Blenheim take off

[Anvilfolk]

Here's a quick step by step list of what I do to take the Blenheim off the ground online on the SYN server:
- Fuel cocks at the back to the right to "outer tanks", fuel cock #3 on (the lever)
- Radiator and carburettor closed
- Brakes on during the whole procedure
- Magnetos on
- Full left rudder trim, full left rudder
- Pitch fine
- Mixture low (1/3 or less on the little image)
- Throttle slightly open
- Ignition for both engines
- Wait.....
- Keep increasing RPM slowly, never allowing it to shake. If it's shaking, reduce throttle.
- At 180º engine temperature, set radiators full open, increase RPM to 2200
- At 190-200º release the brakes
- All rudder and trim is still full-left at this point, but brakes will be needed almost up to takeoff to nudge the aircraft in desired direction
- Plane starts rolling, but the engine temps will stay within the 200-250 range because radiators are open and you are gaining speed. If you're still getting temps too high, you can either reduce RPMs to 2100 or 2000, or start take-off roll at 190º or less so that you gain speed to keep it down.
- Let it go until you get some speed, pull back on stick, and you're off. You will have to leave almost full-left trim.

You'll need to close radiators a bit once you're airborne. The key seems to be engine temps between 200-250. Too low and it'll shake, too much and it'll blow. When changing prop-pitch, adjust radiator as well. I usually put carb heat on 2/3 up... it's a very heuristic choice, no particular reason, but my engine hasn't blown with those settings!

The rudder might actually be full-right, I can't remember. Whichever makes the trim spring in front of you go down. I hope I haven't forgotten anything.


On another note: don't bite people, and be cool. I read for hours to get the Blenheim in the air, was trying to make bombing runs for about 4-6 hours. The first 2 or 3 were all about trying to get the Blenheim off the ground. The rest was me dropping into the channel because of bad engine temp management, etc.

It's supposed to be part of the experience in simulations. It was the best feeling when I finally managed to get it up. And again when I did my first bombing run. It does take dedication, calm and a certain type of personality. Coming on the forums and being insulting or aggressive isn't going to get you any sympathy...

[JG53Frankyboy]

anyone an idea what the lever behind the two fueltank wheels is controling?
fuelcock#3 is strange ?
Could it be the emergency fuel outlet valve ?

[meplay]

i read on these forums, cant find the post: num 3 is cross feed

[Seeker]

Originally Posted by Anvilfolk

- Keep increasing RPM slowly, never allowing it to shake. If it's shaking, reduce throttle.
- At 180º engine temperature, set radiators full open, increase RPM to 2200
- At 190-200º release the brakes

It's supposed to be part of the experience in simulations. It was the best feeling when I finally managed to get it up. And again when I did my first bombing run. It does take dedication, calm and a certain type of personality. Coming on the forums and being insulting or aggressive isn't going to get you any sympathy...

Thanks, but...

Most of your post is on start up, and I can start the engines OK.
However, you mention temps over 100c, and your not the only one. Here's the thing: My temp gauges only go to 100. I've just started up the game to double check after reading your post, and my gauges definitely only go to 100 degrees.

I should point out that this is with an empty load out and on a concrete strip.

And again, what's getting my blood up is not that I'm doing it wrong, but that I can't find out from the game docs and feed back mechanisms what it is that's going wrong. Even putting it on auto pilot and sitting back to watch how the AI does it is not helping.

I'm glad you find this a pleasing simulation; however I'm not at the moment, and I do have rather a lot of experience in the genre. Of course that's no measure of either piloting skill nor tactical awareness, but it should indicate that I can read a manual and look around a cockpit. Nonetheless, I'm also very aware there's nothing so ridiculous as some one yelling that they're "gud at flight simz" and then falling off the end of the carrier, or what ever.

And Canuck can still bite me.

[JG53Frankyboy]

Originally Posted by Seeker

Thanks, but...

Most of your post is on start up, and I can start the engines OK.
However, you mention temps over 100c, and your not the only one. Here's the thing: My temp gauges only go to 100. I've just started up the game to double check after reading your post, and my gauges definitely only go to 100 degrees.

I should point out that this is with an empty load out and on a concrete strip.

And again, what's getting my blood up is not that I'm doing it wrong, but that I can't find out from the game docs and feed back mechanisms what it is that's going wrong. Even putting it on auto pilot and sitting back to watch how the AI does it is not helping.

I'm glad you find this a pleasing simulation; however I'm not at the moment, and I do have rather a lot of experience in the genre. Of course that's no measure of either piloting skill nor tactical awareness, but it should indicate that I can read a manual and look around a cockpit. Nonetheless, I'm also very aware there's nothing so ridiculous as some one yelling that they're "gud at flight simz" and then falling off the end of the carrier, or what ever.

And Canuck can still bite me.

you have to check the engine temperature gauges, look right behind you, over the fuel "wheels", there are these two little 'bastards' - so important and so shy
In front of you are "only" the oiltemperature gauges

[meplay]

Seeker have you also toggled carb heat?

[Anvilfolk]

Originally Posted by JG53Frankyboy

you have to check the engine temperature gauges, look right behind you, over the fuel "wheels", there are these two little 'bastards' - so important and so shy
In front of you are "only" the oiltemperature gauges

What he said! I completely forgot to mention it. That should do the trick. It's a bummer always having to look back. I tend to put the mouse near the the upper-right corner of the window so that when I look right, it'll fall on the temp gauges.

[Blackdog_kt]

Originally Posted by Seeker

Never thought I'd say it, but a bunch of amateurs working free are producing better quality work than this.

Judging quality has nothing to do with how capable we are of flying CoD in full difficulty. Turn down a couple of difficulty settings if you have to, it's not a social stigma to fly on less than 100% difficulty you know.

I agree that documentation is lacking, but there's tons of posts on the Blenheim in here to get you started, plus various youtube videos: instead of reading the manual you use these sources, problem solved.

I roughly know what to do and still botch it from time to time, it's not supposed to be easy. You either make an effort to learn through trial and error (which will also help others because you'll probably discover something new that you can then pass on), or turn down your realism settings a bit and have fun until we come up with the correct procedure to get this bird in the air with some consistency of success.

There are a lot of choices, use them and have fun flying

[_79_Flames]

Hi Seeker, prob the most difficult plane out of the set for me but i got it in the air after a bit of practice.

All i do on start up is, heat the oil temp to 40% throttling up bit by bit as it gets warmer. Then drop throttle, open rads, open carb heat and then drop my prop pitch to 0 while i wait for the cylinder head temp to drop to just above 180. I put prop pitch back up then throttle up slowly

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4MNDMwZJGw

~S~

[Anvilfolk]

Nice video!

I tend not to pay too much attention to oil temperatures. Do you just wait until 40 because by then engine temps are around 200? I'm going to get neck injuries by looking back towards the engine temp gauges all the time.


Also, I really liked that you set throttle to maximum and adjust prop pitch to keep to desired RPM. Does that give you more acceleration than fine prop pitch and adjusting throttle to lower?

I'd test it, but I have all graphical settings on low, and it gets really hard to tell exactly where you are without the runways and such (to see how long a takeoff run I did).

Oh, and did you use left and right wheel brakes to keep the nose pointed down the runway?

Thanks!