I use an Analog F-16 COMBAT stick. I calibrate the thing everytime I enter an arena. I just do it rapidly and get to the fun.
A few weeks ago I take a few days break from flying, for real world pressures, and came back to fly and get my "fix"!
Even when I can't get online I try to practice offline for a few minutes. No way! Not on this two day break. I came back to fly, and it seemed like I'd lost my touch. I couldn't leave any vertical maneuver without mushing. I'm only 35 years old and I can lose my "MOJO" in only two days?
After a few days I start to get thoroughly pissed off! Even my joystick was failing me and required calibration during flight that it never required before.The roll rate to the right was somewhat slower than to the left. I went to check the meter at center position, and it had only a few minor spikes. Fine. It's relatively new. It can't be dirty "pots" or "slam" damage?
I wasn't to that point yet! Then I noticed a "porpoising" when pulling back on the "stick"? WTF! Thats not dirty "pots" when it is a steady oscillation.
Yesterday, I finally go into setup/joystick, and look at the meter while moving the stick left and right.I was only getting 1/3 deflection to the right? NOOOOOOOOOO!! IT CAN"T BE? My computer desk is in a dark corner of our bedroom! My kids had been messing with the joystick and the right/left trim tab was all the way left! DOHHHHH! The center positions now have a white mark and tape over them!
I was amazed that the tab could be all the way to one side and the stick still calibrated and seemed to function normally.
Two weeks of flying and at least three hours of dogfight test flying against certain planes, "pissed" away! ARGGGH! I've been asking people who fly certain planes well, to dogfight in the training arena. I have historical comparisons and anecdotal comments from multiple books and magazines(some from WW2 era magazines and test data). I was comparing manuevers and results mentioned, to see if they could be duplicated by the AH flight model.Of course its not under scientific conditions. But,it is pretty cool to see the same result as recorded data and statements of pilots.Many of the remaining planes(I had historical data for..) I had already compared by recreating conditions in the main arena. Now I have to redo the FW 190 against the P38, F4u, 109G6 and P-51. At High and Low Altitude? And the Tempest when it comes out? Anybody who can help, let me know? I usually will have something cool I can scan and send to you related to your plane as a thank you for helping! Sincerely, BERSERKR
[This message has been edited by SIFTER (edited 02-23-2001).]
