[txaviator]

Dan,

Not that I am anywhere close to doing this yet....but, how happy have you been by the placement of your throttle/mixture over on the left side of the cockpit? I could tell by your web notes that this took some time to accomplish (versus the standard, middle location of these controls). I was just curious: do you find them getting in your way at times? Or, if you had it to do all over again, would you still place them on the left side? I like the idea, and it also will allow some further room in the panel. I was just curious if you had any additional thoughts you could add, after hundreds of flying hours by now.

Thanks in advance,

 

[gmcjetpilot]

Control loctaion

I am not Dan, or did I play Dan on TV. I don't usually disagree with his logic but I would not recommend this configuration myself.

Why do you want to fly left throttle? If you are worried about getting use to it, don't. It will come very naturally. Even if you are flying a RV-4 or Citabria it will be zero issue going to the center (right hand) throttle left hand stick. I am amazed most people who are thinking about this have learned and flown mostly side-by-side Cessna's and Piper's with the controls front row center. I am left handed for writing and right handed for everything else. Ambidextrous as a child I never thought about right and left. There may be a good personal reason for doing this but for 99.9% of the pilots the standard config is best, if not for just being standard. I have known people flying from the right seat. As a CFI and airline pilot I have to get use to flying in both seats. I prefer the left seat and right hand throttle, it pays more.

You will loose no panel space with a small center sub panel under just for the prop/throttle/mixture. Legroom will not be restricted since the sub panel will be only about 7" wide, at most.

There is another thread on this with lots of good opinions. You will hear most people find it is easy getting use to the center control, left hand stick, and right hand throttle. It really truly is not hard. Also where are your radios? You want to switch freq's and need your right hand for the center radio stack. What do you do, trade right hand for left on the stick to free up the right hand to select com freq or squawk code and than reverse the hand jive to get the right hand back on the stick.

Also installation is easier as you mention. What if you want dual instruction or let another pilot fly? Some CFI's and Flight examiners (most) will not fly without dual controls. They might accept no brakes, but no throttle, nope. What about formation flight training? I guarantee you will not get many takers to give you this training with out dual controls unless they really know your skill. This may not be your cup of tea, but what about a Flight Review (was BFR)? As a CFI I would not want to fly in a plane I could not reach the throttle, but it is up the CFI's discretion. I am sure people will tell you they have Joe who has no problem doing a review in their RV with no throttle access. Good luck.

Keep it simple; keep it light; Build it per Van's plans; You can't go wrong.

Cheers George ATP, CFI(I)(ME) RV-4, RV-7

 

[dan]

I play Dan on TV

Do it if you want to. I'm glad I did! That's all I can tell you. You gotta make the decision for yourself.

If you've never flown a stick-equipped airplane, I'd probably recommend just going with the standard setup. But if you're like me, and have ingrained the physical pattern of stick-in-right, throttle-in-left, then you have a decision to make.

The ONLY complaint I have is that when my knees are bent and feet on the floor all the way back to the spar, my left knee rests against the friction lock knob bolt. If I straighten my legs (which is more comfortable anyway) it's no factor.

Next time I will almost definitely make my own quadrant. Just wasn't up for doing that the first time around.

I don't have right side brakes (I kept my plane light...1113 pounds), and it does NOT bother me that the right seater can't operate the throttle. I don't really care about that. I have enough ratings that I won't be taking a checkride, and anybody flying from the right seat isn't gonna be taking off or landing my plane, so I'll work the throttle for 'em in the unlikely event that we need to change power settings.

PROS (for me):

1) I used the AFP injection system, and with horizontal induction, the throttle cable being on the far left already HELPED that installation. Same with the prop cable. Much more straightforward routing. Note, this is only for horizontal induction...for vertical it wouldn't have mattered.

For a carb'd setup, you'd probably just need to route the cable over to the center before punching through the firewall. Not a big deal imho.

2) It's where I want it. Period. Stick-in-right, throttle-in-left. It's what works BEST for ME (and probably just about every RV-3 or RV-4 or RV-8 or stick-equipped military plane out there...hm...). I can't speak for anybody else. Your comfort does matter. Intuitive placement and comfortable coordination translates into BETTER control in all phases of flight. If your brain has to compensate, something else will suffer.

3) Formation. I personally believe that a quadrant is ideal for formation flying. Whether it's on the left or right doesn't really matter. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with the standard black knob in the center, but I believe having a lever to move is a more intuitive and more easily coordinated physical motion. This is, of course, VERY subjective.

4) The ability to adjust multiple power controls simultaneously. With the standard "center 3," you might be able to move two controls at the same time, but I doubt it (other than maybe mashing them full forward). With a quadrant, you can. Value? Not much, but hey, I consider it a pro.

CONS: (for me)

1) The obvious one, which is extra time. Any time you stray from the plans, it will add build time. But seriously, looking back on the 2060 or so hours it took to build my plane, it was worth every minute. If it had been 2075 or 2106 hours or whatever, it STILL would be worth it. Adding build time for the sake of customization is a good thing!

2) The knee thing I mentioned. This is easily overcome by "ergonomic engineering." If you do go with a left side quadrant, I recommend having your seat cushions to play with first. I didn't have my seat cushions, and I had to take guesses as to my seated position. My guesses ended up working out, with the exception of that one rare position, when my knees are bent (heels at the spar).

I have no regrets about using the left-handed quadrant. It's my plane, customized for me. Make yours customized for you.

)_( Dan
RV-7 N714D
http://www.rvproject.com

 

[txaviator]

Thanks for the replies!

I knew this was a "make your own decision" topic, and since Dan has flown off so many hours with the configuration, I just wanted to check what he had to offer after all the flights. You know, kind of a "would you do it again" question. I appreciate the pros/cons list, Dan!