I had a Sidewinder for a year and a half but only used it on my DA42 maybe ten times because the plane was parked outside. It worked fine. As of five days ago I now have a hangar (High Five!). I splurged and bought a PowerTow SuperTow 1:
- SuperTow 1.jpeg (7.87 KiB) Viewed 4306 times
https://www.powertow.com/supertow-aircraft-tug.html
First impressions:
Less bending over and fiddling around than trying to get the Sidewinder on and off. Better for my aging back. Just chock one of the wheels and drive the tug under the nose wheel. The tug scoops up the wheel and locks in place automatically. No winch required. Later, pull a lever and back the tug out from under.
Gas powered is not as nice as battery but they make it easy with toe-tap push button electric start.
The lazy Susan is nice. Turn 90 degrees if you want, the nose wheel stays straight. Leave it hooked up in the hangar, rotated to one side to avoid the door.
The SuperTow is slooow. Good for going in and out of the hangar but slower than a normal walk. Going over to the fuel pumps I find myself pulling, trying to go a little faster.
I plan to keep the Sidewinder around for back-up but use the SuperTow 1 for regular use.
I had a Sidewinder for a year and a half but only used it on my DA42 maybe ten times because the plane was parked outside. It worked fine. As of five days ago I now have a hangar (High Five!). I splurged and bought a PowerTow SuperTow 1:
[attachment=0]SuperTow 1.jpeg[/attachment]
https://www.powertow.com/supertow-aircraft-tug.html
First impressions:
Less bending over and fiddling around than trying to get the Sidewinder on and off. Better for my aging back. Just chock one of the wheels and drive the tug under the nose wheel. The tug scoops up the wheel and locks in place automatically. No winch required. Later, pull a lever and back the tug out from under.
Gas powered is not as nice as battery but they make it easy with toe-tap push button electric start.
The lazy Susan is nice. Turn 90 degrees if you want, the nose wheel stays straight. Leave it hooked up in the hangar, rotated to one side to avoid the door.
The SuperTow is slooow. Good for going in and out of the hangar but slower than a normal walk. Going over to the fuel pumps I find myself pulling, trying to go a little faster.
I plan to keep the Sidewinder around for back-up but use the SuperTow 1 for regular use.