Suggestions for a good power tug for a 180? Or if anyone happens to have one they want to part with I'll be looking.

What exactly are you looking for? I have seen everything from a cordless drill powered tow, old riding lawnmower converted, ATV, or just a vehicle.
I was most surprised when my hangar neighbor pulled out an old B&D 1/2" corded drill and hooked it to an apparatus to pull his Bonanza into the hangar. Just needed a long extension cord and he put it in the hangar with ease.

The guy next to me has one of these http://www.tracetowbots.com/ The first time I seem it I did a double take. Pretty cool and its smooth and fast.

Those bots are awesome! Ill get one first thing when I hit the lotto for sure! Haha. $9k!!!
Opened to options. Not the law mower, vehicle thing tho. Something smaller and less hassle. Like the gas tugs w one tire that clamp to front wheel of a nose wheel plane. Guess I could modify one of those....

Try this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... 0sPCV8gMnM.

Cary

I have one of these - works great for my PA18. Guy I know uses one for a Cessna195. Electric Tail Dragger dragger.

[url]http://dragger.com/order-online-24-volt-electric-airplane-tail-dragger//url]

I use the taildragger dragged, gas powered. Cost around $1,700.

I have to pull the planes uphill to get them into the hangar, so need the power. I also have to use a tie down strap to keep the tail wheel in the dragger because of going up hill. Very pleased with the product.

http://dragger.com/powerful-motorized-aircraft-gas-tail-draggers/

Use 1000 pound winch that I got out of Harbor freight works very well 110ac

Not the fastest way to do it but cheaper than buying a tug

I suppose any power method is satisfactory, but there is a downside if there isn't an "instant kill" switch of some sort. I have a friend who had a hangar winch to pull his T210 in, and apparently the overhead door wasn't up quite all the way. He saw that the tail wouldn't clear, but the winch didn't stop instantly. By the time the winch stopped, he'd done thousands of dollars of damage to his airplane's tail and the door.

When I was at OSH last summer, I looked at the Lindbergh tugs (the video I posted above), and they are all equipped with kill switches which stop movement instantly. They have twist-grip "throttles" which allow speeds from 0 to 2 mph, which is nice and smooth, but the "instant kill" button impressed me.

I'll be talking with the sales gal for Lindbergh this week--about to bite the bullet to get one--must be getting old.

Cary

Winch is slow and requires you to hold down button to operate

Thanks guys. So far looks like barnstormers is closest to what I had in mind. Pretty crazy how much these little contraptions cost. Looks like about twice what they're all worth. Oh ya.. It's for an airplane.

I use the Powertow EZ 40 with the Scott Tailwheel adapter.

Works well.

Harbor Freight has some low cost 12v winches (rig your own power supply) that use a wireless remote,
putting you back on the tail steering and watching for safety - might be a cost effective solution in certain situations.
We use one for loading aircraft or car toys on my flatbed trailer.

tcraft wrote:http://www.harborfreight.com/1500-lb-capacity-120-volt-ac-electric-winch-96127.html

Not the fastest way to do it but...

This is what I use for my Husky and it works great. It might be a bit slow, but it is safe and doesn't contribute to hangar rash unless you are totally asleep at the controls.

I use the same as Squash, works great
Ron

How about "The Boss" from Minimax?

http://www.minimaxtugs.com/The_Boss_Taildragger_Tug_p/028boss.htm

Specs say up to 450 pound tail weight which would not handle a Skywagon at gross but might at less than gross.

No first hand experience but am curious on the same topic.