Reaching the heel brakes on a 7AC

[MikeB]

Several years ago when I had very little time in a tailwheel plane on a blacktop runway, I was going to take off with a fairly strong crosswind. I got too aggresive with the rudder pedals and the Champ got swinging around and me trying to correct it by over correcting (anyone who has had that happen please raise your hand!!). I had visions of hitting hangars or houses. This was on a airpark. My friend and CFI in the back seat yelled "I got it", straightened it out and pulled it off the runway. I think I learned that day that it's always "nose straight/nose straight" whether taking off or landing. You can get away with a lot more on grass than on a hard-surface runway but it's best to be on top of the plane no matter what the surface is. Flying for hundreds of hours in a Cherokee previously made me pretty sloppy and the Champ can tend to make one humble in a hurry.

MikeB

[Red(neck) Barron]

Oh yes Mike; That wonderful old Cherokee. I had one too. I really liked that plane, roomy, stable and plant those big wide wheels on the runway and you were as stable as if you were on rails. Could land in nearly any condition and with the manual flaps you could make carrier deck landings and the gear would handle it. However that doesn't get us too ready for moving back into Champs does it. The rudder pedals in the Chero were more for decoration and impressing passengers that we had all these things we had to control.

As I've documented in previous posts, I had been out of the air for a long time when I bought my Champ last year and much longer than that since I had been in a Champ. On my first flight with my instructor getting checked out again I seemed to be under the mistaken impression that he was instructing and had my back. He must have been under the impression (which I tried emphatically not to give) that I knew what I was doing.

In a nutshell; my first landing was a new maneuver called 'S turns around the runway lights'.

Larry H

[MikeB]

I loved my Cherokee (1966 150 horse). Great for travelling. It wasn't really a four place plane and not ever a good three place unless the back folks were small. But it ran cheap on auto fuel and you could load most anything in the back seat area. My better half told me not to sell it but I was sick of radios, transponder check, etc. and didn't really want to license and insure two plane although I had two hangars at the time. It's still on our field and the guy that bought it put another $10,000 or so in it with new interior, paint and some avionic work.
It did make for 'lazy feet' though.

MikeB

[jc pacquin]

one other....years ago,(60's) flying a rented 85hp champ I would sometimes land at a bar in the country with a 2000 foot grass strip,good cheeseburgers and a rolling rock were in order.The owner kept a nice bonanza in a hangar nearby. To the north one had to come in over the roof of the bar-resturant low,and land down hill. This day I landed (not realizing it, downwind), TOWARDS the bar but up hill on a slight incline. Realizing at the end that I was about to run into a three rail horse fence that separated the parking lot from the runway , I jammned on the left brake, stick in my lap, and immed. veered to the left ,wing missing ground and fence by a foot or so. Came to a stop. Two guys leaning on fence said, "Man you can really handle that thing! I was shaking real bad, hardly able to walk to the bar and mumbled "Thanks". (The Champ rented for for 7.00 per hour, dry.) JP

[RRHaldeman]

I'm getting close to getting the bird back in the air. You can check out my progress at this site:

http://s900.photobucket.com/albums/ac207/RRHaldeman/

[Red(neck) Barron]

Looking SHARP!!! That ought to drag the gawkers off of their roosts. Better keep a shotgun handy for people who like to leave fingerprints.
Will you have her flying by spring?

[RRHaldeman]

My plan is to have it flying by Christmas and leave C77 (near Rockford, IL) and fly it to Florida and hangar it at Punta Gorda (PGD) where they actually have hangars you can rent by the month!

[lowflyer]

Beautiful work. You can be proud of that one!

As a note on the Cherokee.... I had the joy of putting nearly 200 hours in a Cherokee 180 the last three years. Absolutely loved it for a family transport. That said... I agree... It did nothing for my taildragger skills. You get her close to the runway and she'll do the rest for you.

Champ, different story....(better story)

Josh

[peeto]

My brother always swore that wearing cowboy boots is the only way to fly with heel brakes...your mileage may vary...

[Nathan K. Hammond]

Dick,
I love that rear seat storage compartment. May have to steal that idea for mine.

nkh