The small towbar that came with the plane is very inadequate for any kind of serious aircraft movement. I was wondering if anyone had any positive recommendations for powered (gas or electric) towing systems. I would also be interested in any recommendations for better manual towbars as well, something that won’t slip off and is long enough to get further away from the prop while using. I’ve recently ordered a Bogert Bogi-Bar. It looks like it should be good, but I was wondering if anyone had any experience with it either positive or negative.
OPINION ONE
I got a Bogi-bar during the last year. Though it is a big improvement over the crummy Beech towbar, mine has a couple of deficiencies: 1) The fit on the pins is loose. It won’t come off, but steering control isn’t as positive as with a tighter fit. I’m thinking of machining plastic inserts to take out the slop. 2) Moving the lever to the over-center open position opens it MUCH farther than is needed, and that takes quite a fair amount of force on the lever–not too convenient. I’m thinking of figuring out where to drill a different hole for the pivot point in the linkage to correct this. (Incidentally, my towbar only has one hole for the pin through the handle rod, so it has only one length for using–fully extended, or retracted but not pinned. That’s OK, because fully extended is fine.) I called Bogart about the two problems (just as he was leaving on vacation, around 3 months ago), and then at his request, sent a follow-up message with dimensional details. I haven’t had a response yet, though I’ve also “dropped the ball” myself by not calling them again.
OPINION TWO
I’ve had a Bogi-Bar for about 8 months and it is great. The bar has several holes for length adjustment. So far I haven’t been able to get it to slip off the pins – not that I want it to!
OPINION THREE
I personally recommend the Powertow 12V model, if you can afford it (about $1,000). I’ve been using one on my Sierra for 18 months now. Just for awareness, many or most manual towbars made for the lighter Cessnas will work on the 19/23/24, as they share the same small tow pins. If you spot a compact Cessna tow bar that you like, try it out.