South Burlington, VT
- Aircraft Year
- 1978 580
- Aircraft Type
- Super Commander
- Reg Number
- N555LP
- Serial Number
- 14405
Hi All,
FAA-PMA shimmy dampers are finally marching out the door!
The Aerodyme SHIMInator dampers accomplish the original intent of the aircraft designers, to have a damping force in the 15 lbs range to manage the short-castered Commander nose gear. This compares to a pound, or a few, of damping force remaining in your old relics. Keep in mind that leaking is not the primary sign of a worn out damper... it is low/nil damping force. If you can easily push/pull the shaft by hand, your damper is worn out. Imagine the landing forces exerted on the nose wheel and ask yourself if the wet noodle feeling of your old damper is meaningful in that context. Also, keep in mind that when a noticeable shimmy has developed, significant damage has ALREADY been done to your nose gear. Simple rules of thumb are that NONE of the 70's dampers are still providing meaningful protection, and neither are most of the 90's dampers that have flown 2000 hours or more.
Dampers have been shipped to those who gave me deposits. We are now trying to organize our list of those who have asked to reserve one, or be notified when they are available.
During this process there will be days when dampers are ready to ship, with no one paid up and ready to receive. On those days, we will make some condition-based shipments to those who have informed us they are serious need of a new damper ASAP. I will also try to keep at least one damper always on hand for AOG situations.
If you have been living with a shimmy, let us know!
Jim and Martine
FAA-PMA shimmy dampers are finally marching out the door!
The Aerodyme SHIMInator dampers accomplish the original intent of the aircraft designers, to have a damping force in the 15 lbs range to manage the short-castered Commander nose gear. This compares to a pound, or a few, of damping force remaining in your old relics. Keep in mind that leaking is not the primary sign of a worn out damper... it is low/nil damping force. If you can easily push/pull the shaft by hand, your damper is worn out. Imagine the landing forces exerted on the nose wheel and ask yourself if the wet noodle feeling of your old damper is meaningful in that context. Also, keep in mind that when a noticeable shimmy has developed, significant damage has ALREADY been done to your nose gear. Simple rules of thumb are that NONE of the 70's dampers are still providing meaningful protection, and neither are most of the 90's dampers that have flown 2000 hours or more.
Dampers have been shipped to those who gave me deposits. We are now trying to organize our list of those who have asked to reserve one, or be notified when they are available.
During this process there will be days when dampers are ready to ship, with no one paid up and ready to receive. On those days, we will make some condition-based shipments to those who have informed us they are serious need of a new damper ASAP. I will also try to keep at least one damper always on hand for AOG situations.
If you have been living with a shimmy, let us know!
Jim and Martine
