Someone asked me via PM what settings I was using for the PMDG777 with my new Saitek Cessna Yoke.

 

Figured I might as well post how I have things now for all to read.

(I have only had the yoke for a bit longer than a week, so things might change as I use it more)

 

FSUIPC is not used at the moment (I uninstalled it).

 

 

Let me start off by saying that I like the many buttons on the yoke A LOT!

The amount of things you can do with just a flick of a switch is just incredible (compared to my old yoke).

Makes flying and switching views a heck of a lot easier!

 

The only thing that I dont like, is that the yoke is way way way to light even for Cessna (the spring is to weak)

What I think happened is that the team that developed this yoke tried a Cessna yoke on the ramp and decided....wow that feels light!

But I think they never flew with it, because if they had they would have most certainly put in a bit stronger springs.

 

Being light for a Cessna means it is even ligther for a 777.

 

But all in all, for the price....nor bad (and a little modding with stronger rubber bands might just make it perfect, hehe).

 

 

Because the Cessna yoke has an about 180 degrees yoke deflection for the aileron, I have adjusted the dead zones a bit.

The 777 is actually a very sensitive...quick to react to yoke input....kinda plane.

Kind of like a car with powersteering on steroids.

So you really dont need much yoke deflection to initiate a roll on the real 777.

On the other hand you do want to keep the feel  of  flying a heavy, so I have reduced the aileron limits somewhat, but not too far (you can though if you like it).

 

PMDG777 CDU dead band are:

Elevator 5% 

Aileron 5% (default value)

 

If I understand the CDU values correctly, that X% value is when the FBW switches from its "attitude stabilizing" mode to its "change attitude due to manual control input" mode.

With the the Cessna Yoke feeling so light, you can even use up to 10% for elevator dead band  because you can hardly feel the yoke deflection difference  between 5% and 10% of dead zone anyway.

 

I did not like elevator dead band at 1%, because I felt the change from one mode to the other was to eeeeh......sudden....dont know how else to describe it.

 

I also did not like reducing elevator limits because for one, it causes the tendency to over rotate (or rotate too fast) during take off.

And second it caused FSX to crash on exit......(might have been something else, but it seemed that way)....so I left it at its default full range..

 

 

 

 

EDIT: for the trim rate to be as realistic as possible I have set the repeat rate in FSX to its mid position.

Aah...just noticed I wrote I am using 5% CDU elevator dead band but the CDU pic shows 10%....

 

Disregard the discrepancy please. Like I said, anything from 5-10% seems to work for me on this yoke.

Thank you very much for the information. I am using fsuipc (except for throttle) but still found some parallels with your setup. One benefit of the cessna yoke is the 180 degree deflection, but as it seems looking at the yoke animation, the true deflection is somewhat less. I still think 180 is better than the 90 or so with the basic unit. Interesting that you limited the max range, I might experiment with that on my setup.

 

Your remarks on the responsiveness of actual 777 controls I found interesting because I found the sim controls too sluggish for the roll rate the plane is capable of, so steepened my control curves. This made roll easier to initiate and flares easier to accomplish smoothly. I may now also use your FMC null zone values and see if it improves the feel.

 

Last thing... have you tried the a/t flare override on? I mapped reverse thrust to the pro flight throttle's beta range buttons and its a very nice (and exciting) experience to get within ground effect, physically idle the throttle, then physically engage reverse throttle during the roll out. Sure, it's not quite like the real thing, but hey, its a nice approximation. Thanks again for all the feedback on your setup, I'll try some of those settings out next time I'm flying the 777.

Your remarks on the responsiveness of actual 777 controls I found interesting because I found the sim controls too sluggish for the roll rate the plane is capable of, so steepened my control curves. This made roll easier to initiate and flares easier to accomplish smoothly.

 

Yes with fsuipc you can do that and would be the prefered method for me as well.

 

I will soon (in one or two weeks) install FSUIPC again and try that as well.

Dor now I just wanted to post some settings that work without FSUIPC as it is the preferred Method by PMDG.

 

So you have no problems with calibrating your flight controls through FSUIPC?

Maybe SP1b has improved FSUIPC compatibility?

 

I have not experimented yet with A/T flare override because I have not connected my throttle hardware yet.

I will not be using the Saitek throttle quadrant though.....I have something else.

But sounds like it works quite nice with reverse and all :-)

Yes with fsuipc you can do that and would be the prefered method for me as well.

I will soon (in one or two weeks) install FSUIPC again and try that as well.

Dor now I just wanted to post some settings that work without FSUIPC as it is the preferred Method by PMDG.

So you have no problems with calibrating your flight controls through FSUIPC?

Maybe SP1b has improved FSUIPC compatibility?

I have not experimented yet with A/T flare override because I have not connected my throttle hardware yet.

I will not be using the Saitek throttle quadrant though.....I have something else.

But sounds like it works quite nice with reverse and all :-)

Well, FSUIPC throttle controls were giving me hell, but it's a well documented issue. I had a takeoff incident where the TOGA mode suddenly retarded the right engine to 60% power after 80 knots or so. It gave me a great taste of RTO brake power. After repeating that incident twice in a row, overheating the brakes as well as my patience, I decided to get rid of FSUIPC throttle calibration completely.

 

I was also having major problems when auto throttle went into hold mode (which can be quite random) at the same time I was having a throttle spike. If the throttle was in a bad position for the situation, it could cause insanity to break loose. I had to turn off all override options except at flare. I blame the potentiometer though, if anything FSUIPC would filter those spikes if I could use it to calibrate throttle.

 

Other than throttle, FSUIPC has been ok. I need it for other planes otherwise I would probably use default controls for the 777. Fsuipc seems to dampen (or perhaps make more linear) the response to control inputs which can be both good and bad. For the 777 I found it to be less responsive than default controls until a curve adjustment is made. Of course, I have no intimate personal experience with which to judge the proper response curves. With your experience that's not really an issue, so if you do install fsuipc again, please let me know what settings you end up using.

 

All in all, after a few weeks of frustration with sp1/b I have reached a point that I am really loving this airplane. Once I found a setting that made me happy and reduced conflicts the FBW really started to shine and i enjoy flying this 777 immensely.

Thought I would update this one with my latest Cessna Yoke modification.

 

It was real easy to do and I can recommend it to anyone who wants a bit heavier feel on this yoke.

There are enough places to hang the springs onto, so no drilling required.

The only two screws I used are the two that secure the springs to yoke rod mechanism.....and even the holes for that are already there :-)

 

It is possible that this mod causes a little more wear on the yoke but I can live with that......(my last yoke, a CHPro lasted for 17 years, so 15 years is fine as well ;-) !)

 

The two springs I added (see red arrows) are of dfferent tension and length.

I wanted to use two of them long springs at first (bought them in the local hardware store,

Bauhaus) but I also had the shorter one laying around (from old CHPro) and found it easier to use.

 

It was pure luck that the shorter spring and the longer one still give pretty much the same force, which is important because otherwise the yoke will not center when you let go.

(I found the two springs do not have to be an exact match though......the construction of the yoke it quite forgiving actually. But you cant use one way way stronger than the other ofcourse)

 

The result is a way heavier feel, quite realistic for a 777 or 737.

And I also find trimming the 777 somewhat easier now, because you definately feel it when you are not in trim.

 

 

Thanks for posting this!

I will definitely try it.

(heading to the hardware store).

Thanks for posting this!

I will definitely try it.

(heading to the hardware store).

Welcome :-)

 

Make sure you get some really thin screws that fit in the holes where you are going to attach the springs to the yoke rod.

 

Too big (thick) a scew could break the plastic hole!

 

Also, the screw that I used for the shorter spring is a longer screw (like 1 1/2 inch or so) so that one springs goes over the other (you dont want them rubbing together!).