SS7 and float rigging information

[N213RV]

Does anyone have any float rigging information for a KitFox SS7? I am building a set of Zenair 1450A floats and need to consider rigging soon. Most of what I found on the forum was for earlier models. Thanks

[DesertFox4]

Radial powered Kitfox on floats. Wow! Can’t help with rigging but would love to know more about building the floats when your ready.👍

[N213RV]

I did a bunch of modifications on the Zenair floats... stiffened up the front nose gear bulkhead, used proseal as a sealant vs the silicon caulk they recommend, and I installed bushings on all movable joints vs the kit just had bolts going through aluminum brackets. I also re-made some small aluminum brackets out of steel. Oh, and I used flush head solid rivets vs pull rivets.

[DesertFox4]

I would love to put mine on amphibs. Sounds like good mods Mike.
Maybe Paul will see your post and advise you on rigging a Kitfox for floats.

[av8rps]

Hi Mike,

I would suggest you go to the website link below and read everything they have posted about float installs as that will give you a really good start on what you need to do. And these guys know how to put floats on homebuilts as they have done pretty much everything over the last few decades. They also sell some fittings if you dont want to make your own.

The next thing I would do is to track down the guy on Youtube that is flying a newer Kitfox on 1450 Zenair amphibs with a Viking engine to see how he rigged his. His videos are pretty impressive, and since he has a Viking and it is likely similar weight to your Rotec, his experience may help save you some time and headaches.

With all that said, I've learned a long time ago to try and learn from others rather than having to reinvent the wheel on my own. A good example of that was when recently I was trying to help a guy with a Highlander rig some 1450's on his plane, but noticed a new Highlander on youtube with 1450's operating perfectly. We contacted him only to learn that he just bought Zenairs rigging for a Kitfox and bolted it on. Again, it was about as good as one could get, even though it was not used on a Kitfox. So the guy I was trying to help just did the same thing and was really happy with the end result. I'm guessing the Viking powered Kitfox on youtube is probably just using standard Kitfox rigging too, but may have shifted floats a bit for CG reasons? So again, if you can track him down he may be a big help to you.

A Rotec radial Kitfox amphib. That will be a mega cool seaplane! I can hardly wait to hear how it works out for you.

http://www.harborsportaviation.com