Mike S

Hi Martin!Great news that you are fixing the KR2! Yes, even small jobs can take a lot of time, especially when you have to wait for bits like canopies. I was fortunate that the damage to my plane was minor, it could have been a LOT worse. Yes, I did walk away with no more than a few scratches! Flew again (another plane), less than an hour later.....

 

Here is a full account of what happened with photos:

 

http://rudix.zxq.net/ZS-VYZ/Stories/oops.htm

 

Hope your KR will be flying again soon!

 

Cheers,

 

Rudi

Hi Guys,

Just read this - glad you are both OK.

I fly a Sonerai and there is a story on the Sonerai Owners site of a canopy opening in flight - same unstable inablity to fly - with the canopy open to one side - the only way that one landed was to grab the canopy and try to close it - similar story to Rudy - I'd suggest that neither aircraft will fly without a canopy at all! That's the conclusion the other Sonerai owner came to - but I've never seen any research data to back that opinion up.

Hope the repairs go OK and you both get up - certainly emphasises the need to check that the canopy latches actaully keep the canopy closed!!!!

Regards,

Mike S

Hi Mike, currently back in Tas for easter ,but will be back in Young from 14th....and would like to catch up with you if we can organize...0400065825 cheers craig

Mike.

Hi Mike S, You certainly have a fine stable of motorbikes .Yeah the build is coming along nicely, fuselage all but finished welding, few minor tabs here and there and could think about painting soon. Will send order for all wing material next week or two($US is really favourable ) Things are on hold for moment as I am working in Young for the next few months .Would like to take the oppurtunity to come and take a good look over your machine some time if we could work something out .

cheers craig

Hi Craig,

Sorry - I have only just found this reply although I have been on the site a few times since Feb. Are you still in Young? I am in Orange - a short flight away or drive - I could fly there & give you a look at the plane or you are most welcome to come visit - that is if you are still in Young! I think you probably replied when I was having trouble with my computer so the thread reply has gone missing!!

Mike S

Thank you to all who have welcomed me to this site...

Just found these posts - I have recently purchased a Sonerai 2L with a jab 2200 motor in it. Sue's comments are valid - I called mine an evil plane - but am mastering it and really starting to like it! They are slippery and sensitive - I came from a Jab 160 & 230 - thought they were sensitive but they have nothing on the Sonerai! Hows the build going? Are you finished yet? I ride bikes to - Ducati 916 & a Suzuki GSX 1100 and an Italjet scooter!

Could come & visit sometime! Mike S.

Hi Paul,I think I must be on an other planet! The number I looked at was the serial number!!!

Yes, I think its probably the same one - I'll be in touch!

 

Mike.

Sorry I have not been in touch earlier - the CA 25 sale I was looking at fell through - the owner rang me the day before I was going to do a final inspection and make him an offer and said he'd decided to repair it himself! Thanks for the help offerred. I've given up on a Skyfox and bought a Sonerai from a guy in Western Australia and it is now back home in Orange. I'm thinking of buying a Kitfox kit from America and building one from scratch as they are virtually the same aircraft as the Skyfox and have a good rugged reputation! Thanks for the advice and time spent & sorry to have taken so long in getting back to you, regards, Mike.

G'day Mike:Either my brain (?) has gone to sleep or I'm not familiar with the "TG" in CA25TG. I presume that's a taildragger CA25 -yes? If all the aileron hangars snapped and the wing struts ruptured, it would seem that the left wing took a pretty severe impact. Did the fabric tear above the fuel tank in the bay nearest the fuselage - that would indicate a fair amount of shear on the wing which may have bent the spars - or at least the front spar. Also, take a look at the wing attachment points.

On the other hand, I have a friend with a Fox that hit power lines on final approach and nose-dived into the ground. He and his wings were undamaged, although the fuselage needed some repair. It flies beautifully today.

 

Carl

Hi Carl, been a while since we corresponded - I chased that CA25 up and was booked to go and have a final inspection when the day before the owner rang and said that he was going to keep the plane and repair it himself. Gave up at that time and have since bought a Sonerai Stretch from a bloke in W.A . Its now at home in Orange. Thanks for the information and support & sorry for taking so long to get back to you and let you know what was happening. I think I'll look at getting a Kitfox kit from America and build one from scratch! Thanks again. Mike.

Hi Paul,Answer to which 'fox' -its not the one you've mentioned.

Thanks for the advice re the work standard - I would certainly seek 'professional ' advice in regard to any repairs I carried out - my son-in-law is a LAME and I'd talked to him about refabricating the struts to cert standards and signing off on them - he has pretty high standards so I have no concerns about that and has tickets for fuselage repairs! In regard to wing repairs - yes, I agree - I build wooden boats and use handtools in wood construction and also repair & rebuild cars & motorbikes but I'd probably get someone else to actually do the work for the exact reasons you have outlined and to ensure the aircraft retained its certification status!

 

The fuselage damage that has caused the cockpit tube to bend is probably also repairable - but again I'd get someone else to do that after I'd prepared the areas - I'd also like to know exactly what caused it if it wasn't the impact from the flip - which I'm starting to think is as has been suggested and is deformation from somewhere else - possibly the front mounting point for the wing - from memory the mounting pin was not deformed though & I'd have thought it would have been - will have to have a closer look at it next time I see it - I guess at this point in time I'm just trying to work out the extent of the repairs needed before committing myself to a purchase I may well regret a little down the track - been there done that before - so I'm a bit 'once bitten' !

 

Thanks for the contact number and I will definitely look you up once I have another look at it ! Unfortunately that was to happen this weekend but life intervened and I couldn't get to it. The problem for me is that its 300klms from wheer I live - be in touch again but not for a few weeks!

 

Thanks, Mike.

:thumb_up:Good stuff Mike. Just so happens that I have email pictures of a 'dragger that appears to have almost identical damage including the bent diagonal tube, bent towards the pilot roughly 20 mil or so. A friend of mine "may" be able to answ What a dope!

 

your question on why the bend happened; he built all the fuses. When you're ready, give me a call as I know someone who can probably supply strut material etc. for your repairs,(he is also approved to build new struts as well if need be), and "possibly" a spar if you require one. Also new hanger material. I would suggest you get an idea of all the costs and time involved in the repairs neccessary and take that off the average price for such a Fox in cosideration of the time left on the engine etc. etc.cheers paul

I think I must be on an other planet! The number I looked at was the serial number!!!

Yes, I think its probably the same one - I'll be in touch!

Mike.

G'day Mike:Either my brain (?) has gone to sleep or I'm not familiar with the "TG" in CA25TG. I presume that's a taildragger CA25 -yes? If all the aileron hangars snapped and the wing struts ruptured, it would seem that the left wing took a pretty severe impact. Did the fabric tear above the fuel tank in the bay nearest the fuselage - that would indicate a fair amount of shear on the wing which may have bent the spars - or at least the front spar. Also, take a look at the wing attachment points.

On the other hand, I have a friend with a Fox that hit power lines on final approach and nose-dived into the ground. He and his wings were undamaged, although the fuselage needed some repair. It flies beautifully today.

 

Carl

There's no tears near the tank - the only one is in the underside near the spar attachment point where I think the spar bent & went through the fabric. - apart from the spars & the broken hangers the tear is the only other sign of damage on the wing. I will check the wing attachment points.

There is one other issue for me and that is that one of the frame tubes - the one from the upper corner of the left windscreen/ front wing attachment point and runs diagoally down to the centre of the screen is bent slightly in toward the pilot.

There is no apparent damage to the windscreen - no impact point that I can see and when I pointed it out to the owner he commented that he'd never seen it before and was trying to work out how it got bent like it did. Its about 20mm off straight in the middle of the run. I thought maybee the upper front wing attachment point had moved but I'd have thought there'd be some cracked paint or something to indciate stress but I can't see any - I'm yet to check the bottom attachment point at the base of the screen. Any ideas?

Thanks,

Mike.

If I can be of any assistance to anyone with respect to skyfox wings, repairs, rebuilding etc. feel free to ask me any questions. I built pretty much all of the Gazelle wings, updated and re-wrote the specs. for them, and know them inside out. Also have access to the covering process and the fellow who did the covering in the factory. Repairing 'fox wings including hangar brackets, trailing edge sections, epoxy joints, drag braces etc. isn't rocket science however if you're going to do it yourself and you're not an L2, you need the correct info. and the correct proceedures on how to go about it. I've read some pretty disturbing comments written by people fixing their wings obviously not really knowing what they're doing. I am happy to help anyone who is prepared to listen and do it properly. cheers.

Thanks ,

Mike.

Hi Andrew,

Haven't heard from you re the Skyfox T.G. at Bindoon, did you get back & I missed it?

Mike S.

Hi Mike,

The boys at Coldstream in Victoria have the Aircraft & engine manual on a CD. They will send it to you if you contact them - look at the thread under this forum for repairs to Skyfox or similar - if you can't find it get back via this sight and I'll look it up for you!

Mike S.

Hi Mike,

yep, you need to have it all sorted - I've been doing lessons in a Eurofox TG. Remember to keep at least a full wingspan away from other aircraft & buildings - friend of mine ground looped his Lightwing while taxing and hit another aircrafts wing on the way around! I'd been warned about it!

Good luck with it and check the AD's for it - pretty certain Rick had them all done - I think it needed the mod for the landing spar but from memory he had the part - just needed to be installed - and since it was in Western Queensland corrossion shouldn't be a major issue - also, he had it hangared so it should be pretty good - sure looked it in the photos he sent me.

I've got onto one at the moment so we'll see whare that goes and if & when I get one I'll drop you a thread and we can chat - possibly get them together so you can check out the difference between yours and the CA25. My brother lives at Bangalow in Norhtern NSW so I'll be up way as soon as I can once I get one so be in your area - sort of!

Anyway, hope it's all you hope it to be ,

Mike.

Hi Rick & Mike,

Glad to see 606 back in the air Rick - I'm pleased that you were able to sell it and its airbourne again - sorry that I couldn't follow through with the purchase we talked about for so long! Always felt bad about that! Congratulations Mick - from what I learn't from Rick it should be a sweet aircraft!

Mike S

Hi Pilot Cadet, Yep, send me some details and I'll consider! Thanks, Mike.

Hi Andrew,

yes, am interested - Is it a Skyfox and is it factory built as I was hoping to cross hire to my school for tailwheel conversion training.

could you email info. to me?

At both: [email protected] and [email protected]

Thnaks, Mike.

Hi Guys,

The American magazine " Kitplanes " has a flight review of a KR2S in the November 2010 issue - the planes rego is VH DUB and it has an Australian flag on the tail. The article doesn't acknowledge the Aussi ancestry - nor where it was located and flown from. Interesting article - I can scan if anybody's interested and email - just let me know!

Mike S

Hi Andrew,

I thought I'd replied to you earlier but can't find the reply so maybee I didn't?

55-3845 for sale? If so & not sold I'd be interested in talking & photos and information!

Thanks, Mike S

Hi Andrew,

Thanks for the feedback. That's badluck! yes, I realise I will have trouble finding a CA25 taildragger - there were not a lot made [10 I think was the number ] and at least one has been crashed and two went O/S - that doesn't leave many!

just about given up on it so I'm starting to think about an alternative - like a Kitfox, Avid or similar, which leads me away from factory built to homebuids and not cross hire to my school which I and some others had hoped would be possible!

Thanks for the feedback - and to everyone else - thanks also,

Mike.

Hi Andrew,

I've just been checking this series of bloggs and re read yours again. When you say 'your school's' - do you mean you own it & the school or that its the school you fly out of?

I was after the CA25 taildragger not the Gazelle - so were you saying that the Skyfox that I was told was a CA22 for sale was in fact a CA25 ?

Still looking for one,

Mike.

Hi Mike,

Thanks for the information - I have been looking for a TD Skyfox for the best part of this year - only realising recently that I needed the CA25 model - have a lot of info - AD's required etc on them and dowloaded the historical information from the Queensland Air museum that I was given by Dazza 38 yesterday. Know about the hangers - I believe theres' also one about drain holes in the Ailerons to let them loose the water they soak up if wet!

Thanks for the offer of info. etc I will definitely keep it in mind!

Mike S

Hi Dazza, thanks for the update! Gives me a little more hope! I'll continue to look then!

Hi Metalman, the reason for the specifics is as you say i) Increase in MTOW and I want the taildragger - I want to use it personally but also want it to cross hire to my flyng school and the increase in MTOW gives me wider capacity in terms of travel in it etc!

- and I can't afford close to $100G's for a Eurofox or Foxbat or Carbon Cub - which are the next available! Simple really!

Hi Guys - well thanks for all the information! I was aware that the CA25 was a taildragger but not aware that there were only two made - Is that absolutely true?

'Cauae I wanted a TG.

I am aware of the aileron issue - they should have been dealt with under the AD's issued - but - who knows ?

Any more leads on CA25's available?

Hi Pud, yep as far as I know its still for sale.

The one in WA is a Ca22 - unfortunately not what I'm after - thanks for pointing it out though - han't thought of the classifieds - how dum is that!