I thought my yoke was messed up

Just a story that hopefully will help other new flight simmers.

 

As I took off from KSFO I noticed that immediately my little C172 began, ever so slightly, veering to the right. I knew I'd selected "clear skies" in FSX before beginning, so it wasn't a wind. I adjusted for this for about 20 miles until I figured I should stop and see what the problem was.

 

I rebooted my computer, reinstalled drivers, even took apart my yoke and poked around in there a little. I discovered that it was only this continuing flight (I'd already flown from LAX to KSFO) that was veering off course. New flights were fine. I decided to go ahead and make the flight to Mendocino as planned, hoping that the next leg wouldn't have this bug in it.

 

Halfway to Mendocino I discovered the problem (I'm sure many of you experienced pilots already know the answer). Somehow I had set it to only use fuel from the left wing, which by now was half depleted. The right wing was 100% full!

 

Who knew that more fuel in one wing would cause the plane to veer in that direction? Obviously I didn't or I might have checked that first.

 

:D

Yup, any weight imbalance can cause such things, but I'd have thought you'd soon notice the change in bank angle (granted it's not very much at first). Back when dirt was new, my first flight instructor showed me how to turn the Aeronca Chief I was learning in (pic in my sig.) by both of us leaning to one side, then the other way to level the wings.

I told you Kirk, you would get it, things will all come together! Just think, this problem you were able to figure out on your own, and believe me, you figured it out faster than other newbie (or even more educated) sim pilots might have! Way to go! The "ever so slightly" would be harder to figure out than a much more pronounced veering. I had a freeware download once, a Cessna 206 that would veer real hard left on takeoff and that ended up being mis-matched attachment points of the left fuel tank vs right fuel tank. I took a guess on which number to go with, and I got it right on the first try. Plane stayed straight from then on.

 

Okay, now that you are "swelled up" with self-satisfaction :rolleyes: , time to move on to the next issue!

 

Enjoy - Rick :cool:

I'm sorry Kirk, please read my wording above "or even more educated" as "or even more experienced" . Sometimes I type faster than I think, which walking away from the post for a few hours and coming back to it, I am able to see my own mistakes in my comments! By that time, it's too late to edit the post!

 

Rick :cool:

I'm sorry Kirk, please read my wording above "or even more educated" as "or even more experienced" . Sometimes I type faster than I think, which walking away from the post for a few hours and coming back to it, I am able to see my own mistakes in my comments! By that time, it's too late to edit the post!

 

Rick :cool:

 

I didn't even notice. All I saw was encouragement.

Yup, any weight imbalance can cause such things, but I'd have thought you'd soon notice the change in bank angle (granted it's not very much at first). Back when dirt was new, my first flight instructor showed me how to turn the Aeronca Chief I was learning in (pic in my sig.) by both of us leaning to one side, then the other way to level the wings.

 

 

You learned from a good instructor! Mine did that and then taught me how to let a Cessna 152 "unstall" itself.

When I started, I was pretty ham fisted on the controls. He popped me in the back of the head, then said,

"This thing aint nothing but a big chicken, and you're the brain." (It occurred to me much later that chickens can't really fly)

Then he proceeded to fly the pattern with nothing but his thumb and finger on the yoke. I became very smooth after that lesson.

And the absolute best feeling in the world is feeling the grass hit the wheels as you flair to land while the stall horn goes off.

I still haven't mastered landing slow enough in the sim to get the horn to sound.

Kirk,

I fly the Carenado 172n almost exclusively nowdays, and maybe the stock 172 on long flights. One thing I've started doing in the last year is switching to the starboard tank as soon as I reach cruise altitude. I weigh 242lbs and I put that in on my weight and balance section, so I'll burn off about 20% of the right tank asap, then switch over, then I always keep the left tank a little emptier than the right one. Figure 6lbs per gallon and you can balance your weight pretty well and get the "big chicken" trimmed out almost perfectly. I also add about 35lbs into the luggage section. In the old days, in real life, I always had chocks, a towbar, the cowl plug covers, some books, a couple quarts of oil, and other assorted crap thrown back there. It's also easier to get your elevator trim set correctly if you CG is a little to the rear of the allowed range. My Dad called it "getting on step", like a boat. It means less drag, more speed, and more fuel efficiency.

I DID learn from an excellent instructor. That Chief I learned in was very light, and Jon also had us both lean as far forward as possible, and as far back as possible to slightly affect pitch. Rudder pressures were extremely light and so feedback was minimal, but once I started to get the hang of keeping things coordinated he'd stick his hand out the window (I couldn't see this) and, as soon as I got the ball centered he'd straighten his arm with hand flat to the wind, throwing the ball to the side. As soon as I centered it again he'd bring the arm down flat against the door, throwing the ball the other way.

 

He had many other tricks, too. As for ham fisted, I kept wanting to put both hands on the wheel, so he finally had me sit on my right hand, then the thumb-and-finger like yours did for the left hand.

 

Many of these things he used on me were things that I was able to later use on my students.

 

while the stall horn goes off.

 

What's a stall horn? :pilot: The Chief didn't have such a thing (neither do Cubs and Champs), you just had to learn to feel it (slight buffeting, very sloppy controls, etc.).

 

I still haven't mastered landing slow enough in the sim to get the horn to sound.

 

Depends on the aircraft (many aren't close to real), but try carrying just a touch of power as you flare, perhaps with partial flaps (20º in a Cessna), then "Hold it off! Hold it off!" not letting it touch even as you bring the power to idle.

@Hossfly68 - Thanks for tips! Funny thing, I just bought the Carenado 172n last night. :)

Read up on how to use carb heat, just for the immersion factor mostly. Don't know that it matters much in the sim, but I've had two real life friends killed by carb ice, one was a former Air Force C-130 pilot and airline Captain who went to Greenland on the first trip to find the P-38 Glacier Girl. He died four miles from home in a Piper Cub when he lost the engine in a steep turn and spun into a house. Got complacent, flew lower than legal, and lost it.