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Posted

I'm surprised this isn't something easy to find. Bruce's will custom make one for $45. Does anyone know of a better source?

Knock on wood, in 20 years of mostly going to jet centers (including my home base) where my plane is typically moved I've never had an issue but I'd feel better with a streamer.

 

-Robert

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Posted

I printed up a card on my computer, laminated it, and attach through the front gear tube with thin wire rope and hook. I don't have a handy pic. I actually have two, one says "Dont tow, expensive damage can result." and the other says "If not familiar with towing limits, call owner at 1.xxx.xxx.xxxx."

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Posted
10 hours ago, jrwilson said:

Sportys has a “do not tow” banner for the nose wheel

That’s not helpful though. Not towing isn’t an option at most large airports including my home base. 

-Robert 

Posted

I only ever let someone tow my aircraft out of my sight once, and I have nifty little dent in the nose gear to show for  it.  I bet if I put in a streamer the guy towing it wouldn't be able to read.

Posted
4 hours ago, steingar said:

I only ever let someone tow my aircraft out of my sight once, and I have nifty little dent in the nose gear to show for  it.  I bet if I put in a streamer the guy towing it wouldn't be able to read.

What type of FBO was ? So far in 20 years I've not had an issue but I always have them note towing limitations in the line notes. I use jet service FBO's mostly. A lot of the jets have the same limitations.

-Robert

Posted

I landed at Branson about a month ago. They marshaled my in front of the FBO. I asked them where they were going to park the plane. They pointed to a line of tie downs about 100 feet away. I said I would taxi over and park the plane. They insisted that I let them tow it over there. I told them that I didn’t want them to tow it. They got very annoyed. I ignored their annoyance and parked it myself. They seemed very pissed about me doing that. I’m over it.

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Posted
4 minutes ago, RobertGary1 said:

What type of FBO was ? So far in 20 years I've not had an issue but I always have them note towing limitations in the line notes. I use jet service FBO's mostly. A lot of the jets have the same limitations.

-Robert

+1

I'm almost always at the mercy of anonymous line personnel.  I hope they are as concerned about bending metal as I am.  When I raise the issue with the jet center-style FBOs, I'd say that "Mooney turn radius" awareness is pretty good overall.

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Posted
20 hours ago, RobertGary1 said:

I'm surprised this isn't something easy to find. Bruce's will custom make one for $45. Does anyone know of a better source?

Knock on wood, in 20 years of mostly going to jet centers (including my home base) where my plane is typically moved I've never had an issue but I'd feel better with a streamer.

 

-Robert

That's not a bad price for custom embroidery on anything. But @larryb's idea will work for much less, especially if there is a laminator in your office . . . .

Posted
54 minutes ago, RobertGary1 said:

What type of FBO was ? So far in 20 years I've not had an issue but I always have them note towing limitations in the line notes. I use jet service FBO's mostly. A lot of the jets have the same limitations.

-Robert

GAI.  I asked them if they knew about towing Mooneys, and they said yes.  Like I said, it is the only time that aircraft has been towed out of my sight.

Posted
17 minutes ago, steingar said:

GAI.  I asked them if they knew about towing Mooneys, and they said yes.  Like I said, it is the only time that aircraft has been towed out of my sight.

Yea, that is really unusual. Like I said, in 20 years of going to jet centers I've not had an issue but I'm hoping a banner would increase my odds.

By not allowing your plane out of your sight you're greatly limiting the airports you can visit though. Not something that works for me.

-Robert

Posted

Larry,

I think you nailed it!!!!

So many steps needed to protect the nose tubes...

The last line of defense against the new guy, working his second shift, after midnight...

can’t miss the last hint...

Thanks for posting the pics!

Best regards,

-a-

Posted
23 hours ago, steingar said:

I only ever let someone tow my aircraft out of my sight once, and I have nifty little dent in the nose gear to show for  it.  I bet if I put in a streamer the guy towing it wouldn't be able to read.

I feel your pain. 

Posted
17 hours ago, RobertGary1 said:

Yea, that is really unusual. Like I said, in 20 years of going to jet centers I've not had an issue but I'm hoping a banner would increase my odds.

By not allowing your plane out of your sight you're greatly limiting the airports you can visit though. Not something that works for me.

-Robert

Most places I go I either taxi the airplane to park or tow it with the bar. Nose gear damage gets expensive fast.

 

Posted
1 hour ago, N9405V said:

I ordered a set of placards from aircraft spruce that had a sticker for the tow limits.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

My a/c has placards that match the service instruction (attached - I'm guessing that the Spruce placards are the same).

But I've also started giving the service instruction document to unfamiliar FBOs. 

Mooney-turn-radius-service-instruction.pdf

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Posted

I like the idea of a handout. But I think that SB is a bit too wordy for a busy lineman to actually read. I snipped out the pics and critical text and created this. I think I'll laminate the whole thing and attach it to the nose wheel. 

We do a lot of traveling to new places in our Mooney. So we need an airport and FBO big enough to provide services such as rental cars and hangar if bad weather is expected. It is hard to avoid towing in this scenario. Especially if you want the plane stored in a hangar, it is going to be towed. I always ask if they are familiar. Most are. A couple of times I have had to explain the limits however. 

 

 

 

Towinig_Limits.doc

Posted
7 minutes ago, larryb said:

I like the idea of a handout. But I think that SB is a bit too wordy for a busy lineman to actually read. I snipped out the pics and critical text and created this. I think I'll laminate the whole thing and attach it to the nose wheel. 

We do a lot of traveling to new places in our Mooney. So we need an airport and FBO big enough to provide services such as rental cars and hangar if bad weather is expected. It is hard to avoid towing in this scenario. Especially if you want the plane stored in a hangar, it is going to be towed. I always ask if they are familiar. Most are. A couple of times I have had to explain the limits however. 

 

 

 

Towinig_Limits.doc 80.5 kB · 1 download

Very nice.

I'm in the same boat - usually ask for the plane to be hangared when it's away from home, and hangaring almost always means anonymous line crews with a tug.

Posted
Wow $50 for the sticker sheet. The Bruces streamer is less. 
 
-Robert 



Yeah, it was pricey, but it's all of the exterior placards. When I ordered it I was needing to update a bunch of them so it worked for me.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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