I did most of my instruction in a Tomahawk, then bought a Grumman Tr2. The Tr2 was much more sensitive in pitch, but I quickly learned to love it. Only complaint I had with the Tomahawk was the nose gear wanted to shimmy at times. Those that have flown it, have you ever done a HARD full stall and look back at the tail? Yeeeeowwza!
Kevin Golden Harrisonville, MO -----Original Message----- From: jscott.pi...@juno.com To: kr...@mylist.net Sent: Wed, 21 Feb 2007 9:56 AM Subject: Re: KR> now Tomahawk- of subject I own a Tomahawk and fly it at least as much as the KR. I haven't figured out how to make a bad landing in it. The oversized tail is so effective through the landing and the gear is so soft, you have to be really ham fisted to screw it up. The Tomahawk is a bit more pitch sensitive than most trainers, so the beginning student struggles a bit more learning the plane. It was built that way to make the tail large enough to be fully effective on take off without it being in the prop wash. The "T" tail design was as dumb idea that was done for marketing purposes as it was built during the hay day of the 727 and DC-9, both "T" tail jets. The "spring" trim was also a bad idea. While it is functional, it is nowhere near as effective as a trim tab. I often times introduce new pilots to the Tomahawk. They are literally terrified by the stories from others that once flew them as primary students. I take them through a stall series and maybe a spin entry and recovery. They come back wondering why all the horror stories. The Tomahawk spins just fine. However, recovery from a fully developed spin requires doing the right thing, then being patient. It won't fly itself out like the Cessnas. If you want to do spin training in one, I recommend doing it with a CFI experienced in spin training. Piper designed it to be a hands on flyer after interviewing CFIs and finding that they wanted an airplane that students have to fly and handle right to make it perform. They designed what the CFIs asked for, then got beat up because the CFIs and students didn't like it. Now that you have some KR time behind you, go get in a Tomahawk again. You'll wonder how you could have ever struggled with such a pussycat. It amazes me that a bunch of pilots that are building and flying one of the least stable and most pitch sensitive airplanes in the homebuilt market will line up to bad mouth a trainer for having the same trait, only to a much lesser extent. It wasn't the airplane that was causing you to struggle as a student. It was the student skills. The airplane was making you into a better pilot by making you struggle, but also being forgiving in the process. The amplified student horror stories have made the Tomahawk one of the best buys in the GA market by keeping the prices depressed. After several hundred hours in my Tomahawk, the only real gripe I have is the lack of yaw stability in turbulance. It excels at the Bonanza waltz in rough air. Interestingly enough, the "T" tailed Skipper that everyone thinks is a Beech Tomahawk doesn't have the same issues. Oh yes, and I do have a Tomahawk and Skipper both available for sale. The Tomahawk is mine, and the Skipper belongs to a friend. I have done most of the work on both of them over the last several years, including top overhauls. Now, let's move the discussion back to KRs. Or we could search for someone elses baby to call ugly. :o) Jeff Scott N1213W N2398N -- "Joseph H. Horton" <joe.kr2s.buil...@juno.com> wrote: I have about 20 hours in a Tomahawk and I only stuck with it just because I will not be defeated. I hated climbs in it because it would hunt for direction and landings were not the most fun either but I did get it down pat and then stopped flying it. Joe Horton, Coopersburg, PA. joe.kr2s.buil...@juno.com On Tue, 20 Feb 2007 20:30:30 -0600 "Mark Wegmet" <markweg...@charter.net> writes: > Rumor has it that it was called a "Trauma-hawk" because it was "spin > friendly". :-) > > > -----Original Message----- > From: krnet-boun...@mylist.net [mailto:krnet-boun...@mylist.net] On > Behalf > Of Dave Arbogast, CISSP > Sent: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 11:46 AM > To: KRnet > Subject: Re: KR> Thrust Line issues > > Funny, my instructor called them the "Trauma - hawk" because of the > T > tail being less responsive to prop wash when you need it the most - > > stall recovery. > > Raising the trust-line I would think increases the loads on the > upper > half of the firewall. Maybe not enough to worry about, but I sure > like > the idea of more ground clearance for the prop. > > -dave > _______________________________________ Search the KRnet Archives at http://www.maddyhome.com/krsrch/index.jsp to UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to krnet-le...@mylist.net Post photos, introductions, and For Sale items to http://www.kr2forum.com/phpBB2/index.php please see other KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html _______________________________________ Search the KRnet Archives at http://www.maddyhome.com/krsrch/index.jsp to UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to krnet-le...@mylist.net Post photos, introductions, and For Sale items to http://www.kr2forum.com/phpBB2/index.php please see other KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html ________________________________________________________________________ Check out the new AOL. 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