The shimmy problem of the Ercoupe is designed in and you cannot stop it. It is one of the few faults in the plane but in fairness to the designers, it
was really among the very first aircraft to have tricycle gear. To stop the shimmy you would have to bend the forks forward such that the center of the spot on the ground where the tire rests is at or forward of the extended centerline of the hinge axis. Look at an bibycle to see how they do it. You can minimize the shimmy by removing all the play possible from the steering system which can be very expensive or you can lower the tire pressure so that the tire looks soft and go on flying. Lowering the tire pressure is a very effective way of dampening the oscillations. Dresser Tire and Rubber Co., 1-800-AIR-TIRE will sell you an Aero Trainer 5.00-5 tire for $33.95 delivered. That tire will last as long as any other on the front of a coupe especially if you have a dragging brake as I often do. I have no solution to your flight instructor problem. I don't know yours of course but many of the low time instructors seem to have more opinions than wisdom. Good luck with your instruction, Bob Condon
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