How does Flysimware C414AW compare to the steam gauge overha

[meerkat]

I bought the Chancellor just now and love it from the fist flight on. It's charming and modeled very "feel there". Similar to the A2A Comanche.

Also, for a quite complex twin, it handles nicely and intuitively (did my first flight without reading any handbook and it went quite well (aside from misusing the pressurization vents at cruise altitude as I was thinking "how does that work?" 😁). It's a plane that just does what you expect and keeps you busy enough to not want to switch on time acceleration.

[Bert Pieke]

11 hours ago, jfri said:

If I understand you correctly you mean that the Piston Duke are better then my two mentioned overhaul planes and also about as good as the C414.
Why the Piston Duke and not the turbine one ? And what makes the Piston Duke better than my suggested overhauled Baron and King Air ?

It really depends on what kind of planes you like to fly..  I prefer a piston over a turboprop for example.. Others like the performance of the turboprop.. Personal preferences.. 🙂

The Beech Duke and C414 are similar in size and performance so that is why I chose them for a direct comparison.  Both are really good!

[Sonosusto]

Ah, had the 414 since early release and it's still my favorite. Even after other twins were released I still went back to it.

[jozeff]

Why would you like a carbon monoxide detector in your simulated plane? Just curious 🤔.  Is it part of the "deep simulation" or is it actually functional and warning you when you're about to turn into a canary in a coal mine?

[Sonosusto]

Ah, had the 414 since early release and it's still my favorite. Even after other twins were released I still went back to it.

[Cpt_Piett]

As the 414 has been collecting dust for too long, it did a few flights in it yesterday. It certainly handles very well, is easy to operate, and has a certain charm. But it doesn’t have as much complexity as the Dukes. 

What struck me is that the EFB checklist is very basic. I could not find anything on fuel pumps and priming the engines. Very different from the piston Duke, which has a rather elaborate engine start procedure. 

I did find something interesting in the manual though:

Quote

We are happy to announce that we now have working mixture levers coded (for realism) for a turbocharged engine. You no longer have to lean for higher altitudes nor for above the critical altitude of 21K feet. This new code has a fuel controller to maintain the fuel flow. But also allows you to still set the fuel flow rate. So this way you can set the mixture rich for most of the flight and then when you descend from high altitude you can control the EGT temps so you do not crack the engine head as you now enter warmer air and prepare to land.

What confused me is the part about not having to lean the mixtures above critical altitude. I thought this was necessary in a turbocharged piston.

[sloppysmusic]

29 minutes ago, Cpt_Piett said:

What confused me is the part about not having to lean the mixtures above critical altitude. I thought this was necessary in a turbocharged piston

You don't HAVE to, it's just a cruise fuel burn /efficiency 'tweak'. If your ceiling is 30k and CA is 24k that's equivalent to tweaking a cess a 172 at 6k. Doing it during climb risks abrubt power changes, trimming and pitch changes UNLESS you have a precise mixture chart to hand. 

What I used to do in previous sims (I might do again if noone else does first) is set standard pressure in sim then test and record best power /fuel economy settings at every altitude step from ground (or CA if a tc bird) to ceiling. Spreadsheet time! With non tc every 1000 ft above 5000, with tc every 500 ft above CA. 

So the Duke piston would have 24500 /25000/25500 etc up to 30k. The results might not be real world accurate but they were SIM accurate enabling me to safely and efficiently change mixture, prop and power settings during a climb with no worries about messing things up.

I did that with the RealAir Duke and found for instance there was no point climbing above 26k (except for storm avoidance) as plane lost ground speed and burned more fuel at same time. 

A shortcut here for the bs Duke would be testing and recording best settings for power or fuel burn at 26,28 and 30k. Should not be changing anything during climb for fuel efficiency though, I'd keep with max power available until cruise altitude is reached. 

What do I know though lol? 😏. Seriously though leveling off and TESTING it yourself is the best way to find how an ac actually behaves in sim. Real world stats and charts are less accurate. 

[jfri]

1 hour ago, Cpt_Piett said:

As the 414 has been collecting dust for too long, it did a few flights in it yesterday. It certainly handles very well, is easy to operate, and has a certain charm. But it doesn’t have as much complexity as the Dukes. 

What struck me is that the EFB checklist is very basic. I could not find anything on fuel pumps and priming the engines. Very different from the piston Duke, which has a rather elaborate engine start procedure. 

I did find something interesting in the manual though:

What confused me is the part about not having to lean the mixtures above critical altitude. I thought this was necessary in a turbocharged piston.

First let me say that I did purchase C414AW since it was on sale. Like you I reacted to the basic checklist and also the manual which I found not extensive enough.
For example apart from what you have mentioned
I see no mentioning about the generators. When should I turn them on ?
When the cowlflaps are depicted as pulled out (default) are they open or closed ?
 

[Cpt_Piett]

16 minutes ago, jfri said:

First let me say that I did purchase C414AW since it was on sale. Like you I reacted to the basic checklist and also the manual which I found not extensive enough.
For example apart from what you have mentioned
I see no mentioning about the generators. When should I turn them on ?
When the cowlflaps are depicted as pulled out (default) are they open or closed ?
 

I agree, it comes across as lacking in a number of aspects, at least when compared to the Dukes. Been going through the manual, and apart from some performance charts and a lot of screenshots of the various instruments, there’s very little information on how to actually operate the aircraft. 

[ark]

5 hours ago, Cpt_Piett said:

Been going through the manual, and apart from some performance charts and a lot of screenshots of the various instruments, there’s very little information on how to actually operate the aircraft. 

Some info FYI from the Flysimware Discord site, or a simple C414 POH web search. This POH does not account for the RAM IV conversion: https://redcliffeaeroclub.com.au/index.php/download/c414a-poh

There are a number of other IRL C414 docs, e.g., performance charts, on the Flysimware Discord for those interested.  See the C414 IRL Docs Thread.   https://discord.gg/T5kKUB9J

Al

Edited June 17 by ark

[Cpt_Piett]

Disregard

Edited June 17 by Cpt_Piett

[ark]

Disregard.

 

Edited June 17 by ark

[Cpt_Piett]

2 minutes ago, ark said:

Don't know, only you can answer that. I was simply passing on info I was aware of for those interested.

However, you are certainly welcome to your opinion, as I am to mine.

Al

Amazing that you were able to extract that information from a post that I regretted, thus edited.

Thanks for the links (not sarcasm). My original post did include sarcasm though, as I thought your “simple Google search” completely missed the point I was trying to make. Which is that I appreciate having an extremely comprehensive and well-written manual included.

[ark]

2 hours ago, Cpt_Piett said:

Amazing that you were able to extract that information from a post that I regretted, thus edited.

Thanks for the links (not sarcasm). My original post did include sarcasm though, as I thought your “simple Google search” completely missed the point I was trying to make. Which is that I appreciate having an extremely comprehensive and well-written manual included.

OK, understand, I deleted my previous post as well.

History will show that Flysimware chooses not to produce detailed "how to" manuals like some other developers do, but instead prefer using videos, real life documents, and more lately, also their Discord site. That is Flysimware's call, their "style" if you will, and if unacceptable to some, which I can understand, so be it. To each their own.

Al

Edited June 17 by ark

[s0cks]

12 hours ago, jfri said:

First let me say that I did purchase C414AW since it was on sale. Like you I reacted to the basic checklist and also the manual which I found not extensive enough.
For example apart from what you have mentioned
I see no mentioning about the generators. When should I turn them on ?
When the cowlflaps are depicted as pulled out (default) are they open or closed ?
 

Alternators are turned on with battery unless using external power. If using external power, turn them on after engine start.
Cowl flaps; levers pulled out = closed (it says so right next to the levers).

I think you'll like the plane once you get the hang of her. I was kinda the same when I got it. Manual and checklist seemed lacking, but I slowly fell in love with the plane regardless. Very nice to fly.