DKhairho

Normally I don't let anything get me to the point of wanting to throw money away but I just put my Axe CP on the market. I haven't even gotten it off the ground yet! I been in the RC world for 20 years now dealing with electric and nitro autos. I thought that getting into flight would be the next best thing. I went to my LHS and asked around for the best heli for a newbie with upgradable options and easy flight. Hands down they sales guys agreed that the Axe CP was the one to buy. I haven't even gotten the thing more than 3 inches up. It drifts and goes everywhere but where I want it to. I'm good with trimming due to my past experience but the sensitive controls are killing me. Should I give up on this hobby and stick to boats and cars?

What advice is out there for me to get into the heli game?

JSU77

Don't give up. I am also new to heli's and was having the same trouble that you are describing. I read on here that the heli will settle down by adding 1/16 inch wheel collars flush with the paddles on the flybar, and it really did. I can now hover. It also damped vibration. Give this a try and I think that you will start enjoying yourself.

osterizer

There are any number of tweaks and upgrades you can use to make it easier to fly or more aerobatic, either. The best thing is to take a deep breath and ask if you want to spend some time on it. Flying helis takes a lot of effort to get over the first hump-- being able to get it in the air and keep it there without breaking it --and no matter how friendly the helis flight characteristics you have to learn a lot at one time to get airborne.

You may have gotten into it while missing a bit of information, but you've come to the right place to help fill in the blanks. There are a lot of threads with stories and advice on getting started, and info on practice regimes (e.g. http://www.dream-models.com/eco/index.html - a little enthusiastic, shall we say, but effective) and every aspect of little helis.

The one piece of advice to start on, though, is not to rush it, try not to be impatient. Read up on your heli and general questions about learning, search on things that interest you, and you'll understand a lot more. Understanding why it skitters around on the ground (and how to counteract it) will lead to other questions, which you'll also find answers to. Helicopters are a continuous learning experience-- unusual, counterintuitive, difficult to master and incredibly satisfying.

HTH

I.C.O.N.

My Feedback: (1)

Do you have a Sim... THAT is the best heli for a beginner... Hands Down!

The reason it is drifting so much is that you are only 3" above the ground. You are getting caught up in the rotor wash and it is tossing you all over the plance. Even after learning to hover in all orientations I have a hard time holding it that low in one place.

I tried a CP heli first... Wanted to give up but instead got a CX to learn the orientations and then G3. Saved a LOT of money. By the time I got back to the CP heli it was still challenging but at least manageable.

Although many people have learned on a CP heli alone. I am not saying you can't do it. but it will take a lot of patience.

[link=http://www.dream-models.com/eco/flying-index.html]I learned a lot from this as well.[/link] Follow Radd's steps and you will be on your way. It is hard to follow all the steps. But well worth it!

Good luck!
Andy

DKhairho

Thanks for all the help! This is the main reason I joined RCU. I had been reading tips given for my other RC's and they have been effective so I will give these heli tips a try and hopefully the next time you hear from me, I'll have a smiley face in my message!


"Sky's the limit but the gravity is unforgiving!"





Factory Team TC3, HPI H'Fire, Heli-Max Axe CP, and Miss Vegas!!!
I'll meet you like the military. On land, air, or sea!

thestratcat

My Feedback: (12)

hey dude... it sucks.. but play with your CP on the ground for more battery packs than you can count! keep doing it, don't try to lift off, but get a feel for it. Along with that, the simulator helps a lot too. I messed up a CP pretty bad, got it rebuilt and decided to add my computer to the mess and keep that sucker on the ground. I did this for 20 packs I think, along with an hour (at least) of sim time an evening, at the end of the packs, I did lift it off successfully with training gear. I then cycled an additional 15 packs before I removed the gear and again had successful flights...

then I crashed!

DKhairho

Well I tried getting my grouind controls together before I took air and I was brave enough to take up about 2 feet did, ok but no trophy yet. I am getting a little more confident though. I just need to keep remembering that it's not a rc car and be more sensitive on the controls. I think that's where my problems are. Every time I get air and it drifts I either have a hard landing or go hard left. The training gear is really a great help. I'd probably be out of hundreds of dollars without it!

osterizer

I had the same experience starting up with helicopters. Most cars and f/w planes need higher speeds to execute abrupt maneuvers; helicopters, on the other hand, have their full control authority as soon as the rotors are up to speed. With a fast car, you have to reduce the amount of control effort you exert the faster the car goes, but with the heli, it's like you start off going 40 mph before you come off the ground.

If you're just hovering in still air, you can finish an entire flight without moving the cyclic or rudder control more than 1/4" from center, and throttle control in hover feels more like just modulating a light pressure on the stick, not actually moving it. In maneuvering flight you use more control throw, of course, but you'll be surprised at how little more is required for most flying. Fixed-wing planes benefit from smoothness, also, but with helicopters it's not just beneficial, it's necessary.

The upside is that it doesn't take a long time to get there, just focus and practice-- most people (me included) got their first real buzz from a helicopter with that first solid hover, where the heli is just sitting in the air and they're not chasing it around any more. Learning to fly (heli or fixed wing) provides a series of milestones like that, over and above the enjoyment of flying maneuvers that you already know.

s_mcflurry

You bought 19 additional NiMH battery packs? That's dedication right there!

osterizer

34, actually. I wish I had that many.

s_mcflurry

Wow. I am blown away! So how many chargers did you guys buy? I only bought one extra NiMH battery. For some reason I feel like I'm missing out on a crucial part of this chopper experience... [sm=71_71.gif]

thestratcat

My Feedback: (12)

you clowns!!!

I have three packs, each time I ran one down, I put a mark on the pack to keep track of how many I'd used... then I added the total marks to get the packs flown..

123Splat

Dkhairho,

Don't give up, man! I'm an old fart and I'm learning. As you should be able to tell by now, the brother hood is composed mostly of lunatics (o.k. maybe totally, but you are one of them now). Some of the best advice and knowledge is available right here.

You sound like you're having the same probs that I started out with. Look for ways to dumb the bird down. A heavier bird will appear to be more stable, bigger battery could help there. Also, if you are not intent to go flying around upside down all the time, try flat bottom blades. They say that JCS Plastic blades are heavier and he makes a flat bottom ver for the Axe (checkout the Alternative Axe parts thread). Weights on the FlyBar (all the way out to the paddles) make the cyclic more sluggish. You should put a good deal of effort into learning what you can (or, finding someone local who has the experience and is willing to) do to mechanically trim and balance the bird. Heading Hold mod to my Axe got me off the ground (shure is a lot easier if you don't have to 'fly the tail' while trying to stabilize drift).

I don't, by any means, claim to even be qualified to be called a pilot, much less a GOOD pilot, but using some of the above got me off the ground and THAT's WHERE THE FUN BEGINS!

Take it slow, get you birrd trimmed as best you can, keep after it.

Use everything you can to help you get the best of the bird, it has a mind of its own and must be beatten into submission (I do this by bashing it into the ground when it gets too frisky).

Good luck and have fun.

PilotLight

My Feedback: (1)

The fact that it is difficult to fly is what makes it sooo gratifying when you get it right. You could have started out with an easier heli or gone into Planes first, but I still think the Axe is a great starter. All the previous airplane flying didn't really help me too much, as it felt like starting over with Heli flying.

Hang in there, it'll get better. Don't do anything you're not ready for. I haven't crashed for about 2 months until yesterday. $6 in parts and I'll be ready to go again. Airplanes usually can't be rebuilt, because they're glued together. That's what's great about this Axe CP!

FLY CRASH FLY CRASH FLY FLY FLY CRASH FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY CRASH FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY FLY...

s_mcflurry

Yeah, it's great! It's man versus machine and to finally have it hover...ah...what a feeling. So I do encourage you to stick with it. If you like pouring over details and the satisfaction in seeing that work pay off, R/C helicopters are for you. That's the sort of mentality I have and try to maintain and it's been a great ride so far. After a couple months of flying it in my patio, I finally took it outside yesterday. Quite the battle it was. The skies were angry, my friends..."like an old man trying to send back soup in a deli." But I did it - I ran down an entire battery without any crashes.

Try to keep it at that 2 feet and you should be okay. Flybar weights, as 123Splat mentioned, and/or moving the servo links will also help a lot because it calms the Axe down quite a bit. After about 2 weeks of this your confidence shoots way up. Dkhairho, I believe in you man!

thestratcat

My Feedback: (12)

you know guys, now that I can actually hover, I'm pretty happy with that, I find it relaxing, I guess the idea of mastering the machine is what does it, but this is part of RC is alright! Crashes and rebuilds included.. just what I need after a day at work!

DKhairho, they've given you some great advice in this thread, we'll see you posting your own thread saying that you finally got it going soon! just hang in there dude [sm=bananahead.gif]

oh yeah, to confirm something said earlier, the JCS blades help a lot, along with a set of wheel collars on your flybar and Axe CP flybar weights, this really calms the beast..

s_mcflurry

Oh, whew...for a second there I thought you spent $600+ on batteries alone... [sm=shades_smile.gif]

DKhairho

Wow my LHS has nothing on all the advice I got from all of you! I think they like to see me coming in to spend more money of parts, matter of fact I know they do because they get happy when I come through. The flybar weights sound like they will help a great deal. I'm going to try that before I invest in some new heli-max blades because I just bought some the other day. Hey did you guys know that a good crash can get you 2 new pairs of chop stix? [sm=wink_smile.gif]


Thanks for all the help. Never knew I'd get this much love and make so many friends over the internet. My wife that I was chatting with a HOTTIE!

osterizer

, yes, we've seen some doozies from LHS guys-- one of the places local to me is made up of mostly folks that do cars exclusively. Cars are a lot of fun, too, but I can't imagine the advice they give helicopter neophytes. Apples and oranges, but they can't just say they don't know anything about what they sell.

Do take a good shot at Radd's routine-- as I said, it's a bit offbeat, but the lessons he's getting across are strong, and if you follow the routine you'll get to a hover with at most minor damage.

Luck, DK.

DKhairho

Ok guys I got up to a 2 feet hover 30 second. Didn't last long but I am getting much better at controlling drift. Still not ready for out doors, but at least I am gaining confidence. I am still going to try the flybar weights but for now I am just glad my heli is almost loveable!

I even got one "soft" landing in!!!

osterizer

Excellent, DK. Feels good, too, doesn't it? Most of the people reading this thread are either looking forward to making the same progress or enjoying reliving the steps you're making. Both groups are looking forward to the next installlment, so keep it coming

DKhairho

I will.

Thanks all for the continuos encouragement.

thestratcat

My Feedback: (12)

right on man!! 2 feet for 30 seconds... next thing you know, you'll put that sucker two feet in the air and what seems like 30 seconds will be the entire length of the battery... then you'll realize "whew, finally, I've done it!"


and then of course upon that realization, gravity will take effect again and cause you to crash (just kidding)

123Splat

Two foot hover, INDOORS?, for THIRTY WHOLE SECONDS? Man, You've Aced it! Thirty seconds is a life time.. And indoors! Unless you're flying in the Astrodome, you have to contend with all kinds of air currents just to keep it off the wall (I had pretty much given up on that and just tried to plow through the wall a couple of times!) I took mine outside, got her up a few feet, along comes the cat, out of nowhere, training (years ago) and instinct (also old, and feeble)! "Pull UP on EVERYTHING" (that's more Collective & Back Peddal the Cyclic) I tells meself, "Don't you hurt that cat" the wife tells me (WHUT? darned thing 's trying to KILL my helicopter!). Get the Axe back to Earth, mostly in one piece and no kitty fur involved. Chase cat into the house. Get that miserable Blade CP out to see what I can do with it. Oh, SO COOL, goe it up 3-4 feet, rocking back and forth, but the tail's stable and my thumbs are actually working right, mostly. Try to do a tail in circle, square, well just move the damn bird in a closed circuit, under control. Doing o.k.

Out of nowhere comes the cat again... Now, I did not spend that much on the used Blade, so no real harm done if I loose it. But, those rotors are vicious and wife will murder me if cat jumps heli and gets wacked by the rotors.... oh well,

It's like stop motion, cat's about four feet up in the air, bird is about four to six inches below cat and alittle ahead, I'm standing there trying to rationalize why God has put me in this situation and what I could possiblly do about it, ,,, and there is wife, frozen in a cross between running after me with some kitchen implement and having a coronary. I love my wife and hope, especially at this moment, that she feels the same for me, I even have to say that I am somewhat patrial to the cat... Why me, Lord?

A stroke of genius, the culmination of millions of years of human evolution, brain says "hey stupid, get back on track here, "heli in air' moves faster and is more agile than 'cat in air'... solution: move the damn helicopter out of the way, let cat fall gently back to Earth." I say "duh, yeah, sounds right, , , , I think I'll give it a try!

Attention! Thumbs Righjt!

Eureka!,,

Splat, smack into brick wall of house, at full velocity. Actually hits, bounces off and hits again (probablly, just to make sure that EVERYTHING is broken).

I'm not deterred, I still want to Fly! Fly Helicopters!

I have, however, decided to broaden my R/C experience. I'm looking into R/C tanks, to play with the cat, they even make 'em (tanks, not cats) that shoot 6mm BB's........ he he he he

DK, we're proud of ya! Keep it up. wait for a really calm day and move out to the back yard. Just make sure the pets are all pinned up........

DKhairho

Funny story. Well I have a German Shephard and he wants no parts of the heli. That and my music equipment are the only things that he won't chew on! I think the wind from the heli and the loudness of the music are too much for him!

Any who, back to the heli.

I put a couple more weights on the flybar and did notice ease and stability in getting up a little. I am just dumb founded when it comes to keeping her going the way I want her too. Yeah I can bring her down ok but the man on the AXE DVD made the forward facing circles look easy. I look like I'm FUI ( Flying Under the Influence ). I'm still land hard out fear of crashing when I loose direction. i tried everything from trim adjustments to tail rotor movement and tilts. I wish I could meet someone near me to teach me hands on.

I can tell ya that the stock battery life is trash! I did the combo order from Tower but they are back ordered on the Lipos so I got to wait until "Mid June" instead of "Mid May" like it stated when I first ordered the heli. I am so tempted to Take the heli up about 6 feet and see what I can do with her but I'd hate to have to clean up "road kill" in the aftermath. [&:]