Bart, I've owned my coupe for five years. In that time I've read every post on this coupe board and the one that preceded it. I have also examined the standard Ercoupe owner documentation. In that five years I have found no documentation that allows the snubber cable to be on an Ercoupe. My Coupe had a snubber cable on it when I purchased it. I assumed it was factory installed. Over the years I have followed the many conversations about the cable on this discussion board and have reached a conclusion. Last year at my annual I instructed my IA to remove the cable. Why? In my opinion it is not only unnecessay but it may also be illegal. I have found no reference to it in the parts manual, the service manual, or any of the technical and service bulletins. Additionally, I have checked at several Ercoupe flyins and found that there is no standard length to installed snubber cables. If they were an important piece of required (or even optional) equipment, I must assume that there should be a standard length that is recommended. The idea that it is useful in Coupes with rudder pedals does not seem logical to me. I have seen material that states that when the crosswind excedes the ability of the rudder pedals to provide correction, the pilot should crab into the wind and land in the traditional Ercoupe manner. I have also read quotations from Fred that describe crosswind landings that make no mention of the need for a snubber cable. I have read the landing instructions for later model coupes which indicate a crosswind component of 25 mph is acceptable. But there is no Ercoupe literature, official or otherwise that states that it is required, advised, or acceptable to install a snubber cable on a Coupe. I hope that this is the last post to appear on this discussion board about snubber cables. I'm getting tired from erasing them. :)
John Roach N 2427H
