Hey Milton: I assume you have the rubber doughnuts on the gear. These rubber doughnuts are the only cushioning you get when taxiing. The hydraulics only work during the landing. Replacing the rubber doughnuts may help slightly, but most likely not. Did you ride in an Ercoupe before purchasing yours? Lynn Nelsen In a message dated 6/5/2010 4:57:17 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [email protected] writes:
I recently decided to service the MLG on my 415C. I fly out of grass strip that is pretty smooth, but the taxiway has one rough area. Whenever I taxi across that area, the MLG seems to be "bottomed out" and there is no cushioning effect at all. My airplane still has (had) the "O" rings on the oleo struts so I ordered the cup kit and STC from Skyport. This morning I tackled the right gear. I managed to get the piston drilled and tapped for the 1/4 inch bolt without too much hassle. Re-assembly was somewhat of a challenge. I finally got it all back together, filled the strut with DOT3 fluid, and checked the dampening action. To my major disappointment there was no more hydraulic dampening that I had with the old "O" ring set-up. So I thought maybe I had not tightened the 1/4" bolt enough to cause the cup to expand properly. So I removed the piston, tightened the bolt a bit, and again re-assembled the strut. It did not help. Although I did not measure the id of the cylinder, it does not appear overly worn. In fact the gear appears to be in good shape, even has the original oil filler caps. What should I do next?
