diamondaviators.net

Hi Kyle,

No regrets, i am very happy with them. They have never slacked up on me. I know what you are saying about the length. I have had to daisy chain off an existing rope or knot a few times, but it has always worked out. Just as often I have had to shorten them with a quick overhand or figure eight knot. Still much faster and better than futzing with wet dirty ropes.

I just got a set of these for my DA40. Very nice for the wings! I haven’t figured out a solution for the tail anchor yet.

Notes:
- they hold much tighter than I expected!
- plan to daisy chain as they’re ~3 feet for short on the wings (for my field)
- tail rope is much shorter, great length for the DA40, where tail tends to be very close to anchors.
- there are Cessna’s on my field that have daisy chained too. Not just a Diamond issue.

You can actually replace the rope with one of the proper length. However, the ropes they provide are actually very good quality and not cheap to replace. This is likely why they are a little short. I used a figure 8 (climbing knot) through the eye hole to bind them.

For the tail I’m trying to find a rope end hook that has a flat or very wide hook.

I carry ratcheting tie downs that I got at Harbor Freight. They are pretty much always on sale there.

Sandy

Update 3 months on with the SlideDown's:

- They're still great. Haven't ever slipped tension. Super quick to use.

- Since the SlideDown rope is short, I ended up joining them to the anchors using an extension (made of my old ropes) joined using a figure-of-8 knot. This is actually better because unlike the hook, it cannot be easily detached from the anchor point.

- Still no viable solution for the tail... so we use regular tie down on that (it's such a short distance too)

My owner-partner was super skeptical, but loves them now too.

I have a DA42 and ordered a set of SlideDown's for it in 2017. The first time I tried to use them I found they were too short for the wings. I called the company and they made a custom length set for the wings. I just sent the original set back and paid a very small fee for the additional length and now they are perfect. Great company to work with!

dwall wrote:I have a DA42 and ordered a set of SlideDown's for it in 2017. The first time I tried to use them I found they were too short for the wings. I called the company and they made a custom length set for the wings. I just sent the original set back and paid a very small fee for the additional length and now they are perfect. Great company to work with!

That is a great tip.

Someone had written elsewhere that they did not offer this service, so I didn't even try (plus had my old ropes to extend for free). Also if you have rope of the same diameter as the slide down, you can just use that since they slide right off.

Racing sailors replaced most hardware with synthetic lines about 15-20yrs ago. The Tiedown is a wonderful example of great marketing with about $5 of materials properly packaged and selling for $70. But to the point.

For the attachment to the plane there are two excellent "soft" choices:

1) Amsteel 1/8". Breaking strength > 2,000lbs, $0.40 / ft. Make a loop of the desired length and terminate it with a sheet bend (see Animated Knots). There are similar products made of dyneema, but Amsteel is treated to hold knots better. Buy it at West Marine online. Lots of uses around the house also.

2) Buy a climbing sling or runner like this one at REI: https://www.rei.com/product/474003/blue ... runner-916. Buy the thinnest one you can find as they are much stronger than needed (e.g., rated at 5,000 ft/lbs). The advantage of a sling or runner is you just put it through the airframe hole and loop it back through itself (aka luggage tag loop) and you're done. This one is 6" which should do the job, or you can buy a 12"/30cm which may be longer than needed or desired. They cost about $5.

Either solution weighs almost nothing, no chafe, long product life, no hardware banging around, no moving parts to fall out or stop moving.

Another resource you might find useful is www.strapworks.com. They will custom make almost any conceivable strap out of a crazy variety of strap materials, buckles, clamps, etc. in single units for very inexpensive prices. I've had them make a variety of different straps for my boats from securing furled sails to holding a dingy on deck. The only problem I ever had was not selecting the right webbing material one time and having some straps die the death of UV in the tropics after two years. With a little creativity you can get a very convenient tie down arrangement for luggage/cargo, etc. custom designed (by you) for your plane.

Boatguy wrote:$5 of materials properly packaged and selling for $70.

I don't feel the need to justify my purchase, but we should be fair to SlideDown - Amazon sells 50' of 11mm Kernmantle Braided rope for $70. My ropes use about half of that. Add 6 stout rubber coated hooks and three machined and powder coated aluminum tubes in a mesh storage bag and I think the price is fair. Have a question? Call the number (like me) and you will probably get the guy who assembles them in his Rhode Island shop. I have no doubt a plane can be tied down for cheaper with some ingenuity.

I use the Bubba Rope Mini Gator Jaw 1/4 Soft Shackles for the tail with both a winch as well as tie-downs. They're incredibly good and have enough give and strength to do the job. Yes, it is "just" a modified rope, but a good idea, too, and I'm willing to pay a little for that.

Nobody needs to justify their purchase of a product they like and that's getting the job done. My apologies if I've made anyone feel that they should.

On takeoff our planes develop enough lift to put 2,500 - 5,000lbs into the air. 9mm Kermantle has a breaking strength of 5,700lbs and you can buy 150' for $93 online, obviously less wholesale. Much cheaper nylon 3-strand would hold the plane done for far less. But saving money on tie downs doesn't have much effect on our cost / hr!

Kermantle is a good selection by SlideDown; it's a nylon cored product, like 3-strand or 8-strand, but with a cover. The cover has minimal benefit in a tie down situation (they're mostly for abrasion protection on winches or through blocks), but nylon is a good choice because it stretches and absorbs energy. Dock lines on boats or tie downs on planes, essentially the same application to absorb the wind/water energy and protect the vessel.

The Amsteel / Dyneema loop I suggested is exactly the opposite, no stretch, no energy absorption, a replacement for metal.

Soft shackles are great! I've used them for years, much nicer than hard shackles and they don't corrode or seize up.

And paying more for convenience is a tradeoff every owner can make. My overall point is that we don't need to use hardware and it's great to see other soft solutions.