Visible airscrew disc
 

Today I was flying as passenger with a friend in an ultralight aircraft and I had to make following observations:

1) The airscrew disk is, when running, invisible, and my guess is that the rpms are lower than what we have in Clod

2) The reflexion from the sun (heading East during evening hours ~6 p.m.) was very limited and basivally only a thin light bent line. The reflexion in the game is completely exagerated. The airscrew disk is still not visible or barely visible at best apart from the very thin reflexion line. Knowing that the blades were painted with a non reflective colour on our warbirds I guess the reflexions should be even less.

Interesting. My experience is that ultralight props spin about 1000/1500 rpm faster than a warbird's. Ultralight motors and gear reductions are all over the map but seem to generally have a max of somewhere between 1600 and 2600 rpm with the typical installation being toward the higher end. The typical early Merlin would have a prop speed of about 1400 rpm max, later Merlins under 1300 rpm. Low prop rpm his important for a high speed aircraft because of the necessity for delaying supersonic prop tip speeds.

Some things in these games are just over exaggerated. The prop effects in CLoD are one of them. Its seems that effects like these are created by folks who have never spent any time around real life aircraft. There is a reason spinners and props are painted on some aircraft - to give a visual cue when spinning. Walking into a spinning prop is a real danger and has killed and maimed more then a few. For example:

Texas Model Has 'Long Road to Recovery' After Walking Into Plane Propeller

Another thing that bugs me about these games is the some of the sound effects - like hearing another plane near or behind you. But whatever it is a game...

Wotan

sad story to read...

Regarding the spinning effect, CoD seems to have been modified according to the usual chorus of experts here claiming that other games (WoP/RoF ?) had a "better effect".

Just like the moving head inside the cockpit and plenty others.

What about GA planes and casual flight? Well it depends of the light of the day but You clearly see the prop disc in front of you.

I like the spinning prop effect. That, and following tracer to its source are about the only reliable ways of locating aircraft that are climbing up on your low 6 o'clock position.

Sometimes you have to wonder whether the Dev. team actually tried the game before they released it on an unsuspecting public.......

Interesting. My Clod Spit flies best at rpm 2800 (at least pre patch - now it'll overheat in an instant).

Eng rpm is different from prop speed. The eng has to turn at a higher speed to help for the torque needed

Sure is ugly

3000rpm @ 0.477 = 1431rpm
3000rpm @ 0.42 = 1260rpm

Merlin X, XX, and 61 used 0.42 reduction ratio. All other double digit Merlins used 0.477 reduction ratio.

Exactly....

Even with today's advanced ANR headsets, you can't hear another airplane.


Usually you have to concentrate and you can barely see it. Certainly nothing like the overmodeled effects in these games.

I would've thought that a small engined microlite with a small diameter prop would have far higher rpms than a huge 27 litre v12 with a twelve foot prop (or whatever) personally, so the disc would be far less visible in a microlite than in say a (insert aircraft of your choice).

No it is not readily visible on any propeller aircraft.

In films you have the strobe effect which slows down the propeller and makes it visible. However, if you are in the cockpit or physically present, the propeller is not readily visible.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIRss...eature=related

Yes, I know. I have some time in a 172 and have been in the front seat of a Tiger Moth, so I'm aware of what people are saying. Not all of my experience is from videos, old chum. ;)

However, I've never sat in a Hurricane or Bf109, to compare.

Bigger, louder, much cooler, but still no readily visible propeller disc.

Yes. What I find particularly off-putting in the game, is at very low rpms, such as on final at say 80mph and in fine pitch, the prop blades are very visible, and with the sun behind causing a reflection off the blades, it's no wonder they introduced the game with an epilepsy filter.

Thing is, I've read some of those pilot's memoirs things which say that the prop blades were very visible in these conditions. At high rpm in the game, I don't notice a disc, but landing I do. This would seem to agree with pilot's anecdotes, but I've no experience of landing a big loud cool aircraft so don't know for sure. :)

BTW,

There is not much difference in the tip speeds for the propellers. The larger propeller requires gearing to reduce tip losses.

They are all traveling at a similar speed around the disc.

The blades are visible with the sun behind them. It is more of a shimmering effect though than seeing each blade individually.

I have never not been able to see the prop disc (during daylight) if looking for it. Sometimes it's more visible than others, obviously. The thing is, as a pilot, one's attention is, just maybe, elsewhere and consequently it goes unnoticed.


... unless the sun is on the other side at low rpm ... lol.

I agree. That is the key though, you have to look for it. It is not readily visible and is overdone in most of these games for drama effect.