Sidewinder experience ?

[Philip France 13]

Hello : i am looking for towing a M20J MSE in france 230v supply any experience and advice on sidewinder power tool ?

how lôg does it work with a full charge ? And is there an adaptor solution for 230v supply ?

Thanks

Philip

 

[Steve Dawson]

Phillip you can buy a 240 to 120 volt adapter for $30- $100 or buy a 240-28 volt charger from Milwaukee directly. I've had my sidewinder for approximately 4 months and love it. It will pull my M20J out of my hangar (~20m) 6-8 times before a recharge. The battery will fully charge in approximately 30 minutes and I wouldn't advise on keeping the battery on the charger after the complete charge. Occasionally the battery will "burn" out after a time. 

Steve 

 

[CaptRJM]

I have a Sidewinder and love it. It will easily get my 231 out/in the hangar 3-4 times without needing a charge. I also would not leave battery on the charger.  

You can buy a new 120 volt Milwaukee charger for you 28 volt battery for around $50.  I wouldn’t bother with a 230-120 converter. 

[exM20K]

I'm a big fan of the product, and we used to sell them for the Diamond aircraft.  The only scenario in which the unit will perform poorly is when moving the aircraft over a snowy surface - snow will get pounded into ice on the nose wheel, and all friction is lost.  Otherwise, with a backup battery, you should be fine moving the aircraft about in a limited (few hundred feet) radius.

Euro-power adapters are readily available.  The drive is a commercial, off-the-shelf Milwaukee unit, and they serve a world market.

-dan

[Philip France 13]

Thanks a lot for the good advices will go for it. Philip

[Zulee]

I've had a couple different tugs over the years that were traditional in design...kind of like a lawnmower looking thing with a single tire.  While they easily moved the plane (81 J) they required constant manual intervention, even when pulling or pushing in a straight line.  Turning the aircraft was an even bigger pain because you had to literally pick the tug up slightly and set it down in the direction you wanted to go.

The whole purpose in owning a tug for me is not born out of laziness, I have a slight uphill grade into my hangar and about 12 inches of clearance on each side, so brisk pace is required to get over the hump.  I have nightmares of a little trip at the wrong time and bashing my wingtip into the wall.  ugh!

The Sidewinder has my attention for a bunch of reasons, but before I spend $1,600 I would really like to hear your experiences with turning, uphill ability and overall maneuverability of the Sidewinder.

Philip, sorry for hijacking your thread!

[PaulM]

The sidewinder is very maneuverable,   the only problem has already been raised, it does not work on ice/snow if there is any force required.  If you loose traction on the front wheel, the sidewinder no longer works.  You will need to have a regular tow bar + vehicle for the winter season.   The rest of the year, it works perfectly.   It will push the plane uphill and over  hangar lips/water barriers, but you might need to get some momentum going.

I tried using a mobility scooter to power a regular tow-bar, but it doesn't have enough torque to move the 3000lb plane up slope and over the hangar barrier.   An old surplus riding lawn mower with a hitch on the front is the best all year solution, but it is another engine to maintain. 

[LANCECASPER]

1 hour ago, Zulee said:

The Sidewinder has my attention for a bunch of reasons, but before I spend $1,600 I would really like to hear your experiences with turning, uphill ability and overall maneuverability of the Sidewinder.

I live in Texas, so snow and ice is not a problem here. The maneuverability is great and the Sidewinder has plenty of power to do the job. Over the years I've had gas powered, electric (both corded and battery), nosedraggers, etc. and the Sidewinder is the best for me. (By the way I tried to save money once and buy a Minimax and it was absolute garbage.)

http://mooneyspace.com/topic/14330-wtb-tug/#comment-192949

http://mooneyspace.com/topic/4734-minimax-tug/?page=1

[Zulee]

11 minutes ago, LANCECASPER said:

I live in Texas, so snow and ice is not a problem here. The maneuverability is great and the Sidewinder has plenty of power to do the job. Over the years I've had gas powered, electric (both corded and battery), nosedraggers, etc. and the Sidewinder is the best for me. (By the way I tried to save money once and buy a Minimax and it was absolute garbage.)

http://mooneyspace.com/topic/14330-wtb-tug/#comment-192949

http://mooneyspace.com/topic/4734-minimax-tug/?page=1

Thank you sir, as I've shared...I have fallen victim to the EZ40 and other look-a-likes as well and they are just a pain to operate.  Thanks for your feedback, I appreciate it.

[DonMuncy]

The one I designed and built (actually, I have now built 4 of them), uses a battery to avoid the complexity of the EZ40 engine. It is much lighter and is not a problem to shift around to maneuver. The downside is that it is relatively slow; about the same speed as two people pushing. And I had to build it myself. Take a look at my album. I freely share plans, etc.