Flat tires

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jjatrose
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Re: Flat tires

Post by jjatrose »

I think I jinxed myself by continually checking this thread...So, I too have joined the "Flat Tire" club!! :tap:
I'm not sure what the cause of the failure was just yet but, the tire will have to be replaced along with the tube since it now has a deep groove in the sidewall due to the rim cutting into it. Thankfully, I was on taxi (not landing), here at my home base @ KGSO & the guys at the FBO were spot on.. Only 210 hours on the tire.
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DCLEMONS
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Re: Flat tires

Post by DCLEMONS »

Hi Steve - It took two guys ( Should have used 3) directly under the wing ( Full tanks of Gas) to lift the wing to a U-Haul like floor dolly. He had to make something work to get the Diamond back into the hanger to fix the flat. The dolly has small wheels on it so it was difficult to get it moving and keep it straight.from the strip to the hanger :) Once in the hangers we used a single floor jack in the jack mount of the wing ( with padding to protect the Diamond Composite)

Changing tires and tubes seemed straight forward since I had our chief mechanic showing the way! :) I think doing both at the same time along with the brakes was a good idea.

Learned much!

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Lance Murray
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Re: Flat tires

Post by Lance Murray »

Be sure to give Landmark the rating they deserve on Air Nav.
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Chromer
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Re: Flat tires

Post by Chromer »

Well I finally got tired of trying to lift the plane from the wing. It took forever and always had to block the tail or it would drop to the ground. I decided to make a lifting plate that I can carry in the plane as it only weighs .54 kg. It fits between the bottom two brake line clips. I used it this summer to remove the wheels. I have enclosed some pictures if anyone is interested on making one for their plane.
Diamond DA40 Strut Jack.docx
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Chromer
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Re: Flat tires

Post by Chromer »

I also made it a little wider and glued in a thin piece of rubber to prevent damage to the paint on the strut
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Boatguy
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Re: Flat tires

Post by Boatguy »

Nice design taking advantage of the wedge shape of the strut. What material did you use?
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Rich
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Re: Flat tires

Post by Rich »

Chromer wrote: Sat Sep 07, 2019 10:44 pm I also made it a little wider and glued in a thin piece of rubber to prevent damage to the paint on the strut
While I have no problem using conventional jacks in my home hangar (I have a tailstand) this is a cool thing to have away from one's home base. Some of the wing jacks are too tall to easily use with our low-low DA40 (or Comanche or Mooney) wings.
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Chromer
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Re: Flat tires

Post by Chromer »

Hi Russ, Thanks, I machined it out of an aluminum block. Just to clarify I didn't make the strut jack any bigger than the drawing.
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JamesDS
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Re: Flat tires

Post by JamesDS »

Having learned my lesson the hard way that my aircraft tires need to be refilled every 3-4 weeks, I have tried a tank of compressed air filled with an air compressor. It is heavy and the pressure is limited as is the pressure from my air compressor. The McClellan Field FBO is very helpful, and will run a cart with six or 8 large tanks of nitrogen to the plane. With no regulation to a reasonable pressure, that worried me. These tanks are also used to service the large tires on jets up to the 747 air tanker on the field. I finally found a foot pump with gauge recommended on a car enthusiast site as the one that never broke. It is small, light, and I carry it in the plane. (I have no storage at McClellan) I could only find it on Amazon.co.uk
"Premium double barrel foot air pump with manometer 10 BAR 140PSI HEYNER Pedalmax" The US Amazon site only carried the single tube pump of this brand, and the double tube looked wider, more stable, and not as thick. The included canvas case is very nice and compact when zipped closed.
HEYNER PUMP OPEN POSITION.JPG
HEYNER PUMP OPEN POSITION.JPG (65.74 KiB) Viewed 1602 times
HEYNER GAUGE CLOSEUP.JPG
HEYNER GAUGE CLOSEUP.JPG (32.57 KiB) Viewed 1602 times
Note that pressure in PSI is the inner red scale. JamesDS
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HEYNER PUMP IN OPENED CASE.JPG
HEYNER PUMP IN OPENED CASE.JPG (55.68 KiB) Viewed 1602 times
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Re: Flat tires

Post by Boatguy »

I learned the importance of tire pressures with EVs when I quit visiting gas stations. My simple solution is the Milwaukee M12 inflator. Battery powered, preset the desired pressure, attach, press the button, tires inflated as specified. Could not be easier.
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