Belly Pods

[Dorsal]

I'm thinking of getting a torpedo style (is there any other kind?) belly pod and have some questions for those who have them.

Do you like/use it?
What do you or can you put in it?
How long to get on and off?
Anybody selling one?
Anything else I should be asking?

Thanks

[series7]

Dorsal,
We had one on our plane when we came up to the fly in this fall. It is the one sold by Kitfox and works well. It takes about 5 minutes to install. we put heavy items in it up to 40 pounds because it is under the center of the plane. It can be a little difficult to load. Let me know if you have more questions.
Ken

[jtpitkin06]

The cargo pod allows 2.5 cu feet of storage; however, I think that dimension is misleading. The cross section is round so storage is very inefficient. Two sleeping bags are about 2.5 cu. Ft. You might be able to put three flat rate boxes inside. The load capacity is 40 pounds but I’m sure you will cube out long before it will weigh out if you are carrying anything other than fireplace logs.

If I were adding a pod, I think I would make one along the lines of a Skymaster, Skywagon, or Caravan. Full width storage with slab sides and a nearly flat bottom makes more sense. You would get more cubes and better ground clearance. And I’ll bet the empty weight of the larger pod would not be much more than the round one.


Seems to me it would be easy to lay one up with fiberglass. Not any more difficult than making a cowling. I'd just glue up some fiberglass panel and/or foam blocks and carve the shape. Then slather on some fiberglass and resin.


On the other hand, the factory pod is plug and play. Just bolt it on and go. I guess some people like the bomb rack look, too.

JP

[Mnflyer]

Hi. I have the pod have never used it to haul anything, did install it and flew with just to see if you could notice any different flying char. didn't notice a thing as posted take less then 10 min to install and remove.
I've seen information about another type that fastened to the underside looked like it was larger and easier to load but can't find anything on it now. Maybe someone else knows about it.

[muth]

My cargopod is modified with a front opening, makes it very easy to load and unload the baggage. Small stuff can be stowed in the nose cone. Cruise performance penalty is about 2kts.
muth Classic IV Speedster, Switzerland

[rcsfca]

I've got one of the squarish, slab-sided belly boxes that strap onto the fixed mounting cleats below the cabin on my Model IV.

Mine came from a "flip-over-on-your-back" accident that totaled the plane but left the box intact. The box was originally sold by Denny Aircraft or perhaps Skystar, which built a few and sold them but then decided not to continue.

Sorry but I don't have any performance data.

Photo below shows pod with large door open. If you look closely, you'll see that there is a (closed) front door also. More pics in my album...

Rich Cunningham
Lafayette, CA
Model IV/912UL 80 hp

[dholly]

I have a OPTIONAL EQUIPMENT AND ACCESSORIES PRICE LIST from Denney Aerocraft circa 1989 in my files. It shows two underbelly cargo options:

Cargo Pod, fiberglass, looks like a drop tank . . . 289.00
(Hangs between the landing gear, detaches quickly)

Cargo Container, 5.3 ft.3 capacity, huge! . . . ... . 420.00
(Fiberglass, hangs under fuselage center section tight against belly like on a Cessna Caravan. Has two hinged doors. Removable with 4 bolts, weighs approximately 25lbs., requires mounting brackets and special truss welded to fuselage.)

[Dorsal]

Thanks for all the feedback. I have thought about building a Belly Box for more space but I'm not confident enough in designing an atatchment method such that I don't drop my cargo and box on some unsuspecting folks. I like the easy on and off of the Pod though I wish it were a little bigger. I need to make some measurments to see if it would enable me to bring both my camping gear and my folding bikes (Ken, I wish I paid more attention when I looked at your pod at the fly-in).

[HighWing]

Some thoughts on camping gear. I found a +20° F. sleeping bag that was smaller than a football when loaded it it's compression sack and weighed less than 2 lbs. Then I had an 8 lb. two man tent that I decided I wouldn't replace until I found one half that weight for less than $160. I did, so I did. Both these items are from REI. My sleeping pad is torso length and self inflating. It folds in half and rolls and is pretty close to the size of my sleeping bag. Every time we see a camp chair, both my wife and I go over and lift it. Some near full size camp chairs are of aluminum and can be surprisingly lightweight. I suspect all these items could fit in a Kitfox cargo pod.


Then there are other options. It was not uncommon when we were doing our annual Idaho group back country trips that one or more of the guys lashed their camp chair to a lift strut, right at the jury strut attachment, with bungee cords. In probably 7 or 8 trips over a weeks time, camping somewhere new every night, the guys that did this had no issues with the chairs. These were all Model IVs with the relatively small 40 lb. baggage sack, so the volume and weight of our stuff was a real issue.
Lowell

[Dorsal]

Thanks Lowell, very helpful. I also have nice small sleeping bags but the pads and tent are full size (which ones did you get). As for camping chairs I have seen pictures of folks that lashed them to the lift struts and wondered if that is technically legal? (perhaps one of those grey areas). Did you find a chair you like?