Hi,
I just got me my first plane -- a gws slow stick. I have been trying to fly it for 3 days now. I noticed that the plane always tends to turn left during flight.
Although I was able to fly it into the air, I always have to apply left rudder to correct the flight. Most of the time, the flight ends up in a crash as it is difficult for me to handle the plane for a landing.
Has anyone have any idea why this happen? Any inputs will be appreciated.

Thanks,
Jodan

do you mean apply right rudder? if its turning left then you need right rudder. maybe check the rudder to see if its properly aligned. perhaps you need a bit of trim to right rudder. maybe its a balance issue. this may seem elementry but it could be the wind

You're right.. I meant I have to apply right rudder to straighten the flights. I made sure the rudders are straightly aligned before flights so I really am not sure why the plane still turns to the left. I think the plane's balance is ok as it doesn't tilt to either side when I balance them.
I do notice that a very slight, almost unnoticable, down twist on the tail end of the right wing (compared to the left one). Could this be producing the left turn on my flights? If so how could I correct this?
Thanks again!
(: Jodan

Jodan,

It might be. I dont know anything about slow stiks. If you really wanted to and thought it might help, you could just buy a new main wing. Only thing I can think of now is the motor angle. If YOU actually mounted the motor on it, is it possible you didn't account for the angle of the motor? I know on my mini piper the angle of the motor is down and to the right. Perhaps check to see if thats mentioned anywhere in your instructions. If it isn't that, then I can't really help ya. I'm pretty new to the hobby myself

The SlowStick has an aluminum 'fuse', and the gearbox mounts right on it. This means that there is no correction for the P-factor - the torque caused by the prop. A lot of models counter this by mounting the motor angled down and right (as viewed from the cockpit), the SlowStick doesn't.

This means that the SlowStick will tend to turn up and left at higher throttle ('left' is more noticeable than the 'up'). I have mine trimmed to fly straight and level at about 75% throttle (most of the time I fly mine just over 50% throttle, and adjust when flying full throttle). I read a post a couple of months ago on another popular RC forum where someone made a motor mount out of ply to correct for the p-factor.

If the warp in the wing is almost unnoticeable unless one goes looking for it, then I don't think it's causing your problem. The dihedral in the wing will probably counter it. Depending on how much it turns left, I would say that it's probably caused by the p-factor. I suggest you go to the local flying field and ask another experienced flyer to take a look, if my trim suggestion doesn't work.

Also, landing should be done via the throttle. Line up with the runway, then start throttling back slowly. Altitude loss should be gradual until the wheels touch. Try not using the elevator. Again, an instructor at the field is recommended for the first few flights.

I don't think anything is drastically wrong with the plane. The Slow Stick is a very forgiving design, and can be flown successfully and easily even if the wing is slightly warped, or if things aren't perfectly aligned.

There are little sliders below and to the right of the elevator/rudder control stick. These are called trim tabs. You slide these to "trim" the plane for straight and level flight. If the plane is turning left, you slide the trim tab underneath the control stick to the right until the plane flies straight. Just move the trim tab over a click at a time until the plane stops turning left.

The wing is made out of "meat tray" style foam, so you can form the warp out of the wing if it bothers you. Twist the wing to straighten it, then blast it with your hair dryer. If it doesn't quite straighten out, twist it a little more. However, you should be able to trim the left turn out. Don't worry if the control surfaces aren't perfectly straight.

Thanks guys! I will try to blow dry the wings today. Thanks again.

Jodan

If the above mentioned does'nt correct the problem try this. Set the rudder trim on the transmitter in the center position. Adjust the clevis on the rudder so that the rudder is slightly to the right. Test fly the plane. If it still turns left stop and adjust the rudder a little more to the right. Repeat as necessary. When you get it to where the plane flies straight or very close to it you can use the rudder trim on your radio to correct it on a daily basis for the best flying.

My SS had a slight warp in the boom, noticed it after final assembly. The plane twists to the left. Rudder trim fixed it with no other problems. Side or down thrust dont seem to be a problem either. I use a 1300 ma 8.4 volt lithium ion battery, works great.

Good luck and have fun, John Smith

I corrected the twist on the wings by applying a hair dryer/blower on it. I flew it this week end and guess what.. it now flies straight. Now I can land the plane smoothly.
Thanks for the advices. Really appreciate it.

Jodan