Hey there guys, looks like building weather is on the way, and as such I am just starting (more like finnaly getting around to after having the plane in a corner for well over a month now) assembly on a Tower Trainer .40 ARF for my girlfriend's first plane. I finnaly converted her into an airplane lover
I'm a club instructor at one of the fields wher I am a member, and have for a LONG time detested nosewheel setups because they seem less capable of withstanding damage, and no matter how well you put them together, it's only a matter of time until something is out of adjustment (or as the case on most trainers) bent out of whack, never to be the same again, and they never seem to have enough control authority on the ground.
Time to theorize and throw myself on the choping block:
I think that a properly set up trainer with a tail wheel configuration can be as stable if not more stable on the ground than a similar plane with a nose wheel.[:-]
I'm thinking of trying it on her plane just to see, and simplify steering on the ground. I hypothesize that it will hold up to abuse better, and that it may actually be easier to teach ground handling and takeoffs with a tail wheel than a trainer wheel.
Proof:
1) A tailwheel setup is geometrically more stable than a trainer wheel while all three wheels are on the ground.
2) After a few (typical training type) landings a nosewheel is forever deformed and will never taxi right again.
Drawbacks:
1) It is after the tail comes up that a tailwheel is more difficult to manage on the ground, and this will require more attention to the rudder on takeoff.
2) A tail wheel CAN be more prone to nosing over at high speeds. But think: how many times have you seen a trainer resting on its nose gear, one main gear, and a wingtip from taxiing in a quartering tail wind?
I think that with the proper setup, proper training, and beating back of the ne'r do-wells, one can learn to fly with a tail dragging trainer.
So what do you guys think? (mainly asking instructors and experienced pilots for oppinions here, though beginers are more than welcome to comment or ask questions)
Have you seen it done before?
-Steve