Feel good flights

[Bob Bement]

I get a chance once in a while to make a flight to help someone out and get that feel good feeling. I have an ex student that now has a ranch about 49 miles south of S49. He has a cow camp that he has to travel to from time to time. The place has two strips on it one north south and the other more or less east and west. Field elevation is about 4300' MSL and it is the width of two grader blades. It is dirt and when it gets wet you don't want anything to do with it. The place is called Mud Flat if that tells you anything. It is that kind of mud that sticks to anything that comes in contact with it. I will show you a picture of me dropping my friend and some of his supplies off at Mud flat. You will be able to see the start of the landing strip in front of 9054N. The strip is about 2000' long by the way. Bob

 

[Richard]

49 miles south of S49? How's that for coincidence! You got to combine flying with helping someone out. Good job.

 

[infotango]

Nice looking classic 182, I like the bare Aluminum. Do you polish it, or just leave it bare?

 

[Sonar5]

I also like the bare aluminum look.

Classic and a nice looking bird.

 

[Bob Bement]

I try to polish it some. That is quite a job and I haven't got it done as well as I would like. I would like to tell you of a time I helped my friend out big time. First of all it takes an hour and forty five minutes to drive from Vale to Mud Flat. He had about 900 head of cattle in a corral and a vet. hired to doctor the cattle . The electric motor on the squeeze chute had burned out.( They use a large generator for electricity ) I flew to Ontario, a neighboring town, and his brother brought a new motor to the airport. I loaded it and flew it out to Mud Flat. The four wheeler was waiting for me when I landed and they were back in business by 10:00am. Bob

 

[SCCutler]

Bob, I loved your plane when I saw it up close and personal at Gaston's, and I love it still. What a nice, straightforward, honest airplane.

 

[Bob Bement]

Thanks Spike, It has been a real good old faithful bird. Has never let me down, starts and runs great. I am really starting to feel sorry that I won't be to Gastons this summer. Take a lot of pictures so we can see what a grand time you all had. Bob

 

[Richard]

A motorized chute? Never heard of that before. Either a foot bar or grab handle to squeeze the chute. I'm curious how the motor is rigged.

And count me in as one who thinks straight tails look great polished or thereabouts.

 

[Michael]

Bob, I loved your plane when I saw it up close and personal at Gaston's, and I love it still. What a nice, straightforward, honest airplane.

OMG
Spike you said that bout my plane!!!!
Bet you tell all the planes you meet that.

 

[Bob Bement]

A motorized chute? Never heard of that before. Either a foot bar or grab handle to squeeze the chute. I'm curious how the motor is rigged.

And count me in as one who thinks straight tails look great polished or thereabouts.

Richard, The motor is used to run a hydraulic pump, then the hydraulic pressure is used to squeeze the cattle to hold them still to work on. If you loose the motor the chute is useless. You are unable to work it manually. I hope this makes sense. Bob

 

[Richard]

Richard, The motor is used to run a hydraulic pump, then the hydraulic pressure is used to squeeze the cattle to hold them still to work on. If you loose the motor the chute is useless. You are unable to work it manually. I hope this makes sense. Bob

Sure, it makes a lot of sense...right up until you lose the motor or burst a hyd hose. Hoses become brittle from lack of use. Unless cutting is a year round thing the chute is sitting unused for most of the year. And because it's mostly unmovable (unless trailer mounted) it's also sitting out in the wx. Ok, I'll stop.

Sounds kinda' nifty.

 

[Bob Bement]

I think what happened, in this case, was they used a long extenstion cord which caused a low voltage situation and that did the electric motor in.
I had to make another emergency trip out to the flat one day to take a Budd wrench. It seems a truck driver had to make a second trip to haul the last of the calves to market. He had a flat tire on the trailer, a spare tire, but no Budd wrench to take it off. I had to go to Les Schwabs borrow a wrench and take it out there. They were waiting for me too.

 

[SCCutler]

OMG
Spike you said that bout my plane!!!!
Bet you tell all the planes you meet that.

Michael:

It is absolutely true for both planes, is it not?

I am, of course, still pinting out that each plane addresses a different market. I can still love them both, can't I.