ZODIAC XL - Photos - Quick Build Kit

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With the Quick-Build Kit the complete airframe has been pre-jigged with nearly all parts pre-aligned and holes pre-drilled. The fuselage and horizontal tail sections come mainly assembled and riveted, and we now ship the wings largely complete.

Producing the Quick-Build Kit:

The ZODIAC XL Quick-Build Kit is made up of the same quality parts as the standard Zodiac XL kit. The difference between the standard and quick-build kit is the level of assembly of the kit parts.

Cutting nose rib blanks from flat 12-ft x 4-ft aluminum sheets on a CNC router.

Aluminum parts manufacturing at the Zenith Aircraft factory: Precision cutting of skins, and pre-drilling holes.

Using a press brake to stamp wing ribs and bulkheads.

Assembling the ailerons:
Rotating aileron construction table

Fuselage construction jig.

Fuselage construction jig at the AeroLeaver factory

Firewall layout jig

Rear fuselage assembly

The internal wing assembly

Roger Dubbert performs a quality control check.

Drilling the wing skins to the internal assembly

The wing is disassembled prior to shipping.

Rotating Wing Construction Table

Horizontal Tail Assemblies

All the airframe parts that make up the Quick-Build Kit (QBK) are pre-assembled together for proper fit and to rig control system components.

Fuselage assembly jigs.

Quick Build Kit: Notice the pre-drilled wing ribs and assembled fuselage

The Quick-Build Kit now includes the wings largely complete, shown here disassembled

Due to the high level of completion of the Quick Build Kit, we do not crate (box up) the kit anymore since this would require large crates that are expensive to build, difficult to ship, and heavy to move.

Assembled fuselage and pre-drilled wings

The Quick-Build Kit now includes the wings largely complete, shown here disassembled

The Quick-Build Kit loaded on a flat bed trailer

The Quick-Build Kit being picked up at the factory, loaded on a flat bed trailer.

Loading the Quick-Build Kit in a trailer (pick up or custom delivery right to your door).

Custom crating the Quick-Build Kits (with disassembled wings) for shipping or pick-up at the factory.

Four custom-crated Zodiac XL Quick-Build Kits (with disassembled wings) are shipped internationally in a container.

Here's another Quick-Build Kit on a slightly different scale:

This very nice radio-controlled (RC) scale model of the ZODIAC XL is now available from Zenith Aircraft Co. This is a 1:5 scale model that is sold as a firewall-back "almost ready to fly" (ARF) kit. Flight simulator software and insurance is also available for the model.

Click here for more information about the ZODIAC XL model

Click here for Quick-Build Kit packing and assembly photos
Click here for kit construction photos
See the ZODIAC photo galleries for other new pics

Description, availability and level of pre-assembly subject to change without prior notice.

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Zenith Aircraft Company
Mexico Memorial Airport, PO Box 650
Mexico, Missouri, 65265-0650 USA.
Tel: 573-581-9000 (Mon - Fri, 8-5 Central),
Fax: 573-581-0011
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� Zenith Aircraft Company: 2009-12-21