Control sticks

I had been trying to decide what to do in terms of control sticks for the airplane, and finally decided to go with infinity stick grips. They offer a huge array of button options, but I decided to just get the standard configuration, without flaps.

The other option I was considering was Tosten sticks from Vans, which are ready-made and wired. I think the Infinity sticks look a bit better, and that was the deciding factor for me.

I might regret not getting flaps on the stick, but I feel more comfortable with the flap switch on the panel. The situation I was thinking about was a go-around. A last-minute go around involves applying a lot of nose-down trim, while also raising the flaps, and applying full power. I couldn’t imagine how my left thumb would be able to manage flaps and trim, simultaneously. Made more sense to me to have left hand doing pitch, and right hand doing power and flaps. Anyway, I can always make a change if I learn something that changes my mind.

So I started the work by stripping off powder coat on the top 2 inches of the stick, so the sleeve can fit over the stick tube. Then I drilled holes and cut a slot in the back of the stick tube. It is kinda tricky centering the holes, and I’m still working on final sizing the holes.

Left hand stick grip
Left-hand stick grip.
Right hand control stick with slot cut. This is where wires will be channeled from the grip buttons into the tube and down to the connector at the base.