PaMaverick
New to the site, some questions.
Categories: Trike Talk, Equipment, Training / Learning to Fly a Trike, Low & Slow Trikes
Again, hello. Im coming from a GA backround and had a chance to take a flight in a trike two years ago and was hooked. I was already quite bored with GA and annoyed with all of the cost and red tape involved. This seems like the right choice for a guy like me. I have been riding 2 wheels since I was 6 and to me a trike is basically a motorcycle with a wing. Perfect!
I am purchasing a new NW Maverick legend this week and have some questions for yall ole' salts.
First off I am in eastern PA near PHL and hanger space is a joke around here. If you can find it it is insanely priced. Therefore I plan to find an enlosed trailer and keep her in there and park at a local grass strip for $50 a month. Is it unrealistic to assemble and disaseemble the wing every time I want to fly? Will the machine get parasitic condensation while stored in the trailer? Is the repeated break down and assemb bad for the parts? Do many of you guys do this?
I wonder what the realistic range and fuel burn will be in my trike. it has the kawasaki 440 engine, and maverick 3 wing. I know it's slow but thats what I wanted :)
I would like to install a ballistic chute but on a cops salary, this trike is killing my piggy bank, so I was wondering what your thoughts were on purchasing a year old canister brs or magnum chute ata much reduced cost? it still has many years left before repack. also where do I get the brackets from that are specific to my trike to mount it? northwing or BRS/magnum?
Regarding gps, I was wondering if any of you use a non aviation gps? My trike cruises at 45mph so I won't be doing much xcountry stuff but I like "getting lost" and while I never rely on it, I'd like to have gps on my trike. I just can't justify spending 700 bucks on a full blown garmin aviation unit. I also don't reallylike using an ipad for various reasons. I was thinking about a garmin 96c but havnt seen any reviews ad they are still $450. Is it a bad idea to use a high end garmin hiking gps with maps installed? They are m more reasonably priced and still offer WAAS and a high retention and accuracy rate.
Another thought...I have noticed that one of the main reasons pilots get out of recreational flying and sell their equipment is isolation and the inability to find folks (friends and family) who share their passion. flying alone all the time can get boring. The ones who stay in for a long time either have great "hanger/ flying buddies" or are on some sort of path to move up the ranks and fly commercial. Do you guys have a regional section in this forum (by state perhaps) where folks in similar areas can meet up? I know you Guysdown in Arizona are practically tripping over other trike pilots but here in the northeast it is a differenttory.
I also have some questions about some other topics but I think I have talked enough for now.
Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Also any info on how to share my idea withthe powers that be with this site would be greatly appreciated. I think it would be a great addition.
AC
Comments
Hi PaMaverick welcome to the site. Here are my thoughts/experiences on a couple of your questions. I fly a Northwing Navajo, and store it in my garage. I (and many other Northwing pilots I know) do a partial breakdown of the wing, and I store it in my garage, most of the guys I know have enclosed trailers like you are describing. You should have no problems with this configuration. I can't speak to humidity, we don't have that here in Vegas.
I bought an older BRS and had it re-packed. I personally don't see a problem buying one that still has time on it. I would go for it if you have an affordable opportunity.
GPS - I would say use a recreational GPS until you find a decent aviation GPS for low $$. Just be aware of your airspace! They work great, track speed, distance, elevation, location...etc. I flew with one for years. I got my first aviation GPS for ~$150 and I sold it for the same . EBAY and barnstormers.com are good sources, just keep looking.
People - You have taken the first step toward finding other trikers. I fly with a few local pilots, but also with pilots from a few surrounding states that I met online. Go to Fly-ins if you get a chance, there are a few posted here recently on our event calendar, and there is a running list that @cburg posted just the other day here (http://alltrikes.com/elgg/pages/view/10316/fly-ins-–-2013-revised-2-25-13). I took a look at a sport pilot locator map for trikes (http://trikepilot.beasportpilot.com/sport-pilot-locator/), and it looks pretty thin out there by you, but maybe you could get together with one of those guys?
I have no experience with your expected fuel economy, someone else will have to help you out there.
Again, welcome to alltrikes! look around, theres lots to see here.
Agreed, it’s imperative (if you want to keep from losing interest) you mix it up with other aircraft categories. Otherwise you are missing out on way too much fun. Hook up with your local PPC clubs, Gyro clubs, Ultralight clubs, and EAA chapter (and join their forums). You’ll have so many new flying buddies and weekend fly-in options you’ll have a hard time deciding. I usually have two or three to chose from most weekends...including this one coming up.
I fly almost everything and find that the other category participants are delighted to have a new face and aircraft around. Plus you will learn a lot…and can share your knowledge and experience.
I just added another Georgia fly-in (PPC in this case) to my list a few minutes ago. I’ll repost it in a few days.
As a shout out to the PPC guys, they are great fun to hang out and fly with (not that others aren’t too). They are all campers.
Excellent info guys. And I appreciate the quick response. Ken, since you have time in the air using a non aviation gps, what should I look for? Do you think the garmin gpsmap62 series would work well for my mission? I am also bidding on a 96c on eBay right now but it just seems like a dated machine with a small screen, but it is a true aviation unit.
Also, when you say partial breakdown of wing, what does that entail? Is it too heavy to lift alone? Do the guys you know store the wing in a bag on top or do they buy a 20' trailer and keep everything inside? I already have a nice aluminum snowmobile trailer that I could easily build an aluminum rack for to keep te wig on in travel. I'm just worried about getting caught in a rain storm while driving with the engine am intake filter exposed like that. I like the idea of using my trailer I already have and just building onto it for t trike but I feel like it would be a pain in te ass to load it, trailer it, unload, and set up and then do all over aain at the end of he day.... But it would save me 3 grand which is highly enticing.
Cburg, this sport needs more guys like you. Nicely done with that list and I agree whole heatedly with your thoughts. Again, it's tough tho to find ppc, gyro, and other non ga pilots in the northeast. They arearound but nowhere near the numbers that you guys see in the south. I guess I will just have to work o it and be proactive. I'm hoping somebody from my area chimes in and is right next door! Preferably another guy or gal with a slow trike like mine! Haha
Hi PaMaverick. I'm currently a PPG pilot and in the process of selling it and buying a single seat trike. I've been using a Garmin Montana 650 GPS on my quad and my PPG. It has maps and altimeter and works great. I too am looking forward to some answers to your questions as I will likely be doing the wing folding up and down thing as well.
Hi PaMverick,
I made some cost calculations on triking HERE and came up with the likelihood that a hangar is up to 50+% of the cost of triking!! : ( So not having a hangar can be a huge $$ saver. Also, having the trike in a trailer at your house means it's easy to go out and spend time with it-- I have to drive 25 minutes to mine-- it's "only" $190 per month and I used to share it ($95/month) but my only local trike buddy had to move to LA. :( Breaking it down each flight does wear on the wing-- no lie-- so, if you have to, have a very good system & lots of padding and support. A single surface wing should wear less also- easier to roll up. That friend who moved to LA keeps his in an enclosed trailer--- he thinks he may have actually got water in his fuel tank by daily heat/cool/condensation events !!! Search for "Racor" on this site.
Though my local buddy moved away, I do have a bunch of GA friends though-- they will friend you if you go to their events and show good etiquette on the radio and in the pattern. My local tower guys asked me for a ride (so I gave them one) which I thought was very cool. I also arrange fly-ins out here and have had tons of people visit me. See "Events" under menu above (and Cburg's list as suggested).
I used a Garmin 96C on my hang glider- loved it!!! Still have it as a backup GPS. I bet you can still get aviation updates to it's database-- Garmin charges an arm and leg for them-- so once you're up to date, you can check with the FAA regarding airspace changes before you need to update. As far as terrain, it may include towers/obstructions which can change, but for VFR flying may be OK to update less often. I wouldn't have a problem flying with a 96C as long as you can see the airspace well enough-- in complex airspace that may be tough on a small screen-- in Montana, it would be way more than adequate. A smart phone can update your location pretty easy as a supplement-- and these days it's basic safety precaution to have one along-- they can also get weather and keep it updated (important for everyone, but with a slower trike, nice to know what winds are doing), they can play music for you (there are intercoms that automatically dim music for radio transmissions), etc.
Used BRS in good condition or repacked- no problem. I believe as long as the container is in great condition, didn't leak air/moisture in it, and the serial number says no repack is due, then it's fine. If you have questions, call BRS with the serial number, or send the chute container to them to inspect / repack as necessary- Don't mail the rocket ; ) Search "BRS" on this site- I listed prices and had a poll and other stuff here on them. Also, see the "Tag Cloud" to see what else is here-- this site is relatively new, but has thousands of pages and posts already and is growing exponentially.
As far as fuel economy-- grossly you could expect <3 to >5 gallons per hour- my 912 80HP burns about 3.5 the way I fly it- the 582s burn a little more (like ~4.1gph), it's possible a 440 Kawasaki might burn less. But, basically in that range I would expect. Be sure and know your fuel capacity well and know it in flight too-- ask Ken ; ) I was back seat in his trike when we burned it way too close to exhaustion once because the prior owner didn't have good calibration we (mostly he) fixed that-- but it is critical to check for your self, and know how to accurately measure it at all levels during flight. In all trikes it's critical-- in a fast trike, you may find yourself flying over things like death valley and need to know range/burn or land where no one will find you for weeks, in a slow trike-- winds come up to 20mph or more and you're 30 minute jaunt down wind just turned into an unexpected 2 hour flight back home. Good thing to have a GPS that will tell you nearest (or downwind) airfield!
You can use search on this site to find members or events or discussion of things in PA. You can also create a page for PA flyers. If there are no PA flyers now, just having it on this site- the google search engine will pick that up (spell out PA & your local area also for better search detection), and anyone searching will get a hit here. If you do set up a page for your state, I'd do others a favor and set up a Page / subpage hierrarchy. Main Page "US Trike Pilots" : SubPage "PA Pilots" Or set up a group. Attend events that others set up!!! Come out for Calif Valley, hang out, camp, catch rides with others, go home happy!
As Ken said though, you came to the right place to meet people and hang out trike wise. Most of us have met many of our trike buddies through the web!!! We now have lots of friends in Australia!!!!! So, we're hoping to go visit them soon. One (@Jagsy) already came by to visit us!!
I know a bunch of people who share a hangar with a GA type plane by putting the trike in front of the plane. Give that a try.
I used to fly with an etrex gps on my trike. You will have to add a lot of user defined waypoints at airports, but that is easy enough to do.
If you can't find other trikes in the area, find the local EAA chapter and hang out and fly with them. The EAA guys might be able to help you find a hangar to squeeze into.
Dan- Good to hear. Youll have a head start but I think the learning curve will be similar for both of us. Regarding that montana gps... isnt that sucker around $5-600??!! at that price point you can get the basic aera 500 aviation gps i think. I am looking at the 96c pretty close. I just missed out on one on ebay in like new condition, kinda bummed.
XCtriker- I hear ya man. It is definitely appealing to keep it at home and forego that crazy hanger bill but there is also something VERY appealing about keeping it assembled and ready to go at the field when the weather gods give me a decent window to take her out. the other thing that really worries me is the condensation that is bound to occur if I kept it in an enclosed trailer. The other option is to save even more money and just build a "tall ladder rack" on my 10' aluminum snowmobile trailer and keep the trike in my garage. The only thing I worry about with that is getting caught in a sudden rain storm with the trike and its air filter and other engine components exposed. That would be no bueno.
Regarding the garmin 96c, I think that might be the way to go. I do need to be cognisant of the airspaces and that would certainly help. either that or one of the higher end garmin hiking gps units with the maps installed already.
for the chute I will probably go with the 2 yr old magnum I found. He wants $2200 for it and it comes with everything. 4 more years till it needs a repack.
Regarding fuel economy, I talked to Kamron today from Northwing, great guy btw, and he said I should get 2.25 gal/hr regularly. I was impressed with that figure and he said it is an honest number. that will give me great range for that little trike with what I want to do.
thanks for the warm welcome and quick replys, I certainly did come to the right place! I though trikepilot.com was the place to go, but it is a ghost town over there. This site has much more activity and a better feel to it. Good stuff.
Some new questions... If I did tow everytime, can you explain what a "partial break down" of the wing is as apposed to a full breakdown? apparently my wing is 83lbs so Id have to make some sort of roller on the rack to facilitate loading up top from the rear of the trailer to save it from getting screwed up and save my back.
I have heard that range on the Icom radios can be helped alot by using a dipole antenna and mounting it on the trike. I plan on buying an icom A14 radio. Are they decent? its a couple bucks cheaper than the A6 but still gets great reviews. I know it might be overkill but I am going to hard mount and wire the radio onto my little trike. before I was a cop, I was an electrician, so needless to say I am a bit anal about wiring and mounting.
Im going to put in a standard ASI with a pitot tube as well as an altimiter. Nothing fancy, but I like to have some reliable ole fashioned guages on board. Question is, do yall think it would be worth it to throw a VSI and fuel guage on as well? Belite makes some excellent lightwight LED guages for 103 and experimental aircraft so I would probably use them. They also make dual guages that are really sharp and inexpensive.
Lastly, do any of you guys that trailer and reassemble your wing have any pictures or videos of the process? That would be huge to see.
Thanks again for all the info thus far. I have been on a couple forums in my 30 years and this is by far one of the most mature and welcoming, which I was expecting, considering the topic of discussion. That one of the things I like most about aviation-- the people.