[NSRCA-discussion] Visual wings level indicator?

[Dave]

Anthony,

Bummer about the botched lasik.

My eyes are also not the best, so my color scheme is designed to help that.

If not familiar with the concept of "gray scale", google it.  Basically, the
highest contrast is between black and white, and at distance, our eyes tend
to loose perception of color, but still see gray scale.  Things like red,
green, and blue all turn to black in the air - so the contrast between these
colors decreases with increased distance.

The fuse on my planes has a white stripe down the middle, and above/below is
red (this pretty much appears to be white/black in the air).  The wingtips
are white for the last 6-8".  When the wings are level, the white wingtips
pretty much disappear in the white strip on the fuse sides.  When the wings
aren't level, the white tips contrast with the red areas on the fuse sides.

Late in the evenings, when the light is weak, the LE of the white wingtips
is what I see the best when the plane is coming at me out of turnarounds.

Regards,

Dave Lockhart



-----Original Message-----
From: nsrca-discussion-bounces at lists.nsrca.org
[mailto:nsrca-discussion-bounces at lists.nsrca.org] On Behalf Of Anthony
Abdullah
Sent: Saturday, November 01, 2008 4:54 PM
To: General pattern discussion
Subject: [NSRCA-discussion] Visual wings level indicator?

I will never be mistaken for a world class pattern flyer. There are many
reasons for that, but the two bigggies are as follows;

1. I have three left thumbs, four of which are retarded. Other than
questionable math skills, practice will help me with this one to a degree.

2. After a Lasik surgery that went terribly wrong and several return visits
to the eye doctor, I just don't see very well, and practice doesn't seem to
be helping that. 

My biggest problem is telling when I am wings level at altitude just before
I enter a maneuver. I find myself practicing little work arounds like
dropping my inside wing then rolling back to what I think should be wings
level. In the end I enter and exit a LOT of maneuvers without my wings
level.

I was wondering if there was something I could do with the color scheme of
my new airplane to help me determine when the wings were level or very close
to it. What I was thinking was some kind of high vis, or low vis (as long as
there is contrast) shape on the wing tip. In my mind I see a concept like
lining up the sights of a rifle where when the wings were level from the
ground view I would see a solid color or a certain amount of a high vis
color that lets me know that my wings are level.

I know there are a ton of variables like altitude, light levels, heading,
etc, but having an additional clue that would be visible at "normal" pattern
altitude would be great. Something I can get used to seeing that would let
me know I am just about there.

Has anyone ever experimented with something like this before? What are the
best colors and shapes to use? Is the whole idea a waste of time? All
thoughts are welcome.

Thanks for your input.
Anthony  
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