plane jocky

My Feedback: (146)

how do you know if your plane is to tail heavy . what are the signs thx

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

You look in the instructions and see where it actually balances for starters.

But in flight, pull up on a 45 and roll the plane on its back, if it pulls to the landing gear its tail heavy.

They can also exhibit nasty stall tedencies on landing

pimmnz

Instability in the pitch plane. Or more likely, the pile of bits where it just hit the ground. Not many live to tell the tale, but if it is just bit too far back then it will seem to not trim in pitch, and will constantly hunt between climbing at low speeds and diving in at high speeds.
Evan, WB #12.

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

Nose heavy planes fly poorly, tail heavy planes fly once.

Gordon Banks

Redback

By the pile of sticks at the end of the runway[:@]

Terry

SeamusG

If the CG is a flyable (more than one flight with no near fatal event) then what Bacaruda said - 45 degree up-line, 1/2 roll to inverted - if it takes a bunch of elevator to hold the 45 degree angle and it's falling towards the canopy - nose heavy. If it's wanting to increase altitude - towards the landing gear - tail heavy.

Charlie P.

If you trim for level flight, take a 45° upline, do a half roll to inverted, hold that and then release the sticks.  Nose heavy drops the nose towards earth.  Tail heavy points the nose up.


And by the pile of aticks at the end of the runway.  Nose heavy flies poorly.  Tail heavy flies once.  ;-)

invertedthoughts

It will take a bunch of down elevator right at takeoff just to keep it from pitching up like crazy and stalling. That would be the first sign of an overly tail heavy plane.

jester_s1

So to get this straight, a nose heavy plane flies bad, but a tail heavy plane flies how many times?

jetmech05

tail heavy airplane if flyable..will drag it's butt around the pattern...and be sensitive in pitch

Oberst

Everyone is right! It's better to be a little nose heavy than tail heavy. My Neptune Seaplanes were a real pain in the ***** trying to get them balanced because of the engine pod way in ther air above the wing. I checked about 10x's and I finally said I'm going for it.

I survived the the maiden flight, but the plane was dragging its butt like a dog with worms going along a plush carpet. I had to trim it down on the elevator, and when I cut the power to go in a glide, it porpoised like crazy! I had to be real smooth when I went to flare on the landings.

When I got home I added about 14 more ounces of weight to the nose and she flew like a angel solving the tail heavy situation.

So true! But sometimes we get real lucky to get them back in one piece.

If you aren't sure- just keep checking the CG until you feel sure about it and in your gut it tells you you are about right. Then test fly it and take it easy and you will know if your plane has worms in the butt like mine did.


Pete

Bozarth

My Feedback: (15)

Here is what you might notice prior to performing any maneuvers as suggested in previous posts: The plane is difficult to trim in pitch (pitch sensitivity/instability). You add a little needed up trim and then you feel you've added too much. So you add a little down trim and then it feels that you have added too much. And so on and so on.

Kurt