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vwglenn wrote:Never flown a Luscombe (I've heard stories though). I can tell you the Sonex is easier than my 170 which was supposed to be one of the more docile planes with the little wheel in the proper place.

I started my tailwheel in a Citabra then finished in a Decathlon and they were both pretty tame. Heard the 170 is a handful. What makes the Luscombe challenging?

vwglenn wrote:Never flown a Luscombe (I've heard stories though). I can tell you the Sonex is easier than my 170 which was supposed to be one of the more docile planes with the little wheel in the proper place.

Luscombes aren't really as feisty as the "stories" make them out to be. They just require that you pay attention and don't get lazy with your feet. They're not really all that hard to fly.

The Sonex line are by far the most benign tailwheel airplanes I have ever flown. Anyone who is comfortable with a Cub, Champ, Luscombe, Cessna 140 or 170, etc. will have no problem with the ground handling of any of the Sonex taildraggers. They're really sweethearts.

fastj22 wrote:Heard the 170 is a handful.

Only challenge with 170 was the tenancy to bounce with the spring gear. The rest was't terribly hard and it never felt squirrely.

The Sonex is MUCH more forgiving. It just squats down and decides that it's done flying. Nice amount of flex in the gear. Once that tailwheel is seated, control authority is amazing and doesn't have the "lag" that a swivel wheel does as it gets slower. The flip side of that is you can't make any really tight turns or spin it around on one main (which is kinda the point). I thought I'd miss the differential braking but I don't since the Sonex goes exactly where you point it on the ground as well as in the air.

I've read the Kitfox can really be a foot full with the wrong tailwheel. Maybe a Maule TW. Something about it fully castoring unexpectedly on landing on pavement.

you can't make any really tight turns or spin it around on one main

I could have done with that a couple of weeks ago. Flew into a narrow grass strip with some friends, when it was time to leave I went first only to find I couldn't turn around in the small mown turning circle (long grass either side), had to get out and lift the tail up to turn around much to my friends amusement. I wouldn't change a thing though on the tail wheel setup.

Hey Phil, you just need more power, oh, and differential brakes. I have separate brake levers for the stock cable drums - they are close together and I operate them with 2 fingers. Even with the non-castering tail-wheel you just hold one brake and jab the throttle and the 3300 will spin it around, especially on grass.
I used to fly a Skyfox (under-powered factory built Kitfox) before the Sonex. It had the reputation as a a bit of a handful on the ground, but after flying the Sonex it was a breeze to land.

Peter

Learned to fly in a Luscomb 8A back in the early 80's . No particular problems, but the awkward mechanical heel brakes did save me from a ground loop one day when while doing a wheel landing in moderate cross wind, and found that it would run out of rudder before it ran out of elevator. (Have seen comments that Waiex has similar tendency, need to get tail wheel planted as soon as sure pulling stick back will not result in leaving the runway.) That incident was reason why I put toe brakes in my Sonex. Later realized that toe brakes when combined with electric flaps meant could keep shoulder belts tight at all times.

David A. Sonex TD

My recollection of being introduced to the Luscombe by one of the best aerobatic instructors ever, Emilia Reid, in San Jose, Cal. (we did not do aerobatics in the Luscombe, but I have known many that have) was to be diligent during landings because of the rounded glareshield, above the instrument panel. Since it is not flat, it can give you a distorted picture of when you are level at touchdown. Other than that, which is easy enough to get used to, particularly if you are looking for it, the Luscombe is a real treat to fly, having a stick and tailwheel like a real airplane should.

Before I decided on the Sonex, I entered a partnership with a Luscombe owner...didn't like it as it was heavy on the controls and felt cumbersome. Nice for straight and level flight but I wanted a much more nimble airplane, hence the Sonex.