I'll have my Pacer back in the air soon. I went with Desser 8.50s and I'm wondering what tire pressures you have found to work best and what pressures don't work.

Thanks for your help.

Rick
N2220K

I like 15-18 psi in mine. Thats on my straight tail 172, comparable weight to you Pacer

On my lighter Champ I run 10PSI. 30+ hrs/50+ landings; no problems. 50/50 rough grass and asphalt/concrete.

Jack

22 in C180

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I run 22 psi on my cessna 140. I run them a little firmer than most. But they still do the job well with rougher off airport stuff.since they have been proving they can take the higher pressure, I'd prefer to leave then a little firmer to mitigate the risk of shearing the valve stem

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I run them at 10 psi on my Cessna 140 (1,450 lb GW). I have had zero problems under heavy braking.

If you run relatively low tire pressures in tires (on 8.50s I figure anything less than about 22psi) paint “witness marks” radially across the tire bead and outer wheel.

If a tire starts to slip, those marks will separate. Examining the marks should be a preflight item.

And lose the hub caps....harder to see marks and harder to check pressures.

Bear in mind that tire pressures change with temperature and some leak very slowly. So more frequent tire pressure checks are in order if you run low pressure. Doesn’t take long to go from fifteen psi to eight.....

MTV

I run 12 psi on my Citabria (1650 max gross). I worked my way down from 15 psi which were quite bouncy.

22 psi on my plane would result in more of a ricochet than a landing.

They do lose more air than any aircraft tire I've been around, or at least with only 12 psi you don't really have much to spare so a pound or two is noticeable. I keep a tire gauge and bike pump in my hangar and end up using them at least once per month.

1957 C182A, 8.50 Mains- I have run as low as 14psi on grass and some asphalt/concrete. I have found 18psi to work well on all surfaces lightly and moderately loaded. When I left to go west this summer, I bumped it up to 22 psi because I was constantly carrying a heavy load. Most of the time its just me and fuel and tool kit, so 18psi is the norm.

18 C180

Thank you ALL for your help, just what I needed. Should be flying this coming weekend.

Rick

850's: used to run 15 on the C150TD, and now 20 on the C180.

I run 12-15 on my Rans S7. Most landings are on pavement and have had no problem with 12 psi. I almost never have to use brakes when I land.

Anyone have some good photos of the dessert 8.50s on a pacer? Someone almost talked me into 8.00s instead. Not sure now.

Spdcrazy wrote:Anyone have some good photos of the dessert 8.50s on a pacer? Someone almost talked me into 8.00s instead. Not sure now.

Here is a set of the smooth Desser 8.50s on my Pacer.

Spdcrazy wrote:Anyone have some good photos of the dessert 8.50s on a pacer? Someone almost talked me into 8.00s instead. Not sure now.

GY 26” blimp tires. I hear they’re similar sized to an 8.50?

CamTom12 wrote: GY 26” blimp tires. I hear they’re similar sized to an 8.50?

Maybe they're not quite as big as a 26" BW, but the 26" GY is definitely bigger than an 850.
Here's a new 26" GY laying on top of a new 850 Airtrac.

hotrod180 wrote:

CamTom12 wrote: GY 26” blimp tires. I hear they’re similar sized to an 8.50?

Maybe they're not quite as big as a 26" BW, but the 26" GY is definitely bigger than an 850.
Here's a new 26" GY laying on top of a new 850 Airtrac.

That’s a good visual, thanks!

I have used Goodyear 8.50 x 6.00 tires in any application which that size tire is used.

My experience with the Goodyears vs Desser 8.50s is the Dessers are a bit smaller in diameter, much more rounded in profile and have a lot more tread grooves, which tend to throw stuff at the tail surfaces.

Also, in my experience, the Goodyears, while they cost more than Dessers, will also last a lot longer in service. And, the Goodyears are a bit heavier....which probably suggests why they last a bit longer.

MTV