Joystick control

[struths]

Hi
I've just bought cod through Steam so presumably it has all the latest bug fixes etc.
My problem at the moment is getting the aircraft to fly straight. I've configured a speedlink Black Widow flight control thru the control setup. It's responsive and all seems to work correctly. Problem is when I take my hand off the j/s the plane starts banking right and the nose rises.
I tried configuring the trim controls thru keys but this had no effect.
I have loaded latest drivers on my windows 7 os but am obviously missing something.
PLEASE HELP

[Artist]

Welcome Struths,

depending on the aircraft you sat in, this could be perfectly normal: Torque and propwash, see here: Understanding Propeller Torque and P-Factor (http://wiki.flightgear.org/index.php/Understanding_Propeller_Torque_and_P-Factor).

Then, again depending on the aircraft, play around with trimming: elevator trim, rudder trim, and aileron trim. Not every plane has all, the spits e.g. only have elevator and rudder trim.

No aircraft will ever fly straight (with no control input) at every combination of altitude, propeller pitch, and manifold pressure.

Artist

[marcastel57]

Hi
....... Problem is when I take my hand off the j/s the plane starts banking right and the nose rises.

PLEASE HELP

I have the same with a Thrustmaster joystick. You must calibrate the joystick settings through the control panel but it's not easy, also because single engine aircrafts respond different than twin engine. You can find a good compromise by trying, but I have not yet succeeded in getting a straight flight keeping my hand off the joystick.

[struths]

Welcome Struths,

depending on the aircraft you sat in, this could be perfectly normal: Torque and propwash, see here: Understanding Propeller Torque and P-Factor (http://wiki.flightgear.org/index.php/Understanding_Propeller_Torque_and_P-Factor).

Then, again depending on the aircraft, play around with trimming: elevator trim, rudder trim, and aileron trim. Not every plane has all, the spits e.g. only have elevator and rudder trim.

No aircraft will ever fly straight (with no control input) at every combination of altitude, propeller pitch, and manifold pressure.

Artist

Hi Artist

Thanks for the reply. I suspected it was due to the complexity of the flight dynamics of COD.
I.ve only played a few flight sims ( games really ) and was expecting the same ease of use. Certainly more interesting.

struths

[struths]

I have the same with a Thrustmaster joystick. You must calibrate the joystick settings through the control panel but it's not easy, also because single engine aircrafts respond different than twin engine. You can find a good compromise by trying, but I have not yet succeeded in getting a straight flight keeping my hand off the joystick.

Hi Marcastel57

Thanks for the reply. I wasn't sure whether there would be a simple fix. I'll just have to tinker a bit more and stop being lazy, lol

struths

[Bounder!]

Depends on what you are flying but in general you wont be able to fly hands off - the Spitfire, Hurricane and 109e all lack aileron trim, this is historical. Thus, at most speeds you will have a roll which must be countered with the flight stick.

The Spitfire and Hurricane have elevator and rudder trim whilst the 109 only has elevator trim. These aircraft lack aileron trim because they didn't have it at the time, so in general you wont be able to perfectly trim the aircraft so that they don't roll. You could offset rudder trim to allow hands off flying but you will be skidding through the air which isn't great for top speed (or shooting straight!) and so it isn't advisable. Really, you have to counter the roll by applying left/right pressure on your joystick. I'm not sure calibrating your joystick so that it is off-centre (i.e. more to right/left to counter the roll) will work since the degree of roll will vary depending on speed and altitude.

I am aware that there are some joysticks with bells and whistles that allow you to fix the stick in position so that once you have the aircraft trimmed and are holding it level, you can fix your joystick so it doesn't move and thus hold you level. Not a fan myself as I would imagine it would be a pain if you suddenly need to manoeuvre!

Hope that helps.

[struths]

Depends on what you are flying but in general you wont be able to fly hands off - the Spitfire, Hurricane and 109e all lack aileron trim, this is historical. Thus, at most speeds you will have a roll which must be countered with the flight stick.

The Spitfire and Hurricane have elevator and rudder trim whilst the 109 only has elevator trim. These aircraft lack aileron trim because they didn't have it at the time, so in general you wont be able to perfectly trim the aircraft so that they don't roll. You could offset rudder trim to allow hands off flying but you will be skidding through the air which isn't great for top speed (or shooting straight!) and so it isn't advisable. Really, you have to counter the roll by applying left/right pressure on your joystick. I'm not sure calibrating your joystick so that it is off-centre (i.e. more to right/left to counter the roll) will work since the degree of roll will vary depending on speed and altitude.

I am aware that there are some joysticks with bells and whistles that allow you to fix the stick in position so that once you have the aircraft trimmed and are holding it level, you can fix your joystick so it doesn't move and thus hold you level. Not a fan myself as I would imagine it would be a pain if you suddenly need to manoeuvre!

Hope that helps.

Hi Bounder

Thanks for the input. Yeah I appreciate now that I'm not playing one of the usual games, so I am gonna jusy keep practising my control and handling skills.

Cheers Struths


Cheers

[lorenzoj]

My personal opinion is that the roll tendency is a bit overdone in some of these aircraft but I've gotten used to just hitting "A" when I need a break. The autopilot never seems to have a problem with straight and level. Would be nice if we could dial it back a tad in some config file or other though.