Activity Stream

Activity Stream

  1. Bandit added a post in a topic Maule Tailwheel - Exploded View and Parts List   

    Ha Ha Larry, that is exactly what I was thinking.
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  2. Guest added a post in a topic Proper Tailwheel Geometry - Castor Angle and Shimmy   

    I have spent more time than anyone should have researching tailwheel shimmy. I have actually had springs made for both positive and negative castor angle. That "report" is very interesting and sidetracked me from the reality of what was going on for a long time.
     
    All you can really do by changing castor angle is change the characteristics of shimmy and when it happens. The bottom line is that the mass of the tailwheel, trail distance, "spring" in the tire, TW spring and fuselage all act together to create a tuned circuit that WILL resonate if excited. The ONLY way in my experience to stop shimmy is resistive damping (friction) to critically damp the resonance. If you don't have enough resistance to back and forth motion in the tailwheel it WILL shimmy sooner or later.
     
    Not trying to sound like a know it all, but if you have a shimmy problem and it is not from worn parts like bushings or bearings or loose spring bolts, it is because there is not enough damping. Castor angle changes might seem to get rid of a shimmy problem, but it is not the real solution.
     
    Just my 2 cents.
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  3. Av8r3400 added a post in a topic Maule Tailwheel - Exploded View and Parts List   

    Wow. 43 unique parts that all should be in the garbage pail in the back of the hangar...


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  4. akflyer added a post in a topic Bush gear springs   

    I looked at the bearhawk gear, but I hate oil shocks and the way they fail in cold temps we deal with here.  of course. they dont see the abuse or cycles that we put on the snogos so they would probably work well on our planes.  I agree on the fox floats, but again, your talking $$  like 12-1500 for a pair of them.
     
    As is par for the course with me, I fear I am chasing unobtainium on a cost effective gear that does what we want, but the country was founded on dreams and I am stupid enough to chase them for awhile
     
    I have been reading an old thread on the supercub forum and it seems they did the same thing we are doing here trying to build a better mouse trap.  pretty much turns out that the engineers with slide rules 70 years ago were kick ass guys that pretty much got it right and Burl is the only guy that has made a bolt on cub gear suspension product that has performed to claims and is viable without mods to the fuse.
     
    I am pretty certain that a few of the guys there would be hard pressed to pass a pee test with some of the ideas they came up with   I do like the discussion here and the ideas kicked back and forth.  We may hit on a combination of things that just work well and would get us the end result we are looking for in a cost effective manner.
     
    I still think the best thing you can do for your landing gear is put gas in the tanks and practice practice practice!  Since I put the gear on my plane I have done things I have not done in 20 yrs.. wheel landings and setting her down gently.  I normally drag the tailwheel then chop and plop on the mains.  This wheel landings stuff feels funny now
     

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  5. FoxDB added a post in a topic Bush gear springs   

    Leonard,
    The Bungie is one of the most travel ideas and is well proven, the only down side is no re-bond dampening. I used a scaled down version of the Bearhawk die spring in a canister that allows more stroke than the external die spring designs and re-bond dampening. The disadvantage is the difficulty in tuning and there is a point were the spring becomes solid. I currently have it designed to 3gs before the spring goes solid. Am considering what spring or combination of springs would change this to 2gs. I really like the design of the Roberts Struts with the Fox Float and bungie or the TK Racing all air shock. The cost is high however. I may build some all bungie struts just for S & Gs.
    Dave
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  6. dholly added a topic in Avid and Kitfox parts Suppliers   

    Maule Tailwheel - Exploded View and Parts List
    Not a Supplier source, but helpful info if you need to replace a particular component and are looking for the proper part number.
     
    MAULE TAILWHEEL PARTS LIST.pdf
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  7. dholly added a topic in Technical tasks   

    Proper Tailwheel Geometry - Castor Angle and Shimmy
    This topic comes up every so often in the General Forums so I thought it was worthy of it's own post in the Technical Forum.
     
    Read the EAA Counselor's comments and compare the attached pic to your own tailwheel. It may provide the solution to your problem.
     
    Tail Wheel Shimmy.pdf
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  8. Luked added a post in a topic plastic leading edge   

    Cost for 2 was $93.90 last year when I bought them. Nice place to work with.
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  9. EDMO added a post in a topic What adhesive to use to secure fiberglass wing tank   


    Doug, It is in the KF1 manual - I have the KF4 and part of KF5.
    I guess McB found something more expensive than the GE Silicone II you can buy at Walmart?  I don't know which GE Silicone they had back in the early 1980's, but I worked hard with a box knife at getting a tank out of my Kitfox 1 wing after it had been there for about 25 years - that white rubber stuff really sticks.  It would have been easier if  the builder had used Saran Wrap on the spars.
    EDMO
    Note:  I think that putting a row of rivets into the spar is a BAD, BAD IDEA - It don't need it, and none of mine ever had that.   That may have been left over from the metal tanks - STILL A BAD IDEA!
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  10. EDMO added a post in a topic plastic leading edge   

    I did the same, but cut the extra 8" off, and didn't fare into wingtip. I used lightweight Bondo after gluing with 9460, but Leni says Kittyhair (?) is better.
    EDMO
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  11. akflyer added a post in a topic plastic leading edge   

    Nice job fairing that LE in!  Looks very nice.
     

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  12. akflyer added a post in a topic Bush gear springs   

    I think Highcountry is onto the right track using the "cub style" gear with bungees.  With this, you could put 6" long slots in it and never go metal to metal unless you really really worked at it.  If you hit that hard, folding the gear is probably the least of your worries.  I do think safety cables are a good idea as many cub owners have found out.  If you break a bungee the safety cable catches you and you dont have the sickening view of the tire punching through the lift strut at the same time the prop eats the dirt and catapults you over in a not so perfect pirouette.  You don't get style points for that maneuver unless its done with no (well maybe just a touch of) blood shed.
     
    Another thing to look at is the evolution of gear on the cubs.  When they first started making extended gear, they had issues buckling gear legs etc.  Atlee dodge and a few others figured out that you need to put some braces in-between those long gear legs to keep them from buckling.  Just like on the fuse, you add a brace and make cute triangles and you add a ton of strength with little weight penalty.  Personally I would rather have a gear that weighs 4 more pounds than a wad of tubing sitting on a sand bar due to a folded gear leg.
     
    I will see if I can get my engineer back on it to give me the actual loads and optimize the cabane vee angle to spread the loads and not add a lot of weight.  This will also give us the needed travel info other than... hey, hold my beer, yep that looks about right, tack it.
     
    I understand that these are experimental, and we can pretty much build what ever we want out of bailing wire and duct tape, but I think some of the back yard engineers (not a slam to anyone) thought they had a good idea, did not fully test it, marketed it, and cost a lot of people a lot of money on bent birds.  I would not market a "bush gear" until I had done due diligence and beat the shit out of the gear on my own airplane and I was satisfied that it was not going to cause unintended damage to a buyers airplane unless said buyer really went way above and beyond the realms of normal abuse.
     
    With that said, I really love the idea of rubber "bushings" or a polymer of some sort like the AOSS suspension system.  Maybe if I get enough interest from the guys running the "bush" gear, I can go talk to burl face to face and see what he would do for us.  Its a pisser that we spend 1500 on gear, then would have to spend another 1500+ on it to make it function right and not bend our birds.
     

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  13. dholly added a post in a topic What adhesive to use to secure fiberglass wing tank   

    What manual recommends the Saran Wrap Ed? I don't remember seeing that in my KF3 or 4 manuals.
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  14. dholly added a post in a topic What adhesive to use to secure fiberglass wing tank   

    I agree with Robert. No Hysol, use #739 RTV Silicone Adhesive only for the newer Airdale, Skystar and Kitfox 'slip-in' wing tanks, ethanol resistant or otherwise. The only possible exception to my thinking would be the very early Avid fiberglass wing tanks that are completely wrapped around the spars with f/g mat. I believe those tanks were thinner wall than the newer wing tanks and I wonder if the necessary structural integrity Dean Wilson designed in would be compromised if simply glued in with the #739 adhesive.
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  15. EDMO added a post in a topic Bush gear springs   

    The replacement parts for the rubber pucks on the Ercoupe was a stack of Belleville washers.
    EDMO
    Leni, Sorry to override your post about "CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP SITE GOING" and hope that everyone will send you a few bucks.
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  16. akflyer added a post in a topic CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP SITE GOING   

    Hey guys,
     
    Thanks a lot, that is very much appreciated.  That should pretty much take care of the new update that just came out  
     
    Ron...   That was funny right there, I don't care who ya are    It means something different here in AK too.
     
     
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  17. akflyer added a post in a topic Bush gear springs   

    I sent an email to Burl to see if he would develop something for us like the AOSS system for cubs.  If I was a chemical engineer I may be able to understand the polymer stuff, but I started doing research on the material used in the AOSS system and it made my head hurt.  If some one here is a chemical engineer and they wanted to come up with the proper stuff for me to pour into a can I could make the AOSS system for our planes really easy.. I just dont know the proper crosslinked super duper gee whizz polymer that Burl uses in the AOSS system.
     

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  18. EDMO added a post in a topic First flight on my SkyRaider with skis   

    Nice looking little bird Jim - Looks like a balanced elevator like mine - what engine?  How does it compare to the 503 and bigger bird?
    EdMO
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  19. EDMO added a post in a topic Bush gear springs   

    I had those on my Ercoupe on the mains, but I think they were combined with shock absorbers. I had a Kick-Ass strong Bush Gear on my Maule, made by Atlee Dodge, and it had Hydo-shocks. They make these for Pipers too.EDMO
    I would think that rubber would get very ridged in cold temperatures - almost solid - Maybe crack! - Never had my Coupe in Alaska, but there were some at Anchorage, but never saw any of them flying in the winter.
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  20. Av8r_Sed added a post in a topic CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP SITE GOING   

    Thanks for the reminder, Ron.  A few more bux on their way to AK now.
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  21. EDMO added a post in a topic Rudder Pedal Rub   

    Ron,
    I would have to look at the manual to see how your Magnum is built, but one thing you may want to watch closely is the alignment of the cable with the nearest fairlead - There was a Kitfox owner who reported that his cable had worn thru the nylon bushing and rubbed on the steel sleeve, ruining the cable.
    EDMO
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  22. Dusty added a topic in Avidfoxflyers General Hangar   

    Bush gear springs
    There has been a few discussions regarding springs,has anyone tried rubber donuts and washers like in a some nose gear I have seen.Any thoughts ,
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  23. Dusty added a post in a topic Finally opened my bush gear   

    Great gear TJay ,I have the same and it is very strong.ZK KNZ recently got dropped on one wheel(not me flying) ,grass dirt between the rim and tyre ,scuff marks at 45 degree to tyre.We carried out a major visual inspection .No damage! Kudos to kitfox & highwing gear.
    I never measured the wheel travel but appeared to be around 4 inches.
    A bonus with the highwing gear is the luggage pod will fit with a few mods
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  24. RDavidson added a post in a topic CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP SITE GOING   

    Hey everybody...It is a New Year and Leni sure has done a great job keeping this site going! Please send him a donation via PayPal in appreciation for his help if you can.

    Thanks for everything Leni! This site is full of great information and has kept me inspired throughout my project! I sent you some green. Let me clarify, I sent you some money (Green probably means something else here in Colorado! Ha!)

    Thanks,
    Ron
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  25. High Country added a post in a topic Rudder Pedal Rub   

    Pics would be helpful here but if I'm following correctly you're referring to the bolt that actually attaches the cable to the pedal. Are you already putting the bolt from outside to inside I assume? If not try flipping it around for more clearance. if this is already the case you could try replacing the bolt with a clevis pin http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/hapages/clevispinsgrid.php?clickkey=13442 thatwould allow more clearance with the shallower head. I had to do this on some of the linkages for my flapperons to prevent rubbing on the floor boards/belly skin area. 
     
    -Robert-
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