I just put on a wide tailwheel on the 170.
With the little tailwheel I used to be able to taxi with minimum breaking, but now, it seems like there is no tailwheel steering and I need to apply brakes to make any turns.
Is this normal, or do I need stiffer springs, or is something else going on?

May be best to check with Steve at AKBW.

Are you on pavement or soft ground? What is your tail tire pressure? I have the Gar-Aero tundra tailwheel on my '52B and it steers fine on pavement with no real need for differential braking except for tight turns. I am running the tail tire at 35psi. YMMV.

I am running it at 12psi per instructions.
Both sand/gravel and pavement - no steering, but at least it tracks straight.
I can press full rudder either way when taxing and nothing happens.

I found on my 180(200lbs. on the tail) that is worked best, lasted longest, running 20#'s pressure.

Did you reassemble your tailwheel correctly? It sounds like the steering pawl is not transferring rudder chain inputs to the fork.

edit: or for some reason the compression spring on the fork is not making contact with the bracket assembly. If the pawl is upside down or the compression spring is not fit properly, you don't have a steerable tailwheel the way I understand it.

When I jack the tail up, the tailwheel moves when pressing on the rudder, but really sluggishly.
I checked it before putting it back on, and it seemed to move freely.
I wonder if something is binding, or the increased friction of the wide wheel requires stiffer chains?

AKclimber wrote:When I jack the tail up, the tailwheel moves when pressing on the rudder, but really sluggishly.
I checked it before putting it back on, and it seemed to move freely.
I wonder if something is binding, or the increased friction of the wide wheel requires stiffer chains?

I noticed when I put the Baby Bush Wheel on my Tundra that castor angle of the tail wheel became more important than ever to keep pedal pressure low. With a forward lean to the angle it will turn very hard on pavement with the extra contact area.

Not too late to add that the castor angle is seriously affected by the flattening of the leaf spring over time and many landings ( or a few rough ones) What got by with the smaller wheel becomes hard work with the added width of the BBW. Give them a call at ABW.

When I put the baby bushwheel on the Maule nothing changed as far as steering. It is not much good except for gentle turns. I use brakes for 95% of my turns.

G'Day

I have the Alaska Bush tail wheel on my Stinson. I have no problem with it on grass or pavement. Check the assembly for possible are. You might have a pin lost or the little springs in the hub might be in a bind.

I just put new springs and the Gar-Aero on the 172TD, which corrected a castor angle issue I had with the Scott 3200. It taxis like a dream now. No brake needed at all, except if I make a pivoting turn.

How much of the improvement is attributed to the fat tire, or to the angle of the head, I don't know. Wup and crew have a great video on the AK Bushwheel site describing the proper angle.

Gump

For what it's worth my 170 doesn't steer well with out brakes either. That's with the Scott 3200 before and after the new baby bushwheel fork kit that I just put on. I took link out on each chain to tighten it up a bit and it didn't really help. Looking at the tailwheel geometry I think its wrong though. I may get a new tailwheel spring to see if it changes the angle and helps the steering. Until then I'll just deal with it like I always have with a little extra help from the brakes.

If your main spring is flat and the line between the head and fork is not horizontal to the ground your caster is off and it will steer hard.
On the 170 the main spring has a downward bend about 10* they flatten out with use and age and weight.

Fig 1 will turn too hard. Fig 2 will turn easier but is still not right.

I agree on the wimpy tail springs on the 170. I replaced the primary leaf on mine with a main leaf from an L-19 (they're available from Univair). Since that main leaf is thicker than the stock one, the resultant spring stack wouldn't fit into the clamps on the airframe. I removed the smallest leaf from the stack, and the new stack of springs is perfect for the weight on the tail. Lots less flexion. Field approval required.

MTV

put the steering arms off a 3400 and the short release pawl on it. the 3400 arms are wider and are bent up on the ends and the short pawl makes it turn farther without clicking out and castering. It makes the all the difference in a 170

Actually, the steering arm with the upturned ears for this tailwheel is a 3214 T steering arm, not a 3400 arm. But, I agree, the 3214 T steering arm can make a difference, ONCE the tailwheel geometry is correct.

MTV

I compared the spring tension that pulls on the rudder. It's pretty weak, that is when I jack up the tail and move the rudder by hand, I can hold the tailwheel straight with minimum effort. I then compared my steering springs to a brand new scott 3200 on a pacer and my springs are longer and thinner compared to the new shorter and thicker ones.
Anyone know if there is a heavy duty spring available? Part #? Best place to get it?