Thanks for all the input. For now I'll stick with my 8.5x10's, adopt a wait and see with the GY26 FA I asked for. Maybe Desser will have something out at Sun-n-Fun or Oshkosh to clarify the 31" or possible 29" Tundra tire.

Barnstormer-- you used GY26" for quite awhile. What about your experience and why did you change?

I really haven't heard much about the ABW 26" incher... this is the first time. I checked the link and it comes up blank for the heavy tread 29" ABW. I did have 29/11x10's and found them very heavy and stiff... changed to the 8.5x10's. In the long run I don't think they are the solution I'm looking for.

I am a little tired of changing tires for a particular purpose. It would be nice to get a 'Compromise' tire;) Skalywag, I agree... by compromise I meant the tire not the airplane! And of course all puns are intended.

gunny

Just hang a set of 29x11x10 buffed tires on there and stop sweating a little speed loss.

If you were really worried about speed, youd have bought a Bonanza. Skywagons aren't built to go fast.

MTV

Gunny,

Jimmy in Llano got the field approval for the 26" Goodyears on his wagon. Might get ahold of him if you need any help.


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Gunny wrote:...Barnstormer-- you used GY26" for quite awhile. What about your experience and why did you change?

When I purchased the 185 it was on nearly worn out 8.50's. I soon switched to 26 Goodyears. Landing Texas sandbars a couple of times convinced me to change to 29 Bushwheels. Then I bought the SQ-2 and the 185 became a fly into the backcountry and fly long trips airplane. I let my assistant learn to fly it but unfortunately her first instructor had taught her to always turn pivoting on the tire (in fairness he taught her to fly in a 140 on a 30' wide runway, and he is a pavement pounder). I wasn't paying attention and even though she was training on turf she burned a hole through the rubber to the cord on one tire. I decided since I was no longer using the 185 off-airport I'd switch back to 26 Goodyears - nice to get 15mph of cruise back. Now on long trips I no longer seek out turf to land on (like between taxiways), as MTV once said the Goodyears "wear like iron".

But aired down, even only to 18psi, under aggressive braking they will rotate on the rims which of course will shear the valve stem. I hadn't considered trying to find O-ringed wheels and running them tubeless, if available that would be great. When on Bushwheels I ran "hubcaps", on the Goodyears I don't so I can see the valve stem. akgreg's clear "hubcaps" are an interesting idea, help keep dirt out of the outside wheel bearings and still see the valve stem.

G44 wrote:With all this Ak Bushwheel talk, I was wondering what work Bushwheels could be used for? Utility cart? Any ideas? Seems like a shame to just toss a set when they could still be used on the ground in some capacity.

You must have missed seeing Jon Bush's baby carriage made out of 35" bushwheels. It was quite the comical sight. But it could go anywhere.

Barnstormer wrote:

Gunny wrote: I let my assistant learn to fly it but unfortunately her first instructor had taught her to always turn pivoting on the tire (in fairness he taught her to fly in a 140 on a 30' wide runway, and he is a pavement pounder).

I did most my tailwheel flying in a citabria - I also turn by pivoting on the tire. I've never flown on the big ABW's - how do you make a tight turn in a taildragger without pivoting on the tire? Not being a smart-ass, truly wondering what method to use to avoid pivoting on the tire.

Edit* I guess the answer could be as simple as - don't make such tight turns. Like when you swing the tail around at the run up pad...

We got new asphalt a few years ago and an Air Tractor driver from down south did the pivot thing and literally gouged our new turn arounds. The other pilots said he really didn't need to turn quite that tight.

corefile wrote:

Barnstormer wrote:I let my assistant learn to fly it but unfortunately her first instructor had taught her to always turn pivoting on the tire (in fairness he taught her to fly in a 140 on a 30' wide runway, and he is a pavement pounder).

I did most my tailwheel flying in a citabria - I also turn by pivoting on the tire. I've never flown on the big ABW's - how do you make a tight turn in a taildragger without pivoting on the tire? Not being a smart-ass, truly wondering what method to use to avoid pivoting on the tire.

Edit* I guess the answer could be as simple as - don't make such tight turns. Like when you swing the tail around at the run up pad...

Exactly. Just scribe a circle on the ground with the inside tire, a bigger radius is better, key is to keep the tire moving forward during the turn.

But aired down, even only to 18psi, under aggressive braking they will rotate on the rims which of course will shear the valve stem

That's the nice thing about the AK 10" wheels, the are oversized in the bead (.200 I think?).
Makes for a thight fit, I've run mine with 29" airhawks as low as 10lbs without any slippage.

Barnstormer wrote:

Gunny wrote:...Barnstormer-- you used GY26" for quite awhile. What about your experience and why did you change?

When I purchased the 185 it was on nearly worn out 8.50's. I soon switched to 26 Goodyears. Landing Texas sandbars a couple of times convinced me to change to 29 Bushwheels. Then I bought the SQ-2 and the 185 became a fly into the backcountry and fly long trips airplane. I let my assistant learn to fly it but unfortunately her first instructor had taught her to always turn pivoting on the tire (in fairness he taught her to fly in a 140 on a 30' wide runway, and he is a pavement pounder). I wasn't paying attention and even though she was training on turf she burned a hole through the rubber to the cord on one tire. I decided since I was no longer using the 185 off-airport I'd switch back to 26 Goodyears - nice to get 15mph of cruise back. Now on long trips I no longer seek out turf to land on (like between taxiways), as MTV once said the Goodyears "wear like iron".

But aired down, even only to 18psi, under aggressive braking they will rotate on the rims which of course will shear the valve stem. I hadn't considered trying to find O-ringed wheels and running them tubeless, if available that would be great. When on Bushwheels I ran "hubcaps", on the Goodyears I don't so I can see the valve stem. akgreg's clear "hubcaps" are an interesting idea, help keep dirt out of the outside wheel bearings and still see the valve stem.

It is very easy to convert any split wheel tubeless. Just use automotive bead sealer between the two wheel halves and an automotive valve stem which fits your valve hole. I run my tires that way and never had a leak.


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This is a good thread. Thanks for bring up this question. (I've got on order both the 26" GoodYear and 31" Desser)

Pusher wrote:

Barnstormer wrote:

Gunny wrote:...Barnstormer-- you used GY26" for quite awhile. What about your experience and why did you change?

When I purchased the 185 it was on nearly worn out 8.50's. I soon switched to 26 Goodyears. Landing Texas sandbars a couple of times convinced me to change to 29 Bushwheels. Then I bought the SQ-2 and the 185 became a fly into the backcountry and fly long trips airplane. I let my assistant learn to fly it but unfortunately her first instructor had taught her to always turn pivoting on the tire (in fairness he taught her to fly in a 140 on a 30' wide runway, and he is a pavement pounder). I wasn't paying attention and even though she was training on turf she burned a hole through the rubber to the cord on one tire. I decided since I was no longer using the 185 off-airport I'd switch back to 26 Goodyears - nice to get 15mph of cruise back. Now on long trips I no longer seek out turf to land on (like between taxiways), as MTV once said the Goodyears "wear like iron".

But aired down, even only to 18psi, under aggressive braking they will rotate on the rims which of course will shear the valve stem. I hadn't considered trying to find O-ringed wheels and running them tubeless, if available that would be great. When on Bushwheels I ran "hubcaps", on the Goodyears I don't so I can see the valve stem. akgreg's clear "hubcaps" are an interesting idea, help keep dirt out of the outside wheel bearings and still see the valve stem.

It is very easy to convert any split wheel tubeless. Just use automotive bead sealer between the two wheel halves and an automotive valve stem which fits your valve hole. I run my tires that way and never had a leak.


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I might try this on my GY26s. If the tire slips on the wheel and it's tubeless, will the bead blow and flatten the tire?

The easiest way to get the correct stuff to change your normal wheels to tubeless is to call the folks that make Matco tailwheels and order their "tubeless" kit. They will send you an o-ring and a valve stem- no glue, no weight, no hassle. I put air in my tires once a season as the temperature requires and can consistently hold between 2 and 5psi depending on my mission. This is at gross weights of less than 1300# so you may need to babysit it more on a 180. Cheap, easy, and any concerns of a tire slipping on the rim go away. Pretty easy to modify your field approval to reflect this installation as it is how the tire was designed to be used.

Terry wrote:

But aired down, even only to 18psi, under aggressive braking they will rotate on the rims which of course will shear the valve stem

That's the nice thing about the AK 10" wheels, the are oversized in the bead (.200 I think?).
Makes for a thight fit, I've run mine with 29" airhawks as low as 10lbs without any slippage.

How do these tires flex at lower pressure Terry?

silflexer wrote:The easiest way to get the correct stuff to change your normal wheels to tubeless is to call the folks that make Matco tailwheels and order their "tubeless" kit. They will send you an o-ring and a valve stem- no glue, no weight, no hassle. I put air in my tires once a season as the temperature requires and can consistently hold between 2 and 5psi depending on my mission. This is at gross weights of less than 1300# so you may need to babysit it more on a 180. Cheap, easy, and any concerns of a tire slipping on the rim go away. Pretty easy to modify your field approval to reflect this installation as it is how the tire was designed to be used.

What tires are you running?

I'm in an exp. pacer, so lighter weights than a 180 and no paperwork drills

Don't forget about your third wheel in the back. There's 200lbs on that guy or so right? That would still give you 1600 on each main and be able to support gross I think.

mountainmatt wrote:

Gunny wrote:

fiftynineSC wrote:
.............

https://www.desser.com/Aircraft-Tires-a ... -AA4K5.asp

The only reason I don't have these on is I'm not sure about the load rating. 1600# per tire. to my feeble mind that would be 3200#, less than the 3350 gross that my plane is good for. Not sure if I'm looking at that right or if it matters.

59, in fact it does affect you. The load rating needs to be larger than your GW capability. Plus it appears to be limited to 120 MPH... which is an issue as well. It doesn't look like a tire for the 180/185. But the other thread mentions a 27" tire that might be interesting.

gunny

I've run the Desser 8.50 smooth and have found it to be a great tire. 1600 load is per tire (3200 max gross weight, sorry 185 guys). 120 mph is tire rotation speed on landing and takeoff, which I don't have a problem staying under.

Best "compromise" tire? All options are a compromise of sorts. For mostly pavement with mild to moderate backcountry flying? 8.50x6. Very little speed loss, low cost, good wear, light weight. Used to be considered the largest 'tundra tire' suitable for a Skywagon. Lots of old timers will tell you that's all that is needed ever. Of course I disagree, if you are pushing the envelope for landing zones, get the biggest and softest tire you can. $4k in rubber every year or two cheaper than gearboxes and helicopter rides. But for 90% pavement and anything that can be considered a strip or even decent gravel bars and beaches, 8.50s will work just fine.

"""Gunny,

Jimmy in Llano got the field approval for the 26" Goodyears on his wagon. Might get ahold of him if you need any help.
"""

Skalywag- Thanks for the pointer. I turned in my FA request with three other approved 337's for the GY26 on 180's as reference data. My request won't be dependent on approved data. It's just wait and see right now. If its successful, I'll post the entire package with Zane for others to use. One minor point is that having an approved FA in your FSDO region makes it easier than just using references from other regions. Why is this so... I have no idea.

Barnstomer- Thanks for the GY26 comments! What tire pressures do you typically run? As for pivot turns... I hold the opinion that you have to keep both tires moving... no need to burn rubber unnecessarily.

MTV- I've had three Bonanzas and they are great for speed. But not what I want. Since I live in the middle of Texas, places I want to go are a stretch for me... therefore my 'compromise'.

Lots of good input. I wish I'd started the thread before I sent in my GY26 FA request... it was based on using a tube (like all the others had been).

What about tire pressures?

Thanks ya'll!

gunny

silflexer wrote:The easiest way to get the correct stuff to change your normal wheels to tubeless is to call the folks that make Matco tailwheels and order their "tubeless" kit. They will send you an o-ring and a valve stem- no glue, no weight, no hassle. I put air in my tires once a season as the temperature requires and can consistently hold between 2 and 5psi depending on my mission. This is at gross weights of less than 1300# so you may need to babysit it more on a 180. Cheap, easy, and any concerns of a tire slipping on the rim go away. Pretty easy to modify your field approval to reflect this installation as it is how the tire was designed to be used.

Matco wheels are different then normal aircraft wheels. Their tubeless kit would not work on a normal wheel. Using automotive bead sealer and valve stem does not add any more weight then an O-ring. Just a little bead sealer on the edge where the 2 wheel halves meet is enough.

Matco Wheel



Cleveland Wheel

Scolopax wrote:

Terry wrote:

But aired down, even only to 18psi, under aggressive braking they will rotate on the rims which of course will shear the valve stem

That's the nice thing about the AK 10" wheels, the are oversized in the bead (.200 I think?).
Makes for a thight fit, I've run mine with 29" airhawks as low as 10lbs without any slippage.

How do these tires flex at lower pressure Terry?

It helps a little, but not much. Those tires are really stiff.