Electric Tug and Tow Bar Recommendations

[Zwaustin]

If you want to burn some cash check out the tow bot. My shop in Dallas has one and it is sweet. Obviously much cheaper solutions out there but.....

http://towbots.us/

[SantosDumont]

I bought a used Powertow EZ40. Works great. Even was able to get it to work on snow and ice (although much less effectively). 

[Yetti]

An engine driven Nose dragger was donated to me.   The engine was old.  Replaced with a HF engine for $90.  It is quite an incline to get up to the hanger

[Bennett]

The Dragger unit would be tempting if I didn't already have a Robotow. The Robotow works well for my J even when full of fuel. I have a slight incline to the hangar which is no problem for it. The battery has been in use now for about 4 years, with no sign of dying, but saying that will probably doom it. The battery appears to be a re-marked 28 V Milwaukee unit, so replacement should be cheaper than a "factory" unit.


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[CoffeeCan]

This topic is acutely interesting to me, as the spanking new owner-operator of a 201K!! I flew her home yesterday and had to call in reinforcements to get her into the hangar!  

I really like the look and ease of operation of the Sidewinder, but their website says to expect a wait time of at least 3 weeks. I’m tempted to buy a used garden tractor and a tow bar in the short term, for now. 

[gsxrpilot]

It's pretty easy to make a tow bar out of pipe from HomeDepot/Lowes. Probably $25 in various fittings. There are pictures on here somewhere.

Lawn tractor, 4-wheeler, golf cart, pickup, etc... all work

BTW... what Mooney do you fly? Understand it's new to you. Is it an M20J 201 or an M20K 231, 252, Rocket?

[HRM]

Getting my E out of the hangar is a piece of cake, getting it back in, however, is a different matter. My solution was a HF winch that I paid about .06 AMU for. The beauty of it is, other than the ridiculously low price, is how easy and perfect it is to use. I mounted the winch to a steel cross-bar at the back of the hangar with SS duct clamps. The cable clips onto my LASAR tail skid and all I need do is push the plane to where the tail is just across the threshold of the door. Then I have a seat on my shop stool and use the controller to pull the plane in. Auto centers and I can easily see when it is in. Easy-peasy. The deckless Craftsman lawn tractor I bought was more trouble than it was worth--up for sale.

[EricJ]

11 hours ago, HRM said:

Getting my E out of the hangar is a piece of cake, getting it back in, however, is a different matter. My solution was a HF winch that I paid about .06 AMU for. The beauty of it is, other than the ridiculously low price, is how easy and perfect it is to use. I mounted the winch to a steel cross-bar at the back of the hangar with SS duct clamps. The cable clips onto my LASAR tail skid and all I need do is push the plane to where the tail is just across the threshold of the door. Then I have a seat on my shop stool and use the controller to pull the plane in. Auto centers and I can easily see when it is in. Easy-peasy. The deckless Craftsman lawn tractor I bought was more trouble than it was worth--up for sale.

This is absolutely what I'd be doing but the city doesn't let us attach stuff to anything.   

BTW, many of the HF winches also have wireless controllers now, so you can be wherever you need to be to make sure the rash gremlins stay away.

[aviatoreb]

Even though I have a power tow that I really like,. when the tarmac is icy, too icy for the chains I put on the power tow, then I also have my plan b which is a winch at the back of the hangar.  

Now you may be saying to yourself, why would anyone want to fly when its that icy?  Well actually the extra slick stuff in front of the hangar can occur when ice/water/snow melts and drips off the roof, makes pools in front of the hangar that then freeze fast in the evening before it evaporates.  Even when the runway is in great shape there can be like 10 feet in front of my hangar sometimes that is slick.  I also use those show covers with spikes to push around the airplane on those days. Anyway at like 50 bucks the winch is a great addition.

[Jerry 5TJ]

The electric NoseDragger was great for the Ovation. 

It was struggling a bit with the heavier P46T so I found a used Air Caddy 4K. The Air Caddy has a cradle for the nose wheel so no fear of gear damage.  Very powerful and it has smooth, precise speed control which helps ease the plane into a tight-fitting hangar.  

PM me if you want a NoseDragger. 

[MARZ]

I’ve got the sidewinder works awesome.  Recently updated the manual standby as well!!

[211º]

I recently relocated to a hangar with a bit of a grade.  I've been looking at the ads and online - based on the initial recommendations - but 4 to 6 weeks is waking my inner mechanical engineer.

I have an 80V Kobalt grass trimmer that can accept different attachments (a rotating spindle slips/fits into the different attachments).  It seems like if I can find an attachment that is an edger, then all of the rotation changes-in-direction are complete and now I "just" need to attach a gear reduction and some type of friction to the tire.

Has anyone tried something like this before? 

[A64Pilot]

As stated you can put a tow bar together from 3/4 galvanized pipe easily, fits perfectly in the nose gear.

For a tow vehicle an electric golf cart is very hard to beat, silent and gobs of torque plus it can be used as an APU. just connect at the 12v point if your airplane is 12V and at the 24V point if it’s 24V, golf cart batteries have plenty of juice to start an engine, they don’t need oil changes or tune ups and always “start”. even if left idle for long periods. Besides it’s a nice vehicle to tool around the airport too.

I think the real advantage in electric tow bars is in portability, you can’t take the golf cart with you. So in my opinion if you go for an electric tow bar, be sure to get one that fits easily in the baggage compt. Of course that’s just an opinion

Edited October 4, 2021 by A64Pilot

[DonMuncy]

Funny you should post about tow units at this time. I am in the process of building one of my tugs for another Mooney owner right now. Take a look at my album and see what you think of my design. I gladly share my plans etc., or I can build you one.

[Stnelson903]

Dons tugs are the best


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[Steve Dawson]

I have a Robotow for my M20M Bravo that I'll be selling in a couple months. 

[squeaky.stow]

PM sent

[Mooney_Allegro]

I have an electric Dragger Dragger nose unit for sale listed in the Avionics/Parts forum on MooneySpace.  It's been a great unit, works well with Pipers with nose wheel pants or any type of Mooney.  Easily works pushing uphill and over hangar door tracks.  The good folks at Dragger Dragger offer excellent support via phone, email and even text.  

I currently use an AC Air Technology remote control tug, (T1X2) which has very bright LED lights, very easy to maneuver and attracts a lot of attention from my hangar mates.  AC Air Technology also offers excellent product support and it's very sturdy.  They now offer a unit that you can take along with you in your plane, by quickly taking it apart within about 30 seconds.  The only issue is that it weighs a lot, so it will take half or more of your useful load.