Chris, I've no experience on the instructor end of the buddy box, but a lot on the other end of the cord.

As to how far to let the student go before taking over, it depends. If it is a new student, take it quick and anounce it every time. "I've got it" and "if you are ready, it's yours".. When I got to the point of trying to experment a bit. The "I've got it " wasn't always welcome. Later on, I would have loved to hear those words a couple times. I totaled out two planes while on the buddy box and did some sever damage a couple other times. The instructor appoligized for not taking it quicker, and I felt sorry for him. I learned something with the crashes. There are times also, that as an instructor, you just cant react soon enough. Take off and landings for example. I've never faulted the instructor when I screwed it up to the point of no return. I am always in debt to them for all of the saves they did.

At some point, you have to let the student step on his Ah , you know what I mean. If they don't know how to recover a bad situation while on the buddy box, they arn't going to be able to do it without the cord. If the student won't accept this, let him learn on his own.

My first instructor told me day one. "I'll do everything I can to keep your plane in one piece" and "there will be a time that I'm not able to save it. You have to understand that before I agree to teach you" That is a good starting point. If your student want's a no risk training, tell them to buy a simulator. That is the only no risk training you can get, but then comes the real world later when they start the real engine.

Don