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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
What kind of auto or truck have you seen launch a sailplane with?
Would a Dodge Ram 1500 4X4 do the trick? What are the requirements to become endorsed for auto launching? What are the recommended rope lengths and types of pulley's for a 3900 ft runway? |
#2
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 18, 8:21*pm, Scott Alexander
wrote: What kind of auto or truck have you seen launch a sailplane with? Would a Dodge Ram 1500 4X4 do the trick? What are the requirements to become endorsed for auto launching? What are the recommended rope lengths and types of pulley's for a 3900 ft runway? Reverse pulley makes best use of the available length and is quickest retrieve. See http://www.coloradosoaring.org/think...ng/default.htm, both John Campell's notes and Reverse Pulley. Yes the Dodge will do. 4WD only needed on grass. 2WD is fine for hard surface. Frank Whiteley |
#3
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 19, 5:09*am, Frank Whiteley wrote:
On Jul 18, 8:21*pm, Scott Alexander wrote: What kind of auto or truck have you seen launch a sailplane with? Would a Dodge Ram 1500 4X4 do the trick? What are the requirements to become endorsed for auto launching? What are the recommended rope lengths and types of pulley's for a 3900 ft runway? Reverse pulley makes best use of the available length and is quickest retrieve. Seehttp://www.coloradosoaring.org/thinking_pages/ground_launching/defaul...., both John Campell's notes and Reverse Pulley. Yes the Dodge will do. *4WD only needed on grass. *2WD is fine for hard surface. Frank Whiteley |
#4
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 19, 5:09*am, Frank Whiteley wrote:
On Jul 18, 8:21*pm, Scott Alexander wrote: What kind of auto or truck have you seen launch a sailplane with? Would a Dodge Ram 1500 4X4 do the trick? What are the requirements to become endorsed for auto launching? What are the recommended rope lengths and types of pulley's for a 3900 ft runway? Reverse pulley makes best use of the available length and is quickest retrieve. Seehttp://www.coloradosoaring.org/thinking_pages/ground_launching/defaul...., both John Campell's notes and Reverse Pulley. Yes the Dodge will do. *4WD only needed on grass. *2WD is fine for hard surface. Frank Whiteley Scott, I sent a long email to you (too much stuff to post here). Hope it helps. Chris. |
#5
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 18, 10:09*pm, Frank Whiteley wrote:
On Jul 18, 8:21*pm, Scott Alexander wrote: What kind of auto or truck have you seen launch a sailplane with? Would a Dodge Ram 1500 4X4 do the trick? What are the requirements to become endorsed for auto launching? What are the recommended rope lengths and types of pulley's for a 3900 ft runway? Reverse pulley makes best use of the available length and is quickest retrieve. Seehttp://www.coloradosoaring.org/thinking_pages/ground_launching/defaul...., both John Campell's notes and Reverse Pulley. Yes the Dodge will do. *4WD only needed on grass. *2WD is fine for hard surface. Frank Whiteley I might add that 3rd party liability insurance on winches in the US is only presently available by switching to synthetic ropes. I don't know if that extends to other forms of ground launching. Frank |
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 18, 7:21*pm, Scott Alexander
wrote: Wouldn't the answer to truck type depend on what you intend to launch? In the old days an FAA ground launch rating was good for winch or auto tow. Have not checked on the new endorsement requirements since I'm "grandfathered" for all launch types. For practical purposes an auto tow starts like aero tow and quickly transitions to being like a winch launch. For lake bed launches the popular wisdom seemed to be that the best truck was one that was rented Andy (GY) |
#7
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 19, 8:19*am, Andy wrote:
For lake bed launches the popular wisdom seemed to be that the best truck was one that was rented Second that. Auto towing is very rough on the tow vehicle - so much so that long ago I refused to use my personal vehicle for the purpose. Back in the '60's we used muscle cars which for whatever reason couldn't be licensed for highway use. You may find in the long run, a winch will be cheaper to operate. With only 3900 feet, you wouldn't get enough height with a straight auto tow to make it worthwhile. The tow vehicle's accelerate-stop distance plus rope length eats up too much runway. With a pulley you can do much better but you'll still need a robust tow vehicle with both very good acceleration and very good pulling ability. If you're launching heavy two seaters, the ultimate limit will be tow vehicle traction. Auto tow is best suited for low elevations (there are density altitude issues) and light gliders. |
#8
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 19, 10:19*am, Andy wrote:
On Jul 18, 7:21*pm, Scott Alexander wrote: Wouldn't the answer to truck type depend on what you intend to launch? In the old days an FAA ground launch rating was good for winch or auto tow. *Have not checked on the new endorsement requirements since I'm "grandfathered" for all launch types. *For practical purposes an auto tow starts like aero tow and quickly transitions to being like a winch launch. For lake bed launches the popular wisdom seemed to be that the best truck was one that was rented Andy (GY) I got my restriction removed in the old days at a winch clinic. 6 flights from intro to flight test. Would I launch off a winch or ground tow today? No way! There's several good ground launch operations in the US these days. Take a vacation at one of them for a while and get the endorsement. My understanding is that it will take at least 20 launches to really be proficient. A good alternate would be to hire in a top ground launch instructor like Frank to run a clinic at your field. That way several of you can get up to speed on all the aspects of running the operation. -- Matt |
#9
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Auto Launching: Truck types, etc
On Jul 19, 8:46*am, mattm wrote:
On Jul 19, 10:19*am, Andy wrote: On Jul 18, 7:21*pm, Scott Alexander wrote: Wouldn't the answer to truck type depend on what you intend to launch? In the old days an FAA ground launch rating was good for winch or auto tow. *Have not checked on the new endorsement requirements since I'm "grandfathered" for all launch types. *For practical purposes an auto tow starts like aero tow and quickly transitions to being like a winch launch. For lake bed launches the popular wisdom seemed to be that the best truck was one that was rented Andy (GY) I got my restriction removed in the old days at a winch clinic. *6 flights from intro to flight test. *Would I launch off a winch or ground tow today? *No way! There's several good ground launch operations in the US these days. Take a vacation at one of them for a while and get the endorsement. *My understanding is that it will take at least 20 launches to really be proficient. *A good alternate would be to hire in a top ground launch instructor like Frank to run a clinic at your field. *That way several of you can get up to speed on all the aspects of running the operation. -- Matt Matt, I would say 20 launches for a total novice would leave them minimally proficient - and, as you say, you need a good ground school to go with that. |
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