Originally Posted by
speedracerntrixie
OK Al there is no way we are going to settle this at a keyboard. Next time you are out flying in a cross wind try flying passes back and forth 200 ft out using a 1/2 cuban at each end to turn around making rudder corrections only at the end and see how that works for you. I have coached enough beginning IMAC pilots to know the outcome but I realize you will need to see for yourself.
Seriously, If you're holding in rudder you're doing it wrong. Now you may be doing it wrong better than those who are doing it right, but it's still wrong.
There's no way your plane won't change heading if your wings are level and you're holding in rudder, and if you're changing heading in a constant crosswind then your ground track isn't straight. You WILL have to lean on the rudder during each pass IF you start the pass slightly nose in and you need to hold it out by arcing the baseline.
The only way your plane won't change heading if you hold in rudder is if your opposite wing is low as it would be in a side slip case. Back in the day with skinny fuses you could get wonderfull (flatish) sideslips but now with modern F3A ships you need a 45deg opposite bank angle otherwise when you poke in the rudder your plane will just do a 180 and head back the way it came..