Trim tab on Aileron

[bluey the fly]

While at Temora i took a flight in a tecnam sierra which had a large trim tab on the RH aileron, deflecting upwards.Is this normal for adjusting the plane rolling left? The seller sitting along side me was 6kg heavier then i, tanks were about the same, yet the plane still rolled slightly to the left .

 

The plane is near new,and the tab was ugly positioned there.:yuk:

 

 

[geoffreywh]

I've got one on the left aileron hanging down. 'plane now doesn't roll right. Never made any difference who was in the cockpit with me or how much I had in either of the wing tanks....What's the problem?

 

 

[bluey the fly]

I've got one on the left aileron hanging down. 'plane now doesn't roll right. Never made any difference who was in the cockpit with me or how much I had in either of the wing tanks....What's the problem?

G'day Geoff,

 

I'm a bit confused as your trim tab is hanging down under the wing where there is high pressure, where as this other one if facing upwards into low pressure. Would this one be upward to induce drag effect?

 

Hope you can clear me up on this matter.:confused:

 

Regards

 

Steven

 

 

[Yenn]

They should work either way, but I would guess that down into the higher pressure would need less area.

 

 

[kevinfrost]

Try flap adjustment instead of aileron. Works in most case with little adjustment.

 

Playing with aileron adjustment in most cases doesn't work.

 

 

[dazza 38]

Trim tabs on ailerons are basically crude solutions to poor rigging.

The Golf at Boonah has a fixed tab on the LH Aileron, somebody leaned against it and bent it up more(we assumed), than the normal angle,thus- when i took it for a flight, i had to hold stick pressure to counteract the bent trim.No problem though, i and the CFI both, bent it back to where we though it sould be, and i took it for spin.Problem solved. AS CFI has already mentioned, it is a crude solution for poor rigging.A electric aileron trim would be a bad option.

 

 

[Thruster87]

Trim tabs on ailerons are basically crude solutions to poor rigging.

A lot of kit aircraft are not built in fixtures and as a result no two come out exactly the same.Even production aircraft have variations and trim tabs are often used to counter act these forces.On longer trips in a side by side aircraft, electric trim can really be of benefit to lessen stick forces, especially with only one up. Cheers

 

 

[facthunter]

Aileron in flight trimming.

 

If you want something to fiddle with, install an electric aileron trim. I have seen experienced pilots completely foul up the aileron trim in flight. You will end up with a fight between the aileron and the rudder

 

A fixed tab might be called for especially on the rudder, but an aileron, once it is "corrected" properly (and this will usually be needed because the wing is misrigged, ie uneven washout or angle of incidence) will remain OK unless something shifts, which should be B....y unlikely. Forget adjustable aileron trim, unless you are on a big multi. Nev

 

 

[Bidgee]

I fly a Tecnam Sierra a bit and it has the fixed trim tab. When there's two up the plane flies S&L. Mostly when I fly it's on longer XC by myself and it wants to roll left all day which is PITA. This can be helped a bit by cargo and fuel distribution.

 

 

[Thruster87]

Talking to a couple of 10000+ hrs pilots [multi and single engine] both recommended aileron trim to make life a bit easier. So I have decided to put one into my aircraft.Will know if it was worth it, once I finish the project in the coming months and get some air time. Cheers T87

 

 

[farri]

Aileron Trim,

 

Gotta Be Kidding.

 

Frank.