Gear Safety Cable and Wide Gear (W.I.B.)

[N844RS 0]

Does one of you have the wide gear (W.I.B.) mod and flying it without the gear safety cables?  I acquired a MkIV HH from the builder who had replaced the original gear with wide gear. When getting ready for the first conditional inspection under my watch, I discovered no gear safety cable installed, and found the safety cable among spare parts.

If it is okay without the safety cable, what is the reason?

And what would be the downside to installing it, if any? (Have seen some comments online that say the cable causes more damage in a hard landing than not having one.)

[C5Engineer 1170]

Are you talking about the wide bungee gear? It was not uncommon to not be able to get the wraps tight enough to keep them from really stretching the bungees on a not so stellar landing because of the extra width. If you prange on a landing and the gear legs hit those safety cables BAD things happen! I've never seen anyone wreck and Avid from a bungee breaking but I've seen several destroy their seat trusses after the bungees stretch and the gear legs slam into the cables. I removed my cables when I still had bungee gear.

[N844RS 0]

Thanks, C5Engineer, for your reply. I have been reading your posts and watching your videos for several years, and consider you to be in the top 1% of Avid Flyer experts. Yes, mine has wide bungee gear.  Your answer is just what I was hoping to learn - that I should NOT install the safety cables, and just monitor closely the condition of the bungees, and replace them before the rubber dries, cracks, and fails. Thank you.

[akflyer 1427]

I used the safety cable but I made mine longer.  I gotta say that in order to stretch the bungees enough to hit the cable limit then the bungees are old or not the right size / style.  I have beat the ever loving crap out of mine and never hit the cable limit.

 

[C5Engineer 1170]

Leni didn't you guys have someone that had the whole gear leg break off just outboard of the bungees? In this case the cable isn't going to help either.

[RFPhtmfxr 23]

I bought a used set of wide bungee gear for my KF 3. It came with used 1/2 inch bungee cord. Ordered up some 1/2 inch from WagAero. My question is How many wraps should I try to get? Have the used bungee on right now, making sure it all fits. Have about 1/2 inch gap between upper and lower bungee strut halfs.

[akflyer 1427]

Leni didn't you guys have someone that had the whole gear leg break off just outboard of the bungees? In this case the cable isn't going to help either.

yes, that is why I have posted over and over to put the safety cable inside the Vee not out on the leg that the bungee wraps around

7-8 wraps depending on the length of your bungees.  They should be tight enough to hold the gear leg up against the fuse.

 

gear leg.pdf

Edited 6 Jul 2017 by akflyer