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

I think it would be a good thing to try, but harder to learn at first. The ground-handling will be difficult for a student.

You can minimize the nose-over tendency by moving the mains forward a bit and you can have the student taxi with the wing off for practice.

Having moved to taildraggers several months ago, I think they are just as easy as trike gear. I don't see, NOW, what I was so afraid of THEN.

Maybe some instructors will have reasons for not doing it, but I can't seem to find one. As long as you can recover the plane if needed, go for it.

G'day Mate,
As an Instructor myself, I agree whole heartedly, with you suggestions.
In our club we have a fella who used to have all the trouble in the world landing his trainer, trike gear setup, he has changed it to a taildragger, & bingo, he lands as sweet as a nut, almost every time, he could not get the hang of raising the nose enough, to stop it from landing on the nose wheel first, now he can land level, on the main wheels, slightly nose down, problem solved.
He never had any trouble taking off, just the final flair for touch down.

yea i learned on a tower trainer 40 and it is now in the shop in pieces after 2 crashes R.I.P Tower trainer but anyway it was a very good trainer for me i think but heres a good tailwheel trainer http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products...ProdID=HAN2825 just a thought im only 15 so what do i know LOL

Extra:
Your right in that the PTS is a very cool idea and a really neat plane. I have one that is mostly worn out, got it as a christmas present. Not a perfect plane and having some minor troubles as a trainer, I've enjoyed it a bit, but there are reasons why I recomended a more traditional trainer for my lady's first.

If you're thinking about the PTS as a second plane (just guessing from your post) I'd say go for it. It will behave quite nicely for you, and with a few mods and a better engine it should provide lots of fun and room to expand your flight routine.

OH HECK NO!!!! not for me my dad and friend both had one crashed em both (dad rebuilt his and put retracts in it) i got a lanier 300L for my second plane aint flone it yet dad wont let me untill i get good enough with my duraplane trainer(real second plane sicne i crashed my tower trainer) lol i understand ur girlfriend needs something easy to learn on?i learned on my tower trainer was fine with me no complaints

I do agree that some people have better luck on a taildragger setup.

If you do convert a typical trike setup as was suggested the mains should be just a tad forward. Typically when I convert one I place the wheel axle 1/2 inch in front of the leading edge of the wing. This have never given me any problems.

Instead of converting a typical trainer, how about a 4*40 or even the 4*60. I've "donated" my 4*60 to my club, as like you are, I am the chief flight instructor and intro pilot and most of the people I intro with have no problem if I set it up for very low throws.

All of my planes have been tail draggers and I'm self taught. I fly a 63" Goldberg Extra now and have been flying for about 3 years. I started off with a homebrew, bluefoam, and stick built, electric three channel trainer. Next step was a GWS EStarter, then a GWS Formosa, then a Tower Hobbies Uproar 40.

Point here is, I never flew a tricycle gear trainer until I started teaching people to fly. In my opinion, tail dragger gear is easier, and more intuitive to learn to fly with. The fact that the tail wheel comes off the ground and you lose a little ground control is minute, By that time you should be just about airborne. I also think it is far easier to land a tail dragger.

oh btw dad has an os 70 4 stroke in his

I agree that either of these might do well, but tower had a phenominal sale on their trainer .40 a short while back. It's normally 69.99 and it was discounted $10 and if you bought it in a combo with an engine you got a $20 gift certificate, and I had a $20 off coupon on an order over $149.99 plus I get free shipping for being a super saver member. A little math and I couldn't beat a .40 trainer ARF for around $20. Besides, I learned on a superstar back in 1997 and the tower trainer is very similar.

By the way, -Extra- my second plane was a Duraplane .40. lovely little piece of brick. It'll do a fantastic flat spin with enough rudder throw. My dad and I used to spin it power off all the way to the ground. Never hurt it really, except for warping the tail shaft every other landing or so.
-Steve

I wish I could remember the model, but a fellow in a club I used to belong to built a model from RCM plans and it had a seperate linkage to the tail-wheel. The rudder servo went to a bellcrank, and the outer end was to the rudder and further inside the bellcrank arm a seperate control rod went back to the tailwheel. The tailwheel then moved 1/2 as much (in degrees) as the rudder. It taxied as easy as any tri gear. Added a lot of complication, but it was a wonderful plane. Looked like a Kaos - low wing, bubble canopy and tapered rectangular surfaces - like the wings and empennage of a P-51.

Wrong plane for a beginner, but the "geared down" tailwheel may be an idea for the tail draggin trainer you're working towards.

I don't care for trikes. On our bumpy grass field the nose wheel roots and digs and inevitably gets out of alignment. They're easier for a "real" pilot as you can see forward out the windscreen on the ground, but for R/C I much prefer tail draggers. If my Contender didn't have widely seperated wing mounted mains I'd have converted it by now.

Related story: I was flying my S/K 50 a few weeks ago and the grass was a bit long. I could not get up speed for lift off - ending up waiting for her to take a bounce and yanking back to get airborne (a bad practice because if the engine quits you're toast). I was leaning back the engine, as it just seemed to lack power, to the point that I was flaming out at altitude when maneuvering. Turns out the wheel pants had each cracked along the forward edge at the struts. When taxing it was enough pressure from the grass to turn the pants in and rub on the tires. The faster I rolled the harded the "brakes" were applied.

Took the wheel pants off and problem solved.

Thanx Lom im taking it for a first flight this weekend me and my dad made a few mods to it we put bigger ailerons on it straightend the wing out and thats about it lol and im puttin a tower .46 on it so i hope it flys good

Sounds Like fun LD. Hopefully my ava will be back flying soon.