Transmitter Stick Length and Tension

[Nigel Heather]

I have a Futaba T8FG transmitter which allows me to adjust both the stick length and tension.

I fly 'thumbs on top' and have never played with the adjustment and I guess it hasn't mattered to now as my flying style hasn't ever demanded any fine control.

I have recently started to learn Quad flying using a simulator and at the same time trying to move to a 'pinch' type hold. I'm finding that fine input is quite difficult resulting in me putting in too much control.

My sticks are rather twangy - if I move it to an extreme and let go it twangs back to the centre quite strongly. I also notice that from centre it takes quite a force to move it, especially changing direction light right aileron to left aileron and there is quite a bump in the centre to overcome. And this seems to be causing be to overdo the stick input.

Now I'm sure the answer is 'whatever suits you' but because adjusting the tension involves taking the back off and twiddling with screws I thought I'd ask how you set you sticks, length and tension.

Cheers,

Nigel

[Former Member]

[This posting has been removed]

[Richard Wills 2]

I fly with a tray and pinch. I have found tension not to be too important so long as I feel a good positive centre. I do need a long stick length makes fine control much better, I have them as long as they go on my Horus.

[Denis Watkins]

Good tension on the throttle, as you do not want that flopping about

And maybe try short stick if using thumbs on top

[Nigel Heather]

Thanks for the replies - some clarifications.

1) I don't let the sticks twang when I am using it. Just trying to express how taught the springs are.

2) With the spring tension as it is, it is easier to control against the tension than with it - so easier to move from 0mm to 3mm deflection smoothly then it is from 3mm to 0mm.

3) Tray - I have considered a tray, but they are pretty hard to find and quite expensive for what they are. The cheapest tray for my transmitter is £50 - a fair amount of money only to find that you don't like it.

4) Stick length - for thumbs I do have the sticks as short as possible and a lot of expo for helicopter flying. But with the quads I'm finding them so responsive that 30% expo isn't really helping.

Cheers,

Nigel

[Former Member]

[This posting has been removed]

[Martin Harris - Moderator]

I fly mode 2, (stubby) thumbs on top, short sticks and hand held so am aware of the possibility of introducing a small amount of coupling but have rotated my sticks quite a few degrees to make for a more natural movement. I also introduced much more tension in the roll axis than pitch and convinced myself that my flying was better because of it.

At the same time, I do a lot of test flying for clubmates using a wide variety of transmitters and (with the exception on a tray style DX18 with very long sticks set well into the middle, forcing me to adopt a pinch style) can't say that I'm really aware of any significant differences (once I've found the trims) while I have a model in the air!

Just to be contrary (or maybe to differentiate) on the rare occasions I fly a helicopter or quad, I fly pinch style with or without a neck strap.

So, it's very much personal preference - and at the end of the day, perhaps it isn't all that important anyway!

...or I'm just a rubbish insensitive flyer...

Edited By Martin Harris on 30/09/2018 12:54:27

[Nigel R]

Standard length sticks with tension turned up as much as I could. I fly pinch style but no tray. I found it better than thumbs on top when it came to separating horizontal from vertical inputs.

[John Stainforth]

I used to fiddle about with stick length and tension until an experienced American flyer told me it was a waste of time. Now I just use the transmitters as they come straight out of the box.

[Peter Miller]

I believe in Thumbs on top. Why? Because many years ago I had a friend who could never fly my models. He flew finger and thumb.

I told him to fly thumbs on top and he found that he could fly my models easily.

He still flew his models finger and thumb. I could never see why.

I suppose that I learned in the days when you were highly deligted to actually have two sticks and four trim levers!!

Stick tension? Same applies.

[John Lee]

Posted by John Stainforth on 30/09/2018 13:22:49:

I used to fiddle about with stick length and tension until an experienced American flyer told me it was a waste of time. Now I just use the transmitters as they come straight out of the box.

I'm the exact opposite. The first thing I do when I buy a new transmitter is adjust the stick length & tension to suit me, it's certainly not a waste of time for me.

As Nigel in the OP says 'whatever suits you'

 

Edited By John Lee on 30/09/2018 16:12:15

[Former Member]

[This posting has been removed]

[Peter Christy]

Posted by Percy Verance on 30/09/2018 16:39:36:

I'm the same John. Because I fly finger/thumb, I tend to adjust the stick length and tension on a new tx to where I think it ought to be for me and go from there. When new they're normally much too lightly tensioned for me. But then it's probably the result of flying for years with my old FLC set back in the 70's. Today's average user would probably be astonished at the effort required to move the sticks.

Edited By Percy Verance on 30/09/2018 16:42:19

Me too! My first proportional set was a Bonner Digimite, and followed by a "red box" Sprengbrook. I still have both, and occasionally hand them round. More recent comers to the hobby are astounded at how stiff the springs are!

I find it very difficult to get either the sticks long enough, or the spring tension stiff enough on modern transmitters. I have learned to live with it, but recently I restored a 1969 Royal Classic transmitter, converting it to 2.4 GHz. This features Kraft-Hayes sticks, which in their day were reckoned to be some of the best available! The springs are unbelievably strong compared to modern sets, but I love flying with it! Once in the air, you are oblivious to it, though most of my club-mates remain skeptical!

I think it was Phil Kraft who once said "Soft springs sell transmitters. Hard springs win competitions!"

'Nuff said!

--

Pete

[Former Member]

[This posting has been removed]

[PatMc]

Back in the 1970's when model helis were a bit of a noveIty, I remember talking to a couple of guys who were competent FW flyers but just learning to fly helis. They reckoned that they found it easier when they'd removed the springs, dunno if they'd retained the ratchet on throttle.

[Peter Jenkins]

Peter (Christie) - I've heard that quote attributed to Doug Spreng!

I started flying with a neck strap and thumbs. When I got into flying aerobatics I used to find that when I got tense I rotated the Tx towards me so that it became difficult to move my thumbs freely. I transitioned to a tray and flying finger and thumb. It took me 3 months to make the tranisition. Having read the Doug Spreng quote I dialled up the stick springs to max and, if I could find stronger springs, I would fit them. I find it is helpful to feel the stick's resistance when flying complex manoeuvres.

Just what works for me of course.

[Geoff S]

I fly finger and thumb with a tray, partly because I can't move m thumbs smoothly, particularly my right one, which is a pity as I fly mode 2. I like strong springs and fairly long sticks, too. I also disengage the ratchet on the throttle, why is it there anyway?

My tray is the one sold by Frsky for the Taranis but modified slightly to suit my Horus. The original was all Perspex but it broke and I made plywood copies of the parts which turned out to be lighter, which surprised me. It works for me.

Geoff

[John Duncker]

I fly thumbs on end because a I learned that way 50+ years ago and because I am a 3 D loon who also flies combat.

Most of the great pattern flyers especially the continentals fly pinch with trays. If you want perfect 5 second slow rolls that is the way to go.

When I was flying pattern I was advised to swap to pinch and tray which I did and my scores improved but it always felt clumsy some how so I did go back to thumbs.

[Tim A]

A few months ago I was talking to one of our oldest club members about exponential as I was having issues with a model that was quite twitchy even on low rates.

He asked me what length my sticks were? Because I have fairly short thumbs I had them set as short as possible. He then told me that before the advent of computer radios that they always made the sticks as long as possible which would have the affect of having expo and making stick inputs smoother.

So out with the screwdriver and on the next flight I found it had made it a lot smoother to fly, this went for my other models as well.

[Peter Christy]

PeterJ: You could be right! Its a long time since I heard the story!

PatMc: I think it was Dave Nieman who originally suggested removing the springs to fly helis! I understand why - the early helis suffered from dramatic trim changes when you went from hovering to forward flight - but I was never convinced.

I recall flying at a display and being approached by someone who "had a heli in my car" and asked me to test fly it for him. It was a Graupner Bell 212 and seemed well made, so I agreed. The transmitter was a Futaba M series - with the springs removed! I did a tentative hover, and it seemed fine, so continued with some lazy 8s, coming back to a high hover occasionally, so a fellow club member could have a quick look underneath to check the fuel level! It flew very well, and was no trouble despite the absence of springs. It was only when I finally landed, that I realised I'd been holding in nearly full tail rotor to keep it straight! If I'd had to do a sharp turn in that direction, I would have had nothing left!

The absence of springs left me completely unaware of how out of trim it actually was!

I've never flown that way since!

--

Pete

[Martin Harris - Moderator]

Posted by Martin Harris on 30/09/2018 12:46:24:

I also introduced much more tension in the roll axis than pitch and convinced myself that my flying was better because of it.

So, it's very much personal preference - and at the end of the day, perhaps it isn't all that important anyway!

...or I'm just a rubbish insensitive flyer...

Which I think I must be having just realised that it was the pitch attitude that I tensioned higher, not roll! Whichever, although it's very obvious when holding the transmitter and thinking about it, I never give it a moment's thought in flight!