I use gain on the retract switch, that's if I use more than one gain. A gain that is low enough to cope with the higher speed parts of flight still helps a lot at landing speed, it's not as if it stops working at low speed. You don't really need a third gain for mid flap. Two settings - a high speed and low speed gain are plenty. Generally I don't use a gyro's banks, if I am using two gain values then I switch them direct from the retract switch. I have a separate 2 way switch as my Gyro Master, common to all model setups on my Tx, which can switch the gain value back to zero should the gyro get loose, go mad etc. I think it is dangerous to not be able to zero a gyro from the Tx. For test flights i have the gain assigned to a rotary knob not the retract switch, and i take off with the Gyro Master switch at off, and the gain knob turned down to zero. Then when ready at safe height I turn on the Gyro Master switch and start turning the gain knob up. After the flight, I transfer the values from the knob to the retract switch. My latest Tx has gyro software that remembers gains set in different flight modes so I will be using that in future

Cool, thanks.

Should I leave the stick priority and gain in the setup software at factory settings and only copy the gain bank over the hold bank, and set servos to digital?

TB

A lot depends on personal taste. I like the gain to collapse quickly as I move the stick so I altered the priority and the balance between the gains of the different axes before the maiden flight. If you are not so experienced or confident with gyros perhaps it is best to start with factory settings and if they feel fine, then you need do nothing. If you feel the gyro is "fighting" you then it probably needs the priority changed.

I suggest leaving everything at the default bank settings except for copying bank 1 to bank 2. These settings will be perfectly ok for the first flights.

so having the cortex on for a maiden is ok? I have flown the cortex in my 40% BH cub and my 100cc Sbach. I thought you had to trim the fram first then setup the cortex. But I can see setting it up then going on the test flight with the option to use bank one with lower gain, off, or bank 2 with the higher gain.

TB

It depends on how much you need to adjust the trims, as it reads the control position at switch on as being the stick neutral, from which it calculates stick priority. If you change the trims during the flight you alter the neutral compared to what the Cortex thinks is neutral. This will not matter for a little amount of trim but larger amounts would in effect reduce the gain at neutral, and increase then decrease gain as you move the stick in the opposite direction to the trim. It could lead to a slightly wrong value for gain being set. So if you do have to do any substantial trimming during the maiden it's best not to bring the gyro on, then land and cycle the radio on and off for the Cortex to pick up the new neutral position before you start adjusting the gain.

For a first use of a gyro you would never take off with the gyro active as catastrophic mistakes can happen in setting reversed travel direction and/or too much gain. Get to a safe height then gently increase the gain or switch gyro on, and be prepared for immediate switch off if the plane goes out of control. If you switch on and can wiggle the controls and the plane is in control, you are safe to proceed testing the gain value. If you have a reversed gyro control you would get to know about it in a nano-second!

New airframe I always have a second set of eyes check gyro sense direction (old heli tail rotor habit) just like in the Navy we always had a CDI sign off on any work that was done by a person that wasn't involved in the work before a plane could be released for flight.

This is what I did with my cub and Sbach, I fly, trim, land then set the gyro up and turn it on in flight at a safe altitude the next flight!

TB