Tires

[WebMaster]

Because the tires retract into a wheel well, which is a snug fit, the only way to put bigger tires on would be to make the gear down and locked at all times. Then you could improve the size of the mains. The front tire could then be increased in diameter, but not width.

One of the potential problems with retracting slightly larger tires is that if they get hung up on the well, you won't be able to fully retract. This would leave you in the very precarious position of having the clamshell doors at the rear stuck open. Having the clamshells open helps contribute to the negative single engine climb rate while cycling the gear.

We had a discussion about this on the ramp at Nashville. Many of us fly into unimproved (e.g. unpaved) airports. Oh, shhh, don't tell your insurance guy. They frown on it.

One of the benefits of making the gear permanently down and locked is that you can significantly reduce the empty weight, since all those actuators, cams, switches, and wiring can be removed. If you had a later model, you could remove the power pack.