Ski Planes

[Forrest Barber]

I see we really have not set up a thread on Ski Planes. There are some references scattered about. This can be used by all with pictures to help the other guys.
Here we go, this is my BC12D with my own rigging from AC 43.13-2A , Chapter 5.. These are Federal SC-1's from Feb, 1940 , rated at 1400 lbs. they have stub axles for moving her around ( not shown yet). I attached photos . Note the high tech winter front. I could not find the pretty one, this was made in about 5 mins.. taken Feb 20-05 at 2D1.
As Mr. Rogers used to say " What a lovely day in the neighborhood"

[Forrest Barber]

Re: Ski Planes

Then we can back off to December when I installed them. This shows my adapters, etc. must run Kelli-Belle is whining maybe the snow stopped & I can go FLY!

[matsuthunder200]

Re: Ski Planes

Forrest have you landed in the deep stuff with the fed 1500s i would like to know how they work?? Also everyone up here puts the p-tex on the bottoms it realy works good and it saves your ski bottoms and you can go about 2 inches bigger than your skis for a little better floatation.

[Jim Baker]

Re: Ski Planes

Here is my DL-65 with Federal 1500's. I plan to put oversized p-tex on them for next season. Been flying out of 6-18" of snow this year.

[Jim Baker]

Re: Ski Planes

Ops - I'll ty again with the pictures.

[Yellow Duck]

Re: Ski Planes

OK, you hav us "Southern Boys" interested. Never flew on skis. Foats yes, skis no. Need an invite for next winter. Would love to try some.

Will be having our annual spring fly-in here at my home some time in April (?). So if anyone can come please feel free to do so. Have lot of space for camping or can run you down to the local motel. I'll post the lat/lon later.

[matsuthunder200]

Re: Ski Planes

Played hooky from work today to go ski flying and check out my cabin. Today was a deep snow day landing in 5 ft of layerd snow about 3 feet of semi packed with two feet of soft on top. I have Aero 2000s with ptex on the bottoms, they are a very wide ski comp,to the federal 1500.They also have a curved front that helps you climb up on top of the snow. I use the coil springs that atlee sells they come as a kit. At 20 below shock cord dosnt sretch to good. The screws and nuts on the outer edge holds the ptex on the ski. I have the ski brace thats welded between the gear legs. This brace is a must if you plan to fly in deep snow i personaly know about four t-crafts that have buckeld the gearlegs from turning in snow without the brace. everything is faa approved. I have a scot tail wheel. Today i wish that i had my tail ski on they work real well for deep snow. Snowshoes are a must. i always have them in the plane. I packed down a fifty ft runway in about 20 min.I had a wonderfull day was nice and sunny and 25 deg t shirt and snow pants!!!

[mhorowit]

Re: Ski Planes

Always interested in plans for a pre-heater. What's the heat source? - Mike

[Dick Smith]

Re: Ski Planes

Mike, here are some possibilities. These can fit under the cowling, depending on which mount you are using. When away from electric power, I've used the Whamo catalytic the most...(uses Blazo(white gas) I have the short engine mount. Have used the larger Coleman in a C-170. Planning to try the Sportcat(propane). When operating as Lance shows, I've used a single burner Coleman stove. When tied down at home, I use a small electric heater with built-in fan and a commercial thermostatic control. When preheating with anything, I keep away from other people's airplanes and buildings. And I make sure the main fuel tank isn't completely full and the wing tanks aren't draining down into the nosetank. I don't want fuel overflowing into the heat source. Dick

[matsuthunder200]

Re: Ski Planes

Mike the pic of my pre heater is a 5 gallon can with a door and a stack. i have a colman stove that burns av gas that gose inside. What the pic dosnt show for some reason is theres two inch holes all around the lower side of the can the holes keep the stove cooler and they make the draft thrue the stack. When i go out in winter overnight i bring it with me. I like to preheat the inside to i have the propane ctalitic heater sport cat. as the pic shows i made a cover thats gose from the back seat up to the skylight. its made of the silver bubble insulation. It felcros into place. In flight it is twice as warm than without it

[flathorn]

Re: Ski Planes

The Whamo catalytic heater Dick Smith mentioned is VERY handy, as you can put it in the cowl, but unfortunately they're hard to find. That would be my first choice for overnight heating (away from electricity). They don't require a bucket and tubing.
I don't have one, so use the larger Coleman catalytic in a bucket drilled with air holes around the bottom, on the ground below the cowl with scat tubing leading from the bucket lid up into the cowl. I put the nozzle below the oil sump, and crack the cowl cover just a very little in the front by the grill plate to get a little air circulation, which makes heating much more efficient. I use this method all the time, at least 2-3x a week.
The one upside of the larger Coleman catalytic is that it has a longer burn time than the Whamo, as it has a larger tank. I put it in well before I go to bed, and when I'm ready to fly the next day around mid-morning when it starts getting light, it's still going. I used to have a Whamo, and its burn time was 3-5 hours less. But I'd still rather have the Whamo.
One thing to be aware of with these type of heaters - they introduce moisture into the engine compartment because of the type of fuel used, so if I decide to not fly after preheating, I still start up the engine and run it until CHT gets up to temp, usually around 10 minutes. That will dry it out - otherwise you might give yourself some problems starting the engine the next time you try (sad personal experience). I just do it as a matter of course, so I don't have to worry. I hate having a balky engine in the cold weather, frosted plugs, etc.
My take-along heater is a Northern Companion, an MSR stove in a nice, compact heating/storage unit. It's light and uses several types of fuel - though it's a little pricey, I find it worth it for myself. At 0 degrees, if I put the heater on when I start prepping the plane, by the time I'm ready to go, the engine is generally up to temp (about 1-1 1/2 hours). I make sure to stick the hose right under the oil sump to ensure the oil tank interior has time to heat up sufficiently, so you don't have a solid chunk of oil sitting at the heart of your tank...
Kathy Chesnut
3585t
Flathorn Lake, AK

[Jim Baker]

Re: Ski Planes

I made my preheater out a MSR Dragonfly camping stove. The stove can use multiple fuels (autogas, avgas, white gas, diesel, etc.) I modeled it after the Northern Companion. The stove cost me about $110 and using a double walled stove pipe, reducer and dryer vent, I spent about $30 more. Quick and easy to build. I have preheated with it down to about 0F and it works great.

[Dano"T"]

Re: Ski Planes

Does anyone have a design for carry along wheels for taxiing while on skiis? I had a friend make some for me, and if I land at an airport for gas (along side the runway) I can slip these under my skiis and taxi to the pump. They weigh about 7lbs each. I'll post a picture asap. If anyone has a better design, I'm all ears. Mine are a bit bulky but they work great!

Dano "T"
N44008 46' BC-12D-85
N26559 40' BL-55 (A65)

[jCandlish]

Re: Ski Planes

what is the difference between federal sc-1 and federal sc-2 skis?

[baldeagle27]

Re: Ski Planes

I have a set of Federal 1500s that I prefer to refer to as "Snow Repellent Devices" because as soon as I put them on the snow melts. I got rid of 24" one time that way.

Here in Virginia we usually only get one or two days of ski flying per winter. I had some borrowed SC-1s before I bought the 1500s and the 1500s seemed to work better overall to me.