Food for thought. While it might seem like the lack of a nose wheel might give tail draggers an advantage, heavy landings with them will also take their toll. Instead of nose gear and firewall issues, heavy landings with a tail dragger can/will result in bending the landing gear, tearing out the entire landing gear mount, nosing the plane over and breaking the prop, etc. The key, which I'm sure you realize, is to spend lots of time practicing landings until every one is nice and soft. [sm=regular_smile.gif]