Buying a Robotow at Sporty's: check your fit first

By Robotow, Aircraft Dynamics, Lima, OhioPublished Updated

Fitting an adapter into the forks of a Robotow 2.0 on a hangar floor.

You can buy a Robotow 2.0 directly at robotow.com or from Sporty's Pilot Shop, an authorized Robotow dealer at Clermont County/Sporty's Airport in Batavia, Ohio. Either way, start with the Robotow fit list: find your airplane, note the adapter and frame it takes, then order that kit. Sporty's takes orders online and by phone at 1-800-SPORTYS.

Step one: does the Robotow fit your airplane?

Before you buy anywhere, check your airplane. The Robotow clips onto the nose gear with an adapter made for your family of nose gear, and the adapter decides which frame you need. Find your airplane on the Robotow fit list: it gives the answer in plain words and names the adapter and frame your airplane takes.

The fit list covers 87 airplanes. 57 fit, 21 say "confirm with us," and 9 do not fit. A few things to know before you look:

  • Three frames. The standard frame weighs 23.5 lb without the battery. The Pro frame weighs 27.25 lb, folds and has a carry handle; every airplane that fits the standard frame also fits the Pro. The SF, the short frame, is for the airplanes that need it, such as the Mooney.
  • The nose pant comes off. The drive drum has to touch the nose tire, so the Robotow does not fit with a pant or fairing on the nose wheel.
  • "Confirm with us" means we look first. Send two photos of your nose gear, front and side, and we will tell you straight.
  • Some airplanes do not fit. The Cirrus SR20, SR22 and SR22T, the Piper Arrow, the Cessna 208B Grand Caravan and taildraggers are on that list, and the fit list says why.

Write down the adapter name, its part number and the frame. That is the whole order, wherever you place it.

What are the two ways to buy a Robotow?

There are two easy ways to buy a Robotow 2.0, and both start from the same fit answer.

  1. Direct from Aircraft Dynamics at robotow.com. The Robotow 2.0 kit page asks for your airplane first, then shows the kit it takes: the frame, a Milwaukee M18 battery, the charger and your adapter.
  2. From Sporty's Pilot Shop, an authorized Robotow dealer. Sporty's lists the Robotow 2.0 Kit with the straight handle and the Robotow 2.0 Pro Kit with the folding handle. You pick your adapter and a 5Ah or 8Ah battery on the product page.

Each seller's own shipping and return terms apply to the orders it takes, so read them before you order: the robotow.com refund policy, or Sporty's service page.

Why is buying from Sporty's easy?

Sporty's has served pilots since 1961, when Hal Shevers, a flight instructor, founded it, and it moved to the Clermont County Airport in 1971. Today the pilot shop sits at Clermont County/Sporty's Airport in Batavia, Ohio, so a Robotow bought there is sold by one Ohio company and made by another, Aircraft Dynamics of Lima.

What makes ordering simple, from Sporty's own service page:

  • Order by phone. The order line is 1-800-SPORTYS (1-800-776-7897). If you would rather talk it through than click through it, that is the number.
  • Questions by phone, email or chat. The service line, 1-513-735-9000, is staffed on weekdays, Eastern time. Email goes to support@sportys.com, and live chat runs on weekdays on the site.
  • Returns. A Sporty's order follows Sporty's own return policy; read it before you order.

If you already buy your headset, charts and hangar gear there, the Robotow is one more line on the same order.

What does Sporty's carry?

Sporty's lists two Robotow 2.0 kits:

  • The Robotow 2.0 Kit, the straight-handle frame, for the airplanes on the standard adapters.
  • The Robotow 2.0 Pro Kit, the folding, adjustable handle.

On each product page you choose the adapter for your airplane and a Milwaukee M18 battery, 5Ah or 8Ah. If the fit list told you "Fits with the Pro frame, confirm with us" or "Fits with the SF frame, confirm with us," call us before you order so we can confirm the frame and adapter with you. That step is the same wherever you buy.

Watch Sporty's Robotow 2.0 video

Sporty's made a short video of the Robotow 2.0. It walks through both frames, the variable-speed trigger, the work light that lights the adapter and nose wheel, the Milwaukee M18 battery choice and the Dolly Wheel 2.0.

Sporty's Pilot Shop, Robotow 2.0: An Easier Way to Move Your Airplane, September 2026.

Plays from YouTube when you press play. Watch it on YouTube.

The current weight figures from Aircraft Dynamics are 23.5 lb for the standard frame, 27.25 lb for the Pro frame and 13.55 lb for the Dolly Wheel 2.0, all without the battery. They are on our Robotow 2.0 specifications page.

Which kit should you choose?

Start from the fit list, then pick the frame and the battery.

  • Standard or Pro. If your airplane fits the standard frame, the Pro fits it too. The standard is the lighter frame, with a straight T-handle. The Pro folds and has a carry handle.
  • SF. If the fit list names the short frame, that is the only frame for your airplane.
  • 5Ah or 8Ah. Both are Milwaukee M18 packs; the choice is how far you go on one charge. In one Aircraft Dynamics test, a Cessna 172N went about 2,000 feet on one 5Ah battery on a flat taxiway, in Roanoke, Texas, in May 2026. If you own M18 tools, the packs you already have fit.

Whichever store you use, the questions about your airplane come to us. The Robotow contact page has the phone number and the photo form.

Questions pilots ask

Is Sporty's an authorized Robotow dealer?

Yes. Sporty's Pilot Shop in Batavia, Ohio, is an authorized Robotow dealer and lists the Robotow 2.0 Kit and the Robotow 2.0 Pro Kit.

Should I check fit before I order from Sporty's?

Yes. Find your airplane on the Robotow fit list first and note the adapter and frame it takes. Then choose that adapter and frame on the Sporty's product page.

Who do I call about my airplane's fit?

Call Robotow, or send two photos of your nose gear through the contact page. Questions about a Sporty's order go to Sporty's at 1-800-SPORTYS.

Does the Robotow work with wheel pants?

Not with a pant or fairing on the nose wheel, because the drum has to touch the nose tire. If the nose pant comes off, it may fit.

Sources

A question about your airplane? Call us. 419-331-0371 Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm Eastern

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