Tucson #230 #231 Wheeley Casters

The left side is lifting sooner than the right

Marana LZ
Higher winds gave me the excuse to try out the wheeley casters. I put the trimmers out and the wing came up quickly without pulling me back. It probably also helped that the surface was hard and smooth. One thing I noticed from viewing the video was that the left wheel lifted before the front.. I never felt like I was in danger of rolling but it is something to be aware of and possibly corrected before launching with the trimmers out. At the least I should hang the tool bag back on the left side. So while I wasn’t able to see how the casters worked on launch I did get the impression that they were touching during the run out. On landing I felt them again but no problem.

First flight was about 30 minutes, I stayed in the general vicinity of the LZ and tried to get the feel of the area. Mostly farm flying but to the west there is a river that goes north. Scott Nicoles took that route and I wish I had gone with him. I was not able to be there when he returned because Mike Levine and I had to get back for dinner with the whole family.

The second flight was a quickie, I had to abort the first launch because the left brake line was twisted and I could feel the pulley wasn’t rolling free….landing was sweet with the motor off…I flared at the last second and bled off the energy at just a couple of inches AGL.

Wheeley Casters

You want my wheels?
For What?
I’ve turtled the buggy twice. once on smooth surface and once in softer sand. Both times the wind was under 10 mph and it would have been an easy reverse. Until I have mastered the three wheel reverse I’d still like to fly.
So…

I’ve designed a prototype set of wheeley casters for the trike buggy.
One inch aluminum square tube clamped to the bottom of the frame.
3/4 inch square aluminum strut inserted and pinned
The wheels are very light blown plastic toy wheels.
When the conditions warrant I can put them on in 2 minutes.

I look forward to trying them out.