F-18 roll trim not stable, consistent (with even load, or Winchester)

[ACME_WIdgets]

VKB stick that zeroes out exactly 32, 768 when let go of, and F16, Su33, P51 all work fine.
But F-18 , with even load side to side, randomly starts slow roll to 1 side.  I check FCS and aileron and rudder are zero'd.  I put in 1 click opposite aileron trim, but that is too much and now it roll s in that direction.  MP mostly.

[speed-of-heat]

Check you haven't got any other axis bound to roll ... 

[rob10]

If you want to try and adjust how much trim changes with each press you could try the suggestions in this thread:

I have no idea if it will work in the F-18 the way you want, and it will FAIL INTEGRITY CHECK for MP and will need to be redone whenever there's an update.

[oldcrusty]

Also, check fuel flow or thrust in each motor. Even a tiny difference will pull to one side over time or make you bank.

[Wroblowaty]

By even load do you also mean stations 4 and 6 (cheek stations)? If you have targeting pod on one and missile on the other it will be enough to make small unbalance.

[Lord Vader]

Hey @ACME_WIdgets

We need some more information about this.

• You say your joystick "zeroes" at 32. Is that a center point? If so, do you have a deadzone for that range?
• Do you have any other axis for aileron controls?
• Are you carrying a TPOD?
• Someone mentioned asymetric thrust, are your throttle axis synced for both engines?

All these questions and some others are answered with a short track demonstrating the issue for our analysis. Thanks for understanding. 

[Razor18]

On 1/7/2024 at 4:47 AM, ACME_WIdgets said:

VKB stick that zeroes out exactly 32, 768 when let go of, and F16, Su33, P51 all work fine.
But F-18 , with even load side to side, randomly starts slow roll to 1 side.  I check FCS and aileron and rudder are zero'd.  I put in 1 click opposite aileron trim, but that is too much and now it roll s in that direction.  MP mostly.

Go into Options/Controls menu, select Axis commands, and look up the roll axis. Move your stick a bit then let it go.

If DCS feels your stick is really centered, you should not see any small white line going out from the middle in either direction on the axis, after you released the stick to center itself.

Edited January 9 by Razor18

[ACME_WIdgets]

On 1/8/2024 at 5:25 AM, Wroblowaty said:

By even load do you also mean stations 4 and 6 (cheek stations)? If you have targeting pod on one and missile on the other it will be enough to make small unbalance.

Yes, "even load" being same on both wings, i.e. AA (nothing on cheeks), and maybe single tank on the bottom.

[ACME_WIdgets]

On 1/9/2024 at 2:58 AM, Lord Vader said:

Hey @ACME_WIdgets

We need some more information about this.

• You say your joystick "zeroes" at 32. Is that a center point? If so, do you have a deadzone for that range?
• Do you have any other axis for aileron controls?
• Are you carrying a TPOD?
• Someone mentioned asymetric thrust, are your throttle axis synced for both engines?

All these questions and some others are answered with a short track demonstrating the issue for our analysis. Thanks for understanding. 

After more testing, problem appears when LITENING pod is on BELLY station/centerline in MP on 4YA Syria map.
Center tank, or empty belly station works fine.

TRK file attached.

Deadzone of 1.
No other axis or key bindings to aileron or rudder
No TPOD on a cheek.
Thrust % is same, temp is only 2C difference
Thanks for the help !!!

 

@Lord Vader

4YA_Syr_PVE2_V2.34[04_MAY_OVC_RAIN]-20240111-180743.trk

Edited January 14 by ACME_WIdgets

[ACME_WIdgets]

Confirmed, working on it, added to the list?
Thx

@Lord Vader

[Lord Vader]

Hi, @ACME_WIdgets

You can observe the status of this item in the title of this thread.

Thanks for your patience. We're investigating this. 

Edit: Also, that track you shared can't be replayed due to scripting.

[Lord Vader]

Hi @ACME_WIdgets

After some tests, we are really unable to reproduce this item, including carrying the TPOD on the center pylon as you described, slick or loaded.

I am lead to believe there could be a conflict of axis or even an issue with your joystick calibration. Or, perhaps, there is an issue with that mission you were flying in. Again, I am unable to replay that track due to scripting. 

Please try to fly a clean mission in single player, no scripting, just the conditions you set up and your joystick. If the problem persists, please confirm it with a track and we'll have another look, just to check if it's a local issue.

I would also try to open up the deadzone on the Aileron and Elevator axis a bit just to check this isn't a dead zone problem. 

Thanks for your cooperation. 

[ACME_WIdgets]

Drove me crazy, but I can reproduce it in SP.  But you need to fire off AG weapons first.
F-18 w/ 2 HARMs on 2 and 8, plus 2x each station JSOW on 3 and 7,  AIM120C and 9x in remaining usual spots.
Litening pod on 5 center/belly station.

Flies straigt and level as is.  Shoot the Harms first, then JSOWs, now you have slow roll tendancy, Aileron trim is too coarse and 1 click will cause opposite roll.
Sorry, for some reason SP tracks are not being saved..
@Lord Vader

[BIGNEWY]

Hi, 

I have tested also using my virpil stick and I am not seeing any issue with the trim in roll. 

check for double inputs on roll axis in all devices, test the device, look for un-commanded inputs also 

[Lord Vader]

@ACME_WIdgets

Without looking at what your doing and watch axis information when that issue you describe does happen, while we can't really reproduce it ourselves, it's hard for us to provide any resolution.

In a single player mission, when you exit it, you need to save that track manually in the debriefing window.

[ACME_WIdgets]

On 1/24/2024 at 1:48 AM, Lord Vader said:

@ACME_WIdgets

Without looking at what your doing and watch axis information when that issue you describe does happen, while we can't really reproduce it ourselves, it's hard for us to provide any resolution.

In a single player mission, when you exit it, you need to save that track manually in the debriefing window.

Problem solved:  Somehow my VKB Gladiator Pro left analog/digital HAT switch was outputting BOTH digital up/dn/lft/rt and analog (at the same time) when set to analog hat for TDC.  I have the digital outputs to trim the aircraft - so after using TDC with a targeting pod or Mav my trims where not centered... You switch from analog to digital by center depressing the HAT.
Sorry to bother you all on this.  No idea how I got this setup screwed up.  Went back to old VKB profile and it works fine.

[CBStu]

Cool, glad you got it fixed. We can all learn a bit from your situation.