The International Cessna 170 Association

Well, we just purchased a set of 31" Alaska Bush Wheels at the Trade Show. We grabbed these because they were a cosmetic blem, same price as the 29". I wasn't sold completely on 31" over 29" though. Any thoughts from users of either size or preferably both sizes?

The weight is the same (31" have one less layer). May lose a very little speed. Why not run the 31" for the same price?

How about ground handling and landing/T.O. with the slightly larger tires? Basically what I am looking for is a reason why you wouldn't run the 31" compared to the 29'ers. We currently have the Lady Leg gear though will but the right 180 gear as soon as we can find it. PPONK upgrade had already been installed. Picked up the Cleveland Double Puck kit with these tires.

Thanks in advance.

Jaime

Jaime,
You might want to look at supercub.org There are several discussions of the pros and cons. Most people there seem to prefer the 31's.
Mick

Mick,

Thanks for the suggestion. I have talked to lots of cub drivers. I am kind of curious as to what some 170 drivers think. Obviously a different gross weight, different CG and gear legs all play into how this would change a 170's performance.

Thanks again,

Jaime

I've seen 26" BWs on a couple 170s in Idaho, I'm really curious how they look with 31s. Post some pictures if you can.

Will post the pictures when we get them on. Probably within the next week. I have seen lots of 26'ers, many 29'ers and maybe 1-2 31's here in Alaska. We will see.

Cheers,

Jaime

I fly from pavement all of the time so I've decided to equip my C-170B main gear with plastc tired skate wheels to reduce the in flight drag. Does anyone have a line on some very small brake rotors?

Great thought BL but why didn't you just use Vespa wheels and tires? That way you'd only have to stock one type between your airplane and scooter.

Jaime,

I've run the 31"s for just over a year now and love them. i feel they improved my safety margin on off-field surfaces, increased my angle of attack, raised my prop further out of the sand/gravel/mud/small trees, and I believe they absorb alot of the landing stresses that will wear on the airframe over time if you are in the habit of landing on anything other than pavement. i noticed about a 5-7 mph cruise speed reudction going from the 850s, and you may consider double-puck brakes if you don't already have them. they've been a great tire for my tailwheel 172. I don't think you'll regret not getting the 29"s

I'll try to post some pics for you.

JR

Bruce,
I'm running 6" wheels now and the Vespa has 12" wheels.

here are some pics of the 31"s in their natural environment...

Here is a pic for comparison. That's a 31" Bushwheel next to a Michelin 8:00x6.

How much did they actually weigh? How are they wearing, and have you run into any cons besides the weight and drag? I've been planning on a set of 26s but I keep running out of money chasing other loose ends

blueldr wrote:I fly from pavement all of the time so I've decided to equip my C-170B main gear with plastc tired skate wheels to reduce the in flight drag. Does anyone have a line on some very small brake rotors?

N9149A wrote:Great thought BL but why didn't you just use Vespa wheels and tires? That way you'd only have to stock one type between your airplane and scooter.

We should ALL take lessons from bluEldr on how to stay young...by continuing to THINK young! (Instead of becoming pre-maturely crotchety like me and a certain other (founding) member we all know and love.)

bluEldr's remark reminds me of the travelling "boys-band" salesman in the movie "The Music Man" (played by Robt. Preston) who flim-flams an entire town into believing he can teach boys to play orchestral music by using his patented "THINK"-system.

This 1956 NATO report entitled United States Army Experience in Operations from Unprepared Fields should be of interest to you Alaska guys. The author, John Denhart, says that to prepare for nuclear war U.S. Army needs to be able to operate from unimproved fields using light aircraft rather than VTOL because they are cheaper and less labor intensive than VTOL aircraft. So I'm guessing if Russia ever invades the Army is going to be impressing you guys to be our first line of defense! They tested the Whitaker tandem gear and claimed they were able to takeoff and land over 12" furrows with it. Pictures are at the end. Here's one of Goodyear's Terra-Tires on a Stinson.

blueldr wrote:I fly from pavement all of the time so I've decided to equip my C-170B main gear with plastc tired skate wheels to reduce the in flight drag. Does anyone have a line on some very small brake rotors?

Forget the small brake rotors, take the brakes off altogether, then to save even more weight and drag, take off the tailwheel and bolt a wood skid to the spring, then you won't need brakes.