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2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 12:40:47 AM   
zeeshan


 

Posts: 203
Joined: 2/4/2004
From: london, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		with my aerohawk all stock and well trimmed i can hover fairly well but the only prblem is the battery will die down after about 2 minutes of hovering(or trying to hover) and then the helicopter dose not have substancal amount of power to lift enough so that i can get good control i was thinking of going liPo but dont know wher to get them from and which ones i think my stock battery maybe broken or somthing is wrong with it maybe short circuted. also i have heard about this 5 amp quick fuse i dea from jbalt i think it is can you please inform me more on this i think i wuold like to use one
thank you
zeeshan
       Post #: 1

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 1:21:50 AM   
yukonho


 

Posts: 97
Joined: 3/29/2004
From: montreal, QC, CANADA
Status: offline 		If you only get 2 minutes runtime, something is wrong.
First of all, NiMh cells take several cycles to get up to full capacity. If they are new cells give them some time.
Second, check every single place on the heli that can cause drag or friction.
Gear mesh for main and tail motors is the first thing to check.
Check to see everything turns VERY freely with no binding at all.
Check flybar paddles for alignment.
If your main or tail motor or batteries are old, they may be the problem as well.
Take your time and go over everything,
co

_____________________________

So, we're on our bikes and we're goin' like90 down this hill. Then this heli comes out of nowhere and gets stuck in my front

(in reply to zeeshan)
       Post #: 2

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 12:42:36 PM   
zeeshan


 

Posts: 203
Joined: 2/4/2004
From: london, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		yes i have checked all of that stuff before and the battery isnt new its been run in and well used.

(in reply to yukonho)
       Post #: 3

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 1:31:56 PM   
jackclarke


 

Posts: 39
Joined: 3/21/2004
From: Aachen, GERMANY
Status: offline 		As a two week old "newbie" - its inspiring to hear 2 minute hovers are possible with the Aerohawk since I'm still in the 10-15 second stage. For comparison - I'm also noticing a fairly rapid depletion of battery power after a dozen or so tries. I would have guessed 5 minutes of uninterrupted flying would be a "worse-case" drain on the battery - but since I'm still 4.75 minutes away from being able to test that theory - it's only a guess. For comparison purposes, I'm using a fast charger (15 minutes) with two NiMH battery packs. There does not appear to be any noticeable difference in running time between the two packs. Excessive friction wise - there appears to be magnetic "notching" from the motor - but just to make sure that was the only source of friction - I ended removing the main gear. Note: Caution advised when reinserting the lock pin through the hub of the main gear.

Perhaps you could share some of your success stategy? How big an area do you fly in? Do you have a certain practice regimen you follow? Most of all - how do you keep it stable for two minutes ?? That must seem like two hours! Hover wise - I found "popping" it up in the air was a lot easier than trying to ease it off the ground. That way if it was not trimmed properly I could throttle all the way back IMMEDIATELY without a hard landing. If it appeared reasonably stable - I would throttle back but not all the way - and amazingly I found it would pretty much hover by itself for a few seconds and give a me a little hands-on yaw control practice. Cyclic control is a whole different beast !!

(in reply to zeeshan)
       Post #: 4

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 1:53:38 PM   
zeeshan


 

Posts: 203
Joined: 2/4/2004
From: london, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		i dont hover out the whole 2 minutes i fly them out lolz well what i was trying to say was that the battery pack after about 2 minutes dies down and ther isnt that BANG effect that it can lift off so easily instead you have to try your hardest and the rest of the battery pack time is more or less useless. to keep it in a stable hover i somtime launch it from my hand i keep my fingers round the skids (very hard for me got samll hands only 12 lolz) and try to see where it wants to go then i counter act that with the trim tabs and if thats not enought then i somtimes use the cyclic but i wouldnt reccomend that then i power up a bit more and let it a little less on my hand i puush nit up and then it usually drops a fett or a bit then i get it in a nice hover . keep on hoverin and tell us how you get on thanks

(in reply to jackclarke)
       Post #: 5

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 1:56:25 PM   
zeeshan


 

Posts: 203
Joined: 2/4/2004
From: london, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		also forgot to add i dont have a any big room fairly small with lots of abstuctions so what i do is move them and when i am taking of from the floor i can t just push it up in to the air dont have enough space so i ease it up with right cyclic and that works for me i was flying from my bed to my brothers yesterday its so fun to watch it.

(in reply to zeeshan)
       Post #: 6

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 2:28:16 PM   
lineman55



Posts: 62
Joined: 2/29/2004
From: West Haven, CT, USA
Status: offline 		Remember this when your trying to get it off the ground.."anticipate..dont compensate".
It usually is too late to gain control if you are trying to compensate and you end up chasing it all over the ground.
You will find it much easier to control if you can anticipate its next move up and out of "Ground effect' (rotor downwash)
Keep at it..it will get easier.
Cheers

(in reply to zeeshan)
       Post #: 7

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 6:54:45 PM   
yukonho


 

Posts: 97
Joined: 3/29/2004
From: montreal, QC, CANADA
Status: offline 		OK,
If you are still having troubles, I have a few more ideas.
Hows your charger? what type of charger are you using? How long does it take to charge the cells? Do you have access to an Ammeter to check the current draw of your heli?
Is this a new problem or has it always been this way? My NiMh cells worked great and then just died. All 3 packs at the same time. So it could be your cells or charger. You need to see what current your heli is pulling. If you have access to another battery pack or charger, try them.
Answer the questions I asked here and let me know how it goes with different batteries or charger.
co

_____________________________

So, we're on our bikes and we're goin' like90 down this hill. Then this heli comes out of nowhere and gets stuck in my front

(in reply to lineman55)
       Post #: 8

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/11/2004 7:53:48 PM   
zeeshan


 

Posts: 203
Joined: 2/4/2004
From: london, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		im using the standerd charger 350 mA is what it says in mint condition also i have no way of checking and this problem hasnt allways been hear it has just come recently since i have started flying my helicopter more frequently also i am planing to get a liPo here is the one i have in mind its a kokam 2 ell 7.4 volt 1500 mAh i think if i can ask what is the mAh because a 1200 mAh is a bit less that the 15oo so what is the difrencce thank you for your input you have benn very helpfull.

(in reply to yukonho)
       Post #: 9

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/12/2004 12:05:51 AM   
quaker1


 

Posts: 287
Joined: 1/18/2004
From: , UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		Lipo isnt the be all and end all, they are excellent but you need to find the problem first. When the battery doesnt have enough power to lift anymore does the tail go a little crazy(this is a sign of low voltage). If it does then I sugest a battery fault, if it doesnt then you could have a main motor problem.

A 2s lipo will only have a voltage of about 7.4 ish volts as opposed to your 8.4, I imagine when your heli wont lift anymore the voltage will have dropped to about 7 volts.
Once youve got about 6 mins on the standard battery(time it) then you know things are working fairly ok.

One thing that will help flight time is to put a very thin washer with an overall diameter of about 4mm underneath the lower main shaft bearing on top of the main gear. This bearing holds the entire weight of the helicopter and the friction between the main gear and the outer bearing is quite high.

Good luck.

(in reply to zeeshan)
       Post #: 10

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/12/2004 1:55:36 AM   
lineman55



Posts: 62
Joined: 2/29/2004
From: West Haven, CT, USA
Status: offline 		Look into investing in a good charger if you plan in going for the long haul with this hobby.
As you grow with experience and develope expensive taste with the newer and improved birds
you will most definitly need and be glad that you made this investment.
I myself bought the Greatplanes Triton model.
It covers all bases and that ends my "will I be able to charge that "question.
$129.00

Cheers!

(in reply to quaker1)
       Post #: 11

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/12/2004 6:30:32 AM   
Xperimental


 

Posts: 99
Joined: 1/28/2004
From: balikpapankaltim, INDONESIA
Status: offline 		I think my tail problem (when full throttle, the tail loses rpm instead of increasing rpm) is due to the battery. When i checked my multimeter, everything is fine (the higher the throttle, the higher the voltage and amps). Also when i detached my main blade, the tail will respond normally. It starts getting problems when i attach my main blade (causing the main motor to use more amps and voltage for torque) causing it to suck amps and voltage from tail motor.

We really have to get good rechargers. I've overcharged mine (2 sets) often because they have different duration of charges depending on how much you've used the batteries recently.

(in reply to lineman55)
       Post #: 12

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/12/2004 11:57:40 AM   
zeeshan


 

Posts: 203
Joined: 2/4/2004
From: london, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		ues my tail starts to wobble and some glitching some times occur also another thing i have noticed is that i have to use the battery while it is hot otherwise its dead hardly any power

(in reply to Xperimental)
       Post #: 13

RE: 2 minute flight times - 4/12/2004 3:07:09 PM   
helisfreak