Gyroscopic effects
Hey Guys,
When you lift the tail on your take off roll in any tail dragger that has an engine that rotates clockwise (from the pilot's perspective) you are also going to get some gyroscopic effect that tends to make the airplane veer left as the tail comes up. This gyroscopic effect was much more pronounced in my Pawnee with 300+ hp that I used to tow gliders with, but it's there with the Ximango, too, just not as strong as with the Pawnee. It became second nature for me to anticipate this tendency and to input a sharp tap or two on the right rudder pedal as I lift the tail on take off with any tail dragger to compensate for this effect until the tail is up and stabilized.
My home field is turf and I've found that I need to get the tail up as soon as possible so that I can accelerate to flying speed. Leaving the tail on the ground on a turf runway, especially if the grass is tall, lengthens the take off roll considerably. I don't notice any real difference on pavement, though.
Regards,
John Lawton
Whitwell, TN (TN89)
Ximango #135
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