This is a replacement for the Cessna ring.
I did a take off and a landing on purpose at high angles of attack to test it, and can tell you it works nicely, it slid smoothly and it couldnt feel it in the cockpit.
One time I hit the ring (not on purpose ) and I definitely noticed it while at a landing.
Cessna slider is not to be used as a new technique for high angle of attack take offs and landing, its there just to protect in case one day you do a tail strike.
It looks cooler than the ring for sure.
I have seen some tail protectors with springs, but I wonder if that spring will make the tail bounce and push the nose to far down.
BTW I do not get paid to do this.

Great video, cool product! $?

You know........ they make an airplane just like the one you have that has a wheel back there .

low rider wrote:You know........ they make an airplane just like the one you have that has a wheel back there .

Yeah I know , cost twice as much though

low rider wrote:You know........ they make an airplane just like the one you have that has a wheel back there .

But if a guy had a tailwheel, he couldn't put on one of these cool sliders!

That slider was developed by a 135 guy in Idaho I believe. Pretty cool setup if your working a plane IMO.

On 172's I have flown, most just have part of a UHMW kitchen cutting board cherry riveted to the tail. Works fine. Water-based lube during preflight recommended.

Ya, $1500 seems pretty steep when a $10 piece of UHMW does the same thing.

motoadve wrote:

low rider wrote:You know........ they make an airplane just like the one you have that has a wheel back there .

Yeah I know , cost twice as much though

But three times more fun.

Bigrenna wrote:

motoadve wrote:

low rider wrote:You know........ they make an airplane just like the one you have that has a wheel back there .

Yeah I know , cost twice as much though

But three times more fun.

Believe me, if money was not object I would have a Carbon cub and a tricked out Cessna 180.
But a 182 is what I can afford right now, so I try to have fun with it.

I'll be honest I find portions of text and video a bit worrisome. In the opening lines there is reference to "assisting lift" and in the second bit of take off video it clearly show the airplane being rotated onto the device and being held there for an extended period of time. While I don't question the protection it may provide I see no lift enhancing features and Vmu (minimum speed for un-stick) testing isn't advisable for the back-country realm.

My friend drug his tail on his 182 crossing a drainage swale at the airport with a load. It cost him north of $6K to buy and replace the bulkhead. IA’s are watching those things like a hawk up here as the feds have been busting their chops on cracked bulkheads on the air taxi machines. Yes, many of them have skids. But don’t count on that to save your bulkhead, especially the old light ones.

So let me see if I have this right....

You attach a tail skid device to your nice 182, that having what appears to be, about a quarter of an inch thickness that contacts the ground, a device that would provide some protection, at best on pavement or hard surface only and then you intentionally drag your tail thru the rocks to prove what? Sell kits? Make another video? Seriously? What are you thinking? Lift enhancing feature? Huh?

I watched this video and couldn't believe what I was watching. That device provides no protection in the rocks. On pavement it will protect the skins but the issue of cracking bulkheads still exists. I sure hope your airplane wasn't damaged.

The best "tail skid I have ever seen for tri gear Cessna's is a bent piece of stainless, or thick aluminum mounted between the fuselage and tie down ring. The bend faces forward with the tail end of the metal trailing in a slight downward angle leaving an inch or so gap between the skid and tie down ring. The end of the skid acts as a shock absorber as it contacts the ground and protects the tail area as well as softening the hard impact that cracks bulkheads. This bent metal would provide more protection to your 182 tail than that skid you installed. Drive around Merrill field and you will see what I am talking about. Seems like a lot of money, time and weight for little if any return.

Kurt

Motoadve; thank you for doing such a great job with your informational videos; I always look forward to seeing them. It is truly inspirationally the way you handle your 182.

flyingjack wrote:Motoadve; thank you for doing such a great job with your informational videos; I always look forward to seeing them. It is truly inspirationally the way you handle your 182.

What he Said !!!

G44 wrote:So let me see if I have this right....

You attach a tail skid device to your nice 182, that having what appears to be, about a quarter of an inch thickness that contacts the ground, a device that would provide some protection, at best on pavement or hard surface only and then you intentionally drag your tail thru the rocks to prove what? Sell kits? Make another video? Seriously? What are you thinking? Lift enhancing feature? Huh?

I watched this video and couldn't believe what I was watching. That device provides no protection in the rocks. On pavement it will protect the skins but the issue of cracking bulkheads still exists. I sure hope your airplane wasn't damaged.

The best "tail skid I have ever seen for tri gear Cessna's is a bent piece of stainless, or thick aluminum mounted between the fuselage and tie down ring. The bend faces forward with the tail end of the metal trailing in a slight downward angle leaving an inch or so gap between the skid and tie down ring. The end of the skid acts as a shock absorber as it contacts the ground and protects the tail area as well as softening the hard impact that cracks bulkheads. This bent metal would provide more protection to your 182 tail than that skid you installed. Drive around Merrill field and you will see what I am talking about. Seems like a lot of money, time and weight for little if any return.

Kurt

Why do you get so excited?, you are posting as if you bought a product (which I dont sell) and you didnt liked it?

I think its really a neat product, you wrote that it does not protect from the rocks, after dragging it on a take off and on a landing on a gravel bar , the skin of the plane has not a scratch, not even a ding or paint damage, so it does protect.

Also you wrote negatively about the weight, dont you know most 182s carry ballast in the cargo area to get better flying manners of their airplanes? weight that far back is actually good, I wish they made a steel version which is heavier, then I can remove lots of ballast from the cargo area.

Not need to get this excited really.

I saw this guys booth up in Missoula. AWESOME product and weighs nothing. I would have bought one on the spot, but he doesn't have the 172 approved yet. I left him with my number in case that changes. In the interim, I bought the spring steel do-dad from aircraft spruce and installed it in about 5 minutes.

Nice Larry!

MotoDave,

Im not excited at all. And no, I did not buy the product. The device does indeed look like a good product for hard surface skin protection. Kudos to the guys making the product for their effort! This product protecting in the rocks is a stretch, the fact that your airplane did not suffer any surface damage is lucky in my opinion, if you keep doing it I can assure you that you will suffer damage back there. As to weight, I was just referring to what you said or listed in the video, I have no idea what it weighs. Im still trying to figure out the "lift enhancing feature". With this device any tail impact on the ground will still have potential bulkhead damage or over time cracking issues, no way around that unless there is some sort of impact absorbing device back there, such as a tailwheel. So, as calmly and as non excited as I can say it, intentionally dragging your tail thru the rocks with this device on or not and expecting no damage at some point in time is wishful thinking.

Kurt

PS, I think your video making skills are superb, you fly your airplane very well.

G44 wrote:MotoDave,

Im not excited at all. And no, I did not buy the product. The device does indeed look like a good product for hard surface skin protection. Kudos to the guys making the product for their effort! This product protecting in the rocks is a stretch, the fact that your airplane did not suffer any surface damage is lucky in my opinion, if you keep doing it I can assure you that you will suffer damage back there. As to weight, I was just referring to what you said or listed in the video, I have no idea what it weighs. Im still trying to figure out the "lift enhancing feature". With this device any tail impact on the ground will still have potential bulkhead damage or over time cracking issues, no way around that unless there is some sort of impact absorbing device back there, such as a tailwheel. So, as calmly and as non excited as I can say it, intentionally dragging your tail thru the rocks with this device on or not and expecting no damage at some point in time is wishful thinking.

Kurt

PS, I think your video making skills are superb, you fly your airplane very well.

Thanks Kurt , I did the dragging of the tail on the gravel bar on purpose once , that does not mean it will be a new landing or take off technique , because eventually yes tail section will definitely get damaged.

As I have done always I will continue to avoid having the tail contact the surface.