CLE_GrummanTiger

I do have the TBM mod installed, yes. And yes, on the "other" site I mentioned that I read up a bit more about it and found out that if I have mixture mapped to a controller button or axis, that it apparently cuts off the fuel if I have the mixture set to cutoff, despite the fact that we're not supposed to be able to control it. It's weird, though, because the problem doesn't occur every time I fly it. Chalk it up to a quirk of the programming within MSFS. I'm moving on to the CJ4 now, and I think that's going to be my plane of choice for a majority of the flying. I do want to fly the Pitts or Extra through a valley at high speed, though, just for the heck of it, but fear my PC will start smoking from the extra workload.

That’s automatically tied into the throttle. Always at 2000 during flight.

Yeah, I have a CH Products Pro Throttle, but I've done a few flights now with it and didn't really have this problem. I mean, I did have an oil pressure failure once before, but I thought that was probably because I redlined the torque a little too much. I was trying to follow the PoH of throttle recommendations before I learned the turboprop logic in this game is completely borked. Only other problem was cabin pressure, but I learned how to fix that pretty quickly in mid-flight (dumping bleed). Can't think of any other reason for oil pressure failure, except maybe I set it in summer? The OAT was below 0, so I doubt that. I do have mixture assigned to a paddle axis on my joystick, but I can verify it does nothing with the TBM-930, and rightfully so. Also, how does fuel cutoff affect oil pressure?

I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong, but I'm flying the TBM-930 from KSEZ to KBKL for my first night flight (yes, fully loaded with fuel, JUUUUST shy of the max takeoff weight!). Not long after climbing to my designated altitude of FL300, the engine suddenly starts revving way down and then I get the oil pressure alert on the CAS...then the pressure drops and so does the oil temp. Prop's still spinning, but no thrust. What am I doing wrong? I'm careful not to redline the torque, even when taking off (and that runway was JUST long enough with a full tank!). I do understand, though, that the turboprop logic in MSFS is totally screwed up and that Asobo will address that in a later update. Perhaps the modeling is a touch too sensitive/unrealistic to engine performance?

Ahhh ok, for a moment there I thought I missed a major perk of LNM. I'm ahead of you, I've already started making routes from SkyVector and plugging it in LNM and implementing an approach in LNM. I'm finding that this is the most efficient way to flight plan, at least until LNM adds in SIDs/STARs from MSFS. Until then, I've been manually inputting the STARs. I tried flight planning through MSFS...it's horrible! I don't know what logic/algorithm MSFS uses for routes, but it's not efficient or even realistic at all.

Wait a minute, LNM has approach plates built in? I didn't know this, where is it?

Caveat: Little NavMap does NOT have SIDs/STARs yet available for MSFS. That's forthcoming, so don't be alarmed by that.

Managed to answer my own question! So it turns out LNM uses an older Navigraph AIRAC by default (1801), thus the naming of the waypoints and such were outdated. This is where the confusion was. To fix, I simply disabled Navigraph from the scenery library database in LNM to use the default one in MSFS 2020 as that uses the latest AIRAC anyway! I think perhaps that should be disabled by default now.

So I've been educating myself on the art of IFR flying and I think, for the most part, I have it down. My only confusion thus far is the approach. On paper, I understand how it works with capturing the glidescope via autopilot approach function at X altitude at X DME. The problem is that I'm seeing conflicting information between the approach procedure in Little NavMap vs. the approach plate for the airport/runway of my choice (KCLE RWY24L, in this instance). The approach plate as shown in the attached PDF shows a starting point at ALOMR at 3000 ft. I then get my capture at FELLR at 2000 ft. In Little NavMap, I get a completely different procedure that doesn't hew to the plate. Color me confused! If you look at the screenshot attached, you can see the highlighted waypoints for the approach in the flight plan table. Not only that, the fix is apparently at 3,000 ft.? I included the info on the right for the procedure in the event I'm missing something there that someone can educate me about. I do see, however, that I can create my own approach, but I'm not exactly sure how to do that with the information from the plate. I'll set the entry threshold at where I see for FELLR at 3.7nm at an altitude of 2000 ft. as indicated on the plate, but then the glidescope is way more than 3 degrees! Clearly I have a lot of learning to do, but I thought the two would be on the same page. FlightAware_CLE_IAP_ILS OR LOC RWY 24L.PDF

You’re right, I was reading up on it yesterday and found out that VNAV is mostly nonfunctional in the sim, for now anyway. Did read, however, that the fine folks at Working Title implemented it in their CJ4 mod. As I’m busy learning the ins and outs of the TBM, I’ll just have to plug in the FLC data as I fly as a workaround. I’m sure one day either Asobo or a third party will get VNAV to work.

You're not alone. Although I lucked out with a 3060 Ti, it does struggle when I hit populated areas like NYC or London. That's mostly owing to the fact that I game on a 3440x1440 ultrawide monitor. I'm going to have to kick things down a notch. 5600XT is a great card, but yes, for a demanding game like this one, it's not enough to turn on the eye candy. Have you been hunting for a new one? Market is terrible right now, alas, though you could sell yours for probably a ridiculous markup to offset whatever you may buy (assuming you're planning on buying a new graphics card).

For the most part, I've more or less figured out a good chunk of autopilot, mostly the G3000 in the TBM-930. There's still a couple of things that are eluding me, particularly altitude changes as indicated in my flight plan exported from Little NavMap (what a wonderful program, I actually donated a small amount this morning). I plugged in the flight plan as the FMC source into the G3000 and after reaching safe altitude, I engage it and it does the job wonderfully. The only hitch that I find is I'm having to set the altitude manually in autopilot to reach my desired altitude, despite engaging VNAV (which is what I thought it does). I thought the G3000 would "see" the altitude as listed in the flight plan and climb accordingly to it. Is this something I need to do manually and pay attention to my flight plan and ascend/descend as needed? Maybe it's something out of Little NavMap? (I don't think so because the altitude values are present in the Flight Plan button in the MFD.) I want to emulate real life flying and follow the route as calculated by Little NavMap and want to see if the ILS will capture my plane as I planned for it via STAR and approach procedure in Little NavMap (and yes, made sure I'm hitting the 3-degree glidescope). The other, lesser important thing, is the FLC button. I assume this acts the same as altitude hold and VS, only it maintains the airspeed as closely as possible while reaching desired altitude? This would obviously make it more efficient than simply telling the autopilot to ascend/descend X fpm and compensating with the throttle. While I understood the fundamentals of flying before, I never knew how deep this rabbit hole goes! Geez Louise, no wonder pilots have to put in hundreds and thousands of hours into training! I'm learning little things like what a pitot is, and bleed, and inertial separator.

https://www.game-debate.com/news/29393/microsoft-flight-simulator-most-important-graphics-options-every-video-setting-benchmarked This link will take you to a terrific page that not only outlines the myriad graphic settings, but also provides a simple visual representation of each setting between ultra and low/off simply by sliding your mouse over the image. You can click on the image to enlarge it in a separate window to better see the differences. I don't know about you, but I'm going to use this to better tweak my settings and prioritize which settings I care more about and reduce the settings on those that I don't care so much about. I hope this helps you as much as it's going to help me. I was landing in LGA last night and...wow...my sim almost turned into a slide show when I was trying to check out the NYC skyline.

Was flying nicely from KBKL to KRSW in that nifty TBM-930. I finally figured out how to start it up without overheating so rapidly. Looks like I wasn't the only armchair pilot to experience this issue. The checklist was actually accurate, but it drew on the pilot knowing to take it out of lo-idle to flight idle, like the layperson knows that lo and hi-idle are only meant for start-up! In any case, I wanted a long flight so I could tinker with the G3000 and learn its functions and how to make it work. Slowly, but surely I'm getting more comfortable with the Garmin systems. Used Little NavMap for my flight planning and learned more about the ins and outs of that program as well, such as calculating the route for me and inserting an approach procedure. Learned more about VS in the G3000 and using FMS to implement my flight plan, which MSFS2020 did very nicely from Little NavMap! Was learning about VNAV and was going to see how that worked when it was time to begin descending when...crap...I was low on fuel! I thought I added enough fuel to get there but apparently not! Didn't get the chance to try out the autopilot approach function like I wanted to. Decided to end the flight there as I definitely got my education. I'll just have to jump back into it but on a shorter flight so I can properly test out autopilot VNAV and approach. Next step will probably be learning about fuel and weights and how to calculate that for range and performance. I hope Little NavMap has that function too, I'll have to read up on that. Oh, and the TBM-930 is a beast of a plane!

Yep. I use the spacedesk app. Works like a charm. You download a driver for the spacedesk app for your computer and it effectively turns your tablet into a 2nd monitor. I use this for Little NavMap and prop it up in front of me while I fly. Handy!

I see. I've been debating getting a VR headset, but the one I'm interested in, Reverb G2, is just too pricey right now. Maybe the next round of stimulus money I'll get it!

I'm curious in regards to your signature; namely the fact that you have a 49" monitor and a VR headset. Which do you find yourself flying on more often, VR or the monitor?

Was learning the ropes on the modded Bonanza G36 (Robert Young turbo version) and familiarizing myself more with Garmin & autopilot. Took off from KBKL and was heading to KROC. Everything was going pretty smoothly, finally figuring out the heading and vertical speed functions on autopilot and I *think* NAV, but I may have already been on track anyway. Took me a bit to learn that on the G36, I should pretty much leave the throttle on full and just reduce the propeller RPM for max cruise speed...AAAAAND decreasing the mixture as I got higher (I set cruise altitude at 17,000). Was enjoying the sights and sped up the rate to get to the descent point (this is where I should've been using Little NavMap but I was testing out my new CH Products Pro Throttle...what a different HOTAS makes!). I saw that I could skip ahead to the descent portion, so I did that. Well, I won't do that again. I expected to find myself still at 17,000 preparing to descend, only I was already dropped down to 1,000 and KROC was nowhere to be seen. What the...?!?!? Well, that's OK, this flight was mostly for testing and learning anyway. Loving the new throttle but I think I need to tweak a setting or two. Mixture on the paddle control on my joystick that I previously used for throttle didn't work like I thought it would (it did, just differently). Anybody ever feel like you spend a lot of time just tweaking everything before you finally get to a comfortable point where you can just....FLY? lol!

Have a 3060 Ti and can vouch for it. Wonderful card for the value, provided you can land one at $400 MSRP. This is likely your best bet: https://www.bestbuy.com/site/nvidia-geforce-rtx-3060-ti-8gb-gddr6-pci-express-4-0-graphics-card-steel-and-black/6439402.p?skuId=6439402 Refresh often starting around 7 AM I think on Tuesdays and Thursdays. There’s a lot of info online about when the best time it is to look for them and buy it. There are also stock alert sites that will immediately notify you upon availability of it (and other in-demand items). Good luck!

So now that I've been logging some hours in the sim and getting more comfortable with it, I have an eye on the horizon for new aircraft from third party developers. I've been considering the Spitfire from FlyingIron or maybe Piper III from JustFlight. Can anyone recommend a good source that aggregates news/rumors about upcoming aircraft? I'm hoping someone someday will release a long-range private jet (say, Bombardier Global 8000, for example). It's my ultimate goal to fly overseas on a loooooong trip. Of course, I'll start with baby steps for now!

It's not so much increasing the performance for FS as it is by being able to do more on your PC with the added memory. I have 32gb and I find it useful because I'm running a few other things in the background (Little NavMap, FSEconomy, Firefox with a bunch of tabs with YouTube tutorials, Acrobat Reader with PDFs open for the handbook, etc...and, er...my VPN for work, lol!). Now if you want to up your performance, the GPU is the way to go, but good luck finding one. I have a 3060 Ti and it does the job admirably considering I use a 3440x1440 ultrawide monitor. I'd say look for at least a 3060 Ti or 6700 XT if you're of a mind to go with AMD. Now I'm considering VR, but not sure which one to get and not wanting to break the bank either!

OK...wow...flying a twin turbo is very...different! I kind of got the startup procedure down, but I'm redlining the torque and ITT not long after takeoff and "crash" due to overstressing. I'm gonna have to find out the proper settings for this plane for takeoff, climb, cruise, descent and then landing...I'm hoping someone here might enlighten me!

Found another good reference document, this one straight from Beechcraft. Be aware, though, they listed two different flavors, one being the regular 350i and the other being 350iER (presumably for comparison, the latter being designated for "Special Missions"). https://www.beechcraft.com/special_missions/assets/documents/350iER_Brief_New_2012.pdf

Well, I found something that yields useful info. Actually, very useful as it contains vital performance info. If anyone happens to be looking for a basic reference to fly the 350i, here's what I found: https://www.africair.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/SD-KA350i-Unit-1031-to-TBD-2015-Oct.pdf

I want to try my hand at flying the 350i. I have a feeling this plane is going to turn into my workhorse for FSEconomy. Always did like the idea of twin turboprops to get fast and high and far. Of course, to begin to learn to fly the thing, I must do some homework first. Naturally, my first thought is to find a copy of the POH, but it seems I'd either have to buy it or register through Beechcraft/Textron's website (which I bet asks you for your license, aircraft registration, etc., to verify you actually own/fly one). While the whole handbook would be er...handy...to have, I'm OK with just a few select pages that contain critical info such as landing configurations, optimal flying settings, etc.