or that are you having problems with. I would like to kindly suggest that when responding, we read carefully the questioning note and reply when our experience or expertise is applicable or at least type a short disclaimer indicating that the first post has been read, i.e., Never seen a Kitfox, but my MaxoStrato does this when I do that. Also, and this may sound a bit whiney, but the fact I am building a Model IV and like Dan am soundly in the IV world should in no way diminish my feeling of welcome on the forum. But when many build questions seem to be answered (without thought) from the Super Sport manual, as if the very latest info. is surely the best info., the forum does tend to sound a bit exclusive to me or maybe, more accurately, a tad dismissive.
Submitted Respectfully,
Lowell
Model IV-1200 Rotax 912UL 900 hours over nine years, Lancair IV 2-1/2 years build experience full time - to completion, Kitfox V Outback six months - to completion, Model IV-1200 Rotax 912UL 3 years almost almost finished
Making bushings – All Models
My seat belts get attached to the airframe with AN4 bolts through 1/4 inch holes. However, the belts come with 3/8 inch holes. I needed reducer bushings not included in the kit hardware package.What to do?
I had some left over scraps of 3/8 inch aluminum tubing. Using a pipe cutter I sliced off a short length of tubing and sanded the cut ends. Voila! A perfect bushing seen here inserted into the seat belt end.
Cost = zero
John Pitkin
Greenville, TX
Epoxy Thickener –all models
Sometimes you find a combination by accident. This was one of those times.
I was needing some epoxy thickener to use as a filler. I was out of flox and micro-balloons so I looked around the shop for something that might work. I’ve used sawdust in the past but the mixing is not consistent. Sawdust is not uniform in size.
So, on a whim, I mixed up a test sample of epoxy and added shredded toilet paper. I was surprised to see the paper dissolve almost immediately into tiny fibers. The tissue fibers soaked up the resin and wetted out like chopped fiberglass.
When the test sample hardened, it was extremely strong and very hard.
Using toilet paper for epoxy thickener turned out to be a royal flush!
John Pitkin
Epoxy Syringe-all models
I have found that I can use the plastic syringe that Kitfox sells over and over again-have been using one now for 20 or more times. I just leave a little in the bottom (not too much) and let it set up. Then I use a flattened off nail that just fits inside the spout and smack it with a hammer from the outside. The setup epoxy breaks loose in the spout and also the small plug left in the bottom and can easily be pulled out. A small penknife easily breaks loose whats left on the plunger and whats left inside the barrel is also easily scraped out. It only takes a few minutes and allows me to use the syringe for most of the glue application-way easier than trying to spread it on with a popsicle stick or an acid brush.
Jim
While wiring my first Model IV, I read a suggestion to label the wires using white heat shrink and fine line colored magic markers to encode the wire numerically with the electronics guys resister codes. I liked the idea and it looked good until I found that over time the colors would fade and tracing wires was a little more difficult. It also required a code sheet for identifying what coded number meant what circuit. This time I am using typed strips under clear heat shrink with a white heatshrink strain relief underneath. Maybe not as pretty, but bulletproof and quick when tracing circuits. One side benefit is that it requires a bit of attention to detail which helps eliminate wiring errors. So far so good in that arena.
Lowell, plus one on that idea. Absolutely awesome!!
(I think they look great, too.)
You can also use a label maker like a Brothers http://www.ptouchdirect.com/ set on a small font and then use Lowell's method of clear shrink wrapping. More expensive than making them on the computer at home but may be handy if you are wiring out at your hangar and don't have a computer or printer available or you have to make a change to your wiring system.
Our sponsor SteinAir carries several sizes of the clear shrink tubing if you have trouble finding it locally.
There has been some thread chatter lately on clamps potentially working loose. A fellow Avid builder got me into the habit of safe tying radiator, fuel and other 'critical' hose clamps. SafeClamps also reduce the inclination to automatically and unnecessarily tighten clamps; over-tightening of hose clamps is a common mistake that leads to premature failure. Extra work, but time well spent IMHO.
Other threads have covered fuel system testing, etc.; however, while building I wanted to get some idea how much fuel had to be in the wing tanks to supply the header tank with a measured amount of nose down.
Our front driveway is brick cobbles so it was a simple matter to pull some bricks, dig a hole for the nose gear, measure the deck angle then fill/drain/measure the tanks.
The attached photo is with a 10 degree nose down which resulted in a minimum of 6 gallons on each side for the fuel to be available to the header (That's on this particular series 7 trigear - sure it is different for other builds and models). In reality nobody is likely to hold that position in flight long enough to exhaust the header - but I wanted to have some facts to deal with. Found out it was basically proportional as the deck angle is reduced (3 gallons on each side at 5 degrees - perfectly level the unusable fuel in the wing tanks was less than a quart.
Sidebar suggestion - if you do this in town - probably a good idea to let the neighbors know first so it reduces the number of uninformed earthlings who might call up the local constable about the "small plane crash in someone's driveway" :o - don't ask me how I know this........
Dave S
KF7 Trigear
912ULS - Warp
First thing I thought when I saw that picture is that somebody would call and report a crash.
I spent over 10 years on/off building my RV-4 and I'm sure the whole neighborhood thought I was a nut. I remember one Halloween when some little kid behind a Frankenstein mask asked: "are you the guy with the airplane in the garage?"
This is valuable info. I suppose it is worse in the earlier models with the full aft localtion of the fuel tank port. It reminded me of the flight home from Homedale, I made several years ago in my IV when I opted to forgo the fuel stop in Winnemucca because of favorable tail winds and a bit of curiosity. I crossed the Sierras at 10,000 ft. and then proceeded to drop down to the 2300 ft. pattern altitude in the ramaining 25 minutes of flight. I used a 500 fpm descent as I liked the airspeed - all the time watching the fuel level in the vent line and the glass fuel filters. Eventually I saw the low fuel warning light come on as I unported both tanks. Reducing the descent took care of that, but it can be an issue and should be considered when long descents are planned on relatively low fuel levels.
Lowell
Hysol Application - All Models
There’s not much guidance in the instruction manual that came with my Model 7 SS for using Hysol. You are pretty much on your own after reading, “Bond the ribs to the spar.”
Making a nice fillet with Hysol is like trying to pinstripe with finger paint. Mistakes and smears show up as dark gray smudges on the light wood ribs and silver spar. Not pretty! I know it won’t show when the aircraft is covered, but l know it looks bad now. It’s one of those pesky pride of workmanship things.
I played with several different methods and got a lot of epoxy under my fingernails. It took a combination of methods to develop a suitable technique. A couple of modified syringes seems to be the best.
Because Hysol will barely flow through a 12 ml syringe tip, I drill out the tip to 1/8 inch. This allows the Hysol to flow much easier, particularly when it starts to thicken after 15 minutes or so.
At one time I used a Popsicle stick to load the application syringe. It was a bit messy.
Now, to load the application syringe I use another syringe that has the entire end cut off; not just the tip. The wide opening makes it easy to suck up a good load. Using the loading syringe I transfer the Hysol to the application syringe. Very little spill and clean up is easy with a rag and some denatured alcohol.
Now, with the application syringe loaded I can apply the Hysol without a lot of mess. When the parts are bonded or I run out of Hysol, I clean the syringes with denatured alcohol. I get multiple uses from syringes.
Using an application syringe with a 1/8 tip opening I can put the goo just where it needs to be or lay down a nice fillet.
Speaking of fillets… Mask off both sides of a rib on the spar or leading edge. Then use a plastic shield cut from a milk bottle to keep excess Hysol off the ribs. The shield should be cut with a radius about 1/8 inch larger than the spars. Hold the shield against the rib while you smear the goo. Retract the shield and remove the tape for a clean looking fillet. Wipe the shield with alcohol before doing the next rib.
Top photo shows modified application and loading syringes.
Bottom photo shows plastic milk jug fillet shield.
JP
Need Lots of Clamps
I am finding that I need lots of clamps to do various jobs like: gluing wooden ribs to vertical & horizontal tail, apply rudder post fibreglass fairings, and applying door framing. I have 20 spring clamps and about a dozen mini quick grip bar clamps and have used nearly all of them on some of the above mentioned jobs. A few steel C-clamps are useful but not as necessary as the other type. I borrowed a bunch as well as bought more of my own and am glad I did. You can get by with lots fewer clamps, but must do things in multiple stages instead of all at once with one batch of epoxy.
Jim
When gluing ribs to spars, it is recommended to use a digital postal scale with tare feature to properly portion Hysol 1:1 by weight. After mixing thoroughly, I just spoon it into the corner of a heavy duty quart-size zip lock freezer bag. Then I twist the baggie, cut off the corner and use it like you would a piping bag for cake icing. Hysol goes right where you need it in a perfect bead. Can cut the corner to adjust bead size accordingly, and toss the empty baggie directly into the trash can when done. No muss, no fuss.
A good tip... move the rib off to the side of your final position marking, then apply your bead of Hysol around the spar just slightly inside the final line (between the offset rib and final rib position), then drag the rib web through the Hysol into it's desired position. This helps ensure any voids between the rib web and spar are filled, providing greater glue contact area for a stronger bond. I made up a garrotte with some strapping tape to clamp the spars tightly together and hold the ribs in place as the Hysol sets up. Since the capstrips are not always glued perfectly perpendicular to the rib web, I also used a straight edge to keep the rib caps flat as I worked down the wing.
As noted, let the Hysol skin up a bit then smooth the bead using your finger wetted with isopropyl alcohol. It will produce a nice filet and the Hysol will not stick to your finger. When dry, pipe Hysol on the other side in the spar/rib junction, then filet as described above. In the pics attached you can see how this method produced much nicer workmanship than the one I tried pasting Hysol on with a Popsicle stick. Best of all, you can apply the Hysol very quickly and never get a speck on you, your tools or clothes.
I like this baggie idea a lot, especially the part about doing one side of the rib at a time. It would allow for easy checking of rib positioning as the alignment marks will remain visible until the Hysol sets on the glued side. Nothing is more frustrating in the build than finding when mounting the flaperon brackets that one or more of the ribs drifted during the curing process.
Lowell
Haven't done the wings, but on the tail I "tacked" the ribs in place using a small amount of hysol between tube and rib at the exact location of each rib. I then used tightly wrapped zip ties around the tubing to hold the ribs in place until set. I then came back later and did all the filets without having to worry about stuff shifting.
Thanks Lowell, I am a fan of K.I.S.S. technology! Clamping the spars together with the garrotte to keep the ribs immobile worked very well. You can't see in the previous pics, but I ran a strip of painter's tape down the length of the spars to note the rib location, which I then used to mark a position line all around the spar. I just left that tape in place. Figured if I lost the position line in the Hysol I would still had a good reference handy. I would add that I tried wrapping tape around the tube at first as a position line, but found it difficult to get perfectly square. Simple solution... just wrap a piece of paper around the tube, align the edges, mark away and remove. -Viola- a perfectly square position line around the spar!
Just some really great tips. Thanks for making this a 'sticky'
Crooked False Ribs & Tail Ribs:
I found that quite a few of the plywood false ribs and tail elevator ribs were not straight. Some were pretty bad. I found that if I wetted just the concave side with water, the fibers in that side would swell and push the rib straight. With a little help gently bending with my fingers I was able to straighten all the bent ribs, even the worst ones. When they dried they stayed reasonably straight.
Jim
You will need to clean up your aluminum spars before you glue your ribs. Many builders use Scotch-Brite™ cleaning pads. These work excellent to clean, finish, grain, denib or defuzz aluminum, and may be used by hand, with a hand pad block, or on an in-line sander.
If you are going to use Scotch-Brite™ pads to clean aluminum spars, only use the maroon color pads (item #7447). They are manufactured with a very fine grade aluminum oxide grit abrasive. Do NOT use the gray pads (item #7448), as they contain silicone carbide grit abrasive.
The silicone carbide could break down and stick in the aluminum causing corrosive stress points, very much like marking aluminum with a pencil (which is why we only use ball-point or felt tip pens when marking on bare aluminum).
I'm sure I'm not the first to come up with this idea. I really didn't like the idea of having the panel shock absorbers in view on the front of my panel. I manufactured standoffs, mounted the shock absorbers and flush riveted them to my panel.
Clothes Pin Clamps - All Models
Clothes pins are cheap clamps but they don't open wide enough or get in close for most applications. A few seconds on a disc sander remedies both shortcomings and will convert a clothes pin into a handy clamp for just a few cents.
Sand the handle ends on the inside so the jaws will open farther.
If needed for close clamping, sand the nose inside and outside to make a “needle nose” clamp.
Picture: Top clamp has needle nose jaws and shows wide opening when modified, second clamp has shortened handles, bottom clamp is stock clothes pin.
JP
another version of the clothes pin clamp . dissamble and reassemble with the wooden parts upside down and the spring installed backwards . clamps well
With all of the time that I have been out of work I really appreciate the tool tips and am always looking for a less expensive way to get some of them. I made my own stitching needles out of metal coat hangers. I flattened the end with a hammer and drilled a hole for the lacing cord. Flattening the end made the needle too wide so I used the grinder to thin it down. The pointy end was also done with the grinder. Someone you know will have old metal hangers that they will give away for free. Nothing better than free tools!
The home made needles are a favorite. I used them in both of my projects. One side benefit and the driving force behind my initial use is that the hangar wire (or welding rod) is bendable. I tried modifying one of my store bought needles and broke it. I found the soft wire with custom lengths and bendable to be essential when lacing the partial rib under the fuel tank and in other places where I inadvertently routed such things as the pitot tube line in exactly the wrong place or going around drag anti drag fittings.
Lowell
Simple method for remote mounting pressure sensor.