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Thread: Handling

  1. #11
    Senior Member Slyfox's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    this is my thoughts on high speed taxi, don't do it. I believe aopa or eaa came out with an article discouraging people from doing a high speed taxi. when I finished my rv7 I went and got some fuel, taxied to the runway, got on the runway, put full throttle and lifted off the runway when it was ready to fly. that was my high speed taxi . the 4 can give you a little bit of yahooooo, if taxi is fast. best to land slow and just have fun. one more thought, check your tailwheel, if it unlocks easy it may be your problem. my old tailwheel if it got crud in it, it would not lock and it was a handful when it did it. could be your problem. raise the tail and support it on blocks or something, than go in and put full rudder each way and check each time the tail wheel to see if it unlocked on you, if so that's your problem, fix it.
    steve
    slyfox
    model IV 1200-flying
    912uls
    IVO medium in-flight
    RV7A-flying
    IO-360
    constant speed prop

  2. #12

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    Waterbury, VT
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    Default Re: Handling

    Quote Originally Posted by Slyfox View Post
    this is my thoughts on high speed taxi, don't do it. I believe aopa or eaa came out with an article discouraging people from doing a high speed taxi. when I finished my rv7 I went and got some fuel, taxied to the runway, got on the runway, put full throttle and lifted off the runway when it was ready to fly. that was my high speed taxi . the 4 can give you a little bit of yahooooo, if taxi is fast. best to land slow and just have fun. one more thought, check your tailwheel, if it unlocks easy it may be your problem. my old tailwheel if it got crud in it, it would not lock and it was a handful when it did it. could be your problem. raise the tail and support it on blocks or something, than go in and put full rudder each way and check each time the tail wheel to see if it unlocked on you, if so that's your problem, fix it.
    Dear Sly,
    I modified my Maule tailwheel so that it wouldn't unlock and caster. I had read a number times that the Maule had a problem with going into unwanted caster. At 77 yrs. old (me, not the plane), it makes it a bit difficult to maneuver into the hangar but it is doable. On second thought it has nothing to do with my age, it's just a bear to push backward. Jack

  3. #13
    Senior Member Dusty's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    From memory of an earlier plane I had with a maule, the trick was to use a flat screwdriver and unlock the tail wheel manually before backing into the hanger.A modified sack barrow is Also a handy tool.

  4. #14
    Senior Member av8rps's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    A Kitfox is not a difficult tailwheel aircraft to fly. I'm stating that for any of those out there reading this forum that have an interest in a Kitfox but have never actually flown one. I've been flying these airplanes since 1987. They are great handling aircraft both on the ground and in the air. But, like any airplane if something is wrong with it, normal good handling characteristics can be compromised.

    Also, I personally do not think there is anything wrong with doing high speed taxi down a runway. If one is afraid to high speed taxi, what are you going to do the first time you feel the need to wheel land? Or maybe one day you just land a bit too hot and you find yourself (mistakenly) having to transition from a high speed taxi until you can get it slowed down. Or when you need to "Land long". Maybe it is just me, but I always high speed taxi an aircraft before I fly it for the first time (as in a 1st flight of a homebuilt) as I want to know what to expect BEFORE I find myself in the air. I need to know how to handle the aircraft in a high speed mode for the 1st landing IF I NEED TO DO SO ON THAT 1st FLIGHT. Again, maybe just me? I guess I'm pretty old fashioned as I still like to stall any airplane I fly on a regular basis...and I keep hearing that there are those that don't think we should be doing stalls? Oh well, to each their own.

    I too would suspect that Maule tailwheel as they typically give the same symptoms. I had a Model 4 that had horrible ground handling problems. It had been ground looped and damaged 7 times before I got it. The Maule tailwheel was the biggest culprit, but one of the main landing gear legs was also tweaked out more than a half inch. So it was a monster. But easily tamed by straightening the alignment of the gear, and putting a different tailwheel on it.

  5. #15
    Senior Member Slyfox's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    wow! here you got a new airplane and you are saying it's ok to do a high speed taxi. What are you going to do when you want to do a wheel landing, well lets put it this way. just wait until you know your airplane, do 3 point landings. work your skills better, than do the wheel landings. that's what I suggest. JMHO. why chance cracking it up before you even take a first flight. trust me, I can do wheel landing better than most, I love them, but if your skills aren't there and the airplane isn't set up perfect, well your going to have a bad day and you will be rebuilding your airplane
    steve
    slyfox
    model IV 1200-flying
    912uls
    IVO medium in-flight
    RV7A-flying
    IO-360
    constant speed prop

  6. #16
    Senior Member efwd's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    I concur with AV8RPS. I heard stories of people having alignment issues on landing and as they put it "be prepared for a wild ride". I wasn't going to risk that so I aligned with shims and high speed taxied it. I told John and all that he said was "be careful, many of the high speed taxi tests turn into first flights". Well, I had made sure that I could handle the airplane before I did this and felt confident that even if that had happened I would have been prepared. Anyhow, I hated wheel landings while getting my tail wheel endorsement at S&R. I was sure I would not be doing them for some time. Then the tailwheel shimmy thing happened. I started doing wheel landings almost out of necessity and now I kind of enjoy them.
    Eddie Forward
    Flying
    SS7, 912iS, Garmin G3X

  7. #17
    Senior Member Slyfox's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    now you state that there was a tail wheel shimmy. when I do a wheel landing I let the tail come down on it's own, generally slow. so I don't have the tail wheel down at a high speed, generally pretty slow. so again if you do a high speed taxi, you should also be lifting the tail a little to get it off of the tail wheel. probably why john said you might end up lifting off. I didn't want to do any high speed taxi on my rv so I just took off. that took care of my high speed taxi test, lol.

    years ago I watched a guy land a kitfox and had a high speed when he let the tail down, that tail wheel started spinning in circles, I couldn't believe it, he still was going straight forward, weird. don't know if he felt it or not, I didn't talk to him. I was on the runway getting ready to take off.
    steve
    slyfox
    model IV 1200-flying
    912uls
    IVO medium in-flight
    RV7A-flying
    IO-360
    constant speed prop

  8. #18

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    UK
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    Default Re: Handling

    Hi Chaps

    Could I ask your opinions on the following please.

    Main legs.
    I'm currently putting a mk2 back together and having stripped and rebuilt the under carriage legs, I've measured the tracking. I've got 0.5 deg toe-in on the port wheel, and 1.0 deg toe-out on the starboard wheel. Bearing in mind the mk2 has the earlier solid axles with no option to shim them, should I be concerned with this alignment?

    Maule tailwheel
    I've noted the comments earlier about removing the cam plate to prevent unlocking. Mine doesn't unlock on full rudder anyway, I'm just wondering how it affects taxiing when you need to turn tight on the brakes. Oh, it has all been stripped, cleaned and greased and unlocks fine on the bench, it just doesn't have enough lock on the aeroplane to unlock it.

    Haven't taxied it yet, just finishing final assembly, but hopefully being inspected this month.

  9. #19
    Senior Member jmodguy's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    Smiffy
    Your gear still needs aligned. Find a long bar that will fit the axle and someone/something to hold the tail and tweak the gear until alignment is proper.
    Jeff
    KF 5
    340KF

  10. #20
    Senior Member av8rps's Avatar
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    Default Re: Handling

    Again, maybe just the way I like to do tings, but I will always spend a bunch of time taxiing a new airplane so I know everything is working like it should before I leave the ground, and so I am comfortable and familiar with everything in the cockpit for when I do decide to fly. High speed taxi of a plane on wheels is the equivalent of step taxiing a plane on floats. There is no better way to know how a seaplane is going to fly, or to familiarize a plot to a new seaplane than to have him step taxi it. Yet I have many friends that have flown floats for decades and are still not comfortable step taxiing their own airplane. I don't get any of that. If we are going to fly our airplanes well, we need to train until we get good with them.

    Quote Originally Posted by Slyfox View Post
    wow! here you got a new airplane and you are saying it's ok to do a high speed taxi. What are you going to do when you want to do a wheel landing, well lets put it this way. just wait until you know your airplane, do 3 point landings. work your skills better, than do the wheel landings. that's what I suggest. JMHO. why chance cracking it up before you even take a first flight. trust me, I can do wheel landing better than most, I love them, but if your skills aren't there and the airplane isn't set up perfect, well your going to have a bad day and you will be rebuilding your airplane

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