<h3 id="postTopic82514"><span>the answer</span></h3><div id="postText82514" class="messageBody">Okay, once again I'm going to answer my own question, since I figured it out, in case it might help someone else down the road looking for the same answer. Pardon me for the long explanation, but the short thing I read before confused me, so I'd rather give too much info than not enough. The ONLY piece of info I had found on this subject was on Rodeo's website. But it wasn't at all clear to me.

From Rodeo's website (http://www.rodeo.rc-sim.de/Default.htm):

Get the aircraft properly to the ground:
Positive X value moves object to the nose
Positive Y value moves object to the left
Positive Z value moves object upwards

Leftwheel.R = vector( -0.160, 0.30, -0.320 );
Leftwheel.S = vector( -0.160, 0.30, -0.390 );
Leftwheel.Radius = 0.0700;

Rightwheel.R = vector( -0.160, -0.30, -0.320 );
Rightwheel.S = vector( -0.160, -0.30, -0.390 );
Rightwheel.Radius = 0.0700;

See formula for Z values: R - Radius = S

Now, what confused me was the statement "Positive Z value moves object upwards". I was starting with some numbers like "-0.455". To me, if you ADD to a negative number, you get closer to -0-, right? Not in this case. In order to raise the model up, I simply had to add to each of the variables by the proper amount. And you MUST change all 3 of these variables properly, keeping in mind the formula stated above, or else the model crashes on the ground, before you even do anything, etc, etc. Note that I have put the critical numbers in BOLD to make them easy to see.


<span style="text-decoration: underline;">Bad (in the ground) wheel DNS example: </span>

Leftwheel.R = vector( -0.158, 0.388, <span style="font-size: 12pt;">-0.0</span> );
Leftwheel.ww = 1.0;
Leftwheel.M = 0.0;
Leftwheel.Type = 3;
Leftwheel.S = vector( -0.158, 0.388, -0.455 ); <span style="font-size: 12pt;">-0.435</span>
Leftwheel.Radius = <span style="font-size: 12pt;">0.100</span>;

<span style="text-decoration: underline;">Good (on the ground) wheel DNS example: </span>

Leftwheel.R = vector( -0.100, 1.04, <span style="font-size: 12pt;">-0.56</span> );
Leftwheel.ww = 1.0;
Leftwheel.M = 0.0;
Leftwheel.Type = 3;
Leftwheel.S = vector( -0.100, 1.040, <span style="font-size: 12pt;">-1.246</span> );
Leftwheel.Radius = <span style="font-size: 12pt;">0.5110</span>;

After I increased each variable correctly (the math doesn't look right to me as I review the above - but it worked!), the model was raised above the ground to sit on it's nice wheels, as intended. If you only knew how much time I spent figuring this out!! I'm sure there's an easier way to determine the proper setting, but at least I can accomplish this now thru trial and error, and maybe this information and example will help someone else.

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