Activity Stream

Activity Stream



  1. Mendlerr added a post in a topic AK 670 Powered Kitfox on Barnstormers   

    I just installed my 72" ivo ifa. I'm hoping my cruise will come up. I also removed most of my panel which let me take that Venturi off the side, that must give me 3mph or so.

    I wish I was the builder, adding a tank would be a lot easier and much cheaper. A$P's and IA's charge a lot!

    I could also kick the person who took the Hacman control off my 582. It's in the logbook as being installed in 2008 but its not there now ! I even have all the manuals with it! God would that help me some.
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  2. C5Engineer added a post in a topic 100LL   

    I burn 100LL for a week every year on my Idaho trip. The only difference I notice besides the dent in my account and a little lower EGT's is that on an Avid with the plugs inverted they get nastied up with this grey crap (the lead I assume) pretty quickly. I will occasionally mix 5 gallons of Avgas in with my pump gas too just to dilute the ethanol a little bit especially if I know I won't be flying for a couple weeks. I bought decalin and used it here and there and finally just quit using it. I felt like I was making some kind of brew pouring oil into the tank and then that stuff too. I'm running the Amsoil Saber Pro at 100:1. A major factor in my decision to run it was the fact that I fly about 120 hrs a year and my engine gets ran a minimum of weekly and usually more frequently than that. If I was a guy that only went out for an hour or two of playing once or twice a month I would probably burn non synthetic oil at 50:1. The full synthetic oil has a tendency to run off the metal parts when it sits for any length of time.
     
    I was a 50:1 cheap oil guy for years until I met the guy who I bought my Firewall forward from. He flew behind two different 582's for 2600 hrs..Yes 2600 all at 100:1. The second one I got had well over 800 well documented hours on it with only one tear down. I ran it for a while on my bird until I put a new Blue Head in it. Those numbers made me a believer and I tried it with good results. Seems to be working so far. Rotax Rick recommends 40:1 for the crank bearing lubrication I believe. I think he is trying to put a stop to the bad rap two strokes get by taking out some of the variables. I would have to stash oil along my route of flight on those 30 hour 150 gallon Idaho trips if I mixed at 40:1!
     
    For those Pre-mixing and fueling up at Avgas pumps at busy airports be prepared for some crazy ass looks from Spam can drivers when you climb up on the ladder and start pouring oil into your gas tank!!!! I had one guy actually run over and try to stop me once it was great!! I could of really messed with that dude instead I just told him it had a weedeater motor in it.  I put a shutoff valve between my left tank and the header tank that shut off while fueling so that I know no fuel is transferring tank to tank. I put a known quanity in each tank and write it down in a little notebook that I stashed up in the wing root area. From there it's a simple math calculation to find out how much oil to put in each tank. Pour it in each side, put on the caps, rock the wings with the strut for about 30 seconds...longer if it's cold out and blast back off for the next fuel stop. Takes me about an extra 5 minutes.
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  3. C5Engineer added a post in a topic AK 670 Powered Kitfox on Barnstormers   

    John "Snaps" Knapp the famous Avid guy from Oshkosh is who I mentioned in my above posts about the WOW factor of a 670 vs a practical, reliable engine. He has been there and done that. I believe he holds a record for the shortest takeoff on floats in an Avid. There's a video on Youtube of him going side by side against a challenger on floats and he's about 300ft in the air before the Challenger gets off the water. Rmendler try adding a a degree or two of pitch into your prop. I found that 6000 on take off made it a cruise prop and 6500 made it a climb prop. I have a hard time grasping that my airplane will out cruise a Kitfox IV. I run 80 all day long at 5600-5800 rpm. That was with a 70" 2 blade tapered tip Warp. Still gathering data on my 72" 3 blade IFA Ivo. Thanks for confirming the Hacman rumor with the 670 also. That alone made up my mind. The Hacman is absolutely awesome when your up above 6000ft. I would also be adding the extra tank if I was you. No reason you can't go on longer trips in a Kitfox. I'm running 28 gallons of fuel. My longest leg I ever flew was right around 300NM in 4hrs and 15 minutes. I could barely walk when I got out and bee lined it for the back of the hangar when I landed but that's besides the point
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  4. Av8r3400 added a post in a topic 100LL   

    Per the LEAF guys, 100LL is just fine in a 2-stroke.  They didn't even mention the need for the lead scavenger (Decalin).  That's more for the 912 motors due to the buildup of lead in the engine oil leading to deposits in the gear case.
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  5. Av8r3400 added a post in a topic Airventure 2013   

    It's pretty cool...
     

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  6. EDMO added a post in a topic 100LL   

    Thanks Doug,Sounds like that might keep the lead out of the plugs on our C-90 Cub too.
    EDMO
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  7. dholly added a post in a topic 100LL   

    Decalin is fine in both 2 and 4-stroke engines Ed. I bought some for my 582 but will end up using it in my 912ul and 912uls. A little goes a long way the shelf life is indefinite which is good, although the Co. told me it will darken with age. Dosage of 1/2 ounce per ten gallons of fuel is a minimum and can be increased to a maximum of 2 ounces per gallon for problem engines - See more HERE
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  8. Mendlerr added a post in a topic 100LL   

    If only I could swap my all aluminum 383 stroked ls1 into my kitfox. Probably get better fuel burn with 400hp and 400tq. A guy can dream, haha
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  9. Mendlerr added a post in a topic 100LL   

    I am purchasing non ethanol 90 octane for around $3.70 a gallon right now, me and a few others at the airport take it upon ourselves to test this "no ethanol" fuel and it turns out to be ethanol free most of the time. Very little to no water content. When we do find water we take it back and believe it or not the gas station will refund us our money or give us fresh no ethanol fuel. The company is called Rush Fuel of Tennessee.

    I have such a hard time paying $6 a gallon for 100ll. It's a shame fuel is so high. Being 22 years old I don't make much money, barely scraping by. I worry I will not be able to afford my lil old kitfox in a few years if fuel keeps getting higher.
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  10. dholly added a post in a topic Airventure 2013   

    Never seen the show but now I know where you were at 1pm on Aug 4. )
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  11. EDMO added a post in a topic 100LL   

    Our 100LL has been about the same price as yours - just under $6 at last fillup.
    Just wait until the 100LL substitute comes out - Guessing a lot higher...Should make the greenies happy...
    Leni, is Decalin good for 4 strokes too? Easier to carry a bottle than to try to mix 100LL, Mogas, at trip airports - What is the mix?
    EDMO
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  12. Mendlerr added a post in a topic AK 670 Powered Kitfox on Barnstormers   

    From what I understand the rave valve opens just at or over 6,500 rpm.

    The mixture control (HACMan) does NOT work with the 670, has something to do with the RAVE valve.

    Greensky and Rotax Rick confirmed this for me

    I am using the NavMan 2100 as a fuel totalizer/flow gauge. It gives me total fuel, fuel burned per trip, total fuel burned and a very accurate flow rate. It also allowed me to install 2 external warning led's. One comes on in the event of a fuel line blockage and the other tells me when to turn my fuel pump on when my wing tank is almost empty. It works quite well.

    My idling fuel burn used to be 1.5 GPH at 3,000RPM. I recently installed an AirTech RK400 clutch and my fuel burn dropped to 0.2 GPH at 1,500RPM. That's a big difference if your stuck behind some traffic on departure.

    If I do not switch to the rotax 670 then I am going to add another wing tank and eliminate the tanks behind the seat. My airplane simply does not have the endurance to take me anywhere right now. With 15 gallons of usable fuel and 6gph fuel burn your options are limited

    Or I can throttle back and deal with a 70-75 MPH cruise
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  13. EDMO added a post in a topic Raising the skylight   

    Looks Good - Bet that turtledeck fits a lot better than trying to bend Lexan...EDMO
    Robert, Spruce and probably local vendors sell some kind of liquid that is supposed to remove old paper without hurting Plexi. I wonder about soaking it in soapy water?
    ED
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  14. Mendlerr added a post in a topic 100LL   

    We occasionally get 100ll around $5.90 but its an act of god. Fuel is high here in the southeast, more so then up north it seems like
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  15. akflyer added a post in a topic 100LL   

    holy cripes, and I thought I was getting raped paying 5.90 a gallon for it last week...
     

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  16. Mendlerr added a post in a topic 100LL   

    I wish I could figure out what kind of oil guys are running at 100:1. I would think it is Amsoil Saber. That is a 100:1 specific ratio formula.

    I wish I didn't live in a part of the country where $6.50 100ll is normal. Cost me about 90 bucks to fill up plus the oil, so I'm well over $110 a tank right now
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  17. akflyer added a post in a topic 100LL   

    Decalin is the lead scavenger that people use in the 2 strokes burning 100LL.  I dont think that using 100LL here and there for the occasional trip would do a darn thing to your engine.  We burned it for over 100 hrs in my brothers KF with no ill effects. 
     

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  18. birddog486 added a post in a topic Gas tank   

    I coated the inside of my tanks as well with a vinyl ester resin.
     
    I dont think I'll take the chance using ethanol because I dont trust it to be ethanol resistant but I was worried about them having leaks so I went this route.
     
    I used a multi tool to cut the tops off and made a 2" wide lip that I attached to the inside of the tank. Then I was able to glass the tops back on.


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  19. Deejayel added a post in a topic 100LL   

    Why does Rick recommend 40:1? I would love to back off on my oil additive. Seems i go through more oil than gas sometimes.
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  20. birddog486 added a post in a topic Raising the skylight   

    I raised the buttribs 2.5" for some added headroom.

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  21. rlmankins added a post in a topic Gas tank   

    Should I make a liner out of the last a foam for the tank? It would not be difficult.
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  22. Deejayel added a post in a topic AK 670 Powered Kitfox on Barnstormers   

    I have the 618. So far so good. Im still trying to get some clean numbers for fuel burn and speed. Right now she seems thirsty and slow! Slow I dont mind, but thirsty I do.

    What fuel flow systems are you guys using? Yes, I'm sure a watch and a gas can back at the hangar should work fine....

    I've got my prop set to 15deg, and I'm running 5800-6000 at cruise, 1100egt. My static is 6200 and wide open cruise is 6500. According to Rick, at 6000, I shouldn't be opening the rave valves. They really don't come into play until its screaming wide open which isnt what we do with these birds. For that reason, he did float the idea of wanting to secure the valves closed.

    Today I need to give my cooling system a good once over. Doesn't help that its 97 today. But last night, after shutdown, my coolant was spewing out of the overflow bottle. I'm going to increase my water ratio to my coolant, check the cap gaskets, and make sure the overflow bottle has minimum fluid when cold.
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  23. rlmankins added a post in a topic Gas tank   

    Should
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  24. rlmankins added a post in a topic Gas tank   

    Chris, I was informed by the tech people that the VER was completely impervious to alchohol. Might be wrong, I frequently am. Because of how I have to close the tank I pretty much have to go in from the top. My tank is all fiberglass
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  25. herman pahls added a post in a topic AK 670 Powered Kitfox on Barnstormers   

    The general aviation airplanes I have flown from 150's to Bonanza's, it seems Lycomings and Continentals burn about 5-6 gallons/100 horsepower.
    I am sure the 2 strokes will also burn according to power output with no magical fuel savings with a certain engines including the 670.
    Inflight Adjust Props and mixture control are the only way I have found to maximize take off, cruise performance and fuel burn on 2 strokes.
    I want 100 MPH at 5 GPH on 29 inch ABW in my Kitfox which probably is not possible with a 2 stroke.
    If money and weight and balance were not a problem, we would all be flying 912's for maximum power/fuel burn/weight.
    Herman
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