Are there any tricks to help master rudder control. I have been flying for 2 years now and I still get rudder control backwards at time or I have to think for a second before input. Do you guys have any tricks or exercises to make rudder input more natural?

Hello,
those are VERY interesting links, I found then on other posts here on RCU (thanks to the people that posted them!). Be patient and good flying!

http://members.cox.net/don.ramsey/FourthControl.htm
http://www.troybuiltmodels.com/AwesomePilot.html

Roll Tide Roll??? Are you kidding me??

The day I figured out rudder my buddy said there was a huge light bulb lighting up over my head. Seriously I figured it out all at once. Upright rudder shouldn't be much problem. You just have to learn to use it. Get used to controling the yaw axis of the aircraft. Inverted is another story. Don't think in terms of left or right but I'm upside down so left is really right.....simpy push the rudder stick the same way the nose is going when the plane is inverted. Don't THINK about it, simply do it. If the nose is going this way,push the stick this way. If it is going that way, push the rudder stick that way. It was sort of like riding a bike the first time. It just worked all of a sudden. If you don't find yourself using rudder very much, and most people don't, go get a pattern airplane and start practicing to make you aerobatics look perfect. After a while the rudder will be second nature.

War Damn Eagle.

Rick H.

Rick,

I use rudder quite a bit, or at least I try to. Although I use it all the time, I still cant seem to get it right 100% of the time.

I too was getting it backwards (when inverted) more often than not. Then I read Mike Hurley's column in MA a few months back. The trick he proposes is to fly the tail instead of the nose when things appear "backwards" . This didn't work for me, but got me to think of a mental trick that did work: When things are "backwards", I move the rudder stick so that the stick points in the direction I want the plane to yaw. Kind of like the elevator stick - we pull on the stick so that it points "up".
As I've gotten used to this, I'm no longer afraid to attempt to correct a line and have had a huge improvement in my flying.

So, you just have to search for the mental trick that is right for you.

Well

A year ago I got OMP katana profile with OS46AX and flew it for a few month.

With this model I learned how to use the rudder correct.

All the 3D maneuvers really helps to develop control skills.

I will recommend you to do the same.

Good luck

Ram_Z

Inverted rudder use is most confusing to me. I remember by saying "same way - away". While inverted, moving the rudder the same direction as the plane is flying will cause it to move away from me. Moving against the direction of the plane brings it closer to me.

If you REALLy want to learn rudder control, get a helicopter and learn to fly it. You are required to use all 4 (transmitter) axes all the time and it just becomes second nature. I rarely ever make in incorrect rudder input any more as I am SO used to flying the tail that it just happens before I think about it.
Gordie

All good points on rudder control.

Here are some of my thoughts about rudder control. It is the least taught input in the control of an airplane when students are learning to fly. My son has recently taken up learning to fly R/C and I realized this almost right away when we were on the buddy box. Guys where coming up to him and saying just leave the left stick alone and concentrate on the aileron and elevator. NOT a good idea. Then I got my foamie bi-plane together and he wanted to fly it. So out came the buddy cord and off to the parking lot we went. This foamie airplane requires use of the rudder to initiate the turns. Rolling and yanking on the elevator does not make it turn. So he had to learn the rudder real fast and he picked up very quick doing flat rudder turns and stall turns left and right. So we transfered this thought proccess to the full size trainer and I started making him turn the trainer with rudder which it will do quite well. He also has learned to fly upside down with the foamie and he quickly realized the rudder works the oppisite direction and quickly figured it out to just move the tail(rudder stick) in the same direction. These foamies are great as teaching aids and I dont have to worry about hundreds of dollars of equipment getting busted up if an incident were to occur. It has helped my rudder control also.

Sorry to get off the subject.

This is something to concider when training at in the early stages of R/C flying.

Wayne Galligan

Rick,

Gringo knows that I've given him quite a few 'War Damn Eagles' on RCU, but you know those Alabama fans.......

BTW, I applied for Alabama before I enrolled in Auburn. Alabama turned me down. They said that I already had a high school education!


Okay, the way I got comfortable with rudder control was when I started using just a little in every turn, every time. For me, when I kept using the rudder on my trainer it got to be a non thinking kind of thing after a while. It is rare that I don't do something with the rudder stick when turning and that is from developing that habit back when I was learning on the trainer.

Here are some simple rules I developed over time flying F3A.

Rolling manoeuvres:

Always opposite rudder to aileron input when rolling from upright to inverted. Always same rudder input to aileron when rolling from inverted to upright. That is all I have to think about when I am rolling including rolling loops and circles.

As for flying rudder input is obvious when flying upright. If it isn’t then you’re not ready to go to the next stage (buy a sim). When the model is flying inverted I simply concentrate on the inboard wingtip and don’t take any notice of the nose or tail. I just simply move the rudder stick in the direction I want the wingtip to move to correct for yaw. For example if the model is flying from left to right inverted and the nose of the model is coming towards you I look at the inboard wingtip. In this case the wingtip will be dragging behind (so to speak) and to straighten the model up I want the inboard wingtip to go forward so all I remember is to move the rudder stick in the direction I want the wingtip to go. It doesn’t matter if you’re flying right to left or left to right or to you or away from you.

Hey Peter that's the best way I have ever seen. Thanks for sharing it, Mike

Yep, there is no doubt that flying the inboard wingtip is the simplest most intuitive way to steer the rudder while inverted. While inverted the rudder stick moves the same way as the inboard tip. At first I just imagined my thumb was actually in contact with the wingtip and I just pushed it back and forth to make the plane go where I wanted. I actually use my foamy to demonstrate this to people. Just flip it over upside down in your right hand, put your left thumb on the inboard wingtip and push it through the yaw axis with your thumb... Its one of the few things you can actually demonstrate on the ground. Now that my brain has caught on there is no thought at all I just do it.

The only time I use a different technique is when I am flying a vertical line with the belly facing me. Then I do the same thing but I just use the rudder stick to push the tail where I want it to go. I do this when hovering belly facing me as well.

Touché blw

All I got to say is 7-0. We already had gator and vol meat, no we are ready for a few kinds of tiger!

blw what projects you got going on, I think I remember you bought a 40 sized epsilon a little while back

we are back in Argentina now. I am just about to buy a 90 sized Epsilon while we wait on our shipment to arrive by boat that has all my RC stuff. Hope to have it flying by the end of the year although that might be a little optimistic

Peter I think that is going to be just the trick to help me figure it out. Inverted flight or belly towards me in an upline is what was confusing me. After running the different scenarios through my head with rudder input it seems really natural to think about it that way.

I'll try it and let you know.

I am in the middle of the 60 sized Epsilon and won't complete it before next year due to a move to a new house soon. It is an impressive kit. I've built up the fuselage and stab-elevators so far. I have a Saito .82 for it. Didn't you build an Epsilon for someone else? I was waiting for the Epsilon 40 but got tired of waiting and got the 60. It isn't that much bigger and the quality of the foam sheeting is impressive and perfect. I assembled the entire fuselage without glue and put it on a board to measure and get square. It already was square all the way around! I just added CA to finish the job. I did all of it in 2 hours.

Well, I guess the 7-0 is impressive but the 6-3 win was close, very close. Don't forget, we beat those guys twice last year and the first time was an old fashioned ***** whupping. The Auburn-LSU game was a slugfest. Of course, all of our offensive players are rookies so you can't win them all this year.

Good luck on the shipping due to Argentina. The suggestion by PeterP is good. I've tried to focus on just one wing tip too and it helps. The CA Models planes are excellent for using rudder a lot. The Widebody usually requires gentle bumps unless I lead the turn with it. Then, it is only a tiny bit or it skids big time.

edited to add: WAR EAGLE!

The 40 sized Epsilon is available here but I have had my heart set on the 90 for a while. I have all coreless servos and premium accessories and I am going to take my time and do a deluxe monokote job. I cant wait.

The only CA kit I have built is the FUNKY. It was kind of a tough first kit but it turned out fine. I have helped some friends build a few WB40´s and the quality is great. I expect the same with the Epsilon.

I've built the WB 40 and have seen the WB 60 kit. I think the the Epsilon is even better in terms of quality and the way they designed it to build. My Epsilon kit seemed the best of all 3 kits. A lot of the build, such as wings/stab/rudder is the same as the others, but the fuselage seems to be better thought out. The only thing that I don't like is the heavy dural split main gear. The stock is too think and heavy for me and I may look for another gear to use. The plans call for the split gear to mount inside of the fuselage but I'll mount mine on the bottom instead.