Maules are great aircraft and, I have always thought though, that sticks and left hand throttles would make the Maule even better. I have a few hundred hours with right hand on the stick and left hand on the throttle and it just seems, more right. So, would BCP's agree or dis with this concept?

I have always wondered how it would be with sticks. I heard of one being converted, but never have seen it. don't move the throttle just change seats.

Thousands of hours....

....with yoke in the left hand and throttle/throttles in the right hand. Nearly as much time with yoke in the right hand and throttles in the left hand. Almost a thousand hours with the throttle in the left hand and stick in the right hand. Stick seems very nice for aerobatics. Beyond that...stick, yoke, throttles right hand , throttles left hand, right seat, left seat....never saw any difference after the first :15 minutes.

Even flew a French built ,single engine Socata, which had a throttle and stick for the left seatI(left hand throttle) and a throttle and stick for the right seat( left hand throttle for the right seat.... right hand for the left seat if used accidently) both only a few inches apart. I kept grabbing the wrong throttle for the seat I was in. Good thing is it worked the same. Push for more RPM....pull for less.

have fun,

Bob

I know several Swifters who've converted their airplanes to sticks. And one Pacer pilot who did the same. A lot of work, not including the approval paperwork exercise. I think a stick may be better for aerobatics, but I don't see it as a big advantage for most flying (except for the cool factor). I do think yokes make for easier boarding in a lot of planes-- mine would be a PITA to climb aboard with sticks.

I've owned my Maule MX-7-180 for 13 years and have often wished it had a stick instead of a yoke, but it's not a really big deal. There have been some discussions about it on the Maule Forum (http://www.maulepilots.org) but as far as I know there are no STCs and I don't know of anyone who has done a field approval. Too many changes to make it work, I think. I like the throttle being near the prop control and mixture since they interact. On a fixed pitch prop airplane it would be nice to have the throttle on the left, but I've flown Cubs, Sport Cubs and Citabrias like that and I prefer the Maule's vernier throttle control that allows finer adjustments that stay in place regardless of vibration or airspeed.

andy wrote:..I prefer the Maule's vernier throttle control that allows finer adjustments that stay in place regardless of vibration or airspeed.

My current airplane had a vernier throttle when I bought it & I hated it. It was OK most of the time but I had a problem with it trying to make small adjustments (mainly power reductions) when landing. Winding it out was too slow, and having to push in on the button & pull back on the knob was just too much multi-tasking for me.
I suppose I woulda eventually got the hang of it but I decided to just change it out to a standard friction-lock type. Ended up donating the vernier to a friend of mine to use as a trim control on the homebuilt he's working on.

After climbing over Cyclic sticks for 30 plus years - In helicopters .Maule is hard enough to get into now -I think climbing over control stick in Maule would be not pleasant experience. And getting out would be a pain --- especially in emergency .

http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgstc.nsf/0/2BD408282A6A4526862578F7004470FA?OpenDocument

"Cirrus" style stick

nd_rice wrote:http://www.airweb.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgstc.nsf/0/2BD408282A6A4526862578F7004470FA?OpenDocument

"Cirrus" style stick

I checked Trimmer Aviation website (out of curiosity) and I don't see that STC list on their website. Is it still available? http://trimmeraviation.com/

I regularly fly both stick and yoke aircraft and as an instructor fly from the left and right side. I don't feel like I fly any better either way. I don't think it would be worth it to change over. Sticks are kind of cool and seem like a better choice for aircraft, but they are less practical in some ways.

The best of both worlds is Cessna's new Skycatcher with sticks that are mounted in the panel. They have great feel and I wonder why someone didn't think of it before. Just so we don't have to go through it, the Skycatcher sticks are not just yokes with a single grip. They are fully articulating sticks.

littlewheelinback wrote:
They are fully articulating sticks.

Sorry, you gotta 'go through it' just a little with me... How is this accomplished mechanically?

Kurk Ellis built the "Hulk" 4 place super cub with 1 stick in the middle, I will try to pull some pictures up from our flights last year....

EZflap, the mechanism is set up so the elevator motion (forward and aft) can be used while the stick can be moved laterally for aileron motion. The stick stays in the same plane (unlike a floor mounted stick which moves in an arc) but has a nice feel that I think is better than a yoke, while still keeping the area under the panel free of obstructions. There are pulleys and wheels that seem pretty smart when you look at them but I would have to draw a diagram, I am just not sharp enough to describe it. And yes, I have flown the plane.

Actually, someone has. Robin. I flew about 100hrs of aerobatics in Robin Sport 216's and their sticks are mounted under the panel. The felt about like any other stick. Actually, they didn't "arc" into you crotch on a hard pull which was nice

Here is a good image of Robin 2160 panel showing the under panel sticks.