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Stall Horn to Stall Light

banner tow pilot

Registered User
Atlanta, GA
the SC i tow banners with has a stall horn in it and that thing drives me crazy. i was wondering how much flack and how hard would the faa be in taking out the horn and putting in a light? and this would need to be done legal, they love us banner towers.
 
I'd adjust the vane where it didn't go off until you really stalled. The early Pipers had a light integrated into the horn that mounted into the panel.
 
i adjusted yesterday, but have not flown it yet. i hope that will help it. i just need it to go off below 40, not 55.
 
Primitive but effective answer: Prior to each flight, take a wooden kitchen match. During pre-flight walk around, somehow, the butt of the match stick gets stuck in the stall vane and broken off (with the vane in the "in flight position", of course).

Post flight walk around, flip the little chunk of wood out of there, and it's once again functional.

I seriously doubt if you will get the FAA to approve a different sort of stall warner on a certified aircraft.

I'm with you--every Cub I've flown that had a stall horn I just hated the thing.

MTV
 
Unhook the buzzer, reconnect at annual time. Or stuff the buzzer with something to muffle it.
 
I like doing flight reviews in Citabrias, Decathlons, Scouts, etc (and some planes with the breaker panel on my side) as it lets me pull the stall warning breaker before the reviewee does stalls. A lot of people - and I mean a LOT of people - rely on that little horn and they are really surprised by a stall without the horn. This is more fun than turning the panel lights on in a retract piper on a sunny day so that the gear indicator appears to not be working. Best done on final when the guy has quit checking to see if his gear is down. Some people think these are cruel and unusual, but it is a lesson that keeps on giving!

I hate stall horns that go off too early, or where you can't pull the breaker. It makes slow flight so much less enjoyable.

sj
 
Hmmmm, Steve just offered a "legal" solution.....the stall horn, being electric, should have circuit protection, right?

So, install a Klixon breaker on the panel or up in the left wing root in the stall horn circuit.

Now, new checklist item:

Before takeoff: Pull Stall horn circuit breaker

After landing: Reset Stall Horn circuit breaker.

Voila.... :angel:

MTV
 
that is what i do now, but the only problem is the gps plug is connected to the same circuit. i guess i could get a mech to change the wiring for the gps plug to another circuit.
 
My cub doesn't have a stall horn and I don't have any record it ever did.

What criteria requires the plane to have a stall horn?

Cub_Driver
 
Date of manufacture--ie serial number. It was added as required equipment late in the production years.

MTV
 
How 'bout one of those voice messaging thingies Chrysler did...
Nice female voice saying (screaming?) Nose Down! Nose Down!!
Or... something like "Watch your airspeed, stupid, your airplane has stopped."

Maybe this will turn into one of those "tongue-in-cheek creativity" thingies.
What would make an attention-getting &/or smile-eliciting Stall Warning Device?
 
Stall horn, I would love to have a stall horn in lieu of the stall klaxon I've got... every time it goes off everyone on the airport over the age of 45 starts to duck and cover...
 
I've never understood how anyone could get a Supercub
into a stall, not knowing it was coming.

If it's going to be audible.. How about... "HEY DUMB-ASS"

Brad
 
Well, Brad, I can't argue with you.

The only problem is that a large number of very experienced and skilled Super Cub pilots have died in stall/spin accidents in Cubs. And more than a couple of those folks were dear friends of mine.

I wish I could figure it out and spread the word so it wouldn't ever happen again. But, so far nobody's come up with the answer to why this happens, and we keep killing ourselves in these little airplanes.

MTV
 
MTV

Could not agree with you more about the moose hunters stall. A good start in reduction of this event would be to require (again) spin training during your privet pilots training.

Cub_Driver
 
Brad

My point was if you have been through even a little spin training you will have a better chance of realizing your about to enter a spin and take corrective action.

How high do you think you need to be to safely recover from a spin? Lets face it half the reason you fly a cub is to look around from a birds eye view. If I wanted lots of airspeed I would own a 185.

I bought my cub years ago from master guide Stan Frost. Stan told me a stall spin was one of the biggest hazard for a pilot in Alaska. His rule of thumb was to maintain 600 feet above what your viewing. Stan felt a trained pilot could recover safely in that distance. I just listened to him and read about spins and never experienced one. That is until further in my training I ended up with a 73 year old crop duster training me. Herb was passionate about learning stall spin recovery and he made sure I knew what it felt like and that I could recover. I will tell you before I was signed off on a long distance cross country I could recover from a stall spin in less then 300 feet. The combined experience between Herb and Stan was over 80 years of flying. They both had witnessed the results of people who lacked the knowledge to recover from a spin and so have I.


Cub_ Driver
 
cub_driver,

Sorry you took my post the wrong way.
I wasn't giving any lessons and don't care too.
I was just stating how I felt about spin training.
It wasn't directed at you or anyone else.
Lots of pilots love spin training, I don't.
I'm working my cub at 75-100ft. So I need
to avoid the stall, that's all.
Sorry again about the post and the way it sounded.

Decided to delete that post altogether,
it was only going to stir up trouble.
Not so sure we couldn't use a little around here though. :D

Brad
 
How about a stall shocker.... some small probes that are on the stick....you get slow and you get shocked.... Just like a electric dog fence :eek:
 
The problem is that the infamous "moose stall" gives virtually no aerodynamic warning prior to turning loose, near as I can tell, and I've talked to a fellow who actually survived one. That fellow is in fact, a superb and VERY experienced Super Cub pilot. He offered that the stall occurred with virtually no warning at all, and the plane went upside down almost instantly. Conditions were very benign.

I avoid circling, I avoid VERY slow flight (Keep ten extra on for Mom) and so far so good. Nevertheless, in my earlier day, I encountered what I believe was precisely what this fellow described, but I rolled wings level and flew out of it before it wrapped up. Mostly due to dumb luck.

I agree that if you never stall an airplane, you'll never get to the spin.

That is sometimes easier said than done, and as I noted, many of the "moose stalls" happened to very experienced pilots--people who really knew their aircraft and their work.

MTV
 
Mike,

Do you have vg's on your 170? If so, how much do they help to prevent spin entry, if you think they help at all?

If you don't have them, why not?

Chuck
 
I do have them. I wouldn't install them again. They do in fact, soften up the stall a little, and make the airplane a little less apt to roll over in a stall, but there's nothing remarkable about what they do for the wing, in my opinion.

That wing (without VGs) is a very forgiving wing in the first place, and it gives LOTS of aerodynamic warning prior to departure.

With the VG's the wing gives much less aerodynamic warning of an impending stall, though as noted, it does soften up the stall some.

If I were going to do it again, I'd leave the VG's off and install a Sportsman cuff. Costs more, more labor to install, but the Sportsman provides some no joke improvement in stall speed and aerodynamic warning.

MTV
 
Brad

Its easy to get overly passionate about a subject that you could write a whole book on.

Herbs reason for taking me through the experience was to learn how dramatic this stall is. As Mike pointed out your aircraft will give no warning the wing is about to stop flying. If a pilot has never experienced the moose hunters stall the first time can be pretty disorientating. Chances are by the time an untrained pilot regains control of the plane (if ever) they would be wound up in a pretty tight spin and may not be able to recover.

Brad believe it or not we are on the same page. Like you mentioned earlier the best approach is to avoid the stall all together. I personally feel properly taught spin training will give a pilot greater knowledge and respect for what causes a spin. This makes for a safer pilot, not because a pilot knows how to recover from a spin but because the pilot can recognize the potential for a spin and take corrective actions to avoid it.

This hazard kills people every year! I really feel its should be part of required training for a privet pilots license.

Cub_Driver
 
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