ORIGINAL: soresoar
I've been around RC planes for many years (most recently sailplanes and dynamic soaring) but I only recently got back into glow.
I am having major problems controlling my plane (a low-wing Stick taildragger) on the takeoff roll. The plane will make a 90 degree turn to the left at full throttle that is barely correctible.
Is this "normal" for this type of plane? I know some amount of right rudder is necessary on takeoff, but this is truly ridiculous.
Also, could my landing gear/wheels be at fault? There is quite a bit of play in both the main wheels (Du-Bro low-bounce) and the tail gear.
THe plane, for those who were wondering, is a .46 size Sport Stick from Hobby People (pretty good flyer, actually)
Want a simple solution that works for almost every airplane and works every time?
Don't firewall the throttle on takeoff. No lie.
Gyroscopic precession, p-effect, and engine torque all contribute to the left turn. And all three of those effect the takeoff in proportion to how fast you jam that stick to full throttle. Move the throttle with some skill and you won't have much left-turn to bother with.
We've got a number of Decathlons at the field. They all have a really bad left-turn problem. Well, truth is, we've only really got ONE Decathlon at the field most of the time, and it doesn't have a left-turn problem at all. It's mine, and I never firewall the throttle on takeoff. And truth is, the other Decathlons haven't been out since their first outings, because the owners don't bring them anymore. The owners simply won't (or can't) bring themselves to takeoff without trying to get it over with as quickly as possible. And have convinced themselves the airplanes are at fault.