Saw this video the other day, not sure if the owner is on this site of not, but I think it's a pretty good idea. Got me thinking I could CAD up the plate mounted to the axle pretty easy. I'm going to re-purpose a pitbull motorcycle stand as the jack part. The inner diameter of the tube is 0.860" so it can accept a 1/2" NPT pipe or the end of the pitbull stand.

The design will fit the 120/140/150/170, but certain year models will need the 1/4" holes drilled out to 5/16" and/or 3/8". (Grove Type 2 but with 1/4" holes).

If you are interested in a set, let me know. I'm by no means trying to turn this into a business, but I figured since I'm doing the leg work I'd offer it up to the forum, makes no difference to me if I order 5 set or 10. A set of two will be $110 shipped. I'm not making any money off them, this is my cost. I'm having them machined out of 1018 steel. The plate is 1/8" thick and the tube is 3/32" thick. Estimated mass is 0.318 lbs.

Most people who have done something similar have been able to get away with just a logbook entry. This would be considered an owner produced part per the FAA.

Video of operation:




The motorcycle stand I’ll be using. You could buy one of these, weld up your own, or use an automotive scissor jack and a 1/2” NPT pipe.

Pretty nice tool. But I jack up my plane once a year to repack bearings

qmdv wrote:Pretty nice tool. But I jack up my plane once a year to repack bearings

Same here, however, I wanted a way to be able to lift the tire off the ground in the backcountry in case of a flat. This seemed like the best option. Stand fits nicely in the airplane.

I geeked out on these a few months ago... It will even work on a nose dragger, I almost made a set for my 182 but other obsessions prevailed.

hamer wrote:

qmdv wrote:Pretty nice tool. But I jack up my plane once a year to repack bearings

Same here, however, I wanted a way to be able to lift the tire off the ground in the backcountry in case of a flat. This seemed like the best option. Stand fits nicely in the airplane.

Given the rarity of flats and the limited cargo capacity of your airplane, I'd look hard at a pulley or ratchet system and count on building a tripod from on-sight materials.

2,200-ish hours and I've never had a flat tire on a airplane. Never seen anyone else with one, either. Of course it can happen, but I personally wouldn't cary a dedicated tool to jack the plane up just in case.

Excellent idea and thank you for your offer. I will PM you my info.

Hammer wrote:Given the rarity of flats and the limited cargo capacity of your airplane, I'd look hard at a pulley or ratchet system and count on building a tripod from on-sight materials.

2,200-ish hours and I've never had a flat tire on a airplane. Never seen anyone else with one, either. Of course it can happen, but I personally wouldn't cary a dedicated tool to jack the plane up just in case.

I agree, it isn't a very likely scenario and one I hope I never have, but one of my flying buddy's just got two flats in a couple weeks. I think the larger stand I'll likely only use at the airport, will eventually fashion up something out of a scissor jack that uses the plate as a jack point. Both plates combined are under 1 lb, having them as an option is minimal weight penalty IMO.

On The Fly wrote:Excellent idea and thank you for your offer. I will PM you my info.

PM'd you some details, happy to help.

I'm in! Shared on 170 forum too.

Kinda went down the rabbit hole with the CAD, but I'm having fun with it..Pictured with 850s, but also modeled 26s and 29s.

Could you maybe pick up the bottom of the gear leg without the add on adapter? Some type of cupped fitting.That would be a lot more attractive to me.

I sometimes just loop a wide strap under the bottom of the gear leg and lift it with my engine hoist. A 2" strap wraps around both sides of the gear leg and feels secure.

daedaluscan wrote:Could you maybe pick up the bottom of the gear leg without the add on adapter? Some type of cupped fitting.That would be a lot more attractive to me.

I sometimes just loop a wide strap under the bottom of the gear leg and lift it with my engine hoist. A 2" strap wraps around both sides of the gear leg and feels secure.

I could probably come up with some type of a “scoop” lift, the tricky part will be getting the geometry right and manufacturable at a reasonable cost. I’ll tinker with the idea.

The axles for my TrickAir skis are manufactured by Matco. http://www.matcomfg.com/AXLEASSEMBLYA6M-idv-2669-1.html

They are experimental only, but certified when installed under the TrickAir STC.

Might be useful for your jack idea.

I have built a hoist rig in my tent frame hangar with a spreader bar. I’m a crane guy. Almost always better to hoist than to jack, so that’s my method for landing gear repairs, mods, and maintenance.

daedaluscan wrote:…..I sometimes just loop a wide strap under the bottom of the gear leg and lift it with my engine hoist. A 2" strap wraps around both sides of the gear leg and feels secure.

So just under the lower end of the gear leg, with no choker or loop around the gear leg itself?
That sounds good, as long as it was secure.
I repainted my gear legs a while back.
Did it with the gear in place, one leg at a time--
used my hoist & choker, removed the wheel,
then put the axle on a stand while I did the paint work.
When I reassembled & put it back on the ground,
the paint was dry but still soft & the choker scarfed up the fresh paint.

Curious whether the device will work in the dirt...hard to see those little wheels rolling on a soft surface.

hotrod180 wrote:

daedaluscan wrote:…..I sometimes just loop a wide strap under the bottom of the gear leg and lift it with my engine hoist. A 2" strap wraps around both sides of the gear leg and feels secure.

So just under the lower end of the gear leg, with no choker or loop around the gear leg itself?
That sounds good, as long as it was secure.
I repainted my gear legs a while back.
Did it with the gear in place, one leg at a time--
used my hoist & choker, removed the wheel,
then put the axle on a stand while I did the paint work.
When I reassembled & put it back on the ground,
the paint was dry but still soft & the choker scarfed up the fresh paint.

That was exactly what I did, I had just painted my gear legs and wrapped a sling around the first one as usual to put the wheel on and it scuffed up the still soft paint. So for he other side I just looped the sling right under the end of the gear leg, and it worked fine. I would probably not leave it unattended like that, but it felt safe and also meant that I did not have to mess with the brake line which I don't like to bend out of the way too much.

Hammer wrote:Curious whether the device will work in the dirt...hard to see those little wheels rolling on a soft surface.

I think it'll work fine in the desert, but I'll definitely need a wood board underneath in softer soil. The wheels are replaceable.

Hammer wrote:Curious whether the device will work in the dirt...hard to see those little wheels rolling on a soft surface.

Needs baby bushwheels maybe?

I'll probably weld this up eventually. Bigger wheels are readily available. Baby bushwheels would look cool, but that's one more thing to go flat/maintain.

hamer wrote:

Hammer wrote:Curious whether the device will work in the dirt...hard to see those little wheels rolling on a soft surface.

I think it'll work fine in the desert, but I'll definitely need a wood board underneath in softer soil. The wheels are replaceable.

No, even the desert is too soft and unstable. We played with a very similar project (the triangle style) last year. What worked off road was even smaller wheels, with the whole enchilada rolling in a small CF channel.

The next step was to make the triangle foldable with the removal of pins, and then add a second slightly larger in width piece of channel hinged to the first one to act as a carrying box.

Another difference was the use of L19 rings (I picked up from user 'aqua') as a the attachment point instead of axle insert. This makes the 180 towable with the same tow bar as the work planes.
In the end, life zigged, and more important projects took precedence,

Good luck on yours, it looks very simple and elegant.

Take care, Rob

Rob wrote:...Another difference was the use of L19 rings (I picked up from user 'aqua') as a the attachment point instead of axle insert. This makes the 180 towable with the same tow bar as the work planes.....

I bought a set of L19 tow lugs with the idea of installing them for use as as jack points,
they were plenty stout enough for towing but they seemed a bit scrawny for jacking.
Not sure if they'd hang in there holding the weight of the airplane without bending.