tows & tugs

Now that 468JP is finally, hopefully, supposedly being returned to me, it’s time to decide on a tug/tow.
I am leaning toward the nose dragger and am curious if anyone who has a dragger wishes they had brought the Pul-air bear, power tow or aero tow. Do any of the owners of the last three wish they had brought the dragger.
Are any of these easy to carry in the plane?
thanks
John

John,

I have the E200 and it is convenient to use and seems to be well built. I have had it since June and I know that there are quite a few people using it with good results. My overall impression of performance is that if you are using it on level surface it is fine. But I have noticed that sometimes it struggles getting the plane to move initially, and on an incline you have to get a running start. Others have said they have no problem on incline, so maybe it’s just my E200.

I just ordered a 40 EZ tug (http://www.powertow.com/Products/35_40.htm) to move my TB20 in and out of the new (to me) T-hangar I just got. (Moving the plane up the slight incline and over the door tracks is well beyond my solo strength.) I’ll let you know how it works.

There was a discussion on tugs on the Socata board and the EZ Tow got rave reviews. I had to get a gas model because my hangar has no power so I narrowed my choices to the 40 EZ and the Nose Dragger (http://www.dragger.com/gasnd.html), which was rated #1 by Aviation Consumer. I settled on the EZ tow due to its lower price.

Thank you all for the replies. I didn’t know if any particular model was “too heavy”, " awkward/bulky", hard to put in the a/c etc., but you all seem satisfied with whatever you bought.

My next question is sun screens. Athough I have a hanger, I want screens for travel. I’ve used Sun Foil brand but found that the suction cups flatten out after a couple of years. Kennon’s are supposedly computer cut and don’t need suction cups. Any truth to that or do they fall off regularly? Does anyone recommend a different brand?

Thanks,

John

In reply to:


Kennon’s are supposedly computer cut and don’t need suction cups. Any truth to that or do they fall off regularly? Does anyone recommend a different brand?


John,

I have the Kennon shields, and I use them whenever I have to put the airplane in the sun with the doors closed.

The shields stay in place well enough - except for the small one that covers the small oval window above the baggage compartment, which needs extra persuasion to stay put. The newer versions of that one seem to have an improved design.

However, there is a downside to the non-suction-cup method, which is that the shields can scratch the acrylic windows more easily if you aren’t VERY careful to “always push or pull, NEVER slide” when inserting and removing them. Scratches do polish out easily, if you stay on top of it, and you pretty soon figure out how to avoid them in the first place.

The downside of suction-cups (besides the fact that they flatten out, eventually) is that they necessarily maintain a space between the shield and the window, and that’s something the window manufacturers warn against, because it creates a pocket of hot air.

  • Mike.

Everything’s a compromise… choose your poison!

Mike:

What do you use to polish out scratches in the windows? I have some that appeared after acceptance and before my aircraft was ferried from Cirrus - looks like somebody tried to scrub a bug with a diswashing pad.

Tim

In reply to:


What do you use to polish out scratches in the windows?


Tim,

Here’s what I use:

  • Mike.

I’ve started using the Aeroshell Flightjacket Plexicoat. Works very well so far. REALLY works at making bugs guts easier to remove, and polishes / fills light scratches well. No silicone, either, so no worries about getting it on the rest of the finish.

Mike:
Where you you get it?