Best Tugs Echo 12, User Manual

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Our tugs do not instantly stop.
This feature is to protect your aircraft’s
landing gear. Failure to compensate
for this soft stop can cause damage to
your aircraft. “Slowly” is the word to
live by when you are in tight spaces
or loading the tug. We recommend
practicing with the tug before using it
on your aircraft to allow familiarization
with this soft stop feature.
Chock your mains!
You don’t want
to push your aircraft into the hanger
wall...
During operation, be aware of
your surroundings.
Never put your-
self between the tug and any object!
A tug capable of pushing thousands
of pounds of aircraft can push you
against an obstacle with thousands of
pounds of pressure. There is a risk of
serious injury, death, or dismember-
ment. Proper operation is your respon-
sibility.
Best Tugs
™
tugs do not have sec-
ondary brakes.
The motor/transmis-
sion provides all braking. Your aircraft
can roll freely if your transmission fails.
As the operator, it is your responsi-
bility to keep your aircraft within safe
limits. Never move an aircraft on a
slope or environment where the loss
of tug breaking would put you or your
aircraft in danger.
Exceeding the parameters of the
tug can cause future transmis-
sion failure.
Best Tugs
™
tugs load
ratings are designed for hard flat and
level surfaces. Use on a slope drasti-
cally changes those parameters. The
steeper the grade, the more energy
it takes to move your plane—it is as if
the plane’s load parameter increased.
The transmission’s gears have a special
hardened surface, a one-time event
that exceeds the tug’s parameters can
degrade that surface.
Rough surfaces, such as grass, can
increase the rolling resistance of your
tires. The lower your tire pressure,
the larger the tire’s contact patch, the
deeper the tire deflection, resulting in
more rolling resistance. It now takes
more energy to move the airplane—
which is functionally equivalent (In
regards to the loaded weight charts)
to the plane weighing more. Even a
ten percent under-inflation could cause
your load to be over the limit—you
have just damaged the gears. Failure is
now a matter of when—not if.
DC motors heat up from the inside
out. If the casing is hot to your touch,
the internal components are probably
red hot. The larger the aircraft, the
more energy it takes to move that
load, causing heat buildup. Slopes and
rough terrain are like moving a larger
aircraft causing more heat buildup.
Moving aircraft long distances also
causes heat buildup. Excessive heat
buildup can damage the tug’s motor,
drastically reducing the tugs life span.
Best Tugs
™
tugs are designed for inter-
mittent use. The larger the tug, with an
appropriately smaller than rated load,
the longer a tug can be in continuous
usage. If you must move your aircraft
a long-distance, slow down or pause
now and then (See Loaded Weight
Tables) to allow for heat dissipation.
Critical Cautions