Yamma-Fox

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Everything posted by Yamma-Fox

  1. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic YAMAHA RX-1 (140 HP) install in Kitfox 5   

    FIRST FLIGHTS!
    (Just reposting here after the server problem.  I Like to keep this thread updated for those that don't do Facebook and also as a backup for what I post over there.)
    Below is a video of my first flights and some other pics.  But first I'll post a copy of my write up of impressions after 3 days of flying:
    IMPRESSIONS OF THE YAMAHA AFTER 5 HOURS FLYING IT:
    I'll start off by telling you that (being a 100% Yamaha enthusiast) I am gonna set aside that admitted bias and be as entirely impartial as possible here.
    So with that in mind I'll start off with the cons:
    "Re-sellability":  The Yamaha is an unknown to the majority of people and I would assume it might take some time and education for a buyer to be comfortable with buying a plane with an owner built Yamaha (different story entirely for one done from a name reputable builder such as Wild West or Edge Performance).  To that end I have no plans to ever sell this plane.
    Insurance:  If you SPECIFY that you have a Yamaha you will find it very difficult to find a policy, as is true for many other auto conversions and lesser known power plants.  I unfortunately am "self insured".
    Noise level:  It really is NOT louder than any other engines in it's class, but it has a different tone that seems to travel farther.  My two inline mufflers bring it down much more and I'd call it quieter than the average plane with a gearbox.
    RPMs:  You gotta do your research on how well these motors do in snowmobiles and sportbikes, or have owned one, and also have to fly it for a couple hours to get used to it in a plane.  At first it admittedly is strange.  Once you get used to that you will find it (as anyone who has owned one will attest) to be an unbelievably smooth and sweet running engine that just loves to hum along at 7.5-8.5k cruise and loves even more to scream a little when you call for it!  Simply put:  It was built to do it and it has proven to do it well.
    Now the Pros: (In no particular order)
    Cold start: (in my case with a centrifugal clutch) Two days here my start was at about +5F after sitting out on the ice with no preheat or cowl blanket.  Fired right up and purred along.  Again, It is a snowmo engine and was built for that.
    Extra power:  I am flying a plane built around the 80 HP 912 and on floats it would fly well with a 100 HP engine.  Flying the RX-1 I have chosen to fly prop pitch derated to about 120 HP static and I'll typically take off with that, level off quickly and pull flaps and throttle back to approx 100 HP (SWAG) and climb out at about 800fpm (@1150lbs and 20F).  When I "punch it" in the climb I am getting more like 130 HP due to ram rise RPM and solo in  the cold weather at Vy it climbs steeper than I need.  It is just SO nice to be able to pull power and climb VERY well at approx 70% of what the motor is desinged to do!
    Cost per HP:  I'm at a little under $9k for everything (less my time) and including a new prop and have capability of 140+ HP with a simple prop pitch change.
    Run Quality:  Absolutely the smoothest running and most throttle responsive recip I've flown.  Even down at idle when you tap the throttle it is right there..  push it all the way and it'll snap you back in your seat.  40 to 90 mph happens quick!
    Not a drip of anything:  Besides the initial start "burp off" of my coolant overfill this thing has not dripped one drop of anything.  That is obviously great on many levels but to me mostly in that if I ever see even one drip I know that I need to for sure track it down and figure it out.
    Ok that is off the top of my head here now and I'm forgetting some things but overall I think you can see that I have most definitely NOT been disappointed!!
     


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  2. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic site migration issues   

    That reminds me to pitch in a few $$ again so that some of that money you are pissing away can be off your shoulders.
    Sometimes shit doesn't go right..  it happens.
    Thanks for all that you do man.
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  3. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic BIG NEWS AGAIN - Avid TurboProp   

    I really am amazed and thankful for all the developers out there that invest the time and money that they do in bringing new technology to the EAB world.  It's just awesome that they do that!!
    This thing is really cool and might just be ahead of it's time (as also have been other turbine attempts).  But for now I guess I still look at this as a prototype design that has some proving out to do.
    Down the road I would guess it might work out well especially for the 180-300+  HP power applications.  But it doesn't seem like a good fit at the low 100 HP point when trying to compete with all the options we currently have unless the ticket price were to really come down.
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  4. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic 582 clutch or not?   

    I know you are looking for how it does on a 582 and there are some experts here on that.  But FWIW Ive got two friends with 140 HP Yamahas running the clutch and the 79" prop.  Both have over 500 hours on them and the clutches have been doing fine for them.   Apples and oranges for sure but I only bring it up because I think that says something about capacity and longevity.
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  5. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic Book Recommendations?   

    Just finished Don Sheldon's story.  Great book for sure!  Don flew out of Talkeetna AK on the 1950s-70s and was the first to routinely land on the slopes of Denali, usually bringing in climbers and doing some rescues landing up on the mountain above 14,000 ft.
     

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  6. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic 582 clutch or not?   

    Oh and also I found it interesting to hear when I talked to Steve Henry about the windmilling prop. He said he couldn't tell much of a difference in his glide ratio between a windmilling prop or a "stopped " prop. 
    If it were anyone but the "Dead stick take off" guy telling me that I would have expressed a doubt about that opinion but I figured he was pretty well qualified to it.
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  7. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic 582 clutch or not?   

    Love it on my 140hp yamaha.  Only a few hours on it but its all been under rigorous testing with the new motor setup.
     Engages smooth, runs cool and doesnt slip even under that power and a 79" 3 blade prop.  I can do a 10 min ground run through several engagements and up to full throttle then shut it down and hold my finger on the clutch drum.
    I do like the material and constrution better on my TMR400 version better.  Same clutch but different manufacturer.  Contact Tony at Twisted Metal Racing in canada for that one if you choose.
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  8. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic Crooked horizontal stabilizer   

    Jim I snuck in your hangar, folded the wings on the plane in front and used a cloning machine to increase your fleet there...
     
    Now it looks like the storage deck on an aircraft carrier 

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  9. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic New Member from Alaska   

    Wait a second..  wouldn't that leave our founding father (of AFF) without an Avid/Fox?!
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  10. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic When your landing goes wrong.   

    X2 on everthing that ^^ guy said.  Plane looks bad on it's back but hopefully it isn't hurt too bad and hopefully it won't even meet the definition of "substantial damage".
    And Flightguy, was this mostly that you touched down a smidge early in the unplowed portion, or am I misreading the way you described it?
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  11. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic In line fuel filter   

    And I'm putting the one filter after the fuel pump(s) as opposed to before it.  Let the finger strainers and header-gascolator take care of the pump filtering.
    Just seems better to push pressure through a filter rather than suck through it.  Especially if it were to partially clog.
    I'm also tapping the fuel pressure guage after the filter to be able to see (from the drivers seat) if it ever is getting clogged.
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  12. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic When your landing goes wrong.   

    Thanks for posting so we can all learn from each other.  And dang..  sorry it happened and had to go as far as the faa & ntsb.
     
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  13. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic About to buy this MK4... your advice please!   

    The forum always get quieter in the off season.
    I say pass on that one.
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  14. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic About to buy this MK4... your advice please!   

    Were you planning the rx1 in this?
    If so here is a member that was doing that on his MK4.  Might give some insight on that undertaking:

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  15. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic YAMAHA RX-1 (140 HP) install in Kitfox 5   

    QUIETING THE BEAST:
    Probably the biggest downside IMO with going Yamaha is that they are known to be loud.  Probably has to do with the 8500 rpm thing but typically they are known as "screamers".  I really wanted to fix that.
    The exhaust I "temped up" is quieted by use of 2 mufflers inline - a steel 17" glasspack and my 2011-14 Suzuki gsxr 1000 muffler.  Also helping quiet it down is the extra length of exhaust pipe, and having the outlet of the rear muffler well behind the seats /doors.
    The upside:  it is far quieter even than the snowmobile (which is quiet).  So quiet that in full power runup I couldn't even detect ANY exhaust outlet noise over the prop /gearbox / engine noise up front.  Not even when standing outside and behind the plane.  The difference is now like a stock Goldwing compared to before where it had a bit of that "sport bike with an aftermarket can" thing going on.
    Downside is added weight along with the aerodynamic and "asthetic" loss of an exterior routed system.  That's acceptable for me in my quest for quiet and I couldn't get the gsxr muff under the cowl anyway.
    Here's a video and it seems loud here but that probably is because there is nothing to compare the sound with.  I will post another someday taking off and doing a fly by with another plane to compare better with.
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  16. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic YAMAHA RX-1 (140 HP) install in Kitfox 5   

    Here's a pic of my temporary  (UGLY!) test setup.  The green circle is my glasspack and the blue is the gsxr muffler.  I think the quiet I accomplished is in that the first muffler knocks down the sound and the second takes the rest out... down to what I'd call "Toyota quiet".   Really all that is left now is prop-engine-gearbox noise and that in itself ain't "quiet" but at least I got rid of the exhaust noise!
    Next is to clean it up in a permanent routing.

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  17. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic WY kitfox Yamaha build   

    Get that thing flying soon bud! 
    That'll be a milestone - being the first "Half Apex" out there pulling an Avid / Fox! 
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  18. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic The value of streamlining   

    Funny Turbo but they still do that cooler thingy on the newest jet engines.
    Here's from my walkaround today on a 2018 model CFM56.
    If that brick is good enough for 800+ mph flow inside a jet engine then I'm feeling better about my Kitfox belly radiator LOL
     

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  19. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic Looking for some advice on a plane purchase   

    Yeah I learned the value of reciting "go around... go around EARLY" at short final on each landing after day 1 flying my KF2 where I found myself in the grass off the runway with some big sliding skid marks!
    I coulda avoided that embarrassment had I powered up upon the first sign of squirrellyness.
    Nevr looped anything since then but would have a few times if I wasn't trigger ready to add power and try it again.
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  20. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic Howdee from AR   

    I'll let ya know soon.  The kit is complete down to every rivet and rib, so with some hysol and ballons the structure assembly looks easy. 
    The kit they sell is "quick change" extensions whic can be removed or installed in a few minutes.
    I plan oratex covering in white and then will paint it and a few other items (new unpainted cowl and ventral fin) at a later date.
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  21. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic Howdee from AR   

    Looks like a great  plane you got there!  I say keep it and do some upgrades that you want.  Anything you add should add equal or greater to it's value and "sellability".
    Look into the kitfox wing extension kit.  I bought one and am installing it on my short wing KF5.  The consensus is that the long wing doesn't slow it down much (if any) but helps the slow side very noticeably.
     
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  22. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic In line fuel filter   

    Anyone have objections to a filter like the one in my last post?  Seems like a good compromise with plastic instead of glass case and also not bieng paper mesh.  It looks like it would take a ton of "crap" to block it up..  especially with a 4psi fuel pump pushing through it.
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  23. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic In line fuel filter   

    Ive asked this question here in the group before and through their advice have found myself in the camp of less filters.  Especially ones in the gravity feed side where it takes just the littlest blockage to stop the "trickle down".
    I believe the finger strainers and the  header tank (as a) gascolator will do fine in that secton and am planning a simple plastic cased plastic mesh filter after the fuel pump and before the fuel pressure guage and carbs:
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00K24I1Y6/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=AQFP6DEPUVK7X&psc=1
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  24. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic Looking for some advice on a plane purchase   

    FWIW if I were a new pilot looking for his first plane, I'd go buy something like this:
    https://www.barnstormers.com/ad_detail.php?id=1507175
    Easy to find an instructor and insurance,  Nice docile tailwheel plane,  some STOL capabilities.  Keep it for 5 years and probably sell it for eveything you got in it.
    Then buy that Avid /Fox and build it to exactly fit your needs.
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  25. Yamma-Fox added a post in a topic WY kitfox Yamaha build   

    Edge working with ya on the Phazer??   Secret "skunk works" project?
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