RCU Forums - View Single Post - Torque and P factor, why do we continually confuse them?
Old 11-20-2011 | 07:27 AM
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rmh
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Default RE: Torque and P factor, why do we continually confuse them?

For those with nothing else to do - try this
setup a motor and propeller FIXED to a mount
directly behind it , tether and suspend a nice flat foam model ( these do give very good simple results) positioned as if the motor was attached.
Now -when the prop is spinning -producing thrust - you can see if the resultant airstream is indead a spiral flow or simply pressurized air.
In doing the many foamie tests with my own stuff - I have noticed the deflection of the surfaces caused by the prop blast -
It appears that the flow is assymetrical (has some spiralling) but the torque is obvious
the gyro reaction is also easily felt in my fingertips as aI move the control surfaces and change the original spinning prop track-
P factor is not possible to feel .
Tho it obviously occurs with a moving model - fling these little models in calm air reveals all these factors
This beats the heck out of digging thru various textbooks
Plus, it's fun