DA20 tire recommendations

[keithPTC]

Does anyone have any recommendations on a particular tire brand & model that works especially well on a DA20? The aircraft is privately owned and NOT operated in a flight school, so the abuse and utilization will be considerably less. Also, we have wheel pants on the aircraft so I have been advised that retreads are not a good idea (due to being slightly oversized). Thoughts? Thank you!

[krellis]

We have used Air Hawks on the mains of our DA20-A1 for some time now without incident. The nose tire is more of an issue, as it is small and very expensive. Ours is a Goodyear, but the "good" news is it seldom needs replacement. We just replaced ours for the first time at the recent annual in almost 8 years - but we do operate primarily on grass. If you are in Peachtree City (guessing by your username) - Aircraft Spruce is nearby or you can mail order from Desser Tire. If your alignment is correct, the DA20 is pretty easy on tires. We use Goodyear Flight Customs on our DA40, but the alignment is off and it eats tires much quicker.

Krea Ellis
DA20-A1 1996
DA40-XLS 2010

[keithPTC]

Thanks Krea. Yes, Peachtree City.

Regarding grass strips, any issues with leaving the wheel pants on? Any operating tips on grass unique to the DA20?

[krellis]

Thanks Krea. Yes, Peachtree City.

Regarding grass strips, any issues with leaving the wheel pants on? Any operating tips on grass unique to the DA20?

The fiberglass wheel pants on the 20 are pretty stout, in comparison to the carbon fiber ones on the newer 40's. The 20 pants are off the plane right now for some reinforcement in the attach areas - partly due to the grass strip but mostly due to operation in Grand Forks over one winter.

I think the damage to wheel pants on grass has more to do with the roughness of the surface than the length of the grass. At our field here, the grass is kept well mowed, but the runway itself is very rough. Peach State is pretty bad too if you go there, but Moontown or Triple Tree are beautifully smooth - like a fairway or putting green.

Unless the strip is fairly short, we don't really do anything different on grass. The takeoff and landing speeds are so low that even wet grass doesn't have a huge impact - although the acceleration impact is noticeable versus when we operate off asphalt. Hope this helps.

Krea Ellis

[keithPTC]

I think I'll pop the wheel pants off if planning to operate on grass just to be on the safe side. I never knew about Moontown. Will have to check that one out. Thanks.

[RMarkSampson]

Per the wheel pants, I'm normally operating on asphalt but I have taken my DA-20 up to Triple Tree grass strip for their fly-in a couple of times. Tire pressure is everything with regard to how much clearance your pants will have over the grass. Last time I went to TT, instead of keeping the mains at 33 PSI, I put an extra 5 psi into each of them which seemed to give the pants a bit more clearance over the grass. Also, my preflight on departure included giving each wheel pant a little tug to make sure all mounting points of the pants were not compromised by the previous grass landing.

One piece of advice - Make sure you carry a small wrench to remove your pant if needed (I keep a small crescent wrench in the side pocket for just this purpose). I did experience a flat on landing a while back coming into a non-towered field. Came to full stop on r/w fine but could not turn a/c to limp off. If you can quickly remove the pant then it is much easier to push yourself off the active.