Parking brake mod

gwillford · Post by **gwillford** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 8:22 pm

I have read about the need to remove the parking brake hardware to prevent those accidental excursions into the weeds. Question. Has anyone tried using a Cleveland or Matco parking brake valve as an option? They are currently available from AC Spruce. I suppose one could mount one of these assemblies and hook up a push pull cable and pretty well duplicate what we had without the problems of the old system. Looking forward to your thoughts and ideas.

George

cessna170bdriver · Post by **cessna170bdriver** » Tue Mar 21, 2006 9:17 pm

George,

See http://cessna170.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=2194 for a previous discussion. If you go with a hydraulic valve, I'd suggest the Cleveland since it's already in use on other approved installations, and would cut down on the approval hassle.

Regardless of the mechanism though, never trust the parking brake to hold the airplane in a run up, or parked if you're more than an arm's length away from the airplane. I trust mine just long enough to get out of the airplane and install the chocks (which I keep under the left side of the back seat).

Miles

170C · Post by **170C** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 12:19 am

I removed mine about a year ago, have regretted it since. It saved my bacon several times. Still have the hardward, but not sure I will go to the effort to reinstall. Wish we had the later model 172 parking brake system------like a 57 Ford.

Wed Mar 22, 2006 12:47 am

I'm curious first how the parking brake has saved your bacon several time since I've never used or needed mine the 6 or so year I've had my 170.

I'd also like to know more about the later 172 system. I'd think a system designed by the manufacturer for a similar aircraft would be much easier to get approval for that a system design by the owner out of pieces found in a catalog.

blueldr · Post by **blueldr** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 3:32 am

When it comes to bacon saving, I'll go along with "ole Pokey". There is just no way, in a good many of the back country air strips, that a solo pilot can safely get out of his airplane and get the chocks in before the airplane starts to roll off into something. Too many parking areas are anything except level. I always carry chocks too, and I always use them.
By that, I mean I do not depend on the parking brakes to hold the airplane longer than it takes to get it chocked, or for longer than it takes to pull the chocks and get seated with my feet on the brakes.
If you can always carry a "Chocker" around with you in the right seat, you wont need parking brakes, but I fly solo most of the time.
In the airplane that I'm rebuilding, I'm installing a "Cane" handle parking brake from a C-182.
No. I didn't ask the fuzz if it was OK.

cessna170bdriver · Post by **cessna170bdriver** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 6:13 am

I'm with Pokey and blueldr. Around here where 20+ knot winds are common, it's nice to have the parking brake to give you time to get the chocks in place. Also, when going for the $100 omelette at Kernville, the parking is on about a 10% grade. Try that one solo without a parking brake.

Miles

Wed Mar 22, 2006 11:17 am

OK I'll buy off on all those reasons to have one. Just goes to show how conditions are SO different around our country.

Around here in Eastern PA a nearly flat 3000 x 400 perfectly manicured grass strip is considered back country because most Mooney pilots won't land there.

Indopilot · Post by **Indopilot** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 2:54 pm

I have scrounged up a couple of the "cane " handle systems and plan to install them in both our 171 and my 170 when I get that far. Hopefully before my worth his weight in gold PMI retires next year.
one of the brake systems I got for a very good price off you know where

Brian

cessna170bdriver · Post by **cessna170bdriver** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 3:30 pm

N9149A wrote:Around here in Eastern PA a nearly flat 3000 x 400 perfectly manicured grass strip is considered back country because most Mooney pilots won't land there.

Those Mooney guys don't know what they're missing. Dad's owned his 310 since '91 and for the first 9 or 10 years it was based at X55 (3200x80 turf)

and since then at 97FL (3700x125 turf)

Sure cuts down on the tire bills.

gwillford · Post by **gwillford** » Wed Mar 22, 2006 5:45 pm

Does anyone have an assy drawing and a list of part numbers for the 172 cane handle system? I am interested in this approach and would like to start pricing out parts (fyi, donations gladly accepted!

). I agree that this approach would be a little more fed friendly.

Thanks!

170C · Post by **170C** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 1:28 am

Bruce, over the years there have been numerous times I parked on a ramp & didn't have chocks

in my plane. Never had it to roll off when they were set. As others have said parking on any slope its nice to have the parking brake, if for no other reason than to hold it until the chock is set in place. With a slope and/or wind its nice to set the pk brake before removing the chocks. Where I hangar, the taxiway slopes to the middle for drainage. A couple of months ago I parked and the slope makes the plane roll back until the mains get in the bottom of the drain area & if the plane isn't perfectly straight when it starts rolling back the tailwheel will caster around which means I have to fight it to get a towbar on it to pull the plane back into the hangar. Well I knew it wasn't going to roll straight so I decided to jump out and throw a chock under the left main. Well, I for got that at that position the ground is a foot or more lower than normal because as I exited one foot got tangled in the inside and the other one didn't hit the ground where I thought it was located. Busted my a_ _

Felt like a fool, which I guess I was. Fortunately no one saw it but me. My parking brake would have prevented that. Oh well, the fun things we do to entertain ourselves. I do wish the "cane" parking brake was a reasonable option.

thammer · Post by **thammer** » Sat Mar 25, 2006 4:53 am

gwillford wrote:Does anyone have an assy drawing and a list of part numbers for the 172 cane handle system? I am interested in this approach and would like to start pricing out parts (fyi, donations gladly accepted! ). I agree that this approach would be a little more fed friendly.

Thanks!

The 172 and 182 IPCs are available in PDF format here. The price is right too.

http://www.micro-tools.com/pdf/cessna/

I've got a 140 and haven't used the parking brake yet. It'd be nice to have a better system than those pesky notched shaft bits.

The International Cessna 170 Association