Wing tanks

[NotSoAmish]

I need a light grey ( 1" washout) left wing tank for a KF3. Have a dark grey (black?) tank that does not sit on the spars properly and may be an unpainted (black 1.75" washout) tank.

[Cosmofly]

Good day NSA... not sure if we are on the same page, but have you spoken to these guys yet www.wingtanks.com ?
Interesting concept they have.

[HighWing]

I have finally gone to the website to look at these tanks. It brings up questions. Does anyone have experience with these? from looking at the pics, I see a couple of issues. There was a recent article in Kitplanes about a Lancair IV that went down due to fuel starvation. Apparently the across the rib tanks were not vented at the top of the tank and trapped air prevented filling to full capacity. Is there provision for across the rib connections top and bottom? Then in the illustrations, I see Tygon like tubing connecting the tanks. There have been some issues in the past with the clear plastic tubing hardening and cracking - I deal with it frequently with garden equipment. Is there provision for visual inspection of the connections and maintenance if necessary?
Lowell

[DesertFox4]

Lowell, every time a fuel tank issue comes up this site is mentioned. Not sure if anyone has actually used them yet and they've been around for years. One would think that if this was a real solution we'd all know someone with them installed. As of yet I personally know of no one flying with this set up. My impression from the Kitfox factory is they are not a viable solution and may cause more problems than might be solved.

[kitfoxnick]

I've installed these tanks and removed them within 20 hours due to a leak. The install is cumbersome you need to install another rib if replacing a thirteen gallon tank. I installed a plywood bottom hysoled to the cap strips of the ribs to set the tanks in and give the wing strength, as the original tank is structural. The big problem that I see is with the lawnmower grade rubber push in fittings that are concealed in the wing. There are eight in total six of which go between the two tanks and are concealed. Two at the bottom are for fuel and on at the top for vent. getting all this tubing and clamps together without kinking or cutting is not easy and you still have to rib stitch without poking one of those hoses. If you do decide to go this route I would recommend making a cover similar to what piper has for there wing tanks because sooner later that rubber is going to fail. Mine failed within 20 hours and I was 3 hours from home. Another thing is plan for long fuel stops it takes a while to get the fuel across with those little tubes.

I ripped the poly tanks out and installed the tanks from the McBeans and am pleased with the install

If anyone a slightly used set of wingtanks.com tanks give me a shout

[DesertFox4]

Thanks Nick. First hand experience is valuable. Lots of extra work and time for a non-solution.