Bush Gear options for Avid Model C

[krazycanuck2011 0]

Hello everyone, I am purchasing a very low time, indoor always in heated enviroment, Avide flyer model c. I am interested in replacing the gear while I am re-certing the aircraft for here in Canada as airworthy.

I have seen pics of Lowell Fitt's of "Highwing LLC" that look pretty nice. I am open to other alternatives though as well, the most important thing is that its a good solid gear that is not going to break, is wider and stable and may be higher than stock. I don't expect to be giving the gear an exceptionally hard time, but I do think there could be a bad landing every now and again as I get familiar with the aircraft. 

I look forward to your reply as well as other options you may know about for me to checkout. Price is a concern, so it has to stay on the normal side of things, not ludicrously expensive.

Also I don't have Lowell Fitt's contact details if any of you have them that would be great!

Please feel free to list off options for gears as well as ballpark pricing. Pics always welcome! 

[Matthewtanner 44]

id say fly it for a bit with the standard gear. You may come to find out it’s everything you need and wouldn’t cost you.

[1avidflyer 1983]

Bungee gear can strain the seat truss from the top down, the bush gear pulls inward on the attachment points on the longerons.  Either one can do damage in a hard landing.  Especially with the bungee gear, it's a good idea to infill the seat truss as much as possible.  Factory recommended gluing in plywood, but some ( like me) have used .040" steel plate.  The steel plate welded in can probably help with either gear style.  I have Lowell's gear on my plane, but haven't used it very much yet.  JImChuk

[Allen Sutphin 705]

Curious as to how effective the plywood reinforcement is. Initally it doesn't sound strong. Maybe a substitute with hardwood. For those that are already flying or covered. I can't see it causing any problems by doing it. Maybe a pound or two weight added. A hard enough landing to bend the seat structure is what most call a crash landing. And in most cases, other damage occurs somewhere in the airframe. The high dollar gear can take a tad more roughness from all indications but other damage can still occur somewhere else. A good airframe inspection is or should be done after a tube bending landing. A little wrinkle or looseness in the fabric is a good indication of damage. Wings, struts and other parts need looked at also.

[Matthewtanner 44]

Allen I think the plywood glued in would add quite a bit of strength if fitted and glued correctly. 

[Allen Sutphin 705]

 It couldn't hurt anything by installing it.

[1avidflyer 1983]

I believe that when a seat truss bends, it starts with one of the inner webbing tubes buckling.  Anything that resists that buckling strengthens the seat truss.  No doubt the plywood does just that, and that is why the factory recommended it.  JImChuk

[Turbo 162]

It's typically not the bungees you need to be worried about; their load on that inner span of the seat truss is distributed, at least go some extent.  It's that damn safety cable, which, when in play, shows up as a concentrated shock load, pulling the top wall of the seat tube down, essentially crimping it!  A wood insert would prevent the tube bending down, but may not protect against the upper wall  of the hollow tube being crimped.   My analysis recommends that if you choose to keep the safety cable (I didn't), size it to allow 5" of travel before it comes into play.  That's a 3G landing.  Fred Stork (see posts) offers an alternative approach to limiting gear deflection, that's worth considering.  Nylon webbing might also be considered as the safety straps.  But in my opinion, the original safety cables suck!

Edited 23 Feb 2019 by Turbo

[krazycanuck2011 0]

Thanks guys, I have Lowell, fabbing me a gear towards the end of March, I will be flying into Florida in April with my family and will get him to ship it to me there to take back to Canada with me. Seems like a nice alternative (wide gear that provides good taxi stability with a much more robust build than the stock bungee gear. 

 

[Matthewtanner 44]

How much does he charge these days