My STYLUS... certain Avid/KitFox heritage

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Posted

I'd like to introduce my Stylus. As it was written here, you can see some Avid and KitFox heritage on the construction. Some parts are completely redesigned... but some remained the same.

I really don't know, who was behind the construction, but I can recognize basic difference in the size of the cockpit, Stylus is simply bigger regarding place for crew. On the other side, there is nearly no place for baggage, behind the seats is only small area limited by fiber/plastic construction.

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Posted

Cool looking plane!  I can certainly see some similarities! 

:BC:

 

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Posted

Yes, similarities are there, but.... differences as well as I found this week.

My idea was to rebuild my Stylus X3 (X3 means tricycle) to version X2 - means tail-dragger. Some sort of High country Wide gear.

It is common to make two versions of such plane here due to different pilot preferences. Even change of the version from one to another use to be not complicated process (for example EuroFox, or Aerotrek A220/240). Maybe one day of work, calm and thorough, no more.

But after deeper consultancy with the guy working in the AVAMA manufacture I found that there are real differences in material and construction of bottom part of fuselage, where landing gear is fixed. Change of this part will be wasting of money, he said. Pretty expensive and time consumption process, welding and recovering fabric. So I'm locked in tricycle gear solution anyway.

Aircraft is pretty strong and solid (328kg/723 lbs empty weight) and really suitable for bush flying. I already have VG delivered from Australia (not installed yet), plan was also to replace 80 HP engine by 100HP Rotax to improve STOL capability.

I've installed new propeller recently, Mihalides DMP2, ground adjustable 3-blade propeller, 1660mm/65.35" diameter, adjustment 22.5 degree, weight only 4.3kg/9.48 lbs instead of old Kaspar KA-1/3P-PA with weight 7.8kg/17.2 lbs.

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Posted

Jenki, the process of changing from tri-gear to conventional is often more complicated than one might think depending on the original design. I evaluated that option for my A240 as well and concluded that it would be cost prohibited. I -really- like that Kitfox 6-7 are designed and manufactured with that 'convertibility' feature allowing an owner to swap back and forth at will!

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Posted (edited)

Jenki, take a look at the Zipper kit which with new piston and cylinders the 80 HP becomes 105 HP.  I installed mine this spring and now have about 50 hrs on it.  Much cheaper than upgrading to the 912S.

http://zipperbigbore.com/1484-zipper-high-power/

Edited by wypaul
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Posted

Jenki, the process of changing from tri-gear to conventional is often more complicated than one might think depending on the original design. I evaluated that option for my A240 as well and concluded that it would be cost prohibited. I -really- like that Kitfox 6-7 are designed and manufactured with that 'convertibility' feature allowing an owner to swap back and forth at will!

Well, that's the point I'm considering carefully. And also one more point of complication - for example, I'd like to use landing gear as High country Wide gear - I can make agreement with producer, but price for shipment could be really "cost prohibited" as you wrote. And here I have experienced welder here, but no idea of construction.

So still in the process of finding solution - but flying as much as possible :)

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Posted

Jenki, take a look at the Zipper kit which with new piston and cylinders the 80 HP becomes 105 HP.  I installed mine this spring and now have about 50 hrs on it.  Much cheaper than upgrading to the 912S.

http://zipperbigbore.com/1484-zipper-high-power/

Hi, you are probably right, but zipper is available only in  US, so shipment will be probably the same problem as eventually for landing gear ... I've seen this upgrade reports here, all are about satisfied people. 

I'm going to write to Zipper how it could be managed and even if they are ready to ship to Europe. But definitely Zipper Big Bore looks like good solution.

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Posted

Just short update, I've made trip to seashore last week with my Stylus.

First time flying over sea with my little bird. Trip was about 360 NM from Lucenec, Slovakia (LZLU airport) via Hungarian airspace, Ptuj, Slovenia (LJPT airport / just to put 10 liters of gas from  jerrycan to tanks) and Portoroz  (LJPZ airport / due to immigration procedures) to Vrsar, Croatia (LDPV airport) and took 4 hours of flight, 5 hours together with time on stopovers. Take-off early morning, just at break of day time and flying at 2000 to 6000ft altitude (due to mountains and turbulence).

Trip back after 4 days spent at seashore airport of Adriatic sea, with about 30-45 kts headwind for about 120 NM part of trip.

Nice experience.

AeroCampVRSAR_2016.jpg

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Posted (edited)

Nice flight - Maps are OK, but photos add a lot of interest.  Most of us will never see that area except in photos. 

At least you didn't have to worry about ground-loops with that nose wheel.   EDMO

Edited by EDMO

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Posted

Well, I will add some photos ASAP :)

You know, first step was to made flight debriefing and data log processing.

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Posted

Some pictures from airports and last leg from LJPZ to LDPV

portoroz-airport-slovenia.jpg

VrsarAirport.jpg

vrsar.jpg

Portoroz_Vrsar_03082016_1.jpg

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Posted

And some pictures from Vrsar airport ..... and most beautiful member from our group and pilot of Viper SD4 - Vanda finishing refueling in Ptuj

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Posted

Nice pictures.  I have to admit that when I read the caption on top of the pictures in the last group, and looked down and saw the older guy, I thought "must have been a sad looking group if he's the most beautiful of the bunch.  Then I realized there were more pictures and scrolled down through them to the last one.  ;-)  I did have a laugh at myself over it.  JImChuk

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Posted

Nice pictures.  I have to admit that when I read the caption on top of the pictures in the last group, and looked down and saw the older guy, I thought "must have been a sad looking group if he's the most beautiful of the bunch.  Then I realized there were more pictures and scrolled down through them to the last one.  ;-)  I did have a laugh at myself over it.  JImChuk

And, you probably missed the only taildragger in all the photos - right behind her pink cap!  :<)  EDMO

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Posted

What tail dragger?  Were there airplanes in the picture?  I'll have to go back and look :-)  JImChuk

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Posted

Well, only taildragger there, Super Cub, from Aeroclub Ptuj. We have all tricycles now, I'm only owner looking for taildragger - bushplane here.

Btw. Vanda is the owner and pilot of the plane she is refueling. Viper SD4, flying as LSA or standard ICAO  GA as well, registration is up to owner. ;)

11 members of the group are on the picture below, well, majority is older, but definitely not sad looking, believe me.

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Posted

The last picture is only grass RWY we had on the way, Ptuj airport, 1100x100 meters (3600x330 feet)

Paved RWY at Portoroz airport is 1200x30 meters (3900x100 feet)

My home RWY is paved 500x12 meters (1600x40 feet)

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Posted (edited)

Nice photos - Planes and pilots are about the same no matter where they are located - Although we had our doubts about a heavy Experimental being built in Africa - Still don't think it ever got off of the ground!   Thanks for posting.   EDMO

Edited by EDMO

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Posted

Nice pictures for sure.  Must have been a nice flight as well.  I was just kidding about a sad looking group.   Didn't mean sad as in unhappy.   Was just trying to be funny.  Although at first I did see just the first picture.  Keep having fun flying that plane.  And wow! a 3600' X 330' grass run way.  That would be real nice.  JImChuk

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Posted

;) well, old man words :)

regarding grass runways here in Middle Europe, yes, you can find here huge grass runways very often. For example 3000' long runway is very common, usually used by aero-clubs, but we had 6000'as well, just now they are shortened, due to lack of government support. Glider sport was extremely popular here and still it is leading aviation sport, even there is some sort of depression.

Short runways like 1200' and 1500' long are usually former agriculture strips, wide was 39' till 1985 and then 49' as a standard. Many of them, even paved by asphalt, are out of service now, unattended, or covered by solar panels due to private owner decisions. Due to agriculture, we have only small number of airstrips in mountains (I'm not sure, if any) and majority in agricultural part of country. We have some nice lakes and dams but no one aircraft on floats is here. New, private airstrips are very rare here, but step by step we can find some of them. That is the point I'm looking for bush training and bush plane conversion for my plane.

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Posted (edited)

Get rid of the wheelpants and put big tires on it and drive it on the ground with the tail dragging - use the nose wheel for parking!   If it was E-AB you could put a tailwheel on it and keep the nosewheel - not sure about SLA. 

Works for me and ChrisB...    EDMO

Edited by EDMO

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Posted

What a fun trip! Lots of water shown in your photos, it is a shame that there are no float planes in that area. Are there regulations prohibiting use of float planes in those countries?

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Posted

Get rid of the wheelpants and put big tires on it and drive it on the ground with the tail dragging - use the nose wheel for parking!   If it was E-AB you could put a tailwheel on it and keep the nosewheel - not sure about SLA. 

Works for me and ChrisB...    EDMO

That's the point I'm still considering. To rebuild my Stylus to taildragger. To remove nose wheel completely and rebuild main gear as I saw here (High country cabane type gear I think). Or to sell it as is and buy taildragger for my future bush flying. I have neither time nor condition for rebuilding here but plane is very well built. I am flying about 150 hours per year, sometimes 200, but no conditions here for building, constructing, welding etc.Maybe I will find somebody to help me with such mission. And, I need to find some plans how to manufacture new main gear.Hard mission.

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Posted

What a fun trip! Lots of water shown in your photos, it is a shame that there are no float planes in that area. Are there regulations prohibiting use of float planes in those countries?

Seashore of Istria is really nice, but not very suitable for float planes. They have some there, but water is only occasionally suitable for small float planes. Even bigger planes are not very often able to use sea due to waves.They use Grumman Goose,Twin Otter Seaplanes and similar planes there Simply no regulation, just nature ;) seashore is just about cliffs and rocks, no sand. Very nice despite of this.

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Posted

Hi everybody,

please see enclosed video, my return to our airfield.

 

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