If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#11
|
|||
|
|||
One thing flying wise, if you were holding in right rudder at contact, the tailwheel would have been cocked right. If you were holding in that rudder and came down solid on the tail at ground contact, it could have temporarily jammed it right on you. I've seen this happen a few times. I think I have experienced that. As another poster suggested, it's an argument for wheelies! Happily the number of instances is slight, but it seems to me that if I am going to swerve on takeoff, it is always to the left, and if I am going to swerve on landing, it is always to the right. all the best -- Dan Ford email: (put Cubdriver in subject line) Warbird's Forum www.warbirdforum.com Piper Cub Forum www.pipercubforum.com the blog www.danford.net |
#12
|
|||
|
|||
"Cub Driver" wrote in message
... but it seems to me that if I am going to swerve on takeoff, it is always to the left, and if I am going to swerve on landing, it is always to the right. That makes since Dan since as you add power for take off, you create 3 factors trying to make your plane go to the left. 1) Torque 2) Corkscrew slipstream 3) Gyroscopic effect when you lift the tail. All of these cause you to add just a little more right pedal (unless you already have too much) to keep it straight down the centerline and not to the left. As you're landing, you're reducing power and speed which in turn reduces each one of the above effects causing you to use less right pedal, or perhaps even a little left pedal to keep it straight or from going to the right. PJ ============================================ Here's to the duck who swam a lake and never lost a feather, May sometime another year, we all be back together. JJW ============================================ |
#13
|
|||
|
|||
Part of my preflight routine on my Champ is to lift the tail and grab
the tailsprings to assure the bolts are tight. A friend had a broken leaf spring once from landing at an unimproved strip (a harvested cornfield). Tailwheel maintenance is something that must not be overlooked between annuals. In addition to the security of the tailwheel spring bolts, you can also check the condition of the wheel bearings, hub and axle, and pivot, lock mechanism and bearings. Don't forget to add grease to the fitting every couple of months. wrote: I am a long term lurker and have a question regarding landing tailwheel airplanes in a crosswind. I have about 250 hours in a Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser. The other day during a very routine crosswind landing I started heading for the weeds faster than I new what to do. I had a fairly gentle cross wind from the left. I had cancelled out all sideways drift by lowering my left wing and aligned the plane with the runway with right rudder. At touchdown, everything seemed perfect. That is when all hell broke loose. As soon as I touched down, I started a very fast turn to the right. At one point I was headed right between two runway light. As I was deciding that "between" was not a bad place to be, I finally managed to straighten everything out and managed to stay on the runway. In talking to my mechanic as soon as I touched down (I was sure there was a mechanical problem), he figured that with all of the right rudder needed to keep things straight, that my tailwheel just sent me to the right once it touched down. My question is, what was really going on here? Should my tailwheel have released (castored) when I touched down? Your thoughts are greatly appreciated. Thanks. Tom |
#14
|
|||
|
|||
It's a "sometimes issue" with some Scott's, but if you have an original
tailwheel on the Cub, I don't think that one malfunctions all that much, at least I don'r ever remember having a problem with them. Dudley "Cub Driver" wrote in message ... One thing flying wise, if you were holding in right rudder at contact, the tailwheel would have been cocked right. If you were holding in that rudder and came down solid on the tail at ground contact, it could have temporarily jammed it right on you. I've seen this happen a few times. I think I have experienced that. As another poster suggested, it's an argument for wheelies! Happily the number of instances is slight, but it seems to me that if I am going to swerve on takeoff, it is always to the left, and if I am going to swerve on landing, it is always to the right. all the best -- Dan Ford email: (put Cubdriver in subject line) Warbird's Forum www.warbirdforum.com Piper Cub Forum www.pipercubforum.com the blog www.danford.net |
#15
|
|||
|
|||
Here is my scenero as to what often happens in this situation.
As you flare the Fuselage Blocks some of the airflow over the Rudder thus reducing its effectiveness. So just as you touch down the Rudder becomes less effective. If the Stick is not pulled all the way back the Tailwheel is just barely pushing down on the pavement and contributes very little to steering. And there you have it, a good cross wind, reduced rudder effectiveness and an ineffective tailwheel leads to loss of directional control. As the airplane slows down the weight on the tailwheel increases and so does the steering effectiveness, And you may regain control, before something bad happens. Wheel landings, keep the rudder more effective until you put the tail down, But there is less going on when you put the tail down and you are more likely to maintain directional control. But be sure to really put it down, Pull all the way back on the stick. Or just get the stick all the way back to start with. Or, be more prepared for a go around. When a landings starts going bad. Throw power at it. This will increase the rudder effectiveness, plus switch your thinking from "got to land it" to "got to fly it." Brian CFIIG/ASEL wrote in message m... In article , says... Wheel landing or full-stall? How wide was the runway? Did you keep the rudder and aileron in or relax and neutralize the controls once the wheels were on? Did you suck the stick full back into your gut? If you don't pull it all the way, you don't get enough pressure on the tailwheel. Landing was three point. It was a big wide runway, 75 x 3500. Sussex, NJ (FWN) Hard to recall, but I was probably not relaxed enough. The stick probably could have been back further. |
#16
|
|||
|
|||
john smith wrote in message .. .
Part of my preflight routine on my Champ is to lift the tail and grab the tailsprings to assure the bolts are tight. A friend had a broken leaf spring once from landing at an unimproved strip (a harvested cornfield). Tailwheel maintenance is something that must not be overlooked between annuals. In addition to the security of the tailwheel spring bolts, you can also check the condition of the wheel bearings, hub and axle, and pivot, lock mechanism and bearings. Don't forget to add grease to the fitting every couple of months. Amen to that. Add to it: There's a small steering lock inside the tailwheel, and if it breaks, things can get interesting. Normally, the pilot will usually notice the lack of directional control to one side during taxi. This pilot's problem likely came from a sticky tailwheel steering pivot. The Scott needs lots of care. We run two of them on Citabrias, and they're apart every 200 hours or so, sometimes more often. There's a steering brake within the unit that's supposed to prevent shimmy (which it doesn't), and if dirt or water gets into it, things get sticky. The pilot will often complain of having to hold left rudder in cruise, a sure sign of a sticky pivot. Using right rudder on takeoff and climb puts the wheel to the right a bit, after which the steering springs pull the rudder to the right and necessitating left pedal in cruise. Too much grease thru that fitting will foul the steering lock and make it hard to unlock to caster the wheel. Dan |
#17
|
|||
|
|||
Dan Thomas wrote: The Scott needs lots of care. details deleted Wow. Glad I have a Maule. George Patterson My mother is 82 and she still doesn't need glasses. Drinks right out of the bottle. |
#18
|
|||
|
|||
wrote in message m...
I am a long term lurker and have a question regarding landing tailwheel airplanes in a crosswind. I have about 250 hours in a Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser. The other day during a very routine crosswind landing I started heading for the weeds faster than I new what to do. Sounds like you might have been bit by that nastly little beast called "complacency". To me, the hint is "a very routine". I think you've learned that ain't necessarily the case:-) I've always found that a light, but variable, wind to be about the most difficult to land a tailwheel airplane in. I've been surprised by swings at least a few times on those days. When the wind is strong and from the left, for example, you know it's a crosswind from the left. In light winds, it may be a left crosswind now, but a second from now?? I had a fairly gentle cross wind from the left. I had cancelled out all sideways drift by lowering my left wing and aligned the plane with the runway with right rudder. At touchdown, everything seemed perfect. That is when all hell broke loose. As soon as I touched down, I started a very fast turn to the right. At one point I was headed right between two runway light. As I was deciding that "between" was not a bad place to be, I finally managed to straighten everything out and managed to stay on the runway. Sounds like you made a good save. Good job! As others have noted, checking the tailwheel for problems sounds like a good idea. About the most experienced tailwheel pilot I've known (with over 10,000hrs of tailwheel dual given) says "a well maintained tailwheel is the cheapest insurance you can buy". Having said that, I wouldn't be surprised if there's nothing wrong with it. A wild guess would be that the left crosswind died just before you touched down. At that point, your left wing down caused you to drift to the left and that, combined with the right rudder, caused the swing. In the end, sooner or later I think we'll all get a good swing (I know I have:-) and you pulled off the save, which is great. I suspect your save will happen more quickly next time. Don't know if this'll help, rick ps: The same instructor mentioned above, used to say that the most inportant pre-landing check he did was to "shake his head and remind himself it's time to focus on landing" when on final. |
#19
|
|||
|
|||
wrote in message m...
I am a long term lurker and have a question regarding landing tailwheel airplanes in a crosswind. I have about 250 hours in a Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser. The other day during a very routine crosswind landing I started heading for the weeds faster than I new what to do. I had a fairly gentle cross wind from the left. I had cancelled out all sideways drift by lowering my left wing and aligned the plane with the runway with right rudder. At touchdown, everything seemed perfect. That is when all hell broke loose. As soon as I touched down, I started a very fast turn to the right. At one point I was headed right between two runway light. As I was deciding that "between" was not a bad place to be, I finally managed to straighten everything out and managed to stay on the runway. In talking to my mechanic as soon as I touched down (I was sure there was a mechanical problem), he figured that with all of the right rudder needed to keep things straight, that my tailwheel just sent me to the right once it touched down. My question is, what was really going on here? Should my tailwheel have released (castored) when I touched down? Your thoughts are greatly appreciated. The tailwheel probably shouldn't have castored but usually has some spring difference. I have had the tailwheel castor after landing. Everything seems fine until you get down to about 10 knots and then find you have 100% no directional control. Luckily, I got back on the brakes soon. You want to ensure the castor doesn't break loose too soon. Could it be possible that you didn't have the nose properly lined up so you actually touched down a bit in a crab? That can cause such problems. -Robert, tailwheel CFI |
#20
|
|||
|
|||
"G.R. Patterson III" wrote in message ... Dan Thomas wrote: The Scott needs lots of care. details deleted Wow. Glad I have a Maule. George Patterson My mother is 82 and she still doesn't need glasses. Drinks right out of the bottle. Then again my Scott 3200 has performed without a flaw for 500 hours with just normal lube at annual. |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Skycraft Landing Light Question | Jay Honeck | Owning | 15 | February 3rd 05 06:49 PM |
VW-1 C-121J landing with unlocked nose wheel | Mel Davidow LT USNR Ret | Military Aviation | 1 | January 19th 04 05:22 AM |
"I Want To FLY!"-(Youth) My store to raise funds for flying lessons | Curtl33 | General Aviation | 7 | January 9th 04 11:35 PM |
Good feeling landing / 200th hour | Yossarian | Piloting | 22 | December 23rd 03 12:44 AM |
Off topic - Landing of a B-17 | Ghost | Home Built | 2 | October 28th 03 04:35 PM |