throttle hold / trimming out the copter

[phaed]

i'm new and learning. i recently got G3, and am spending time on the impala trainer.

i'm curious about throttle hold positions. when exactly should throttle hold be used andwhen should it not be used?

the added headspeed seems to help stability in hovering, but i don't know if i'm supposed to use it or not. should i use the medium throttle setting, or the max throttle setting?

also, when trimming it out, after i get it level, the copter wants to move left. if i trim it to compensate for this instead of using the sticks, the copter doesn't feel trim at higher altitudes.

i think i read somewhere it's natural for the copter to want to move sideways just a bit. i would hypothesize this is due to the tail rotor thrust. am i right here, or should it pretty much stay put when i put in a bit of collective off the ground?

thanks for any help.

[Heli_Shuttler]

The impala trainer does not have throttle hold(Auto), but on other helis it the right switch, not that nob...

The impala trainer does not have idle up eather, but on other helis it is the 3-point lswitch on the left.

[phaed]

ok, maybe i have my terminology confused. the left 3 position switch does something with the impala. to about half throttle, everything is normal no matter what the switch position. after half throttle, the position seems to effect engine rpm/headspeed.

by the way, what's the difference between throttle hold and idle up?

[Pete Niotis]

phaed, you have 4 flight modes on the impala trainer, Normal, Idle Up1, Idle Up2 and Throttle Hold.

Throttle Hold is the switch on your right side and Normal, IdleUp1 and IdleUp2 are on the left using a 3 position switch.

When you activate Throttle Hold...it will bring the engine down to an idle. The Throttle Hold function is to perform an auto rotation. Since throttle hold forces the engine to an idle state, you would have no power to drive the rotorhead/main blades. This means you would have to desend at a faster rate than you normally would which would keep your headspeed up and then allowing you to land gently.

If you decide to hit Throttle Hold while just hovering at eye level, you simply add a little pitch to settle it down nice...there is no fast descent in this type of scenario.

I did pull up my impala trainer on G3 and all flight modes work correctly on mine. Normal mode is Governed for 1400, Idle Up1 is 1500 and Idle Up2 is 1600. Pitch Curves are identical across all flight modes.

And yes...helicopters have a tendancy to lean.

[phaed]

much appreciated panos. i'm trackin now. off to do some nose-in!