whifferdill
Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2010
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So I've never spun a standard J-3, just the Clipped Wing that I fly. I've always thought the CWC I fly didn't spin quite right...stopped rotation way too quickly and exited with too much airspeed. I had always entered a spin in the CWC like you'd do in competition - power off, level flight, with full rudder (left, in this case) immediately as it stalls, then full aft stick. This has always produced a very slow entry before it accelerates a bit after about a half turn. You can feel the weight come back in the stick as it rotates. It will stop as soon as you apply opposite rudder, and doesn't not even require unloading the stick. This CWC is stock w/ C-85, and I'm normally flying with close to full fuel (fuselage tank only).
Anyway, this just isn't how most planes spin so I tried applying a burst of power following the rudder application. After a quarter turn you can feel it break and start to rotate like a real spin. Once it breaks you can pull the power right back to idle, and it's in a stable spin. It goes around faster, and the airspeed stays locked on 40 indicated. Takes about 90 degrees to recover. I've never been able to get a true spin like this without using a quick application of power. I paid attention to the airspeed during the spiraling "spin" I had previously been doing without the help of power during entry, and with the stick fully aft, the airspeed slowly increases. By the time you've gone 1 1/2 turns, it's passing through 70 mph. So this was really just more of a spiral than a real spin.
Anyway, I just found this interesting. Is the standard J-3 this reluctant to enter a normal spin? Can you easily produce a normal spin (no airspeed buildup during rotation) without adding power momentarily during the entry?
Eric
Anyway, this just isn't how most planes spin so I tried applying a burst of power following the rudder application. After a quarter turn you can feel it break and start to rotate like a real spin. Once it breaks you can pull the power right back to idle, and it's in a stable spin. It goes around faster, and the airspeed stays locked on 40 indicated. Takes about 90 degrees to recover. I've never been able to get a true spin like this without using a quick application of power. I paid attention to the airspeed during the spiraling "spin" I had previously been doing without the help of power during entry, and with the stick fully aft, the airspeed slowly increases. By the time you've gone 1 1/2 turns, it's passing through 70 mph. So this was really just more of a spiral than a real spin.
Anyway, I just found this interesting. Is the standard J-3 this reluctant to enter a normal spin? Can you easily produce a normal spin (no airspeed buildup during rotation) without adding power momentarily during the entry?
Eric
