Diff between the Hog and the Pony ?

[Saintaw]

Well, after being shot again from 6(surrounded by 8 red planes...I said to myself: this is not a good omen...).
I moved to the Pony, since I knew that it was a BnZ fighter and it had a better visibility in the rear...

First I missed an awesome kill (Was behind and below a NK, but I did't manage to pull the crosshair on him...). Then I finaly had 4Kills in one hour (2 flights)...you can take away 2 of these, since they were C47's (I personaly don't realy count these as kills).
1 was a Spit that was not paying attention to his 5 (hehehehe.... ) and the other one was a Beauty ! A 109 was on my nose, and when he saw me he pulled right up...sawed him in two  

So, HERE COMES THE QUESTION...
What are the major differences between the Pony and the Hog ?

Appart from the fact that the pony is slightly faster and that it has less guns...

It seemed to me that it was a bit more maneuverable at high speed descends but didn't like turning AT ALL (verry fast stalls!!!)

please shoot (the answers, not me   )


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Saint
DCO 186th Wardogs (Falcon4 Squad)
 http://www.wardogs.org/
"Firepower Mate, that is what separates the men from the boys..."

[leonid]

Saintaw,
The poni & f4u are both e-fighters, though the poni is a little better at it than the f4u, having both better top speed and e-retention.  However, the f4u rolls much faster and turns better.  The poni has six mgs too - just make sure to set that loadout in the hanger.

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leonid
129 IAP VVS RKKA

[Lephturn]

I wouldn't say the Pony turns worse.  The F4U has better low-speed handling, but at speed the pony will out-turn it in a sustained turn.  I'd bet the F4U has a better initial turn rate though.  In most situations the Pony will have much less fuel, so that is a big consideration.  If you do get a Pony on your 6, get into the scissors.  Pop a notch of flap and scissor your guts out, this will use your plane's advantages, namely roll rate and low speed handling to best advantage.  Just pray he isn't on a light fuel load or you are in deep trouble.  

Also, the F4U drinks fuel much faster, so you need to take more and you get less time to hunt.  I find 75% and a drop tank is my best combination of sortie-length and weight loading.  Just remember that vs. a P51, you will have more gas early in your sorties, so the Pony will eat you alive if co-E.  Have an advantage or 50% or less gas before you tangle with these guys.

The P51 and the F4U have the same gun package, so are pretty much identical in that respect.  The exception is that the F4U has a bunch more ammo.  I've gotten as high as 12 kills in the F4U (yeah, 6 or 7 were vulches) and I am not a good gunner.  I usually run about 10% gunnery, which is quite poor.  A really good shot will run 20% or so.  I tend to waste more in the Hawg though, because I know there is a toejampile of it. <G>

Leonid is right on about the F4U's roll ability.  Generally though, the Pony is equal or better than the F4U in everything.  Pony's are a Hawg driver's most dangerous enemy for this reason.  You can't even run away from these guys.  If you see a P51 co-E or higher, go the other way!  Come back with some altitude advantage and kill him.  Just remember, as with the FW190 and the La5fn, you cant escape by running away, so be sure you can take 'em out before you engage.

The P51 retains E better at speed, climbs better, goes faster, and dives just as well.  Be werry werry careful vs. pony drivers.  When you do kill them, it feels really good though.  Be sure to tease them on channel 1 that they got killed by a Hawg driver. <G>




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Lephturn
The Flying Pigs

[Saintaw]

Well, I can say one thing : the Pony has won me...I get 200% kills in the pony compared to what I had in the Hog... Might be that it's just a bit more my stile, i don't know...
Aiming is easier (the AC tends to be more stable when I am aimimg, as the Hog tends to "move around"...)

As I said, it might just fit me better, personaly...

I got killed 3 times tonight, and all three times were stupid things I did : Twice it was a Head On with a NK (Not a good idea when you look at the firepower...) and once was when we were all vulching that F13 (hehehe about 15 guys down there...) First I stayed above 15K, then after 10 minutes of turning around and seeing the other guys lauging their heads off down there...I decided to join the fun. Straffed a NK (I do have personal feelings with these today   ) and then saw a high Spit...I reported it to the others and since there were 3 friendlies attacking him, I said to myself "lets play it discrete and lightfooted   "...I was going rith opposite him, and tried to slip underneath him, hiding in his blindspot...NOT to avail, he must have seen me (I sometimes wonder if I have a big pannel saying "SHOOT ME 1ST !"). Anyway, he Splited S and got in my six...by then, I was low, Slow, and stalled as soon as I tried to evade the tracers.......1+1=DOA...

Nice evening flying with Dotsie though  



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Saint
DCO 186th Wardogs (Falcon4 Squad)
 http://www.wardogs.org/
"Firepower Mate, that is what separates the men from the boys..."

[Lephturn]

Noooo.... beware of the dark side!  

Just kidding.  For the type of flying you have been practicing and learning about, the Pony is the best plane.  The F4U has less advantages and is a much tougher ride to get kills in.  With the Pony you don't need any drop tanks, and you can fly around forever on a low fuel load.  You WILL get more kills in the Pony, all else being equal.

I fly the F4U for the challenge and because I just love the Big Blue Beast.    It is very good training to fly something like the Hawg though, because it forces you to be disciplined.  When you switch over to something like the Pony, you can push the limits farther and still come out alive, so when you make that switch you tend to kick ass.  Just remember the Pony doesn't have the roll-rate or the low speed handling of the F4U, so keep your speed up.  They Pony's big advantages are it's fuel economy and it's E retention combined with a decent climb rate.

When you get bored with the Pony, you'll come back to your first love. <G>  At least until the big-daddy of all WWII fighters, the P47-D arrives.  Then many of us will be tempted by the best BnZ fighter in the allied arsenal.  (Shame about the climbrate thing...)  



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Lephturn
The Flying Pigs

[Saintaw]

Hehe, Rgr that Lepht, I will come back to my old love as soon as I will get my rate of Kills to a satisfactory level  

The Hog is still and will remain my favourite US plane, and will always be, then comes the "buff", but I never fly it in here, since it is mainly not very safe if you are not flying in formation...

This is what I miss in the Arena, a bit of cohesion : I usualy T.o. , find a wingie (hey, it seems that we are already up to 4 belgians up there   )...The B17 defenses are awesome when in Formation, they usualy are an easy kill when you are alone...worse if you are alone flying it (ie No gunners...). Maybe we will see that comming up when we're paying...I hope.

Anyway, as I said, i am flyin the Pony and it suits me quite well, I usualy Take off with 50% fuel + 2x Drop tanks and it does it al right for the time being...(When i don't forget to drop the tanks when engaging, oops   )

When i am not stupid or tired, I tend to stay high, and engage only if I have a serious advantage or when i see a buddy in danger. It is sometimes cumbersome to try and type "lepht,6666" and turning to engage at the same time...

I learned quite a bit yesterday, just following Dotsie, did my best, even if it wasn't much  

What are all those Spits doing up there at 25K btw ? Aren't they supposed to be low level fighters ??? Dammit ?  


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Saint
DCO 186th Wardogs (Falcon4 Squad)
 http://www.wardogs.org/
"Firepower Mate, that is what separates the men from the boys..."

[Lephturn]

Two suggestions for you.

1.  Take 75% gas in the Pony.  You will climb so much fast than you do with the drop tanks, that you will to the target area with equal or more fuel and be at a higher altitude.  Even if you go to 100% gas, you are much better than taking those drop tanks.  With the tanks you can't climb for beans.

2.  When the Spits are at 25k... good.    As you go higher, the P51 gets better incomparison to most other planes.  It has good high-altitude performance, so you can use that to your advantage.



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Lephturn
The Flying Pigs

[Saintaw]

1H30 minutes before i log on  
Will try without tanks...the reason I did this was that:
A-I usualy Take off not close to the cons...so, i can climb slowly, and make sure I still have enough gas when i am there...

B: If i see a con, I can drop the tanks and be sure I am "light"...

But, I will listen to my master  


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Saint
DCO 186th Wardogs (Falcon4 Squad)
 http://www.wardogs.org/
"Firepower Mate, that is what separates the men from the boys..."

[dolomite]

Saintaw-

If you really want to surprise people, take 50% and the 4x.50 package. This combo gives you a better turning plane (with a trade-off in the punch dept.).

[This message has been edited by dolomite (edited 01-24-2000).]

[Saintaw]

Hehehe, Read my mind Dolomite, I just tested this offline  
Gimme 2" and I'll be up there right now....


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Saint
DCO 186th Wardogs (Falcon4 Squad)
 http://www.wardogs.org/
"Firepower Mate, that is what separates the men from the boys..."

[bloom25]

A couple more differences for you.  A:  The F4U is blue, whereas the p51 is an ugly silver.
B:  The F4u is much tougher than the p51.  C:  When we get the F4U1-C, it will be the most heavily armed plane in the game.  

Now, I just wish I could fly the F4U better.  I'll try again when we get the C version.

[Lephturn]

Good point about the toughness factor Bloom25.

Many a time I've limped home in a Hawg after taking pings that would have left the Pony just a chaff cloud.  That big radial is tough as well, and it takes longer than the others to succumb to damage.  The Hawg will take a lickin' and keep on tickin' as they say, while the P51 is quite fragile.

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Lephturn
The Flying Pigs

[Saintaw]

Quite entertaining as well, with the new firepower  


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Saint
DCO 186th Wardogs (Falcon4 Squad)
 http://www.wardogs.org/
"Firepower Mate, that is what separates the men from the boys..."