Blip Switch Question

[dburne]

Yesterday after getting FC I had forgotten all about the blip switch ( been a while since I flew ROF).

So today I went in and assigned to a button, but does not appear to be working for me in the Spad?

 

IIRC it was a press and hold button, ie hold button for ignition cut off, release button for re-ignite.

 

What am I missing as it is not doing anything for me? Flying in the Spad.

[HagarTheHorrible]

Only rotaries have blip switches 

 

I'm sure someone far better informed than me can give you a detailed explanation why that is.

Edited July 20, 2018 by HagarTheHorrible

[dburne]

1 minute ago, HagarTheHorrible said:

Only rotaries have blip switches 

 

Ah ok thanks much I shall worry now more!

[J2_Trupobaw]

42 minutes ago, HagarTheHorrible said:

Only rotaries have blip switches 

 

I'm sure someone far better informed than me can give you a detailed explanation why that is.

Probably because other engines stop moving when you cut off ingnition and can't be restarted by switching it on.

[JimTM]

3 hours ago, HagarTheHorrible said:

Only rotaries have blip switches 

 

I'm sure someone far better informed than me can give you a detailed explanation why that is.

 

See this video and 1:05 of this video (dealing with the real Camel).

Edited July 20, 2018 by JimTM

[=gRiJ=Roman-]

Where in the settings is the Blip Switch to assign a key. I can't find it ....

[feuervogel]

31 minutes ago, PA_Spartan- said:

Where in the settings is the Blip Switch to assign a key. I can't find it ....

Settings -> Controls -> Engine Controls -> Engine Blip Switch

 

[-332FG-Gordon200]

This should be helpful.

 

[JGr2/J5_Baeumer]

Interesting links.

[ZachariasX]

On 7/20/2018 at 6:11 PM, dburne said:

What am I missing as it is not doing anything for me? Flying in the Spad.

You only blip rotaries, as those (as opposed to what we have in game) do not have a throttle as you are used to. In some cases, the „throttle lever“ lets you adjust somewhere between (IIRC) say, 60% and 100% power. You have to constantly follow your power setting with your mixture setting. It is really not what we have in game.

 

Problem here is that at 60% power, you cannot even dream of making a landing. Or taxiing. You need to further reduce power. This by blipping. It shorts your magnets and ignition stops immediately while full fuel flow remains. A mess. For landing, engine was usually cut completely and the aircraft was landed as a glider.

 

This is the rationale of a blip switch. Different rotaries have different behavior in throttle regulation, but they are a mess. A Hisso is a real engine and it has a real throttle. No need for a blip.

[Chief_Mouser]

The only rotaries in FC are the Camel and the Dr.1. 

[Cynic_Al]

3 hours ago, 216th_Cat said:

The only rotaries in FC are the Camel and the Dr.1. 

 

Nice piece of research.  I wonder how long it will endure.

[jollyjack]

More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3ASopwith_Camel

[Cynic_Al]

1 hour ago, jollyjack said:

More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3ASopwith_Camel

 

The term 'misinformation' comes to mind.

[jollyjack]

2 hours ago, Cynic_Al said:

The term 'misinformation' comes to mind.

 

How's that? PS i never knew such a thing existed, this is what i found about blip switches. Sorry if you feel misinformed.

[ZachariasX]

3 minutes ago, jollyjack said:

How's that? PS i never knew such a thing existed, this is what i found about blip switches. Sorry if you feel misinformed.

It's largely uninformed chatter.

 

Take home message is that the blip switch indeed is a switch to ground your engine's sparks to make it cut out instantly. It does so while fuel and air keeps on flowing through the cylinders.

 

The reasons why you need a blip switch is that you do not have a throttle as you have them on todays engines. You require other means of reducing power in order to be able to control your aircraft. Again, a rotary is not like your car's engine. There is not a gradual way of controlling power. It is NOT as we have it in the game.

[jollyjack]

At least y'all got me curious. That's for Rof too?  I'll try it out, thnx.

Edited July 2, 2020 by jollyjack

[ZachariasX]

2 hours ago, jollyjack said:

That's for Rof too?

Yes.

[jollyjack]

I had a Puch 2tact 50cc bike as a teenager, had to pull the spark plug to kill the engine, never knew that was called blipping. Amazing, the things you learn from a fake or virtual world.

[Cynic_Al]

2 hours ago, jollyjack said:

I had a Puch 2tact 50cc bike as a teenager, had to pull the spark plug to kill the engine, never knew that was called blipping.

 

That isn't called blipping, its called failing to learn about/repair the kill button. 

 

The term blipping is also used to mean the momentary opening of a throttle.

[Chill31]

On 6/20/2020 at 12:22 PM, ZachariasX said:

You only blip rotaries, as those (as opposed to what we have in game) do not have a throttle as you are used to. In some cases, the „throttle lever“ lets you adjust somewhere between (IIRC) say, 60% and 100% power. You have to constantly follow your power setting with your mixture setting. It is really not what we have in game.

 

Problem here is that at 60% power, you cannot even dream of making a landing. Or taxiing. You need to further reduce power. This by blipping. It shorts your magnets and ignition stops immediately while full fuel flow remains. A mess. For landing, engine was usually cut completely and the aircraft was landed as a glider.

 

This is the rationale of a blip switch. Different rotaries have different behavior in throttle regulation, but they are a mess. A Hisso is a real engine and it has a real throttle. No need for a blip.

This is generally correct with a few exceptions. 

 

Clerget, le rhone, Oberursel rotary engines have a simple throttle.  You can control engine speed down to about 30% thrust (different from power).  At 30% thrust many WWI fighters will land...eventually.

 

The blip switch allows further reductions in thrust which shorten landing distance significantly. 

 

Long descents are made by cutting fuel instead of blipping in order to prevent fuel accumulating in the cowl which could ignite when the engine begins running again.  The oil always flows when the engine rotates. 

 

See the operation of a rotary from inside the cockpit.

 

[NO.20_Krispy_Duck]

On 7/7/2020 at 7:00 PM, Chill31 said:

This is generally correct with a few exceptions. 

 

Clerget, le rhone, Oberursel rotary engines have a simple throttle.  You can control engine speed down to about 30% thrust (different from power).  At 30% thrust many WWI fighters will land...eventually.

 

The blip switch allows further reductions in thrust which shorten landing distance significantly. 

 

Long descents are made by cutting fuel instead of blipping in order to prevent fuel accumulating in the cowl which could ignite when the engine begins running again.  The oil always flows when the engine rotates. 

 

See the operation of a rotary from inside the cockpit.

 

 

Some of these "close-up" videos are great online. You don't have a true "throttle" you usually have these "manettes" that give you a fuel/air balance. I guess it's kind of like the forerunner to the throttle and mixture levers of later years, though not quite the same thing. A later, true throttle/mixture set up gives you more control over thrust, whereas the WW1 manettes have their limitations. The number of RPMs, sound, feel are help get the pilot to "tune" for whatever he's looking for. The blip helps bring rather immediate power on/off, which is good when you need a burst of speed or air over the control surfaces. The trade off, as you say, is the you get unburnt fuel flowing still during the blip - careful using it!

 

This is apart from the notorious Gnome Monosoupape (single-valve type) style designs where you had pre-set settings for the mags and then the air manette. The advantage there was the Gnome Monosoupape was easy to fix and service.

Edited July 9, 2020 by Krispy_Duck

[RNAS10_Oliver]

8 minutes ago, Krispy_Duck said:

The trade off, as you say, is the you get unburnt fuel flowing still during the blip - careful using it!

 

I'm now wondering whether that's modelled in FC. As there has been times in my Camel where I've used the blips in combat to ensure I'm not going to go over 1600 rpm. But shortly after the combat I've realised I've damaged my engine anyway. Heard the same story from a couple of other pilots recently also. I've always assumed that I've just put the power back on too soon at one point and my speed had not yet dropped to somewhere safe enough.

 

But now wondering whether this is modelled and in those times I've damaged the engine because I've kept the switch on too long instead?

 

 

Edited July 9, 2020 by Oliver88

[LukeFF]

35 minutes ago, Oliver88 said:

But now wondering whether this is modelled and in those times I've damaged the engine because I've kept the switch on too long instead?

 

No

[RNAS10_Oliver]

Cheers.

[Sgt_Joch]

early rotaries had no throttle and you could only control the engine with the blip switch, later rotaries like on the Camel had both.

 

In game in combat, I often use the blip switch, easier to use than the throttle.

 

In RoF, it was also a big advantage when landing since the Blip switch would kill the torque, although that seems to be less an issue in FC.

[Chill31]

21 hours ago, Oliver88 said:

. As there has been times in my Camel where I've used the blips in combat to ensure I'm not going to go over 1600 rpm.

 

 

interestingly the manual for the Clerget lists 1250 rpm as the maximum allowed. I will never attempt 1600 rpm on mine...or anybrotary I have

[jollyjack]

Stupid (?) Q: For FC where is the blip switch located, or rather which engine controller is best to set up for that? Just use E?

Edited April 2, 2021 by jollyjack

[unreasonable]

1 hour ago, jollyjack said:

Stupid (?) Q: For FC where is the blip switch located, or rather which engine controller is best to set up for that? Just use E?

 

If you are going to use it - and it is not really necessary in the game - the best bet is to assign it to a button on the the joystick you can reach instantly. I use one of the buttons I can reach with my thumb, but I almost never use it.

 

It is not really necessary since you can reduce power to land by reducing the mixture until the engine cuts briefly, or just turn the engine off altogether.  In a fight, you are better off with the engine on and if you want to slow down: eg you do not want to pass an enemy in front of you, use the vertical to yo-yo instead. Trading speed for height is a better bet almost always than just giving away speed for nothing.

 

  

[jollyjack]

You're right, also just tried it in RoF, i can't work with it in a Camel, probably the way it's programmed.

Switches the engine off totally, needs a proper restart in my setup.

[RNAS10_Oliver]

3 hours ago, jollyjack said:

You're right, also just tried it in RoF, i can't work with it in a Camel, probably the way it's programmed.

Switches the engine off totally, needs a proper restart in my setup.

Sounds like you’ve got some key binding conflicts then. The blip switch does not turn off the engine and require a restart, unless you hold it for much too long.

[jollyjack]

Must get deeper into this then ...