Imac should have another class.....

"Autonomous"

:0

Originally Posted by eheliflyer

FG,

I don’t remember ever hearing of gyro’s being allowed in IMAC... I will have to check with Wayne on this one.

They were definitely allowed through the late 90's.

A normal damping gyro, not heading hold, creates electronically what bigger planes do through physics. Big planes damp better. I think a fun experiment would be to allow gyros on planes with a wingspan below 75" and just see what happens. I am curious if it would actual end up bunch of top level flyers flying 25% planes with gyros because they fly better. I suspect that the 40% plane would still have the advantage.

I don't have any gyros in my gas planes. I have gyros in all my jets. They just fly better and get bumped around less. If you can't do a 4 point roll without a gyro you can't do it with a gyro.

They were allowed or people were using them?

Originally Posted by Mithrandir

Imac should have another class.....

"Autonomous"

:0

RC Factory Clik R2 SuperLITE Automatic Aerobatics (1 min 11 sec)

Originally Posted by eheliflyer

They were allowed or people were using them?

They were not forbidden is probably the proper way of putting it.

There was no rule saying they were allowed but they weren't against the rules. Around 1999 or 200 I think the rule was added forbidden electronic stabilization.

There was nothing in the rules prohibiting their use.

Originally Posted by eheliflyer

They were allowed or people were using them?

Interesting thing also was that during this time as people were transitioning to 35%+ planes there was a rule limiting engine size. That one was ignored.

well...you could show up at a contest and say the gyro is for safety... and the BOD cannot say no. That ship has sailed.

I joined the organization in 1990 and was in contact with Glenn Carter (Secretary at the time before he passed away), prior to joining.

I looked back at the 1988-1989 and also came forward to the 1994 rules. BOTH specified this in General Rule 2 (pertaining to equipment): “There shall be no limitation to the type of equipment fitted to the aircraft, nor the number of controls.”

So.... there you have it!
Wayne

I think the thread is off a bit due to "revisionist theories" and talking pears and apples.

1. Jet's.... the full size military variety are inherently unstable (characteristics needed in dogfights), and so having gyros on the RC variety is almost a given due to the physics and less hairy rides. Including jets in this threads is like talking about NASCAR vs. Formula 1....

2, IMAC and Pattern are here to judge IMHO opinion two skills: The capability of the pilot (or team) to set up the plane to aid the pilot to execute the maneuvers; and 2. The skills of the pilot to accomplish said maneuvers. Having electronic assistance in doing so, as said before, goes against the basic foundation of the sport.

3. The 1989 or 1994 Rules are written for ... well 1989 and 1994 , what options were available? heading hold gyros probably was the most you can do.. even telemetry was in its infancy in the RC community. Since then planes and engines and equipment has grown bigger and more sofisticated,,, bigger engines and bigger planes may have challenged the rules,, but didn't affect the basic principles of the sport, i.e. the pilot manages the plane...
Fast forward to the arduino world in which we live..... we CAN and probably will effect the rules and push forward,, maybe follow in the drone crowd and have FPV sets and digital grids to tract the pilots through the maneuvers and score them accordingly are all welcome developments.
BUT having said gadgets changing the spirit of the competition.. then is better we fold it all together and see it in VR through ESPN who can be the best programmer...

(Flame suit on)
Patrick

Originally Posted by Mithrandir

I love Gyros.... if I was gonna teach my 4 yo daughter to fly.... you can bet she will have guros!!!

WOW, I am absolutely shocked about such an arrogant and ignorant post, no wonder that IMAC is on such a steep decline! You guys really think that you are something better and the rest of us is just too stupid to fly a plane without a gyro, huh?

All the jet shows and scale events as Topgun I am attending must be just amateurs in your eyes since ALMOST EVERYBODY uses a gyro. These typical ignorant comments about gyros flying the plane for you just show that you are either just narrow minded, are living in the past and seem to have this urge to bash anything new or are just plain ******** (put in your favourite cuss word here)

Thomas

This has certainly taken a new direction, different than I imagined when I posted 6 years ago...


Don't let it get under your skin.

The topic has had my interest since well before my original post, and we have seen how the technology has gotten so much better over recent years.

IMO it is a lot like how early-era, die-hard heli guys dismissed gyros...

Fast forward and they are totally accepted as they make flying a heli so much more enjoyable and allow the pilot to focus on aircraft controls and precision flight. Before heli gyros, so much effort went into just balancing the aircraft in flight, focusing on precision was not easy to accomplish.

Originally Posted by jack01

What is impressive is seeing the abilities of a highly skilled pilot practicing his art. The constant effort to eliminate imperfections and hone those abilities is what makes competition competitive. Supplanting pilot abilities with a computer makes a “perfect” flight pointless.

I recall similar arguments when computer radios first came out with all their fancy mixing.

I am not going to dump all over the people using gyro’s, I simply don’t think they have a place in precision aerobatics.

Simple stabilization is one thing that may have merit and could be up for discussion, but that is not all that gyros are capable of doing. I have seen where a pilot with the gyro simply holds aileron to roll from level flight and the gyro does the rest to keep the plane on a line. That is where the precision piloting goes away and the gyro does the work. But how do you allow one type and not the other?