Ive got new wheels!

tonycondon

tonycondon

Gastons CRO (Chief Dinner Reservation Officer)
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Mar 9, 2005
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Wichita, KS
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Tony
seriously! I satisfied two of the dreams that I've had for my glider last night.

1) Have a Castering Tailwheel - making ground handling MUCH easier
2) Have wingtip wheels - making ground handling MUCH easier

I went to Kmart and bought a pair of rollerblades and then took 3 wheels off one of them. took the previously fixed tailwheel apart to find that it used to caster! With the help of some WD-40 type stuff I got the rust all knocked off. Took the old rubbery wheel off and replaced it with a new rollerblade wheel. put everything back together and voila it castered!

Wingtip wheels were a little tricker, found some mounting brackets and bolted them to the wingtip skids. then attached the wheels to the brackets. This gave my wingtips about a 2 inch clearance. Previously the wood skids were worn down far enough that the tips were starting to drag, not good :no:

I was so excited I pushed the glider back to the hangar with one hand while telling Matt Michael all about it on the phone. so EASY!
 
You have the TSO certificate from K-Mart for the roller skates?
 
Yeah I picked up a tail dolly for the Ka-6 and it made moving it way easier. Now I just have to build a wing wheel, and a tow bar for the complete setup.

But Tony....
:needpics:
 
tonycondon said:
I went to Kmart and bought a pair of rollerblades and then took 3 wheels off one of them. took the previously fixed tailwheel apart to find that it used to caster! With the help of some WD-40 type stuff I got the rust all knocked off. Took the old rubbery wheel off and replaced it with a new rollerblade wheel. put everything back together and voila it castered!
Click to expand...

Uhm... you do know you can buy just the wheels????

OR was it just cheeper to buy the whole K-mart skate? :goofy:

Missa
 
Missa said:
Uhm... you do know you can buy just the wheels????

OR was it just cheeper to buy the whole K-mart skate? :goofy:

Missa
Click to expand...

He needed some new snow boots for this winter anyway. ;)
 
i looked all over at kmart target and walmart for just wheels and couldnt find any. other glider guys have said that they are seasonal and that i am out of season.
 
tonycondon said:
i looked all over at kmart target and walmart for just wheels and couldnt find any. other glider guys have said that they are seasonal and that i am out of season.
Click to expand...

I get them at a sporting goods store. Cost me 34 dollars for 8 of them. I use them on my suitcase when the old ones wear out.
 
Cool, Tony. How will these mods hold up when landing in a field?
 
Greg Bockelman said:
I get them at a sporting goods store. Cost me 34 dollars for 8 of them. I use them on my suitcase when the old ones wear out.
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a pair of adult rollerblades was 20 bucks, and thats 8 wheels.

I think that the wheels will be fine in an off field landing, the wings speed is pretty low when the wing touches down
 
tonycondon said:
a pair of adult rollerblades was 20 bucks, and thats 8 wheels.

I think that the wheels will be fine in an off field landing, the wings speed is pretty low when the wing touches down
Click to expand...

The Hummelbird plans call for a rollerblade wheel for the tailwheel. It was a bit small, especially as I operate off some rougher strips, so I used an office-chair caster wheel. Bigger and much better quality, not much heavier. Keeping the dirt out of the bearings will be the biggest hassle. It has dust shields to keep the usual office-floor grit and fuzz out but dirt strips might be a bit much. If it doesn't work too long I'll buy a 3" urethane caster and machine the hub to take small 6200-2RS series ball bearing assemblies. Those will outlast me.
Now if I can get to finishing the thing...

Dan
 
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