Getting an old kitfox IV speedster up and running!

[Slyfox]

the other day I ran full throttle and high pitch and pulled straight up, over 2200 climb, wooo hooo. lots of fun, what do you mean 1000 is all you need?

[DesertFox4]

Welcome aboard Al. Nice looking Kitfox.
I would imagine that the Kitfox has not had a recent Conditional Inspection. That would be a starting point. To see a Kitfox conditional inspection checklist just click on Kitfox Aircraft's ad at the top left side of every page and find the their "Technical FAQ" tab. Click on the 2nd entry.
As discussed, all hoses may need refreshing. I'd drain all old fuel out also. Go through both carbs. Learn all you can about the care and feeding of your 912 engine. They are wonderful little engines.
You will love the flight characteristics of that nicely built Kitfox.

[avidflyer]

Should be a nice airplane. By the way, I sent you a private message. Jim Chuk

[Wheels]

Im excited for you! The story sounds great! I bought a kit fox model IV that had been sitting for about 10 years. The mechanic who sold it to me was a great guy and did his best to make it right before he sold it for his friend.
He was an A&P mechanic so he did a lot of A&P type fixes. That said, The plane needed a Rotax Certified mechanic and a Light Sport Repairman to look at it.

Get those two wickets and you will be golden. Although I bet your grandad knows more about that plane than most lsrms will ever know.
My plane needed the following items.
1 Rubber vibration dampners
2 new carb sockets
3 rebuilt carbs
4 inspection for the notorious crack in the engine mount. (new mount is beefier)
5 new fuel pump to replace the now obsolete pump. (if it aint broke don't fix it)
6 a return line to the tank
7 additional leaf spring on the tailwheel as mine only had one and thats bad.
8 inspection of the fuel tanks revealed the old fuel had eaten them up pretty badly. I installed the ethanol resistant tanks.
I got an A&P who owned a Kitfox to do most of it.
I'm in Clark Fork Idaho. Where are you exactly.

[Jono]

My plane needed the following items.
1 Rubber vibration dampners
2 new carb sockets
3 rebuilt carbs
4 inspection for the notorious crack in the engine mount. (new mount is beefier)
5 new fuel pump to replace the now obsolete pump. (if it aint broke don't fix it)
6 a return line to the tank
7 additional leaf spring on the tailwheel as mine only had one and thats bad.
8 inspection of the fuel tanks revealed the old fuel had eaten them up pretty

Wheels has summed it up pretty well. My dad built the Kitfox IV I fly now and the only thing on this list we haven't done is replace the fuel tanks (we're watching closely.. but will have to do them one day) - Main thing is to avoid ethanol fuel which we have been doing.

Jono

[Hockeystud87]

Hey guys,

Sorry for the late response! You all gave great info.

To update I just got my taildragger endorsement in a beautiful Cessna140 yesterday! Awesome experience getting to learn a new appreciation for ground handling and learning the different effects of Wheel and 3 point landings.

So now the next steps I want to take are trying to really focus on my grandfathers kitfox. Were going to tackle it early next week and he's written out a check list to start going over it's "annual". I also discovered that the plane is actually the 80hp version rotax not 100hp.

Some concerns I have after searching the site here is my size. I am a 6'2" 180lbs guy. I have always been slender but when I sat in the plane last it was "tight", The full controls was somewhat of an issue but I was able to get pretty decent throws with out issue, if I moved my legs around I could get full throw easily but with a slight awkward position with my legs.

I was also thinking of removing my shoes and maybe taking out back padding to help make some room.

I'm excited to work on this plane and have a great slow & cheap plane to build some time in.

Any advice?

[Jesse]

I revived my grandfathers KitFox 5 a year ago after sitting for over 15 years, I had to do all of the same things you guys have talked about. Carbs gummed up a few times before we got all of the crap out of the old tanks. Now i run only 100LL and have no problems with carb junk from the fuel tanks eroding away. I hat to have to do the work required to remove and install a new one. Cheaper for the short run to burn 100LL. Last thing i need to do the the engine mounts... some day soon.

[Dusty]

Don't stress too much over controle throws,full back stick is required but side to side full movement is seldom required as these aircraft have good roll authority even at low speeds

[jrevens]

...

Some concerns I have after searching the site here is my size. I am a 6'2" 180lbs guy. I have always been slender but when I sat in the plane last it was "tight", The full controls was somewhat of an issue but I was able to get pretty decent throws with out issue, if I moved my legs around I could get full throw easily but with a slight awkward position with my legs.

I was also thinking of removing my shoes and maybe taking out back padding to help make some room.

I'm excited to work on this plane and have a great slow & cheap plane to build some time in.

Any advice?

I'm about the same size as you, and my other airplane has a pretty tight cockpit - smaller than the Kitfox 7 SS I'm building now. I found that flying with some thin-soled moccasins works real well for me. It's amazing what losing an extra 1/2" or so of sole thickness can potentially do for your leg room and knee clearance. If you normally wear tennis shoes, going to some leather moccasins might make a big difference for you.

[Hockeystud87]

I revived my grandfathers KitFox 5 a year ago after sitting for over 15 years, I had to do all of the same things you guys have talked about. Carbs gummed up a few times before we got all of the crap out of the old tanks. Now i run only 100LL and have no problems with carb junk from the fuel tanks eroding away. I hat to have to do the work required to remove and install a new one. Cheaper for the short run to burn 100LL. Last thing i need to do the the engine mounts... some day soon.

I was talking to my grandfather and he stated he has always used, or tried too use, non ethanol gas. He runs auto gas in his. So I would assume this would help with the fuel tank erosion.

He stated he put all new lines in due to this very issue but that was some maybe 10 years ago. There is a slight green coloring in the lines I can see but is not heavy. Is this something to be of concern? Also he has a inline fuel filter installed for the engine. I'm guessing this will help greatly as long as it is cleaned often.