Love your videos, Okay, some advice, stop putting lead in you beautiful rotax, put your exhaust pipe straight down, ie shorten it up, it's causing a lot of vibration to your exhaust, it will start cracking! Leave it maybe 6" outside your cowling to prevent staining of your paintwork. Safety wire those springs. Put Safety wire through the centre of the springs so that you don't loose them. The Safety wire will also act as a backup to the spring if it breaks. Not to tight to allow for a little expansion. In 35 years I never got bad fuel at the pump, but I am talking about Irish pumps :-). I think you were just unlucky that time.
Very sorry to head about your misfueling problem. Glad to hear you detected it before flight and were able to get the fuel out of the tanks before any damage was done. Adding to Martin's excellent comment above... after you safety-wire the springs, use a narrow applicator to shoot high-temp silicone inside the springs and around the hooks at their ends. This will cut down vibration of the springs, making them last a lot longer. This safety wire and silicone treatment is standard procedure for Rotax exhausts, especially for pusher aircraft (prevents springs through the prop). To see what this looks like, check out the EAA's Homebuilder's Week 2022 webinar titled "Maintenance on Amateur Built Aircraft" and jump ahead to 37 min 44 sec. At the time I'm posting this, that webinar is in the "most recent" list at the bottom of the main webinar page.
Add a good dob of orange heat proof silastic to each exhaust spring, it dampens the vibration and really helps stop them breaking. Just a tip i was shown and works great
Quick tip! If you want to know weather there is ethanol in you non oxygenated gas add one tenth water and stir it and let it sit for 5 mins. If there is ethanol in it it will dissolve into the water and turn it yellow. And the dividing line between gas/water will move. Thanks for the videos I enjoy them
I believe I remember a spring within a spring to dampen vibration as well as the permatex trick. Also it is wise to never fuel or defuel your plane in a hanger, huge fire issue. Also wise to run a ground line to your plane and fuel hose or nozzel while fueling to take care of static electricity.
Sorry to hear about your mishap. Auto fuel is its own quagmire. I've watched the truck pull out of one station and go straight to another, pump fuel from the same tank and then tell you that it's different gas when the prices are different. I've been in the depot and watched multiple trucks fill from the same tank. ALL of the gas here comes from one single pipeline that starts in Louisiana and runs to Nee Hampshire. The difference in gas is in the additives that are put in each truck at the terminal. You can get fuel testers that work like battery testers. Specific gravity testers are used by DOT inspectors and they take samples to test pump calibration. These samples are weighed to verify calibration for TAX purposes and not to protect the consumer. You are on your own there. Look online and purchase a test kit. It is the only way to protect that investment and safeguard your own life. Worthwhile precaution if you are going to continue to use auto gas. Remember, you can't pull over and call a tow truck up there. That and everyone seems to get real upset when you don't land at the airport.
You are right. But, you can also run into issues with avgas. I once fueled my aircraft with out of an airport fuel truck. I always drain a sample to check for moisture. To my surprise, my sample bottle had a lot of sand in the bottom. You just never know. Like you say, always drain a sample.
In Europe, especially in the European Union, the quality is the same at all petrol stations. And this can be said 100%. If you fill up your car in a small village of 150 people near Warsaw, you will get exactly the same quality as in the city of Paris. The supply of petrol in the EU is amazing. However, there is no lower octane rating than 95. This is the minimum amount that can be sold.
again...really good content. many of us are kicking around which kit plane to purchase. youve added a lot of value to kitfox. the one feature you have not spoke about is the folding wings. was this important to you? why? could you give a demonstration of how the wings fold? could you talk for a short while of the pros and cons of folding wings? thx
Ok so buy a gammon api density test kit to tell what type of fuel you are getting talk to Tommy or any of the line guys they have the kit you need to buy an they use it for every load of fuel that comes in to kbow also for octane rating buy an Oktis-2 it’s a quick tester for octane values
It's not about saving money on fuel. It's about maintenance intervals. The Rotax engines don't like lead thus require more maintenance when running lead.
Love your videos, Okay, some advice, stop putting lead in you beautiful rotax, put your exhaust pipe straight down, ie shorten it up, it's causing a lot of vibration to your exhaust, it will start cracking! Leave it maybe 6" outside your cowling to prevent staining of your paintwork. Safety wire those springs. Put Safety wire through the centre of the springs so that you don't loose them. The Safety wire will also act as a backup to the spring if it breaks. Not to tight to allow for a little expansion. In 35 years I never got bad fuel at the pump, but I am talking about Irish pumps :-). I think you were just unlucky that time.
Very sorry to head about your misfueling problem. Glad to hear you detected it before flight and were able to get the fuel out of the tanks before any damage was done.
Adding to Martin's excellent comment above... after you safety-wire the springs, use a narrow applicator to shoot high-temp silicone inside the springs and around the hooks at their ends. This will cut down vibration of the springs, making them last a lot longer. This safety wire and silicone treatment is standard procedure for Rotax exhausts, especially for pusher aircraft (prevents springs through the prop).
To see what this looks like, check out the EAA's Homebuilder's Week 2022 webinar titled "Maintenance on Amateur Built Aircraft" and jump ahead to 37 min 44 sec. At the time I'm posting this, that webinar is in the "most recent" list at the bottom of the main webinar page.
I will definitely do this. The exhaust is a pain. I can't keep it suspended. Thanks
Fill the springs with rtv and the springs last forever.
Add a good dob of orange heat proof silastic to each exhaust spring, it dampens the vibration and really helps stop them breaking. Just a tip i was shown and works great
Try to heat up your urathane tube in hot water 10-15 min before use. It help a lot !
Quick tip! If you want to know weather there is ethanol in you non oxygenated gas add one tenth water and stir it and let it sit for 5 mins. If there is ethanol in it it will dissolve into the water and turn it yellow. And the dividing line between gas/water will move. Thanks for the videos I enjoy them
Hello to you and evrybody. A good way to detect water in fuel is to use potassium permanganate. Nice episode
I believe I remember a spring within a spring to dampen vibration as well as the permatex trick.
Also it is wise to never fuel or defuel your plane in a hanger, huge fire issue.
Also wise to run a ground line to your plane and fuel hose or nozzel while fueling to take care of static electricity.
Sorry to hear about your mishap. Auto fuel is its own quagmire. I've watched the truck pull out of one station and go straight to another, pump fuel from the same tank and then tell you that it's different gas when the prices are different. I've been in the depot and watched multiple trucks fill from the same tank. ALL of the gas here comes from one single pipeline that starts in Louisiana and runs to Nee Hampshire. The difference in gas is in the additives that are put in each truck at the terminal. You can get fuel testers that work like battery testers. Specific gravity testers are used by DOT inspectors and they take samples to test pump calibration. These samples are weighed to verify calibration for TAX purposes and not to protect the consumer. You are on your own there. Look online and purchase a test kit. It is the only way to protect that investment and safeguard your own life. Worthwhile precaution if you are going to continue to use auto gas. Remember, you can't pull over and call a tow truck up there. That and everyone seems to get real upset when you don't land at the airport.
You are right. But, you can also run into issues with avgas. I once fueled my aircraft with out of an airport fuel truck. I always drain a sample to check for moisture. To my surprise, my sample bottle had a lot of sand in the bottom. You just never know. Like you say, always drain a sample.
In Europe, especially in the European Union, the quality is the same at all petrol stations. And this can be said 100%. If you fill up your car in a small village of 150 people near Warsaw, you will get exactly the same quality as in the city of Paris. The supply of petrol in the EU is amazing. However, there is no lower octane rating than 95. This is the minimum amount that can be sold.
Wire your springs for safety and also will prevent loosing them
again...really good content. many of us are kicking around which kit plane to purchase. youve added a lot of value to kitfox. the one feature you have not spoke about is the folding wings. was this important to you? why? could you give a demonstration of how the wings fold? could you talk for a short while of the pros and cons of folding wings? thx
Tacos........ get good gaz and go for tacos!!!! ;-)
Ok so buy a gammon api density test kit to tell what type of fuel you are getting talk to Tommy or any of the line guys they have the kit you need to buy an they use it for every load of fuel that comes in to kbow also for octane rating buy an Oktis-2 it’s a quick tester for octane values
Great stuff not going to say a word about murphy. LOL
Did Murphy USA offer to assist
Is the "Experimental" decal necessary? Everyone seems to have one
Oh my
Could you just not smell the diesel?
No it had a unique smell.
Just run 100LL why risk it on cheaper fuel you spent over 70k building your plane your trying to save a few bux on cheap fuel in it?
It's not about saving money on fuel. It's about maintenance intervals. The Rotax engines don't like lead thus require more maintenance when running lead.
Bla bla bla !! Yu no fly ?
Yu no spell?