I like my landing gear to be simple, easy to build/make, ans robust/strong. The 2 areas where simple wire landing gear fails is that it tends to bend outwards on a heavy landing, (allowing a prop strike), and that it can be bent backwards severely making straightening it rather perilous.FT released a pair of medium and large landing gear kits awhile back but they are not cheap. I hate bending music wire and have had very limited success. Has anyone tried the kits? Are they good? Is there better options out there?
I have an antidote for such terrain types. I do a little gardening and then peg out a couple of poly tarps to give me a runway which gives a reasonable surface to land on UNLESS the rocks are actually boulders!
When you are able to land with landing gear properly there is NO MORE damage to your planes, (except for the odd bit of hangar rash). Not needing to rebuild, repair, replace is a real boost and gives you the freedom to expand your hangar to ridiculous levels.
Have fun!
That looks like the field I flew from when I lived in Nevada. I still used landing gear because it prevented a lot of broken propellers on landing. It was cheaper to straighten out a bent wire than replace another prop.I do most of my flying solo in a gritty desert lot, that renders most landing gear useless for landings and even more so for takeoffs
freedom to expand your hangar to ridiculous levels.
Have fun!
Well that's why I used a high mounted pusher😎. But yes, a tractor or prop in slot would benefit from landing gear.That looks like the field I flew from when I lived in Nevada. I still used landing gear because it prevented a lot of broken propellers on landing. It was cheaper to straighten out a bent wire than replace another prop.
I think I know what you mean. Works for me too. Kinda like this?
View attachment 140807
You can use a gift card instead of plywood if you like.
The FT gear is simply music wire and commercial wheels, which you can buy cheaper separately. Belly landing is better unless you have a very fragile prop or a perfectly flat field. None of my small planes work well with gear, bigger ones are OK but as noted the gear bends easily.