Badland Part 103 Pilots and Builders Forum

Hi to the group.
My name is Jim Parker. I'm 81 Yrs young and have been flying for about 17 years. I have a sport pilot license and am currently flying a Challenger II CW out of Cherry Ridge airport (N30), Honesdale, PA. I have flown a Hummel Ultracruiser, a FFP Classic, Backyard Flyer 103 but mostly a Challenger II Longwing which is now in Fla.
I, with a buddy, recently purchased a Kitfox Lite in an estate sale. It needs some fabric work and some other somewhat minor repairs to be flyable. I have no history on the plane as the owner passed and no Logs came with it. Price was too good to pass up. I hope to be able to ask some questions and get answers to put it in the air.
I'm currently working to get the conditional inspection done on the C-II CW and get it in the air. My buddy is flying his Backyard Flyer and working on the Kitfox lite. I'll be contacting the Badlands folks soon to order some parts once we determine exactly what we need. It has a 2Si 460 in it.

Enough for now. I'll be on the forum in other areas as needs arise.

Jim Parker

Jim Parker wrote: ↑Mon Aug 12, 2024 9:20 pm Hi to the group.
My name is Jim Parker. I'm 81 Yrs young and have been flying for about 17 years. I have a sport pilot license and am currently flying a Challenger II CW out of Cherry Ridge airport (N30), Honesdale, PA. I have flown a Hummel Ultracruiser, a FFP Classic, Backyard Flyer 103 but mostly a Challenger II Longwing which is now in Fla.
I, with a buddy, recently purchased a Kitfox Lite in an estate sale. It needs some fabric work and some other somewhat minor repairs to be flyable. I have no history on the plane as the owner passed and no Logs came with it. Price was too good to pass up. I hope to be able to ask some questions and get answers to put it in the air.
I'm currently working to get the conditional inspection done on the C-II CW and get it in the air. My buddy is flying his Backyard Flyer and working on the Kitfox lite. I'll be contacting the Badlands folks soon to order some parts once we determine exactly what we need. It has a 2Si 460 in it.

Enough for now. I'll be on the forum in other areas as needs arise.

Jim Parker

Welcome Jim. Sounds like a good project plane. Since the Badland aircraft are very similar, there should be little trouble in finding help here. We are a bit slow this hot summer, but talk will pick up as soon as things cool a bit. No one wants to work in the heat. I'm wishing my pole barn had front and back ends, so I could insulate and add some cooling air! Right now, I have to be happy to have the pole barn at all and have the north or south (preferably north) window blow through from time to time to help cool me down. I'm also planning a virtual fly in zoom session later this fall. Normally we have this twice a year, however the last couple we had to put on hold. I was in the process of moving from Dallas TX to Florida this last winter, and then buying a house this spring/summer. I will get that session set up, and you're of course welcome to attend. Typically, Chris Deuel, owner of Badland Aircraft is able to attend. He'd have plenty of information for you, since the Badland Aircraft are made from modified jigs he purchased of the Kitfox Lite. Looking forward to chatting with you and welcome to the group.

Todd

Hi Jim, and welcome to the madness, although (as Todd said) it's a rather slow madness at the moment. It seems we all live in very hot climes that don't lend themselves well to plane construction in the summer. For me that's Los Angeles, building my Badland F-2 out of my garage. I can only dream of a pole barn at this point, back walls or not!

As Todd mentioned, you'll probably get all the information you need from the group, as the Kitfox is remarkably similar to the Badland in many ways. But let's get to the important stuff...pictures! We love pictures! Hoping you have some to share!

-Peer

Greetings Jim.
Welcome aboard. I look forward to seeing (hearing about) the progress on your plane. There are a lot great posts/threads on this forum that I you find helpful.
Happy flying.

81 years old and flying silly little airplanes.

I want to be just like Jim!!!!

ha! Don't we all!

Bruce_L wrote: ↑Thu Aug 22, 2024 11:34 am 81 years old and flying silly little airplanes.

Retired and sitting in a chair all day watching nothing on TV or flying silly little airplanes....I'll take the latter any day and twice on Sunday's!

Todd

Hi folks,
I've been busy trying to find info on the Kitfox lite but there is very little to find out. We've been working on and off on the plane but it's a project and will be done when it's done. I have found the diameter of the bungee cord (3/8") and am using the old, somewhat stretched cords to determine the length before wrapping. If anyone does have that info I sure would appreciate it.
Anyway, I have, after almost 2 years, got back into the air in my Challenger II CW. Two flights with 2 landings that were pretty good made me feel good about my skills. Got more to do before I take anyone up, though.
Heading out to the hanger to work on the planes. Too wet and cloudy to fly for a few days.
Going over the Lite with a fine comb to make sure all is good prior to flight. The badlands gear looks good but I want to make sure the plane is flyable before putting any serious money into it. I''ll keep you posted.
Everything I hear about it makes me want to get it in the air. Looking forward to it!

Jim Parker

Jim Parker wrote: ↑Wed Sep 25, 2024 1:35 pm Hi folks,
I've been busy trying to find info on the Kitfox lite but there is very little to find out. We've been working on and off on the plane but it's a project and will be done when it's done. I have found the diameter of the bungee cord (3/8") and am using the old, somewhat stretched cords to determine the length before wrapping. If anyone does have that info I sure would appreciate it.
Anyway, I have, after almost 2 years, got back into the air in my Challenger II CW. Two flights with 2 landings that were pretty good made me feel good about my skills. Got more to do before I take anyone up, though.
Heading out to the hanger to work on the planes. Too wet and cloudy to fly for a few days.
Going over the Lite with a fine comb to make sure all is good prior to flight. The badlands gear looks good but I want to make sure the plane is flyable before putting any serious money into it. I''ll keep you posted.
Everything I hear about it makes me want to get it in the air. Looking forward to it!

Jim Parker

Hey Jim, that all sounds great. Good deal on not rushing anything either. Like you mention, "it's a project and will be done when it's done."

I'm hoping I have a similar experience when I actually get back into the air again. My last flight at PIC was clear back in 1999 in a Cessna. I have a fairly stout Microsoft Flight SIm that I get some seat time in on occasion. I'll be taking lessons again before I go flying for real, but I hope my skills come back quickly. Of course, there'll also be time given to watching for any bad habits and practices that may show up. Keep us up to date on your progress.

Todd