FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Any DA40 related topics

Moderators: Rick, Lance Murray

User avatar
CharlesMc
2 Diamonds Member
2 Diamonds Member
Posts: 18
Joined: Fri Oct 29, 2010 1:46 pm
First Name: CharlesMc
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N387CA
Airports: KT37
Has thanked: 6 times
Been thanked: 4 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by CharlesMc »

Hi folks,

Speaking of chocks for the mains and nosewheel with fairings (respective of thread creep), I raided a stash of old highway centerline reflectors pushed off to the side of one of our fine Texas highways that I use for blocking the front and rear of each wheel while parked. They are just the right height to slip under the fairings without scraping the fiberglass and take some serious effort to roll over. And with their color, haven't left any behind in 4+ years.

Attached photo of one of my back ups that I keep in my go bag at home. Rough dimensions are 4"x3"x1".

Charlie
Attachments
IMG_1010.JPG
User avatar
TomO
3 Diamonds Member
3 Diamonds Member
Posts: 52
Joined: Mon May 09, 2016 2:28 pm
First Name: Tom
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N524PS
Airports: KMTH
Has thanked: 3 times
Been thanked: 48 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by TomO »

D.I.Y. Wheel Chocks

An inexpensive solution for wheel chocks are 2” by 2” by 12” aluminum L stock obtained from a welding shop or window firm in white or bare aluminum. Drill two holes and insert line and you’re done for a few dollars.
Attachments
ADD24D91-AAD6-4F6D-B9AB-1AEA488BB2DF.jpeg
ADD24D91-AAD6-4F6D-B9AB-1AEA488BB2DF.jpeg (17.63 KiB) Viewed 1593 times
3E8DA929-757D-491F-B6C1-0BFC6C0CC18A.jpeg
3E8DA929-757D-491F-B6C1-0BFC6C0CC18A.jpeg (22.41 KiB) Viewed 1593 times
User avatar
Rich
5 Diamonds Member
5 Diamonds Member
Posts: 4592
Joined: Mon Aug 30, 2010 12:40 pm
First Name: Rich
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N40XE
Airports: S39 Prineville OR
Has thanked: 145 times
Been thanked: 1180 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by Rich »

TomO wrote: Tue Nov 10, 2020 4:18 pm D.I.Y. Wheel Chocks

An inexpensive solution for wheel chocks are 2” by 2” by 12” aluminum L stock obtained from a welding shop or window firm in white or bare aluminum. Drill two holes and insert line and you’re done for a few dollars.
And it works for parking your plane on the ceiling :D
2002 DA40-180: MT, PowerFlow, 530W/430W, KAP140, ext. baggage, 1090 ES out, 2646 MTOW, 40gal., Surefly, Flightstream 210, Orion 600 LED, XeVision, Aspen E5
User avatar
TomO
3 Diamonds Member
3 Diamonds Member
Posts: 52
Joined: Mon May 09, 2016 2:28 pm
First Name: Tom
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N524PS
Airports: KMTH
Has thanked: 3 times
Been thanked: 48 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by TomO »

That’s how we do things in Florida. Keeps it dry during topical storms and hurricanes.

Sorry about the pictures. They flipped and I didn’t know how to fix it!😎
User avatar
Charles K
4 Diamonds Member
4 Diamonds Member
Posts: 308
Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2011 7:46 pm
First Name: Charles
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N5WU
Airports: KCCR
Has thanked: 26 times
Been thanked: 98 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by Charles K »

We have these in yellow - excellent chocks.
Chris wrote: Thu Jan 31, 2013 4:01 pm
Gnomad wrote:p.s. I always have problems with the chalks, need small ones to fit under the wheel fairing. ;)
Carry around a set of these. They work great for us, are very compact, and less than $20 for a pair.
Charles
KCCR Based
N5WU - 2004 G1000 DA40 40.400, GTX345R ADS-B, WAAS Upgraded in 2021 via Diamond Upgrade Program
IFR and ME Rated - Advanced Ground Instructor Rated
User avatar
dmloftus
4 Diamonds Member
4 Diamonds Member
Posts: 459
Joined: Thu May 07, 2020 3:38 pm
First Name: David
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N868US
Airports: KLZU
Has thanked: 211 times
Been thanked: 238 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by dmloftus »

The best idea from an FBO guy in a pinch was to use two 1/2" drive 29mm sockets to adapt his universal tow bar for my DA40. The pins from the tow bar fit nicely into the 1/2" square hole and the OD on the sockets was perfect in the nose gear. He was able to tow the plane easily with his tug.
User avatar
Steve
5 Diamonds Member
5 Diamonds Member
Posts: 1953
Joined: Thu Aug 12, 2010 1:23 am
First Name: Steve
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N432SC
Airports: 1T7
Has thanked: 81 times
Been thanked: 493 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by Steve »

David:

I had to chuckle at this. I can envision the line guy coming to the A&P and asking to borrow some of his tools to tow a plane. Plus, I doubt that most mechs even have two 29 mm sockets in their tool sets. I have almost every tool known to man, and I don't have two 29 mm sockets! Interestingly, I used to fly to College Station, TX (KCLL) frequently to visit my son while he was attending TX A&M. The FBO there (Astin Aviation) actually bought a set of adapters for the DA40. I asked how many DA40 visits they would see up there, and the line guy said that they got one or two a week at most.

Their fuel prices were on the high side, so I guess they could afford it (but they have a really nice FBO).

Steve
User avatar
dmloftus
4 Diamonds Member
4 Diamonds Member
Posts: 459
Joined: Thu May 07, 2020 3:38 pm
First Name: David
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N868US
Airports: KLZU
Has thanked: 211 times
Been thanked: 238 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by dmloftus »

Steve wrote: Wed Nov 18, 2020 3:28 am David:

I had to chuckle at this. I can envision the line guy coming to the A&P and asking to borrow some of his tools to tow a plane. Plus, I doubt that most mechs even have two 29 mm sockets in their tool sets. I have almost every tool known to man, and I don't have two 29 mm sockets!

Steve
I actually put that fun fact to use. I built my own towbar rig to winch the plane backwards into the hangar using the nose gear. What did I use for the tow bar adapters? 2 29mm sockets! Not bad for $6 each. It works perfectly.
Attachments
IMG_5991.jpg
IMG_6188.PNG
IMG_5984.jpg
User avatar
Shodan01
2 Diamonds Member
2 Diamonds Member
Posts: 40
Joined: Thu Oct 01, 2020 1:03 am
First Name: Steve
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: N475PS
Airports: KGMU
Has thanked: 5 times
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by Shodan01 »

This thread like many goes down a wormhole of money to spend :) - Since I am a new owner (soon) I am curious what I need to ensure that my FBO is set-up right. Unfortunately there is a 5 year (roughly) wait on T hangers, I am forced to use their shared hanger so they will tow this in and out. I noticed the nylon spacers on page 1 - I know the FBO uses a golf cart to pull these to the ramp and back - anything specific you recommend or is there a specific question I need to ask the FBO?
User avatar
Rick
5 Diamonds Member
5 Diamonds Member
Posts: 1575
Joined: Tue Jul 06, 2010 10:09 pm
First Name: Rick
Aircraft Type: DA40
Aircraft Registration: NONE
Airports: KROA
Has thanked: 107 times
Been thanked: 297 times

Re: FBO to DA40 Towbar Adapter

Post by Rick »

However they hook it up, make sure your FBO knows they can't bend the nose wheel more than about 45 degrees. It's easy to force it beyond that point with a tug or golf cart and bend the aluminum stop plate on the nose wheel. I've had to replace mine, thanks to an overnight stop where they moved my plane with a tug.
Roanoke, VA (KROA)
Post Reply