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Just some random commentssince this forum is sadly inactive... Had a small "light bulb moment" practicing some acro last night. I decided not to practice my Intermediate Free and Known sequences - but instead chose to try to tighten up some basic things that I've been lazy about staying consistent and precise with - rolls on 45 up/down lines and hammerheads.
Hammerheads are interesting in that if you asked 4 different pilots to describe their technique, you'd probably get 5 different answers. Anyway, ever since I started doing them in my S-1S, I've mostly focused on trying to pivot the plane at just the right time...not too early, not too late...a second too late and the big metal prop will uncontrollably torque it over. I never really got a great handle on stopping the pivot perfectly and consistently vertical in both pitch and yaw, since it's hard to tell anything about either by staring over the nose at the ground, which is what I've always done. I usually get fairly close, but this competition stuff ain't about fairly close - it's about dead nuts on.
Since the sight gauge tells you everything you need to know about pitch and yaw when the airplane is vertical, I discovered the obvious...once the nose drops below the horizon, shift your eyes and watch the damn gauge the rest of the way around! Unlike looking over the nose and relying on timing, you get a precise picture of exactly how close you are to reaching vertical down in yaw. As the gauge swings up toward the horizon, I can also better see if I've been holding the right amount of forward stick so that the plane ends up perfectly vertical in pitch. Fly the sight gauge onto the horizon and square with it, and you've got a perfect stop every time. I've heard acro professionals describe other methods for achieving the same thing, but I just can't seem toput them to good use. After a bit of practice, it looks like this is gonna be the best method for me. Anyway, all this struck me given that there's so much emphasis on how to gauge the start of the pivot, and so little on how to stop it accurately.
So I'm curious - what other methods do you all use to get that perfect pivot stop, simultaneously arriving perfectly vertical in both axes? It's such a simple maneuver to watch, but so deceptively complex and involving so much "feel" rather than strictly mechanical inputs and easy visual cues, that it seems a bit of a dark art form. Hammers and snaps are probably the most satisfying maneuvers for mewhen they're really nailed. Just wish I could do it every time.
Eric
Edited by: grassroots
Hammerheads are interesting in that if you asked 4 different pilots to describe their technique, you'd probably get 5 different answers. Anyway, ever since I started doing them in my S-1S, I've mostly focused on trying to pivot the plane at just the right time...not too early, not too late...a second too late and the big metal prop will uncontrollably torque it over. I never really got a great handle on stopping the pivot perfectly and consistently vertical in both pitch and yaw, since it's hard to tell anything about either by staring over the nose at the ground, which is what I've always done. I usually get fairly close, but this competition stuff ain't about fairly close - it's about dead nuts on.
Since the sight gauge tells you everything you need to know about pitch and yaw when the airplane is vertical, I discovered the obvious...once the nose drops below the horizon, shift your eyes and watch the damn gauge the rest of the way around! Unlike looking over the nose and relying on timing, you get a precise picture of exactly how close you are to reaching vertical down in yaw. As the gauge swings up toward the horizon, I can also better see if I've been holding the right amount of forward stick so that the plane ends up perfectly vertical in pitch. Fly the sight gauge onto the horizon and square with it, and you've got a perfect stop every time. I've heard acro professionals describe other methods for achieving the same thing, but I just can't seem toput them to good use. After a bit of practice, it looks like this is gonna be the best method for me. Anyway, all this struck me given that there's so much emphasis on how to gauge the start of the pivot, and so little on how to stop it accurately.
So I'm curious - what other methods do you all use to get that perfect pivot stop, simultaneously arriving perfectly vertical in both axes? It's such a simple maneuver to watch, but so deceptively complex and involving so much "feel" rather than strictly mechanical inputs and easy visual cues, that it seems a bit of a dark art form. Hammers and snaps are probably the most satisfying maneuvers for mewhen they're really nailed. Just wish I could do it every time.
Eric
Edited by: grassroots
