Great Planes big stick sterable tail wheel

Kinda tricky on that plane, but not impossible. Maybe remove the rudder and install a torque rod inline with the hinge line down through the horizontal stab. Remember to move the main gear forward so the wheels are under the wing's leading edge. After you're all done, be sure to balance the plane. The CG will have changed. An easy option would be to sell the Big Stick to a friend and get yourself an Hanger 9 Ultra Stick. Have fun.

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On Tue, 27 Nov 2007 08:29:18 -0800 (PST), snipped-for-privacy@googlemail.com wrote in :

I like Sullivan tailwheels. They mount under the fuselage and are driven by a wire driven into the rudder.

Haven't owned a GP BS 40, so I haven't worked out the installation needed ... A friend routinely puts an extension from the rudder on his kit-bashed trainers to make the Sullivan tail wheel work (the rudder doesn't come down low enough for the standard installation to work).

I don't remember how he does it. It looks hideous, but it steers just fine.

Marty

I haven't been around a 40 size Stik in a while but I've always used the CB Associates tail wheel assembly. They have (had? I don't even know if they're still in business, a quick search turned up some links but none worked) a flat steel piece with a bushing and horn at one end, to which attach two springs. The other end is simply bolted to the bottom of the fuse. The springs attach to a horn that is installed on the rudder. The springs keep your rudder servo gears from getting stripped.

They're heavier than most assemblies but keeping the rudder servo from getting munched is worth it for me. Hobby Lobby has some similar, but they don't show the rudder horn nor the springs.

Tower has some that are also similar here: (If the link doesn't work, just go to towers site and search tailwheel assembly.) The CB Associates assembly functioned more like the Ohio assembly shown on the Tower site but they had several sizes. The Ohio apparently only has one size, which would be useless for a 40 sized plane. Good luck! Cheers, jc

I noticed that the folks who have answered this question have generally ignored the fact that the airplane in question has a rudder on top that doesn't reach the bottom. I have a solution for you that will not destroy the looks of the plane.

What you need to do is install a hard point in the horizontal stabilizer to mount a tailwheel bracket. Using a straight edge, cut out a rectangle about an inch to an inch and a half long, removing a piece of the stabilizer. Replace the missing balsa wood with a piece of hard plywood the same size and thickness, and cover it with a scrap of covering film.

I can't remember if the elevator on this plane has the hinge line in the same place as the rudder hinge line. Assuming that it doesn't, you'll need to find the point on the bottom of the plane that lines up with the rudder hinge line. Drill a 1/16 or 3/32 hole from the bottom up. If the hinge line is in the right place, just make sure the wire can go through the crack comfortably.

Using a Du-Bro tailwheel bracket, figure out how long the wire needs to be to form an L at the top about an inch and a half long, right at the bottom of the rudder. The wire that comes in the packet is probably too short. Once you get the axle bent into the wire, poke it through the bracket and THEN bend the steering arm into the top in the right place. Also, solder a #2 washer (comes in the Du Bro packet) onto the wire just above the wheel, below the bracket, to keep the wire from getting jammed upwards and crashing into the bottom of the rudder.

Now thread the wire through the hole in the stabilizer (or through the elevator hinge line crack) and screw the bracket onto the bottom of the plane. You shouldn't have too much trouble getting an L shaped wire through the hole.

Once you get this far, you should have the tailwheel bracket on the bottom of the plane, and a tiller arm that goes along the bottom of the rudder. At this point you have two choices. You can use an eyelet or a stirrup on the rudder.

For a stirrup, find a piece of flexible plastic or sheet aluminum that you can use to tie the wire to the bottom of the rudder. Capture the tiller with the stirrup and hold the assembly in place with a 2-56 or

4-40 screw and nut through the rudder. You might want to harden the area with thin CA glue after you drill the hole, before you screw the stirrup on.

My preferred method, rather than a stirrup, is to use a piece of 1/16 wire about two inches long, with an eye loop bent into the end, inserted into the bottom of the rudder and glued in place. The tiller goes through the eyelet, with a piece of fuel line on it as a grommet. I use this type of installation on just about every taildragger I build 60 size and smaller.

Let me know whether or not these instructions make sense, and tell us if you get your problem solved.

snipped-for-privacy@googlemail.com wrote:

here:

Many thanks for the advice JC. All the best and happy flying!

Thanks for the advice Marty, all the best

Many thanks for the very detailed advice, Have also heard of people installing a a micro servo parallelled with the rudder servo and on springs. Does anyone think this is a viable option?

On Thu, 29 Nov 2007 03:33:15 -0800 (PST), snipped-for-privacy@googlemail.com wrote in :

It is easy and neat--just put it in the bottom of the fuse, ahead of the tail wheel. You may need a reversing Y harness to get it to go the right way or else cross the pull-pull wires to the springs to get it right.

This would change your CG more than with the other approaches, but not a huge amount. The plane might even be more fun with a slightly rearward CG.

Marty

Still to install the engine on the bearers, so should still have the option on C of G. Have already routed the aerial out of the bottom of the fuse and have also drilled a hole for this to pass through. So many options! I may have to route the aerial out the top now and attach to the tail fin, as I believe this will interfere with the servo if I decide to go this route. Thanks Marty.

snipped-for-privacy@googlemail.com wrote: Show quoted text -

That would work, but I don't see the point. It's probably easier to attach it to the rudder.

If you don't have the rudder installed as yet and if you want a really simple and light version (and especially if this is a trainer airplane) you can use this method:

Get a piece of relatively thin piano wire (.050 - .060) and bend into an inverted "L" from the leading edge of the rudder, down through the fuse and out the bottom, then form another "L" with a longer leg towards the trailing edge of the rudder and at an angle of 45 to 60 degrees, to form a spring.

Make another bend parallel to the stab and install a small tail wheel, perhaps

1/4" in diameter, then either bend the end to keep the wheel on or install a collar.

Ultimately, the whole thing will look like a squared off "C" except the bottom leg will be longer and angled down at around 45 degrees or so. Total length would be on the orderof 6" or so.

It's a good idea to install a collar in the bottom of the fuse, where the wire exits, to prevent damage to the fuse but is not a necessity.

If you use relatively light wire and a small wheel, the chances of stripping the rudder servo gears is minimal. This is the lightest and possibly easiest of all installations, although it will not be scale looking at all.

The top leg of the upper "L" should be about an inch in length and is epoxied into a hole you'll drill in the LE of the rudder. The down leg is glued in a shallow grove you carve into the leading edge of the rudder (epoxy is best and a bit of light weight glass cloth won't hurt things, either). The hole that goes through the fuse/horizontal stab will have to be wallowed out a bit so it doesn't hit the sides of the hole as the rudder moves (the wire will actually cut a small arc as the rudder moves). If the hinge line of the rudder and horizontal stab are lined up, you can just put a little bit of a bend in the wire just above the horz. stab and drill the hole forward of the stabs hinge line.

Allow the down leg of the wire, that goes from the rudder through the fuse to extend about 1/2" or so below the fuse, then bend it back so that the wheel will be at least an inch or so behind the LE of the rudder. The bend at that point should be between 45 and 60 degrees (it's not critical), angled back towards the TE of rudder.

This will not give you as much 'authority' for turning as you would have with the larger assemblies due to the smaller wheel and a lot of 'give' in the wire. The wire will bend easily if you have a hard landing or even hit something while taxiing. Of course, it's easy to straighten, too. Over all it may the best bet if this plane is to be a trainer. The piano wire is "springy" and will take a lot shock away from the rudder servo.

This is definitely not the prettiest installation and some might even say it's a bit of a jury rigged set up. Well, yes, it is. But it's cheap, easy to install and it works.

Good luck which ever one you choose! Cheers, jc

I came up with a way to avoid just that on an as-yet-to-be-built model.

The rudder(s) are driven from one side of the servo arm via a snake, and the tailwheel is driven from the other by a different snake. The snake is sufficiently springy to absorb massive shocks without damaging the servo. At least that is the theory...;-)

On Fri, 30 Nov 2007 17:36:00 +0000, The Natural Philosopher wrote in :

That's how the tailwheel works on the Great Planes Extra 300, sort of.

One of the rudder servos has a snake coming off the pushrod and going to the tailwheel control horn. The "spring" for the snake comes from tubing that traps the tailwheel pushrod clevis on the rudder pushrod. It's a bit of a Rube Goldberg setup, but it works:

|---rudder pushrod : collar : tubing : clevis : tubing : collar : rudder pushrod

just curios as I only have non steerable tail wheel models, are they worth the hassle my pits special taxi's fine without one? but it is a little depron jobby with a big 3D style rudder and all the ones I have had in the past have been the same and I don't remember having a problem with any of them but I do fly off of grass , never had the luxury of tarmac

In my case it is going to be a twin tail single prop..and the original could only be steered on the brakes with its castoring tailwheel, until it was nearly up to flying speed.

I decided a steerable tail wheel was easier than the brakes..

On a single tail model, there is enough propwash to make those work OK..

On Fri, 30 Nov 2007 18:57:11 GMT, Kevin wrote in :

When I've broken a tailwheel, I've noticed that ground handling becomes MUCH more difficult. It's surprising to me how much the tailweel adds.

I'm thinking of medium-size planes: .40 to 1.20 ci, 6 to 17 lb.

If you're doing OK without the tail wheel, then you're all set. You'll know when you need one. ;o)

Marty

It would likely be a lot easier for me to visualize that if I knew what kind of snake you hand in mind... certainly not the kind *I'm* thinking of! (;-)

The simple wire tailwheel assembly I described is one I've often used on trainers... airplanes destined to have a relatively short life-span. They have a great deal more authority than a skid but not as much as the spring steel, dedicated steerable assemblies. The only redeeming features are low cost and ease of installation. I've even retrofitted the entire thing in the field, using a plastic washer and wire and "hot stuff." Got me through the day, anyway.

They can be mashed together and they're bash adjustable. Can't get too much simpler than that! Snakes? I dunno, I hate gettin' snake bit! Cheers, jc

Plastic rod in plastic tube. Like a bowden cable but nylon instead of steel.

I figured it was something like that. Like the old Golden Rods, I believe they were called. I've got a few around that I'll use, eventually. Thanks for straightening me out. Cheers, jc