Activity Stream

Activity Stream



  1. egp8111 added a topic in Avidfoxflyers General Hangar   

    flapperon rigging
    I'm rigging the flapperons on my KFIII rebuild. I know this topic has been gone over before but I still have a few questions. I can get everything lined up per the manual with the stick vertical but I have more comtrol movement in one direction than the other. I've noticed the stick will physically move more one direction than the other due to it's design. Is this normal ? Also I've tightened up everything in the control system I can but the whole thing still seems kind of sloppy. With all the bends and fittings associated with this system I expect it to have some play but I'm wondering how much is normal?
    Any suggestions tips or advise welcome. Hoping to get this thing flying soon!

    EG
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  2. Av8r3400 added a post in a topic Memorial Day 2011   

    Amen...

    Thanks to all that wear or have worn the uniform.
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  3. horsepower added a post in a topic Memorial Day 2011   

    I second that!
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  4. akflyer added a topic in Avidfoxflyers General Hangar   

    Memorial Day 2011
    While most are hanging out with loved ones and having a nice BBQ drinking adult beverages, lets not foget that today is about those who gave all so that we may remain free and continue to speak English as our native language.

    A heart felt thanks to those who have served and are still serving.

    Remember, so many are gone... but never forgotten!!


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  5. Trackwelder added a post in a topic Go Kart to Matco Brakes   



    I am sorry for your loss, but as far as theft goes, you start looking at those closest to you, It is a shame that your family won't let you purchase your fathers tools, but I wouldn't be surprised if they get borrowed by one of the loudest against you paying a fair price. You can choose your friends but you can't chose your family.
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  6. C5Engineer added a post in a topic Go Kart to Matco Brakes   


    Chris I think they are 500lbs each. They are the Nanco 21x12's. $100 shipped from ATVtires.net
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  7. marshawk added a post in a topic Avid Fat Bastard   

    Thanks for the info Doug, I will probably stay with the Sube since it only has 200 hrs and its my cheapest option, I may have a line on a used 912 Rotax but I'm not holding my breath on that one. Is there a big difference in the Sube cowl and the Rotax. I'll maybe check into the Kitfox cowl, I think I'm headed to the Arlington airshow this year so maybe see a kitfox 5 or 6 there. Is the Avid plus cowl similar to a Avid flyer heavy hauler C cowl in looks?
    Got a chance to unfold the wings today for the first time dreading the worst but it looks like for some reason the carry threw tubes are pretty close to lining up.The holes don't quite line up but I'm hoping I can rivet coller on there and re-drill them? I'll have to have a closer look when one of my buddy's drop by.
    Got a few pics but haven't figure out how to downsize them yet.

    Later guys



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  8. saskavid added a post in a topic Go Kart to Matco Brakes   

    Here is an informational pic I'll add to this thread, showing the 2 piece brake pedal and mc-4d brake ram being pressure tested on a test stand. Basically just a rudder bar bolted to a piece of osb. the guage in the pic reads to 600 psi and the guage needle is more or less pinned, using only single hand/thumb pressure.According to their website Matco brakes achieve rated torque at 450 psi with 600 psi being more or less an upper limit due to caliper and guide pin deflection and flexing at pressures above that value.
    So in short the brakes on Joey's plane work because the 2 piece brake pedals and mc-4d brake rams deliver gobs of pressure to the calipers on demand whenever/where ever the pilot needs it.
    Mike
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  9. dholly added a post in a topic Avid Fat Bastard   

    Hey there Bubba, no touching the beard!
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  10. dholly added a post in a topic Avid Fat Bastard   

    Welcome Willis

    Happy to see you decided to take on the Fat Avid project! I'm looking forward to some plane pics and following along on your progress. I think your cowl will be dictated first and foremost by whether you use the Sube, then by your choice of enclosed or belly radiator. As for the easiest to fit, the Airdale cowl will require the least work with the Sube, but I'm not a fan of the round intake look personally. There is also a Sube cowl option for the Kitfox 5 and 6 that is the proper width, and has a very close windshield curve and rake to what you'll need. However, I dunno how the thrust line would work based on the differences between the KF and Avid Sube engine mounts. My paper napkin calculations show that a KF 5 or 6 smooth cowl for 912 will work very nicely with the Avid 912 ring mount and thrust line on the Avid Plus fuse, and that the molded belly air scoop will not interfere with my float gear, so that is where I'm headed
    Git 'r done!
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  11. akflyer added a post in a topic Pics from the last flight   



    Nice pics! I love pics of the old stuff. If only those old walls could talk and tell of all they have seen..


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  12. 4aplat added a topic in Avid fox flyers pics and vids   

    Pics from the last flight







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  13. SuberAvid added a post in a topic Avid Fat Bastard   

    Hi Willis,

    If you have to bend your carry through tubes: I built a jig off of my Avid fusalage by taking long 3/8 bolts , dropping them into the pin bolt sleeves in the carrythrough tubes with a stack of washers on them to raise the heads until I could lay a piece of 1" square tube across the heads and weld them to it. You shoud be able to do something similar with the wings if you don't have the original fusalage. I then took a piece of pipe that would fit over the front carrythrough and slotted it to fit the bolt sleves. By just heating it to red and using the pipe to bend it I was able to tweak it until the jig would slide down into the pin sleves and my wings fit without tearing them apart and reworking them.

    I am like you, I nail a perfect landing about 25% of the time; the rest of the time I need bungees. I blame it on the wind .

    If I remember right I added 5.5" to the inner and outter control column tubes to get the sticks centered in front of he seats. Both Jack an I had to move the tabs for the passenger end nut plates. I welded mine in but Jack built a saddle for the tube and epoxied it in. The rudder pedal tubes are OK as is since they can be spaced any width you need.

    Jack mounted a belly radiator on his so he didn't have to go through as much rework on the cowl as I did. The Airdale cowl from Brett is probably the cheapest way to go but you will have to do some cutting and fitting. I will try to get a price estimate for the carbon fiber cowl but I am kind of afraid to ask at the same time.

    Looking forward to your pictures!
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  14. SuberAvid added a post in a topic Another fun filled flight   

    Well it was an awsome day of flying and a great spot but no kings. I caught on rainbow about 14" but can't keep them until after June 15 or so. Still, it was beautiful, about 78 degrees, white sand bar about 560', awsome! The water was low there but very clear coming out of the stream running into the McCarthy. My buddy says when the kings are in there they are just rolling. I know I will be back. We flew up to the glacier and then he headed for home. I had to play some more so I flew along the glaciers to Beluga lake and landed on a nice sandy area in the west end. The wind down glacier was blowing about 15 so I was off in about 100' and climbing like an elevator. Did a little more exploring; flew across to Skwentna and buzzed Dan and Julie's then to Shirley lake and had dinner with some friends. An even 5 hours on the clock when I got home. I need to figure out how to download the pictures since my son is in OR and this computer won't do it. I should have kind of a neat one flying in some rain with the sun behind me there has a cool vertical rainbow.

    Hope you get the bird flying soon; we could meet up out there for some fishing.
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  15. marshawk added a post in a topic Avid Fat Bastard   

    Hi Randy,thanks for all the info,its greatly appreciated.My Avid has the covering on it but I think I'll be do a little back tracking after reading some of the snags you guys ran into. My wings are off a heavy hauler c so I'll probably have the same problem with lining up the wings. Also the flight control column has not been lengthen so co-pilot needs to cut off left leg to sit in that side. I'll work on lengthing it. The original owner wasn't planning on bungees said the tires had enough cushion in them and he didn't need them. He must be way better at landing than me ,ill be slapping on some extra bungee.I'll try and get some pictures posted here soon if it stops raining and I can figure out how to post them and maybe you guys can pick out any other problems I might run into.
    On the cowl I diffenently need one, my set up is a bit different since the radiator sits under the cabin area but if you think it would fit close let me know what he would charge


    Thanks again
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  16. akflyer added a post in a topic Fox for sale..... or not   



    I am gonna guess this will fit into the or not catagory


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  17. akflyerbob added a topic in KitFox General Forum   

    Fox for sale..... or not
    http://anchorage.craigslist.org/for/2401217804.html
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  18. akflyer added a post in a topic Another fun filled flight   



    Small world.... My buddy Van Wilson sent me an email a few days ago saying that he picked up that quickie two. Sounds like a good time up there! Cops??? must been a good party going on for them to show up Envious on the kings it is killing me not having the bird in the air right now!!


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  19. ybfcsqs added a post in a topic Matco 8" wide dual fork TW installed   


    Joey, that was some of the most spectaclar big sky scenery I have ever witness. I as tried to get my motorcycle ridding buddy to make a run up there but on several different occasions he talked me into sailing out into the Bahamas. Had many wild adventures and 'boo coo' fun. We acted as our own crew (bare boat), he was the captain (licensed) and I was the mechanic and 1st mate. Really got into some hairy incidents with the Bahamian customs, police, and good old mother nature. Made a night crossing (usually due to the Gulf Stream) which gave us good landfall somewhere around mid two late afternon with about seven to eight of us aboard. We had a roster so who did the cooking and the dishwashing and guess who's last name started with an "A"? Yours truly which ment that I had to sail and keep a 60000 lb Morgan twin masted sloop ('stay on those whiches, trim the Genoa, look to the 'missin mast', whatch the wind, trim the sail tufts - loooved to sail, scuba dive [have two open water certifications] and very often get carried away when airplanes and boats come up.

    Where were we - oh yeah, when I get my shop back in order I'm comming out to see some of you guys so don,t be mean when I began solicitiing invitations.Don't care what uou drive, where you live, what you eat or how many kids you have. Used to take trips on my Kawasaki, had duffle bags and a rear seat back , raided the convience stores and had a blast. Me and some of my EAA chapter buddies (I was co-chair sometimes and seeing you film Joey made me what tho get stocked up- my AVID MK VI loaded with some jeans and emergency gear and head to some fly-ins and mountain scenery with a light weight tent and pop some pork&beans. I've watched your video and some day, good buddy, you going to teach me some editing Not 'Gone With the Wind' but just a few little tricks. I love to show people the abolute wonders of flyin [some people call it flyinG(had it since about four years, stared at the rudder pedals and looved it) - nailing pieces of wood together banging on them with pieces of rock [had to bang on the rusty nails to rtraightened them with rocks (no hammer). For quite a while just couldn't figure out why my airplnes (didn,t wouldn't, sail through the air like birds and to glide in the air like the noisy things over which I was always suffering neck injuries try to keep in sight long after they hsd srunk to the size of less that a dot.
    Be well Joey, you seem lie nice gus and my best to you relatives ... Jim

    BTW am i getting priced out of the market? Seems that I noticed diferent wings an planformes of the supper looking KITFXOXES' and AVIDS? My GOd watch over you and yours ... Jim
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  20. SuberAvid added a post in a topic Another fun filled flight   

    Jack and I flew up to Rustic Wilderness strip and "crashed"...er, probably not the best wording... "invited" ourselves to the short wing Piper club burger feed they were throwing. One of he guys in the Anchorage EAA invited everyone to it since he was a member and then he didn't show . They were gracious enough to feed us anyway, a good bunch of folks. Got to look over a Quickie Two that had been completed and never flown; was a yard ornament for the last 10 years or more. Evidently when the guy was just ready to fly it about 6 people got killed in them in the same year. He parked it and that was the end of the story. You never know what you are going to find at these fly-ins. The Avids always seem to attract attention though. Meanwhile Jack and I got airborn again just as the cops arrived.

    I think I might try to get out to the McCarther River tomorrow and see if the kings are starting to run. It looks like it might be another good day.




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  21. SuberAvid added a post in a topic Avid Fat Bastard   

    Hi Willis,

    Welcome aboard! It is great to have another Fat Bastard Avid in the group! Hopefully we can be of some help to you in the building process. I know that Jack and Doug have been a great help to me on my specific Avid + questions and Leni and the rest of the guys are a super resource and kick in the pants.

    1. On the bungies; I used the same bungees and wraps as the Avid MK IV and it was way two week so I added a second bunge to each side with half the length and half thewraps. That boosted the stiffness to what it needed (another reason they are called Fat Avids). You could do this with one bungee at 1 1/2 times the length but I already had the first ones installed.

    2. I got my cowling from Airdale and did some extensive modification to it. I had to cut out the bottom of the cowl at the bottom corners of the firewall to get it to fit, then fill it back in. I then cut it around the firewall and boot cowled it and fiberglassed the halves together behind the firewall. Finally since I installed dual nose radiators I chopped big hoes in the front of the cowl and totally reshaped the front openings. There is a composoits shop up here that will make me a carbon fiber cowling off of my cowl; I don't know the cost yet but I am sure it would greatly reduce the per copy cost for every additional copy (any body interested?). I think it would easily shave half the weight of the cowl because with all that fiberglass work it added a lot more weight to the cowl than I would have liked.

    3. For my firewall I used stainless sheet I got from an HVAC shop and was actually able to find some scrap that was large enough. I don't remember the exact gage but think it was around .024. Use the same thickness you would use if galvanized steel. I made a pattern out of cardboard slightly smaller than tt neede to be, stuffed bolts through it at the engine mount points, then attached the cowling. I then cut pieces of heavy paper to fit the exact curve of the cowling and taped them in place around the perimeter of the firewall for a pattern. Then bent .024 aluminum into an angle; 3 pieces about 1.5 x 1.5 by 30", enough so 3 pieces fit around the firewall with the angle legs facing forward and down. Use a crimping tool to shape it around the curve on the forward leg and cut wedges out of the down leg and fit it up to the cowl. Use clecos to hold it in place in a few places until you have it all fit. Then rivet it in place. The 1.5" forward leg gives you room for the screw nut plates to attach the boot portion of he cowl and the camloc recivers for he front cowl.

    4. A couple of things Jack and I discoverd since we were fitting existing Avid wings, the front carry through tube was not spaced correctly and we had to heat and bend the pin ends of the tube forward slightly to fit the spar spacing of the Avid wing. I attached a couple of photos. I welded in a couple of gussets to add strength back just in case. If you are building new wings you can just build the wings to fit the fusalage.

    5. Another thing we discovered is the push/pull cables for the flaperons have to cross and go to the oposite side flaperon to function correctly. The flaperon horns have to be extended about 1" longer to fit inside the fusalage (I built new ones).

    6. The flap travel is extremely short as originally designed and I just finished modifying mine to work well. I built a new shorter link to get more travel and fabricated a push botton flap detent per Doug's design that works great now.

    This is probably a bunch of jiberish until you get into the build then it will make sense. How much has been completed on yours so far?


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  22. marshawk added a post in a topic Avid Fat Bastard   

    Heres a few questions

    1.Are the shock cord length for the Avid + about the same length as Avid C ,the old was was close to 9' so I'm guessing the new on roughly 8'? I read somewere 7-8 wraps is this correct ?

    2.Next I need a cowling,the old ones is pretty butchard,I tryed phoning and emailing Brett at Airdale a few days ago but got no answer yet, I heard he is a one man show and very busy so I'm sure he'll get back to me when he can. I like the cowling Randy has just wondering if thats were he got it?

    3. I also need to build or buy a fire wall,probably can build one if anyone has a template for the Avid + Subaru I could buy off them. Thats about it for now .

    Thanks, Frozen nose bastard
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  23. C5Engineer added a topic in Avidfoxflyers General Hangar   

    New roadable aircraft
    Got this via the new EAA newsletter. Look familiar? It's a Magnum!

    http://www.eaa.org/ehotline/issues/110527.html
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  24. C5Engineer added a post in a topic Matco 8" wide dual fork TW installed   


    Chris it's a 4ply 9x3.5 Carlisle tire. They sell it as an 8" though. It's mounted on one of their 4" front wheels. The only thing I see that may be an issue is the valve stem is near impossible to get to.

    Jim glad you liked the videos. Were leaving June 21st to make that Idaho Backcountry trip again I can't wait!!
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  25. ybfcsqs added a post in a topic Matco 8" wide dual fork TW installed   

    Joey, got your videos. Outstanding, am going to watch them again. Saved the web sites, they're great. Thanks loads man ... Jim
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