Brake Strength, Null zones, Sensitivity

[Guest Shalomar]

The first thing I do when I hop in a new virtual airplane is apply takeoff power and see if the brakes can hold it stationary. Many addon aircraft fail this test. Devs may have their reasons for this, like accurate runway usage on rollout, but I am willing to sacrifice a little realism there.Many piston twin pilots set takeoff power before releasing the brakes (The Seneca V POH for one insists on this). So it is also important that the aircraft brakes can hold when I am in the sim. Even in a single it's nice for a STOL takeoff to use twin tequnique.I have run into a few people on multiplayer who had no idea brake strength could be increased, so I figured a post would be worthwhile. Here is how to do it: (Pardon the simplicity...) You might be able to skip the next paragraph...Doubleclick on My Computer. Go to C: or whatever drive FSX is on. Doubleclick on "Program Files, Microsoft Games, Microsoft Flight Simulator X. Then Simobjects, Airplanes. (If you are using FS9, skip Simobjects and go to Aircraft). Find the folder of the aircraft you want to modify and open it. Find and doubleclick on the file named Aircraft.cfg.Navigate down to find a section like this: (Example is Acceleration F-18):[brakes]parking_brake = 1 //Parking brake availabletoe_brakes_scale = 1.7 //Brake scalardifferential_braking_scale = 1.0 //Delta on the amount of brake when the rudder pedals deflectedauto_brakes = 0hydraulic_system_scalar = 1 //On brakes dependant on the hydraulic system, ratio hyd system to max brake hyd pressureThe line "toe brakes scale" is the one you want to change. I usually increase it .2 or .4 at a time then recheck the brakes till they pass my test.(1.7 is an overkill value for almost any GA craft, but the biggest value I have seen was 2.4 ((I do not know what the maximum value is that the sim will take)))If you are in the aircraft when you modify it you will have to reload it for the changes to take effect. This key is not mapped by default, but it is extremely handy.**CAVEAT**:-)... If you are using pedals, get rid of your brake null zones and max out the sensitivity of the brake axis before you modify the brake strength of any aircraft. I recently got Saitak pro pedals and suddenly my brakes were weaker. Max sensitivity, no null zone was the cure.That leads me into my second point: While you are at it, get rid of *all* your null zones and max out the sensitivity of every axis. A recent thread led me to try this with choppers, but it does wonders for fixed wings.I love the Marchetti for hopping, but it was far from my favorite for aerobatics. I found it extremely easy to get into accelerated stall at the bottom of a loop and I couldn't successfully roll on takeoff to climb inverted. That has changed drastically now, I love doing aero in The Marchetti now that I have modified my controller settings.The Trike has also behaved much better in the flare now. Before I found it easy to get in trouble because form drag rapidly built up resulting in a touchdown just hard enough to register as a crash. That problem is gone now.Hope I helped a few people out here...Best Regards, Donald T