manual elevator trim

[lawrence]

anyone using a placard to indicate how to set neutral elevator trim? what is wording and where placed? .. thanks..

[Mel]

If on the ground, look at it. If in flight, set it where it needs to be. Once you fly with ti a few times you will learn where neutral is. With mine neutral is 2 fingers out.

[jrsites]

Slightly off the specific topic of the post, but...

How big of a minority am I in? I actually prefer manual trim to electric trim. With manual trim I feel like I can "feel" the effect of each turn of the knob, and can very quickly and easily set the desired pitch. With electric trim it seems to me like I mash on the buttons and nothing is happening for a few brief seconds, and then by the time I "feel" the effect I've got waaaaay too much trim in.

Is that making any sense? Am I just a trim idiot? The Skyhawks that I fly (for now) have electric trim (because of the autopilot), but I NEVER use it. I always instinctively reach for the good ole' trim wheel.

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Edit: I just noticed there is another thread that is closer to the topic of my post. Apologies.

[RV8N]

I don't adjust elevator trim in the pattern, I just hold the pressure. It really helps me know if I'm getting too slow. The stick gets real light and mushy. Time to get the nose down or add power.

It also helps during pre-flight for the next flight. If I added fuel I will need a little nose up trim. If I have a passenger I will need nose down trim. Very easy. I never try to find "neutral".

Karl

[Chino Tom]

Two fingers for me too. If I have baggage and a passanger, one quarter turn in from 2 fingers. This is for take off, in flight set as required.

[sf3543]

I had manual trim on my RV6 and here's how I did it.
Set the trim tab in trail.
Make a mark on the metal slide of the trim vernier right where it goes into the panel mount. (use a file to make a permanent mark.)
Then, take the vernier end apart, which will include the slide piece you just marked. This is easy to do and only takes a few minutes.
Then, chuck this piece into a drill press or lathe and hold a file against the mark. This will make a nice groove all around the slide. You don't need to make it very deep, but you need a groove that you can see.
Once this is done, you can pint the inside of the groove red or white, I chose red.
Reassemble the vernier cable and use the mark to always position the trim tab in trail. You could also put the mark in takeoff position, if it is different than in trail, or use two marks of different color.
You can then placard this any way you want, but I never did.

[Mel]

Normal takeoff (no flaps) I set the tab about 1/4" up (down trim). This is about 1/4 turn in from trail.
For short field takeoff (home) I set the tab in trail (15 degrees flap).