Fresh Aero Aviation - LED Lighting and tools for homebuilt & Sport (LSA) and general aviation aircraft
Fresh Aero Aviation manufactures and markets high quality innovative products for the homebuilt and general aviation community. We also manufacture and market specific products for Van's RV, Sonex and Grumman AA1 & AA5 Series aircraft.
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When it comes to lifting Grumman AA1 & AA5 aircraft, special requirements are needed to assure safe and damage free lifting.
For nose gear, wheel and tire servicing, current Grumman AA1 & AA5 series aircraft lifting procedures include placing sand bags or other weight on the top surface of the horizontal stabilizer to lower the tail section and consequently raise the nose.
Recent evidence suggests that excessive loading of the horizontal stabilizer has contributed to stabilizer spar support fatigue and cracking. As a result, an Airworthiness Directive was issued by the FAA to address this issue.
The Fresh Aero EasyLift System was developed to completely eliminate loading the tail section and correctly places the lifting load precisely where Grumman maintenance manuals specify – at station 51, just aft of the firewall on AA1 & AA5 series aircraft.
The EasyLift System can also be used to lift each main gear and wheel assembly without loading the strut. The load is spread out almost 4 feet along the lift points specified in Grumman maintenance manuals (station 125). This is very useful for strut servicing too. Innovative Features Include ---
Six ton heavy duty hydraulic jack coupled to a robust
welded steel support structure with a 17 inch square
11 gauge base to enhance stability
Support structure is heavily powder coated with a durable and attractive silver bronze hammertone finish. This coating looks great and will last a lifetime. An articulating support beam that mates perfectly with the bottom of the aircraft and pivots to compensate for the increasing angle of incidence as the aircraft is raised. Lifts the aircraft at the locations specified in the Grumman manuals for excellent access when performing strut, wheel or tire maintenance. The support beam features a structural aluminum "C" channel core fastened to a treated wood sub plate and cushioned with a heavy duty wrap around carpet. The beam extends the width of the aircraft with a large load lifting area – considerably more than required by Grumman service manuals. The support beam ram socket is designed to locate the ram end (and pivot point) as close to the aircraft as possible. This increases the overall stability of the lift. 1 ¼ inch diameter ram with a 1 inch diameter Acme threaded screw and nut for adjusting the crossbeam height prior to lifting. Balanced heavy duty carrying handle for easy transporting and handling Locking collar on ram for additional safety Tool holder for jack pump handles and locking collar wrench is integrated with base for easy and quick access to tooling Optional integrated caster wheels on base No assembly required! Just drop the Acme adjustment screw into the extension ram and you’re ready to lift – right out of box! |
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 Download
the Fresh Aero Grumman EasyLift Manual in PDF Format
   The other side of wide
Remember the “Wider is Better” commercials
on TV several years ago? I believe they were touting the virtues of wide
wheel base vehicles and how wide platforms were always better from a
stability perspective.
This is right on the money because wide supporting platforms do substantially increase the overall stability of objects like the vehicles in the above scenario.
The
Fresh Aero Easy Lift uses wide platforms at the base and crossbeam to
increase the overall stability but there is another side of wide – the
spreading of the lifting load out across a large area to greatly reduce
load concentrations.
You
see this applied everywhere in manmade and natural creations. Consider how snowshoes spread the weight of a person’s body
over a large area to prevent sinking into the snow. You can try this yourself by standing in snow or mud with just
boots and then laying down a piece of wood and standing on it. The wood spreads the load out over a larger area and “sink
rate” diminishes proportionately.
Now
consider the EasyLift crossbeam and how it mates with the bottom of
Grumman AA5 aircraft. The
load lifted at Station 51, the nose wheel lifting location, is
approximately 550 pounds, give or take for fuel, engine and other weight
factors.
The EasyLift crossbeam makes contact with the aircraft with 253.5 square inches (42.5” x 6”). If the total load is 550 pounds, one square inch carries only a little ov er 2 pounds (253.5 / 550)! The Easy Lift spreads this weight so there are absolutely no load concentrations at the point of lift. Each square inch of supported aircraft only carries about 2 pounds – well within the design parameters of Grumman AA-5 Series aircraft. The AA-1 Series aircraft fairs even better because of its lighter weight.
For you tech types, we know there is a very slight beam deflection factor that will load the the aircraft closest to the ram a little more then migrate out with a slightly lighter load towards the ends of the crossbeam. This is really very minor and certainly hundreds of times better the concentrating the load in a small area.
Yes, wider certainly is better!
Bob
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Fresh Aero EasyLift for Grumman AA-1 & AA-5 Series Aircraft
The Fresh Aero EasyLift System provides a stable and safe lifting environment for servicing Grumman AA-1 & AA-5 series aircraft gear and wheel assemblies. A combination of innovation, quality and intrinsic safety make the EasyLift one of the finest lifting systems in the aviation market today and a superior solution for lifting Grumman AA-1 & AA-5 series aircraft. It doesn't get any easier than this!
Note: We manufacture the EasyLift Systems in Tennessee and will normally have one in stock. If we are back ordered, the wait time is about 2 weeks. Please call or email us for wait time and other info.
Shipping Notes: We ship the EasyLift in two containers, a 18x18x20 inch box that holds the EasyLift's base, jack and brace structure, and a 4x6x48 inch container that holds the crossbeam components. Shipping weight is about 60 pounds for both containers. A wood inner frame is built into the "base" box to properly support the system during transit. This adds to the material and labor costs. We prefer to ship the EasyLift FedEx Commercial or Home Delivery. This will normally give you the best price.We have included a shipping estimator on our shopping cart so you'll know what your approximate shipping costs will be. We have considered fabricating the EasyLift as a disassembled system for less expensive shipping but wanted make this unit as rigid as possible and eliminate any assembly on your part. To avoid shipping costs, you might want to consider picking an EasyLift up in person (see note below).
We put a lot of work into packing these lifts so If you're visiting the Nashville area, please consider flying (or driving) into the Lewisburg, TN (LUG) Airport for an EasyLift demonstration. If you purchase one, we'll knock off 10 dollars and you'll save the shipping costs too -- 30 to 80 dollars. Please call ahead to make sure we have one ready for you.
Fresh Aero EasyLift For Grumman AA-1 or AA-5 Series Aircraft -- $274.
E-mail: info@steelebrook.com