Saturday - Santa Fe
Hi Dan -
I also have a new 7GCBC and absolutely can't stay out of it. But with only 125 hours to date, I can't give you CFI type of guidance. If you are new to conventional gear, please find a good competent instructor and fly with him or her for about 10 hours. It will dramatically enhance your post-instruction experience.
That being said, and remember that I am still learning every flight and every day:
When Flying Solo:
Landing
One notch will help bring the nose down just a tad and greatly aids in wheel landings.
One notch or two notches are normal for me for full-stall landings.
I'll go to three notches if the wind is up for the sole purpose of getting the plane slowed down to the lowest manageable speed at touchdown.
Takeoffs
If it's calm and I've got a nice long runaway - no flaps
If it's breezy - perhaps one or two notches just to get off the runway quickly
If it's a short runway - same as above for a breezy day.
Cruise
No flaps in normal cruise unless I purposely want to slow down to follow elk, etc.
But . . .
If circling let's say a herd of elk, I slow to 80MPH IAS, crank in one notch and make sure my nose doesn't drop as I'm circling the viewing object. My hand also never leaves the throttle as this is a known recipe for a fatal, close-to-earth stall.
Finally, I did the other day get down quite low looking for a famous UFO crash site north of Roswell, NM, ( I'm not joking, the state actually has this marked on its Official Aeronatical Chart ), and so that the ground wouldn't be just a blur, I powered back to 80MPH and cranked in 3 notches, which then allowed me to safely slow to well under 60MPH. If you do this, train yourself to add back power and take the flaps back out before making any sudden turns or banks lest you become a new "crash site" waypoint on your state's Aeronautical Chart without any of the panache of being an Alien.
So, that's my utterly newbie take on 7GCBC flaps. They are a priceless tool to have and give you lots of options in less-than-ideal (windy) conditions.
PS: I never did find the "UFO Crash Site" but there is an old IFR intersection named "XGAME" (V68 off CNX) in that exact area which I suspect is the FAA's humorous way of marking the spot.
Jim Robins
Santa Fe
N87VF
