stunthanger.com
General control line discussion => Open Forum => Topic started by: Bill Sawyer on December 09, 2010, 06:51:42 PM
-
I have been looking for a source for narrow wheels to fit inside wheel pants. I have wanted to make the width of my wheel pants narrower. There are some 2 inch foam wheels ( Dave Brown if I remember correctly ) that are only 1/2 inch wide but they wear out on hard surfaes and will flatten if the plane is left sitting on the wheels. I installed access panels in the wheel pants but I didn't like those so I changed to the Hangar 9 wheels. Yes they were wider but by putting them on my belt sander and removing all the tire rubber down even with the wheel rim they got fairly narrow. A little Sharpie ink to change the dull finish back to black and they were fairly acceptable. After removing a lot of skin and fingernails, I figured there had to be a better method. Better yet there is possibly some secret brand of wheel I have not heard of. So whats the way everyone else is doing it?
-
Bill: Mark Warashana (I probably spelled that wrong) supplies narrow racing wheels for the racing and carrier community. I bought mine through Wayne Buran, but Mark advertises in "Flying Lines", which is the excellent on-line newsletter for the Northwest Region Control line clubs. They are very narrow/streamlined, of the highest quality and wear well. Check it out. 8)
-
Bill,
These may be good for your narrow wheel pants. I have them on several airplanes. They are very light, strong enough, and very narrow. And inexpensive. :) Your LHS should have them.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXTDS7&P=ML
They come in several (Dia.) sizes.
-
Rudy,
I've used these but they wear out pretty quickly. At least for me.
-
Rudy,
I've used these but they wear out pretty quickly. At least for me.
Me too, but they are cheap and you want to make provision for replacing them, anyway. I generally replace my wheels (Dave Brown or these kind) just before the NATs every year.
Brett
-
I used these on my new classic model. I had to bush them to get a good fit on the axle and roll straight.
Mike
-
Rudy,
I've used these but they wear out pretty quickly. At least for me.
Hi Randy,
Good point. I forgot to mention that I fly 98% off of grass. Like Mike said, putting a brass bushing on them would be a good idea on pavement where they roll a lot longer and faster. I don't know how well the tire will hold up if someone flies mostly off of pavement?
-
We used to use racing wheels to get them to fit inside the narrow wheel pants. There is a source that was mentioned on here, but I can't find it. H^^Luckily I still have three sets of them. Two installed on my Cobra and on an Ares.
type in "racing wheels " in the search box. Lots of info there.
Racing wheels work well, except for the 'knife-edge' tread look. I used some oversized ones, (3") chucked them in my electric die grinder, and took off 1/4" on the belt sander, shaping them as I went. Looked good.
For my Golden Age stuff, (Gee Bees, Mystery Ship, etc.) I use Williams Bros. 'Golden Age', as they are scale spokes with simulated fabric covering. They allow a narrow, scale pant.
That said, the Mystery Ship has pants big enough to be worn by Homies! (these would allow a wider tire...but I still used the Wms. Bros. Golden Age type, bushed with brass)
-
I like the idea of the "take apart" wheel pants best of all, and I have done it several times. Of course, my Geo Juno is about 13-14 years old and on its original Dave Brown Lite Flites.
I have several sets of the old Veco "Grasscutters" (1 7/8" streamlines) that I use on my old I-Beamers. They are fairly hard solid rubber, but even those will wear down on pavement. Thankfully (in some regards) I only have grass fields to fly off of around here which really cuts down on wear.
Big Bear
-
Bill, what size wheels are you looking for diameter wise? I have some Glenn Lee wheels that are made for racing that I use in some of my stunt planes. They are a very hard material he molds around the hub. They are in color also. depending on the size I have. H^^
-
There was a wheel that was called DON'S wheels i think les Mcdonald used them on his Stilleto. they would be what you need. Jim
-
When resizing foam type wheels, put the entire wheel assembly in the freezer, they seem to shape better when frozen.
Allen Brickhaus