Sweaty Palms

Gang --

Instead of posting another dumb question, I have a real tip for a small percentage of you. I have sweaty, oily hands, not just when flying, but all the time. This means gripping the handle a little tighter than normally necessary, and takes out some feel.

A tight fitting left-hander's golf glove (fits the right hand) makes a world of difference. Use a Sta-Soft All Weather, which is durable. I start the engine with a garden glove over the golf glove, which protects the golf glove from fuel and such. The garden glove easily slips off.

The flying feel with the golf glove is actually improved over the bare hand, at least for me. If your hands are always dry, ignore this tip.

It's a good idea. I often use a "biker's glove" which is basically the same, but with the fingers cut away, so that only the palm and back of your hand is covered. If you've ever taken a fall on concrete or asphalt (or hard dirt) you know why you need them. They are cooler than a full glove (which is used for starting, as you do).

Jak,

>It's a good idea. I often
>use a "biker's glove" which
>is basically the same, but
>with the fingers cut away,
>so that only the palm
>and back of your hand
>is covered. If you've ever
>taken a fall on concrete
>or asphalt (or hard dirt)
>you know why you need
>them.

Disagree. I have indeed used bike gloves, and broke my arm in a bike race once with no road rash on my hands, thanks to bike gloves.

For flying, a bike glove is only superior if you fall a lot while flying.

Golf gloves are designed with a different purpose, which is more closely related to the needs of our hobby -- grip. Golf gloves are designed to increase the grip strength to a "handle" with fine motor control of the fingers not impaired by stressing them with a tighter grip effort. A right handed golfer can put a golf glove on his left hand, swing left-handed, relax all hand muscles, and swing one-handed with full club control. In both golf and flying, the goal is extremely fine motor control, and having to increase grip pressure to get that control is a proven counter-productive approach. The fingertips come into play in both cases, and fingertips come into play for us.

>They are cooler than
>a full glove (which is
>used for starting, as you
>do).

Cooler like looking better, or cooler like decreased temperature in the hand? Actually, I don't use the golf glove as a starting glove, but cover the golf glove with a garden glove as outlined in the original note. Oddly, I don't find the increase in temperature because of the gloves a problem at all. Not sure why.

I'm not talking about bicycles, I am talking motorcycles. The gloves I use are by Harley. They are leather, and give a good feel when riding or flying. And I'll pass on skidding on the concrete without them on my palms (done it before). The gloves end just short of the first knuckles of the fingers, and have a vent on the back. They are designed for hot weather riding, and are very comfortable. I also use a "garden glove" for starting.

>A tight fitting left-hander's golf glove
>(fits the right hand) makes
>a world of difference. Use
>a Sta-Soft All Weather, which
>is durable. I start the
>engine with a garden glove
>over the golf glove, which
>protects the golf glove from
>fuel and such. The garden
>glove easily slips off.
>

Another use for a glove like this ( I use a baseball batter's glove) is to protect your hands when you're repitching props. If it's hot enough to be repitched, it' pretty hot to hold on to. I just use an old batting glove as insulation. It protects your hands but allows plenty of feel.

Gloves and Combat?

They use gloves a lot in the combat circles don't they, ...it's what you hit the guy in the face with to challenge him to a flight/fight, ...er..right? Did not see this rule in the AMA handbook, though, hmmm! (Smile)

As a kid we use to use a glove for engine starts during the winter months, ..helped to take the sting out of a kick-back. After all chicken sticks were for chickens right, ..."And we don' knee no stinkin' checken's".

I like your idea Larry.

Tony --

Good point I never thought of. If I were ever to fly combat again, I would probably wear a "grip" glove on both hands for those times you have to switch hands.

Chicken sticks have always annoyed me. First, they can nick a nice wood prop. Second, you can't "feel" the engine moodiness on bad starting days the way your hand can. Third, part of the satisfaction of flying is starting the engine. There is no satisfaction in a one-flip chicken stick start, because you didn't "feel" it pop, you just saw it. Fourth, you have to have a personal relationship with your engines, and if you feel need of a chicken stick, you and your engines have a personal relationship problem. You need to understand your engine's personality, and your engine needs to understand your personality. It is kind of a Jungian thing I can't quite describe.

One way to get a better grip if you don't like the glove method is to use some of the tape used to wrap tennis racket handles.

Larry, If you ever fly AMA sanctioned combat again, you'll wear a safety thong and won't be able to switch hands. Also, I think (don't have rulebook in hand) that physical contact between flyers is a no-no in combat. Interestingly enough racing pilots do not use thongs, can switch hands, and often hang on to each other in the circle.

I wouldn't discourage anyone from using a chicken stick, or a starter. I seldom use either, but do use a glove sometimes, and have been glad of it. I'm in complete agreement that getting bitten is a failure in communication on your part, not the engine's.

Jim

>Larry, If you ever fly AMA sanctioned combat again, you'll
>wear a safety thong and won't be able to switch hands.
> Also, I think (don't have rulebook in hand) that physical
>contact between flyers is a no-no in combat.

That was added to the rules to make the pilots rely on their eyes only to keep track of each other, not being allowed to use the spare hand, or elbow, whatever, to have a tactile knowledge of where each other are. It may also have been intended to reduce the incidence of excessively rough physical contact, as was an occasional aspect of the earliest combat activity.

>Interestingly enough, racing pilots do not use thongs, can switch
>hands, and often hang on to each other in the circle.
>
My own use of gloves for starting engines has been infrequent, and my own sweaty palm symptoms have never involved model plane type activity, only interaction with the opposite sex while still a youth . .

K.

Chicken sticks are good for helping establish that relationship with a new engine. Demands respect. Sorta like training a mule with a 2x4.

Hot, sweaty, sticky hands. Now we know why all your girl friends keep leaving you.