Oversteer ...

I'm a 71 year old retread "beginner."

I know that I give too much up and down during stunt maneuvers and I'm having a hard time not stalling the plane.

Question: Should I block the elevator at a certain up/down degree?

If so, how many degrees?

Some people will "try" a smaller line spacing on their handle for this situation.

20 degrees up and 20 degrees down is all you need, if that much. If the airplane is not real stable level, might add a little nose weight. If you can put a longer control horn on the elevator that will help. Try to fly through loops, etc. Start big, and work your way down to smaller maneuvers. If you have a handle where you can, move the lies closer together.

Thanks. I'm using an oldie-but-goodie Fox handle. I will move the handle lead outs from the wide outer holes to the inner holes.

I have a Fox handle we used for racing. You can easily hold it with both hands when you want to hold it in close and maybe even transmit a little power down the lines. Havn't tried it for stunt.

I'd suggest a handle upgrade. The Tom Morris handles are a great value, tho the Fancher handle is 'more ultimate'. Get rid of the cables, and you get rid of the 'springs' in the 'steering'. This is a good thing in all cases. The only downside is that you have small tolerances for line lengths...they really need to be within 1/4" of identical...and it's not easy. That's why Derek Moran invented the adjustable line clip manufacturing fixture. Cool idea! Steve
http://www.clstunt.com/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?az=show_thread&om=16762&forum=DCForumID1&archive=

Here in Texas we all fly with handles which allow us to move our lies closer together.

Thanks for the plug Steve.

Steve Yampolsky very graciously put the drawing on the PAMPA web site
http://www.control-line.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=1 Members can download the PDF; non-members are SOL.

Derek

John, I'd start by taking a look at the whole control system. Start at the bellcrank. How far does it travel, and how much do the leadouts move? Most people have a preference for how much they move their hand. Personally, I like an ~2 in. total leadout movement. Others like to use 4 in. bellcrank with more leadout travel, but only use part of it for full control. The bellcrank can give a 2.5 in. travel or so, but due to handle size, you can only comfortably get around say 1.5 in.

Where does the pushrod attach to the bellcrank? Using the longest arm on the bellcrank and longer horns on the flaps and elevator reduces the pushrod forces a lot. The bearings last longer and the pushrods have less tendency to flex.

Take a look at the amount of flap and elevator travel. They have to be balanced with the weight of the plane. Many times when the plane appears to "stall" it is actually too much flap movement and/or area. If you take a design the original flyer flew at 60 oz. and build it up at 50 oz. you will have to change the control ratios to really get it trimmed nicely. If the original flew with a 1:1 flap elevator ratio, a lighter version will likely need less flap travel.

Don't be afraid to experiment with both the balance point and the amount of control travel. People have been very successful with wildly different control setups. Some folks like mechanically very slow controls, others go for the "fingertip" control feel. Finding the right combination of leadout travel, balance point, control movement, and handle size that suits you can make a huge difference.

If you are stuck with a plane that has enclosed, non-adjustable controls, about all you can play with are the balance point and the handle spacing. There is a good chance there won't be a really good combination if the problem is due to something else, like flap travel, wrong size bellcrank, leadout travel, etc.

Hey Don; It's been said that I not only don't know any thing, I don't even suspect any thing, but I always suspected that about the Texas bunch.

Yep..the word is out now!!