Brian Trubee and Dave Leonard.
 How much slack do you have in your RV tail wheel chains?
 Have you ever tried no slack?

 Paul Lamar


 The length changes as you change the rudder from side to side.  There
should
 be just enough slack so that it does not restrict in either direction.
 That
 means very little slack.

 Better yet, I highly recommend one of these:

http://www.flyboyaccessories.**com/store/index.php?main_page=**

product_info&cPath=66&**products_id=242<http://www.flyboyaccessories.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=66&products_id=242

 those chains have a tendency to break, the like is far neater.  You can
 check mine out next time I fly up.
 Also, if Mike has not already changed it out, I highly highly recommend
the
 full-swivel tail wheel.  Makes moving the plane around SOOO much easier.
 Found at Vans Store:

http://www.vansaircraft.com/**cgi-bin/catalog.cgi?ident=**

1309503585-362-393&browse=**airframe&product=tailwheel-**assy<http://www.vansaircraft.com/cgi-bin/catalog.cgi?ident=1309503585-362-393&browse=airframe&product=tailwheel-assy

 --
 David Leonard

 Turbo Rotary RV-6 N4VY
 http://N4VY.RotaryRoster.net <http://n4vy.rotaryroster.net/
 http://RotaryRoster.net <http://rotaryroster.net/


 I have the full swivel. It looks like this. I set up with no slack. In
other
 words the springs are slightly preloaded with about half a pound each.
 BAG 489 in the Vans catalog page 78.

 There appears to be as many opinions on tail wheels as there are RV fliers
:)

 Some say slack is good in a cross wind landing. I suspect if there is a
difference in track angle and rudder angle the wheel will pop into
 auto swivel.

 Paul Lamar


Paul,

Do you have any tailwheel time?  Recent?  If not, find a plane that you can
fly often, and an instructor willing to work you hard. It's not hard, but
there is a learning curve that you absolutely must get over. The RV-4 is
known to be pretty benign on the ground, but you could still screw up.
Especially when you're tired or in challenging conditions. Fly a Champ
(Citabria), Cub or TCraft to get your feet, eyes, and brain hard-wired
properly.

Depending on the model of tail wheel, what you say about unlocking is
true.. The tail wheel will go to full swivel. That's fine, but you may have
to use a little brake or power to keep things straight once slowed down.
Sometimes the tailwheel will will reengage with the rudder if you center the
rudder (to be expected in a varying crosswind). If your brain is wired up,
your feet will do the right things without you thinking.

Some tail wheels are locking, using a separate cable to latch which causes
the pivot to lockaim the centered position. Full swivel (not) steerable when
unlocked (Haigh?).  Each design can work fine as long as it's in good
repair, and the pilot has internalized the behavior of the system. That's
the important part.

At Reno, I remember seeing a Midget Mustang racing without a tailwheel -
just a steel rod as a skid. Have to be paying attention to make that work on
pavement, as I suspect it would be nearly as happy sliding sideways as going
straight.


Matt-

Nothing recent.
Back in World War 1 one blipped the throttle to raise the tail and hit the
appropriate  rudder pedal. Now we have brakes that work. I considered a
nylon skid for the RV4. Dave should try it for his Reno adventure.

Paul Lamar


I was wondering if you might have fought in WW 1   :-)