Transporting ultralight

[Dave]

I am looking into a purchase and there is an ultralight for sale in Winnepeg
that interests me greatly. I am 1600 miles away in Halifax and getting it
here at reasonable cost is an issue.

What is the best way to move ultralights, besides flying them. I am not yet
fully licensed and even then starting on that kind of flight with an unknown
(to me) aircraft seems a poor idea.

The lowest cost I can come up with is to drive out and buy a trailer, but I
am open to ideas. I am new to all of this so maybe there are things I an
overlooking.

[Jim Carriere]

Dave wrote:
> I am looking into a purchase and there is an ultralight for sale in Winnepeg
> that interests me greatly. I am 1600 miles away in Halifax and getting it
> here at reasonable cost is an issue.
>
> What is the best way to move ultralights, besides flying them. I am not yet
> fully licensed and even then starting on that kind of flight with an unknown
> (to me) aircraft seems a poor idea.
>
> The lowest cost I can come up with is to drive out and buy a trailer, but I
> am open to ideas. I am new to all of this so maybe there are things I an
> overlooking.

If you self-ship, have you considered a one-way flight or Greyhound
there followed by a one-way Uhaul rental for the return? Trailer or
truck it, remember you'll have to partially disassemble and pack it
yourself. I'd prefer to put it inside the back of a moving van
instead of a trailer, just less things to go wrong on the way. Most
importantly, I'd bring one more person along with for help. If you
fly there, round-trip plane tickets sometimes cost less than the one way.

If you get someone else to ship it, shop around. There are shipping
companies that specialize in large but less than "18 wheeler" sized
cargo- not just UPS, Fedex, and the post office, check the yellow
pages. Household movers may be worth looking into. If one company
balks just because it's an airplane, don't rule out asking their
competitors. Ask at your airport too, somebody may have done good
business with a local company.

Have you considered paying another pilot to fly it back for you? A
gentlemen's agreement perhaps, fuel and lodging and some fee? If I
were in your shoes- brand new pilot, I would not consider an
ultralight cross country (especially across the wilderness in
northern Ontario) for myself. The planning and execution are a lot
to bite off!

Cover your bases legally and liablity-wise too. I don't have advice
much to offer in this area.

[Gordon L. Slivinski]

Hi Dave.

What kind of Ultralight are you picking up in "Meeting of Muddy
Waters" ( Winnipeg)?

Gordon in Edmonchuck .


Dave wrote:
> I am looking into a purchase and there is an ultralight for sale in Winnepeg
> that interests me greatly. I am 1600 miles away in Halifax and getting it
> here at reasonable cost is an issue.
>
> What is the best way to move ultralights, besides flying them. I am not yet
> fully licensed and even then starting on that kind of flight with an unknown
> (to me) aircraft seems a poor idea.
>
> The lowest cost I can come up with is to drive out and buy a trailer, but I
> am open to ideas. I am new to all of this so maybe there are things I an
> overlooking.
>
>

[Frank van der Hulst]

Dave wrote:
> I am looking into a purchase and there is an ultralight for sale in Winnepeg
> that interests me greatly. I am 1600 miles away in Halifax and getting it
> here at reasonable cost is an issue.

About 4 months ago, I did a similar thing... bought a microlight project
at Auckland (about 6 hours drive away), and needed to get it back here.
One-way truck rentals were *hugely* expensive... it was cheaper to hire
a truck here and drive it there and back than to hire it one-way. Hiring
a trailer and driving up was going to be difficult and expensive too. I
found the cheapest way was to get it back-hauled by a furniture-moving
business. Here in NZ, there's a web site where you can register stuff
you want moved, and trucking companies can then match it up with other
moves that they have organised. I bought a roll of bubblewrap on the Net
and got it shipped to the vendor's house. He wrapped everything and
helped load it onto the truck. This worked out perfectly.

The economics may work out differently for you -- maybe hiring trailers
or trucks might be cheaper there, and my plane was a project -- already
disassembled.

Frank

[Dave]

"Gordon L. Slivinski" > wrote in message
news:8M%4e.3882$7Q4.1636@clgrps13...
> Hi Dave.
>
> What kind of Ultralight are you picking up in "Meeting of Muddy
> Waters" ( Winnipeg)?
>
> Gordon in Edmonchuck .
>

Nothing yet. There is a Rans there that I think will work out well, I am
just checking out whether it will still be a good purchase including the
time and expense to get it here.

[Dude]

"Dave" > wrote in message
...
>I am looking into a purchase and there is an ultralight for sale in
>Winnepeg
> that interests me greatly. I am 1600 miles away in Halifax and getting it
> here at reasonable cost is an issue.
>
> What is the best way to move ultralights, besides flying them. I am not
> yet
> fully licensed and even then starting on that kind of flight with an
> unknown
> (to me) aircraft seems a poor idea.
>
> The lowest cost I can come up with is to drive out and buy a trailer, but
> I
> am open to ideas. I am new to all of this so maybe there are things I an
> overlooking.
>
>

Talk to the manufacturer about costs of getting proper crating or advice.
Then send it standard freight.

The catch is having someone on your end to help you put it together, but the
experience will be worth it.

Of course, you need to inspect it prior to agreeing to buy it, and I would
want to inspect the disassembly and crating.

Another possibility is to ask the owner to deliver it after you have
inspected it and given a deposit. I flew my plane across the country for
the buyer, and really enjoyed it. I paid for the trip, but my expenses were
to be deducted from the deposit if he backed out for any reason.

[[email protected]]

"Dave" > wrote:

> Nothing yet. There is a Rans there that I think will work out well, I am
> just checking out whether it will still be a good purchase including the
> time and expense to get it here.

I don't know about the Rans, but some ULs have a folding wing
capability. As such, you might could fit it in a fill sized pickup.

I had a similar purchase a little over a year ago. However, it was
only 600 miles round trip. A friend and I made the trip up there with
a big trailer and came back in one day. Your trip, 1600 miles, is a
lot further. If you haven't bought it yet, why not buy one from
somebody closer? Even if you pay a little more, you might be saving
in the long run.

Dennis.



Dennis Hawkins
n4mwd AT amsat DOT org (humans know what to do)

[Darrel Toepfer]

Dave wrote:

> I am looking into a purchase and there is an ultralight for sale in Winnepeg
> that interests me greatly. I am 1600 miles away in Halifax and getting it
> here at reasonable cost is an issue.
>
> What is the best way to move ultralights, besides flying them. I am not yet
> fully licensed and even then starting on that kind of flight with an unknown
> (to me) aircraft seems a poor idea.
>
> The lowest cost I can come up with is to drive out and buy a trailer, but I
> am open to ideas. I am new to all of this so maybe there are things I an
> overlooking.

http://www.barnstormers.com There is a section for TRANSPORTERS, people
that haul airplanes professionally. They frequently list when they'll be
travelling in particular direction empty...

A frequenty advertiser there:
http://www.aircraftsuper-market.com/acsm.html

[John Ousterhout]

Dave wrote:
> I am looking into a purchase and there is an ultralight for sale in Winnepeg
> that interests me greatly. I am 1600 miles away in Halifax and getting it
> here at reasonable cost is an issue.
>
> What is the best way to move ultralights, besides flying them. I am not yet
> fully licensed and even then starting on that kind of flight with an unknown
> (to me) aircraft seems a poor idea.
>
> The lowest cost I can come up with is to drive out and buy a trailer, but I
> am open to ideas. I am new to all of this so maybe there are things I an
> overlooking.

I've made several long trips with an aircraft on a trailer - and not
only survived, but enjoyed the trips. Here's a few pictures of a couple
of the trailers.

1,000 miles with a MiniMax Ultralight on an open trailer.
http://ousterhout.net/gallery/minimax_trailer_1.jpg
http://ousterhout.net/gallery/minimax_trailer_2.jpg

4,000 miles (Independence, OR to Oshkosh and back) with a Nieuport in an
enclosed trailer.
http://ousterhout.net/gallery/nieuport_trailer_1.jpg
http://ousterhout.net/gallery/nieuport_trailer_2.jpg

I also made a 500 mile trip with an enclosed homebuilt trailer that was
constructed by a good builder who was not a good trailer engineer. This
one had a Vne of 50 mph and swayed dramatically whenever we were passed
by a Semi. I recommend you test drive your trailer on the same type of
highways as you'll be driving.

The Open trailer had lower drag.

The enclosed trailer was a Wells Cargo brand. It towed very well and
felt stable although aero drag was high.

You may be able to borrow a good trailer from someone. I'd ask around
the local EAA chapter -- this worked for me twice.

Because the weight of the aircraft will usually be far less than the
trailer's capacity, it will ride stiffly. Use lots of cushioning under
the aircraft. We used some dense foam. I recommend you use twice as
much packing and tie downs as you think necessary. Stop and check after
a few miles, then every 30 minutes for a while, then every 60, etc.
Stuff will shift. Take lots of duct tape.

I also recommend that you take a co-driver and switch off regularly.

- John Ousterhout -

[John Ammeter]

On Fri, 08 Apr 2005 14:50:59 GMT, John Ousterhout
> wrote:


>I've made several long trips with an aircraft on a trailer - and not
>only survived, but enjoyed the trips. Here's a few pictures of a couple
>of the trailers.
>
>1,000 miles with a MiniMax Ultralight on an open trailer.
>http://ousterhout.net/gallery/minimax_trailer_1.jpg
>http://ousterhout.net/gallery/minimax_trailer_2.jpg
>

>Because the weight of the aircraft will usually be far less than the
>trailer's capacity, it will ride stiffly. Use lots of cushioning under
>the aircraft. We used some dense foam. I recommend you use twice as
>much packing and tie downs as you think necessary. Stop and check after
>a few miles, then every 30 minutes for a while, then every 60, etc.
>Stuff will shift. Take lots of duct tape.
>
>I also recommend that you take a co-driver and switch off regularly.
>
>- John Ousterhout -


OK, John, now tell the rest of the story...

BTW, you HAD a co-driver but he never drove. Simply sat
there like a lump tolerating your 200 CD's of "music".

Was that the trip that we drove into Tonapah doing a good
example of a lowpass with smoke??

What happened crossing that raised section of road in SE
Oregon? Remember the left quartering wind and the icy
road??

Remember having to add a five gallon bucket full of dirt to
the front of the trailer because the CG was too far aft??

John A

[Dude]

> I also made a 500 mile trip with an enclosed homebuilt trailer that was
> constructed by a good builder who was not a good trailer engineer. This
> one had a Vne of 50 mph and swayed dramatically whenever we were passed by
> a Semi.

Classic! Thanks for the laugh.

>
> Because the weight of the aircraft will usually be far less than the
> trailer's capacity, it will ride stiffly. Use lots of cushioning under
> the aircraft. We used some dense foam. I recommend you use twice as much
> packing and tie downs as you think necessary. Stop and check after a few
> miles, then every 30 minutes for a while, then every 60, etc. Stuff will
> shift. Take lots of duct tape.
>
> I also recommend that you take a co-driver and switch off regularly.
>
> - John Ousterhout -

Consider buying plywood and other lumber and making braces and stands that
hold the plane and parts in place. Make sure you leave room for the padding
when you cut them. There should be no shifting if do this right. Of
course, using foam and rechecking may be less costly in time and money, or
it may not.

[John Ousterhout]

John Ammeter wrote:
>
> OK, John, now tell the rest of the story...
>
> BTW, you HAD a co-driver but he never drove. Simply sat
> there like a lump tolerating your 200 CD's of "music".
>
> Was that the trip that we drove into Tonapah doing a good
> example of a lowpass with smoke??
>
> What happened crossing that raised section of road in SE
> Oregon? Remember the left quartering wind and the icy
> road??
>
> Remember having to add a five gallon bucket full of dirt to
> the front of the trailer because the CG was too far aft??

I'd forgot the CG adjustment.

You were along for moral (or immoral, after all it was NV) support.

The engine problem that required a forced landing in Tonapah was not
related to the trailer Driving on icy roads with a nasty crosswind was
bad judgement on my part.

Remember the trip towing the Gyrocopter where we told people that asked
"What it that?" that it was a lunar lander simulator?

- J.O.-