Hi Kim,
In relocating the trim, some have installed a Vernier knob on the
panel. It is both handy and precise. That might give
you the widest choice for ease of reach. The down side is, you can't
mark a position...have to count the turns. The
field approval for this was once available from Skyport. It was a nice
modification.
When you speak of "neutral cruise trim" and leaving "it very neutral",
you know what you mean but I don't ;<) Help?
If you refer to Ercoupe Service Memorandum No. 38, Sketch 4 illustrates
the trim position that is substantially aligned
with the elevator. If I say "forward", "nose down" or "cruise" trim, I
am referring to a position very close to this, where
the plane is trimmed for high speed flying at 115-125 MPH. Some might
call this position "neutral" because the tab
is aligned as an extension of the elevator and there is no "trim"
effect on elevator position.
Others would look at the trim lever and envision three positions:
Forward (nose down), Neutral (meaning midway
between the extremes) and Back (nose high-in this position the plane is
trimmed for a power off glide at 65-75MPH
and a full power climb of 60-70 MPH. Obviously the plane would
"handle" quite differently depending on which of
these different trim positions is "neutral" from your perspective.
In earlier emails I have described my use of the trim for
"cruise-climb". Once set, all I do is take care of pointing the
plane where I want it to go and leveling off at cruise altitude.
Returning from cross country flight at 6-11,000', I use
trim to descend to pattern altitude at, say 500-700 FPM and 125 MPH in
smooth air and manouvering speed. From
there I "fly it down" with trim restored to the "cruise" position; but
you might prefer to set trim for a pattern descent of,
say 350-500 FPM and 70-80 knots...whatever works best for you at your
airport.
I tend to think of the combination of Ercoupe trim and throttle as the
"poor man's autopilot". I set them to climb,
maintain altitude, and descend to pattern altitude. My lower
"workload" allows much greater attention to other things,
such as "airport situational awareness" and radio communication. The
yoke is used to rotate into flight, steer left or
right, fly my pattern and approach, "handle" crosswinds, and reduce
approach speed to minimum speed before
touchdown. I'm sure it could work well for you too.
Best regards,
William R. Bayne
.____|-(o)-|____.
(Copyright 2009)
--
On Apr 19, 2009, at 21:09, Kim Blackseth wrote:
All...
Boy, was the below email helpful, thanks! As a very low time pilot
(80 hrs or so), all in my Ercoupe, I have been having trouble with a
stabilized approach the last few weeks. As many know, I'm a disabled
pilot (quadriplegic) who passed his Private Pilot check ride with
little trouble, only two months ago.
The last few weekends (today included) I feel like everything I
learned about stable landing approaches has suddenly "escaped" me and
I'm flying like some neurologically challenged idiot (wait...I am
neurologically challenged!).
Because the trim handle is in a tough location for me to get to, I've
generally flown the 'coupe in neutral cruise trim on all phases of
flight. I do make minor adjustments in level cruise, when workload is
low, but generally leave it very neutral.
My approaches the last few weeks have been horrible. Not unsafe, but
just plain "not up to standards". Minor yoke adjustments on base and
final have me ballooning or all over the place. I'm having a tough
time hitting a "spot".
I think working on using the trim, as described below,has gotta
happen, I can totally see the benefits outlined below! I'm going to
relocate the trim cable and handle to a location that I can get to in
higher workload conditions (with proper FAA and AI supervision, of
course...)
Thanks for the info...
Kim Blackseth
N2332H
