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31 inch bush wheels - experimental?

crophopper

Registered User
Hey all,

Purchased a nice set of near new second hand 31’s this week for what seems to be a good deal.

haven’t got my hands on them yet - they’re at my brothers place - and he tells me that they’re marked ‘experimental’ somewhere on the tyre. Apparently the ones on his own cub are not. The ones I purchased are apparently only 2-3 years old. Just wondering if someone can shed some light on this for me? Could it possibly be due to them being the extra tread version? It’s not a problem as my cub is going to be experimental anyways so just asking out of interest.


happy cub’n!
 
I would suspect that cords are showing and someone wrote experimental on the side as a CYA move. I have not heard of Airframes making a experimental 31 in tire. You can call Gabe at Airframes and ask. Do you have pictures and serial numbers of the tires?
DENNY
 
Never heard of Experimental being part of the label. Some tires were produced prior to having a TSO or PMA approval but the absence of the approval was all that mattered, or so I thought. But I don’t know squat.
 
I would suspect that cords are showing and someone wrote experimental on the side as a CYA move. I have not heard of Airframes making a experimental 31 in tire. You can call Gabe at Airframes and ask. Do you have pictures and serial numbers of the tires?
DENNY

G’day Denny,

apparently the tyres are in very good condition - only 100 or so hours old and 5-6 tarmac landings maximum. I have some photos and one shows a serial number that I think I can make out right. If I am right it’s 13020177. The 3 may be an 8 though - it’s hard to tell.
I’ll see if I can work out how to add a photo on here. Cheers.
1DA385BD-A3E8-430C-AD59-25B16A1909C5.jpeg
i don’t have a photo of the experimental marking - Should be able to get on in a couple of days.
 

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First two digits of the serial number is year of manufacture.

I believe Gabe left Airframes for greener pastures. I saw him at the tradeshow with a group reviving the Helio.
 
First two digits of the serial number is year of manufacture.

I believe Gabe left Airframes for greener pastures. I saw him at the tradeshow with a group reviving the Helio.

Yea, that was Abraham. He and the Alaskan that was with Beringer have been working on that just after Oshkosh 2019.
 
First two digits of the serial number is year of manufacture.

I believe Gabe left Airframes for greener pastures. I saw him at the tradeshow with a group reviving the Helio.

Nope, I'm still working at Airframes. The Helio boys are good friends and we fly together but you are probably thinking of Abe.

There are absolutely Bushwheels out there that are experimental and we will grind off the TSO number and stamp over it "EXPERIMENTAL" and sell them at a discounted price. These tires are most commonly an overbalance issue which is where the tire took more than the max allowable amount of lead backed patch in the core to get it to balance. There's a limit of 4oz if I recall and more than that would be outside of our quality manual. These tires are usually not even blemished, just overbalanced so they're in good shape compared to a blemish tire.

Here's a helpful guide for figuring out the dates on Bushwheels: http://www.airframesalaska.com/v/vspfiles/pdf/Used Bushwheel Checklist.pdf
 
Well there ya go. The tires look nice. If they pulled the rims out make sure they don't try to add air without the rims in. Once I saw the pimped out letters I knew Gabe would have the answer.:lol:
DENNY
 
Only have a couple more FAA guys to pay off, and I think I’ll have enough of them on my side to get an AD out against those lettering kits. Gabe is an alright guy, but I can’t forgive him for selling/promoting the letters...
 
Thanks for your help guys, it’s good to know what the deal is with them.

If you’re looking for someone to blame for those coloured letters I’m pretty sure my brother Ryan is to blame. He painted his in with white paint pen a few years back at an annual and he and a mate stuck in on their instagrams… They swear they’d never seen it done before and it seemed to take off not long after.
 
We've been doing those damn colored letters for 5 years now. I was a huge hater at first but after putting them on the cub I have to admit they kind of add a little sumthin to the look. Denny we're going to have to get some on your new plane so you can fit in with the cool guys at birchwood. Even the Helio has them!
 
Tire lettering goes back a clean Century - Firestone. I'm waiting for Bushwheels with whitewalls and chrome hubcaps with brush cutter blades.

Gary
 
Actually, my old man produced a few pairs with genuine raised white lettering. They tended to yellow over time and there wasn't enough interest to keep making them.
 
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