PSA...pitch and roll axis curves

[Donut]

Hello fellow virtual Tomcat aviators! Quick tip for those struggling to handle the F-14....

 

Many of you may already know about this and have it set to your preference, but for those who do not, pitch and roll axis curves make a huge difference!

 

I originally had 0 curves on pitch and roll, then +15...still sensitive for me and just didn't feel right. So, I decided to try a pitch and roll axis curve of -15...I don't know why, but for me, this is my sweet spot. The difference is incredible and I feel much more in control of the Tomcat. It doesn't seem as sensitive and yet, I retain precise control. I also noticed that the in game stick more closely matches the movement of my actual stick.

 

So, for those struggling with stability in the carrier pattern, maneuvering, or your are overstressing/snapping wings...experiment with the pitch and roll axis curves until you find something that feels right! Start with -15 and go from there...it worked for me and hopefully it does for you as well!

 

FYI...for rudder, I have +25 curve which for me, dampens the sensitivity just enough and still allows precise control.

[Nealius]

That's interesting, I've never thought of negative curves before. I need to work on my throttle curves as well, because the Tomcat's IDLE seems to trigger at 20% on my physical throttle.

[iRocco]

Doesn't make sense at all for me, - curves means that you get a less precise / fast movement with initial stick movement and more precise at the end of the joystick input, feels totalyl wrong to me.

[hughlb]

Doesn't make sense at all for me, - curves means that you get a less precise / fast movement with initial stick movement and more precise at the end of the joystick input, feels totalyl wrong to me.

 

It’s used to really compensate for the joystick length variance between a desktop joystick and the stick in the plane. Most desktop sticks are both really short and offer no real weight. This totally changes the way the aircraft responds to input compared with the real thing. Curves allow you to mimic the input response around centre, without it, the aircraft can feel really twitchy. I have a long extension and still use curves, but I use “user” curves to set for a flat response around centre and a fairly linear (straight) response for the rest of the travel. Works really well.

[Blinde]

I have X-55 too and this really makes flying smoother. Never would have thought so. I tried various positive angles at the beginning of F-14 ride and with -15 it feels more natural.

 

Thanks.

[Deano87]

It’s used to really compensate for the joystick length variance between a desktop joystick and the stick in the plane. Most desktop sticks are both really short and offer no real weight. This totally changes the way the aircraft responds to input compared with the real thing. Curves allow you to mimic the input response around centre, without it, the aircraft can feel really twitchy. I have a long extension and still use curves, but I use “user” curves to set for a flat response around centre and a fairly linear (straight) response for the rest of the travel. Works really well.

 

He's talking about NEGATIVE curves. Which I agree with him on, make no sense to me at all.

 

Tomcat feels perfect with 10 on both pitch and roll for me.

[Defrabo]

Can't snap the wings now, even if I try to. Thank You!!!

[Deano87]

Can't snap the wings now, even if I try to. Thank You!!!

 

with -15 or +15 curve?

[Airhunter]

I use a +15 curve on pretty much all my planes. Sometimes a bit more for rudder,

[Blinde]

I use a +15 curve on pretty much all my planes. Sometimes a bit more for rudder,

 

Tried that, worked just fine on small movements but more agile ones caused too violent movement. -15 works much smoother.

[Deano87]

This makes no sense to me... surely negative curve makes the aircraft more sensitive?

[Airhunter]

It does.

[Donut]

I am not going to pretend to be an expert on curves so I cannot say why -15 works for me, but it most certainly does. +15 didn't feel natural and it was still giving me that "twitchiness" and inability to be smooth with control movements.

 

What works for me may not work for others and it may feel different depending on the aircraft. -15 for pitch and roll has made a huge difference for me in the Tomcat and is allowing me to make the airplane do what I want and stay smooth and in control.

[Deano87]

Ok I've clearly opened an interdimensional rift where up is down and nothing makes sense. I just tried -15 in pitch and it made it waaay over twitchy. I went back to +10 and it felt much better... hell even 0 curve felt much better. No idea what you guys are experiencing but I cannot replicate it with my Warthog, thats f'sure.

[mehksauce]

bro you just made my flying experience so much better!! i have tried putting uh-1 curve setting to -15 and i can fly this thing so much smoother!!

 

 

( using t16km joystick )

[Nosferatuwhisky 1-1]

I just spent probably an hour with a friend doing low level BFM, snapped my wings countless times, not because I meant to pull the stick back too far, but because the curve just was too steep at high deflections.

 

Tried out the -15, and it seems to have fixed my issue as well!

Also using an X-55

[Xenovia]

Can confirm on my end that -15 works well for me, I don't snap the wings by accident now, I have to really yank the stick to actually snap my wings now.

[Airhunter]

Maybe the axis on some joystics are inverted. Hence why -15 works for some.

[Nosferatuwhisky 1-1]

Maybe the axis on some joystics are inverted. Hence why -15 works for some.

 

I think we would notice if the axis was inverted, we aren't pushing the stick forward to pitch up.

[fastfed]

Trying any positive curve on my axis caused me to break the plane a lot easier. I will try the negative curve, but even setting it to 5 was too much for me, it seems as if I'm pulling nice and easy then I pull just a little more and "BANG" there goes a wing. It's harder to be precise with 0 curve but I don't break my plane

[Deano87]

Trying any positive curve on my axis caused me to break the plane a lot easier. I will try the negative curve, but even setting it to 5 was too much for me, it seems as if I'm pulling nice and easy then I pull just a little more and "BANG" there goes a wing. It's harder to be precise with 0 curve but I don't break my plane

 

Have you tried reducing your saturation a little so you no longer get full elevator movement but it might make it easier not to break stuff. How often do you use FULL back stick in the Tomcat anyway?

[Nosferatuwhisky 1-1]

Trying any positive curve on my axis caused me to break the plane a lot easier. I will try the negative curve, but even setting it to 5 was too much for me, it seems as if I'm pulling nice and easy then I pull just a little more and "BANG" there goes a wing. It's harder to be precise with 0 curve but I don't break my plane

 

Seriously, just set it to -15 and give it a shot. I don't do much of a test but I just slammed the stick back to full deflection at Mach 1+ and didn't Rip the wings in my really quick test.

[VC]

Yup, it works. I agree it makes absolutely no sense but it does. No wobble or inaccuracy for small movements, but much better control at high AoA with lower risk of wing break. I also "dirtied" her to landing configuration and could accurately hold 15 units AoA no issue. I see the stick in the cockpit making big deflections around the center as I move my real stick only a little, but the plane doesn't seem to respond as much as you would expect.

[Donut]

Since I made the original post, my understanding of curves and feel for the Tomcat has improved.

 

What a positive curve does is decrease sensitivity around center but increases sensitivity as you move away from center. I believe this is why a lot of us were over stressing the Tomcat and snapping wings because as we increased the pull, the stick became more and more sensitive until it didn't take very much to over do it.

 

Negative curves do indeed increase sensitivity around center but it decreases sensitivity as you move away from center. With this decrease in sensitivity away from center, some of us experienced improvement in our control as we maneuvered the Tomcat due to the decreased chance of overpulling.

 

However, the more that I have flown the Tomcat, I have noticed that the increased sensitivity around center from the -15 curves makes it more difficult to land and refuel where smaller and finer movements are needed around center.

 

Believe it or not, right now I am back to 0 curves. I can still remain in control of the Tomcat and don't get the oversensitivity away from center as I do with positive curves and it isn't as sensitive around center as with negative curves.

 

What also might be happening is that as I fly the Tomcat more, I am getting better at handling it and knowing it's limits so I don't need the sensitivity buffer that the -15 negative curve provided with larger stick movement.

 

Hopefully all of this helps someone out there find the right stick sensitivities that works for them.

[Xenovia]

I noticed that my stick was very twitchy when it came to aerial refueling attempts as well, now that I'm alot more used to the F-14 and how she handles I've also reset my curves back to zero.