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Dimona engine start


Tailgunner

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Sorry the first post has to be a complaint, but - I'm having start problems. Can't read the German start sequence list, and the very brief German word list is no help. Perhaps you could provide me witjh English squence?

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Hi "tailgunner" (any real name for you?),

i understand, even the included english manual and the english checklist is not sufficient? What is your problem exactly, did you open the fuel shut-off valve, ignition on, fuel in the tank (to be honest, i forgot that), all c/b´s in...?

best regards

Thomas

damned, 2 sec too late!

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Also check that in FSX' aircraft realism menu "Utomixture" isn´t checked. The Dimona comes with it´s own automiture, so FSX' will just make troubles when used.

Also keep the throttle slightly open and the propeller out of feathered (SEGEL) position.

Finn

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You got an English checlist in the pakage. Using this one will guide you through startup.

BTW, please look if you have enough fuel.

Bests Joachim

Thanks, Joachim. I've just gone through everything again, and on page 18 found a line I'd overlooked: ""Of course the non-German versions have an English-labelled cockpit." It seems that in the buying process I may have missed my chance to buy the English version. I wasn't aware that there was a choice. Sorry for that.

Would you please be kind enough to let me have an English translation of the German engine start placard in the cockpit?

Regards

Peter

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Hi Peter,

You misunderstood me there.

The only German "version" is the D-KGAF in the sim. And even the english labeled cockpits have one Germa thing in there. The brass placard with the checklist. But it is useless anyway. The only document you have to use when operating the aircraft is the official checklist. You'll find it under: Start - all programms - aerosoft - H36Dimona.

Best regards, Joachim

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Otherwise...

-Check fuel quantity

-Open fuel valve (red handle between the seats)

-Throttle open a tiny bit (Just move Your hardware throttle p and then bach down almost to fully backwards)

-If You have a hardware axis for mixture, move it fully forward

-Main switch On (Red switch in the mid of the main panel

-All circuit breakers in

-Radios and transponder off

-Don´t forget the Propelle Unit Circuit breaker must be in (Just to the right of the propeller RPM knob - easy to oversee)

-Propeller control in AUTO (NOT SEGEL) - green light on

-Ignition On

-Choke pull out

-Press starter button

After engine start puch the Choke back in.

Finn

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That's indeed a creative way of starting some engines. :lol:

I'm wondering about the not happening MP reduction with altitude. I took her up to 11.000ft and can easily get the MP gauge to 30. From reading, the engine isn't charged at all, so she should lose quite some MP at that altitude, correct?

The power up there also feels good, so not only the gauge is showing some high value, the engine also produces "thick air power".

Am I doing or understanding something wrong there maybe? :blush:

Also, my volts are quite low. Maybe something did not initialize correctly.

powerat11k.th.jpg

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No, you're completely right.

The problem is, that FSX can't handle these small engines very well. Either it was too strong at the ground or too week already in 1000ft. So I decided to use a torbocharged engine, because the behaviour is much more linear. The only problem is the manifold pressure gauge. (We simply forgot to fake it :D) Who climbs up to 11.000ft with a Dimona? LOL

Honestly, I had her on 8000ft during flight test and did not feel any power change. (Though I must say, that it needs serious time to get there, so maybe the power loss was so slow that I got used to it before I was able to feel it) You don't have any RPM change anyway due to the constant speed prop, so if you don't look exactly what happenes, you'll not feel it.

I'll consider a diffferent Man pressure gauge for future

Best regards, Joachim

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Well I did climb that far because she was going there, not giving me a feedback that showed some 'I can't climb any higher!'. My other non-charged planes would go there too but I would feel that I'm getting way outside their "power range", because MP and also power output would reduce severely. The Dimona just climbed and climbed. Not very fast, as you've said, but I didn't lose VS at all (from takeoff up to 11.000ft), so I could even try to go much higher.

Looks like the tradeoff outcome for that turbocharged engine decision. But thanks for your answers there.

I actually even searched for some Dimona climb results as I wasn't really sure about those easy 11.000ft. There's some super Dimona around 4km http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TqZ7x-SWg4.

I saw that your whole FDE is very unique (in the way of good, don't get me wrong) and that you had to implement some tweaks to make e. g. the prop and engine feel more real.

For example, I have a hardware unit with a flaps indicator and I can see the (calculated) flaps moving (there are none on the Dimona of course) when doing power changes, so I guess you really had to trick the whole FSX system a lot to achieve some FDE details like the rpm based influence of the prop.

I would vote for that new MP gauge and maybe some pilot-sensible power loss, so that virtual pilots like me actually feel the limits then.

By the way, are my volts ok in that picture? I'm outside of the green arc range, that's why I'm asking.

And please don't read any of the above sentences as a complain, I love that plane.

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Otherwise...

-Check fuel quantity

-Open fuel valve (red handle between the seats)

-Throttle open a tiny bit (Just move Your hardware throttle p and then bach down almost to fully backwards)

-If You have a hardware axis for mixture, move it fully forward

-Main switch On (Red switch in the mid of the main panel

-All circuit breakers in

-Radios and transponder off

-Don´t forget the Propelle Unit Circuit breaker must be in (Just to the right of the propeller RPM knob - easy to oversee)

-Propeller control in AUTO (NOT SEGEL) - green light on

-Ignition On

-Choke pull out

-Press starter button

After engine start puch the Choke back in.

Finn

Many thanks, Finn. I've disovered why I couldn't find the engine start in Checklist. At the end of the text there's just white space, so I assumed the Checklist had finished. In case anyone else has my problem, the answer is to scroll down and find the Specific Dimona checklist.

c

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Does any of you guys get low volts too after shutting the engine down in flight and starting her again (also in flight)?

After that, my volts stay at 9V or so, way below the green arc range and no engine setting gets them back into the green zone.

This screen shows the engine running, so the volts should come up if I'm correct.

voltse.jpg

I'm only running the COM radios when gliding as per checklist, the rest (including all lights and the transponder) are off and I don't do long gliding periods so far, 10 minutes would be a longer one for me (bad pilot). :blush:

Here are my engine off settings. Maybe one of you can spot a culprit for my low battery/volts.

engineoff.th.jpg

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Thats because you slipped off the starter button with the mouse. FSX has a bug there, (PMDG calls it a feature) that hnops and momentary switches stay pressed if you slip off the clickspot while pressing the mouse.

So the starter still needs voltage.

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Ah, that could be. Thanks, Joachim, I will try hitting the button more precise and also make sure that he's off thereafter.

Had to laugh about the PMDG part of the sentence. :lol:

Edited. Tried the start button and you're right, my clicking sometimes leads to an always enabled one. Thanks for your help. :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

When I first installed the Dimona I couldn't start the engine either. But after slewing up to altitude the engined started, and I have been able to start it since.

Well.....that's about the only thing I haven't tried, so I'll give it a go.

Currently, I've just had to resort to "ctrl-e"...... frustrating!! :blink:

Cheers,

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Well.....that's about the only thing I haven't tried, so I'll give it a go.

Currently, I've just had to resort to "ctrl-e"...... frustrating!! :blink:

Cheers,

Before starting the engine...

-Check that You have fuel on board (with a bad or missing saved data file the tank will be empty - See Note!)

-Check that all Circuit breakers are in (7 on the right panel + 1 beside the propeller control unit)

-Open the Fuel valve between the seats

-Turn on the Master switch (red handle in the middle of the mainpanel)

-Move and open the throttle sligtly out of idle position

-Check that the propeller control unit is set to 2900 RPM and set to AUTO

-If the engine is cold -> pull the Choke knob

-Press the starter button

-Once the engine is running -> push the Choke knob in again

NOTE!

It might happen that the Dimona is loaded without a proper saved data file the very first time it is loaded after install.

To fix:

-Fill the tank

-Push in all Circuit breakers

-Press "B" inorder to set the altimeter to 1013 hpa

-Wait 10 sec for these settings to be saved

-Go ahead with the startup procedure explained above

Finn

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Finn,

Thanks for the response.... it's NOT.....the Dimona, but something in my FSX.

I have a saved clean FSX Startup file I used to use when beta testing. I can load that (FSX Stock aircraft)....then load the Dimona and all is well, it starts per advertised.

................

My best "guess" ......something with my machine and the GPS it doesn't like. After I got a good start with the basic setup etc., I tried to reload my normal saved default flight and got an error message that the GPS failed.

Again.....I'm 98% sure it's some rogue file or something in my FSX that's causing the problem....not the Dimona.

Thanks again for your help and response!!

Cheers,

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  • 1 month later...

You don't give much information for folks to go on so a bit more would help!! How are you attempting to start, have you looked through the Fora for answers to your query already?

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Yes but I don't know how to make that FSX save the plane WITH fuel when I left them .. always when I start FSX I don't have any fuel in my Dimona !

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