I just ordered 26" Goodyears for my Maule. I just can't do Bushwheels now, and got tired of waiting. So does anybody have experience with these tires. How little pressure can I run, without spinning the tire on the rim?

If you don't get an immediate definitive response here you might want to walk over to Dough Head's hangar this weekend and ask him; he was running them on his Cub. For some reason about 10-12lbs comes to mind, but that's not definitive...POP!!

keep us posted on how well these tires perform and how you would compare them to 8.50's. also how the 337 process is going.
i am considering the same rubber for my M5.
thanks......

Yeah, Brian pinch flatted his a couple years ago. It was a really rocky plateau. I have to concede it probably wouldn't have happened with bushwheels. I just can't seem to get myself to spend the money. I think you're right about the psi, but I am looking for a broader view of how they perform.

What's the prices (new) for 26" Goodyears & for 26" BW's?

Eric

I ran a set for 7 years on my Cub. They held up well for both tar and off airport landings. This was mainly frozen lakes for me and grass of course.

The only trouble I ever had was having the right one go flat once while taxiing slowly at a towered airport Good grief.

Anyway, I liked them and they performed well. I usually ran 10-12 lbs pressure. They roll fairly hard though when pushing the airplane at that pressure level.

If you send me an address I can send you a DVD of their use in the snow and on lakes.

Brad

I paid $325 a piece from SkyGeek. Less tubes.
The Bushwheel is a much better tire. Aside from the improved sidewall technology, it has the valve on the sidewall, and is tubeless so it can spin on the rim all it wants . The Bushwheel is closer to 26", where the goodyear is really closer to 24", and the Bushwheels are wider too.
I have done this before with the FSDO here, and still have approval, for for big tires.

"How much to the goodyears weigh?"

Brother Dan has a set of the Husky. All up, they're 52 pounds for the pair; about twice the weight of 8.50s (for less than two inches of additional ground clearance).

You can also get them for less at Desser Tire, rather than from Cub Crafters.

I lust for a set of them on the k-a Champ but can't spare the weight or the cash. I also think the FSDO (MSP) would give me a bunch of grief on the approval issue. What I really need is Alaskan Bushwheels' fat tailwheel. The rear end of the Champ is heavy! Their STC is only valid with 26" or bigger mains, though...

Jon B.

I think GarAero used to sell a fat t/w set-up. AtleeDodge also used to sell something, I think. Currently, XP Mods sells big t/w's but they're taller (larger diameter) than stock 8" & 10" Scotts, rather than wider. Made more for rolling over stuff, I think, than for flotation.
From what a friend told me, the ABW fat tailwheel assembly is about $1700 new. He bought a used one not too long ago from them for about $1200.
Whew, that's a lotta cabbage! If I wanted a fattie - especially for a light airplane like a Champ- I think I might try to find a fat tire and wheel, buy a Maule t/w (or maybe a double-fork Homebuilder's Special from Spruce) and modify it to fit. Then just put the stocker back on for annuals.
I won't tell if you don't....
There was a discussion about the "Bob" (Bearhawk) tailwheel on the supercub site a while back.

Eric

Better keep the stock one in plane so you can put it back on after something bad happens. Insurance people don't have much of a sense of humor either.

Yeah, when you crash cuz your home-made tailwheel assembly disassembled itself, trust the insurance company to make a bad day worse. And rightfully so, I hate to admit.

I talked to a guy last night who ferrys aircraft for a living. He takes a lot of brand new Scouts over to Bob Hannah in Idaho I guess, and some come equipped with big bushwheels, some the stock tires. He swore that he saw no cruise speed difference with the big bushwheels.

Bob Hannah backwards is boB hannaH. Palendrome-I think
Was it a rat I saw
Yo banana boy

and my fave
Go hang a salami, i'm a lasagna hog

Okay enough already

A man, a plan, a canal, panama.
able was I, 'ere I saw elba.
Those are my favorites. The 26 inch Goodyears are working fine, they add just shy of fifty pounds to the plane. I'm still in the process of test flying them for the FSDO, so as soon as that's done I'll give a full report. Here's a photo.

I have a set of GarAero 8.50x10. They measure 24" dia by 12" wide. They're actually wheel adapters that use a Cleavland 6" wheel. The Gar tailwheel looks just like the BW except the tire is ribbed. It looks huge compared to the 8" Scott. I seem to remember it's 5" wide.

Somebody posted a tip on the supercub site about how to avoid spinning the tire/tube on the rim. He didn't want to run screws thru the rim into the tire bead, so he applied some rubber cement to the tire bead, let it dry, then mounted the tire on the wheel. Aparently it adds enough stickiness to prevent slippage, without becoming (semi-) permanently attached.

Eric

Eric, when are you going to do something about this weather!!!!!!!!!!!
I went from 8:00 to 8:50's. Went with the cheapest tire I could find, (look, I'm a Scot, OK?) 'cause if it was so important for me to have traction, I'd be a Formula car and not a STOL plane. I am entertaining the idea of something like Bush Wheels but that requires a budget and that has been abused of late. I found that my little 8:50's made a huge difference and has not prevented me with landing where and when I want, to date anyway. A friend of mine in AK who has a Stupid Cub (sorry, no offense, my daughter's play on words) has been running the "blimp" tires for some time and this guy takes me places I am convinced we are going to sweep a leg out from under us. No issues to date. I think a lot has to do with style and ability. Both ranked in different categories of course. I would love to see what my plane looks like with 35" BW's and flies like but I don't think it's in the cards anytime soon. I'll leave it up to the Bushwacker to fulfill my of airport fantasies for awhile.

Since we have switched to the 31" BW's my view of the off airport tire choice has changed a bit. I now believe that if a group had one guy with BW's the rest could safely do just about any "location" with 26" GY's or even 8.50's. For our purposes the BW's are worth their weight in gold (which would actually cost less, lol!) for the safety factor of trying new spots with only one airplane. Especially in tall grass and brush where the actual landing surface is obscured and one is "feeling" it out on the initial roll checks. Which is my point; a group could have the BW plane test a place out with a better margin of safety then land and maybe even clear a rock or two for the smaller tire airplanes to land. That would also allow the soft factor to be checked. There is no doubt that the BW's can take A LOT more mud than 8.50's.
On the other hand we also now realize what 31's are and how functional they are off-airport BUT we can see our way to the 35's now!
Happy Flying!

You know, booze and women seem cheaper all the time.

Memorable quote from an interview of a bush pilot when asked for advise on back-country flying:"Never be the first guy to land somewhere." Nuff said.

Eric