Karmy Flying Adventures

It’s time to find out the damage. Have I made it lighter, or heavier? All those good ideas add up and the day of recogining comes when you roll onto the scales. No matter “WHY” you added those items, they will all show up in the final weight. Now keep in mind that I got this plane as a tri-gear, with wheel pants, dual alternators, dual batteries, etc etc etc…

The grand total = 837lbs! I was really hoping for closer to 800, but hey wach-u-gonna-do? The original W&B I have from the builder lists 833. That was without wheel pants as a tri-gear. Makes me wonder if the scales were calibrated. Oh well, at least it didn’t gain too much!

Well, Since it’s one of the key “features” of the Kitfox, I figured I best try and fold the wings and make sure everything was rigged properly. Also, I had to replace some fuel lines so I needed access to the end of the fuel tanks. Final results, yep, they fold. It’s amazing how easy it is to do it.

So one of the recent additions by Rotax is the recommendation to have a return fuel line from the engine to the tank to ensure cool fresh fuel gets to the carbs. There are a couple of ways that you can plumb that line, but they all share a common requirement. You must put a restrictor somewhere in the line to ensure there is more fuel pressure going to the carbs than going down the return line. This takes the form of a “Pilot Jet” that is installed in either the Banjo bolt, or in the actual fuel T. In my case I was removing the 2 port fitting to go to the 1 port fitting. All I had to do was remove the pilot jet from the 2 port fitting and install it into the banjo bolt. Look at the attached pictures for details of how the jet fits into the system.

Then the actual return line is simply a section of 1/4″ fuel line that runs back to the top of the header tank behind the seat. This gives a slow trickle of fuel back to the tank when the engine is running.

Here’s the latest update from this weekend. I now have the panel installed and all of the main power & electrical system wiring done. Still to go is headset wiring, engine monitor wiring, complete fuel system rebuild. Good times!

Here’s the main power distribution center. Fuse panel, crowbar overvoltage module and relay for alternator feed, filter cap, etc.

Here’s the back of the main panel location, with the switch panel & wiring routing. I used some adel clamps attached to the bottom edge of the panel to create a nice wire chase path. Keep them from being zip tied to the tube structure under the panel.

Here’s a neat idea for your GPS antenna farm. Since the glareshield is fiberglass, they work just great mounted just underneath the dash cover. Keeps them out of the way and securely mounted.

I used a Brother label maker to create the panel labels. The key to making them look nice is to use the black border function. When cut out carefully they blend in great on the light colored panel.