Just wanted to say that I approve of the Esky 3d. I haven't flown it much so far but it seems like a very good flier... I got to open it a day early b/c my mom is working tomorrow =). I managed to do some 'hops' and I'm on morphine.... (got my tonsils out yesterday). Merry Christmas all!

morphine? For tonsils.What ever happened to ice cream?Are u hopping , or the heli ? Just kidding,Merry Christmas,and happy hopping.

lol,

yeah, please be sure you are so high like an airbus flying trough the clouds,
and please send of a video that shows your flying skills (lol)[&:]

Kurt

Congrats!
If you are just starting out with hops, you might want to read [link=http://www.dream-models.com/eco/flying-index.html]Radds[/link]. It will help you get through the beginning with minimal damage.

Radd's is for wusses =p I did follow it some, till they kicked me out of the living room (only place in house with hardwood floor) ... now I hop

I also tried to follow RADDS.It just dont seem to work with the hb 3d.That thing slides left no matter what,unless a quick jab of power to get out of ground effect,then panic & drop -thus the dreaded HOP.Plus i keep having boot camp flash backs.

I've been feeling more confident and I've tried to go higher than a hop, but my HB2 doesn't seemt o have the power? I ordered some carbon fiber blades, lets see what happens I guess. Oh, btw, my HB2 has taken a beating =).

Poll,

You say it seems like it doesn't have the power to lift off.... Is it loosing head speed or do you have plenty but yet at full stick it won't climb out? We had plenty of head speed on ours yet it wasn't lifting off with authority. We disconnected the three ball joints on the swashplate coming from the servos and shortened them by turning the joints clockwise 1.5 turns. It lifted off much earlier on the next flight but we had to cut it short due to windy conditions. We look forward to trying again this week when the weather forecast is predicting better weather.

Wade

That was pretty much it, not lifting off with authority... hmmm, if these blades don't work (hoping they'll have more lift to em) I'll try that trick.

I agree the hb2 3d is a solid machine...
I hovered a concept in past so I'm re-discovering the feel.. But out of the box (with a little weight check) hovered with only a little down and left... A quick few turns on the connecting rods and BAAM... solid hover with only minor correction...

OH -- I think my wife will kick me out of the living room soon..
Getting about 20+ Min on the Li-ion... 1800ma...

I think my first upgrade will be dual tail motors or direct drive? ANY SUGGESTIONS?

A few questions if I may... What do you mean by a few quick turns on the connecting rods? Are these the rods that attach the servos to the main rotor? If so, what effects are produced by turning them clockwise and counter-clockwise?

I wish I had a suggestion to answer your direct drive or tail motor question, I have the same dilemma in deciding which to purchase, the Dragonfly 22A CP or the HB2 CP...

Thanks in advance!

[/quote]

A few questions if I may... What do you mean by a few quick turns on the connecting rods? Are these the rods that attach the servos to the main rotor? If so, what effects are produced by turning them clockwise and counter-clockwise?

[/quote]

Yes the rods that attach the servos...
I had to trim full left to hover (trim not stick) ... put 2 turns (clockwise) on the left rod to shorten....

I also put 1 turn (clockwise) in on all 3 to lower plate... This increased pitch and gave me a better pitch curve at 1/2 stick....

I discovered the dreaded "slide left" issue with the Esky 3D. With training gear on I found I could get it *just* prior to takeoff (skids off, right side of training gear scraping ground) and then could center it using right cyclic. If you can keep it withing a 2ft box in ground effect, then the next stage is *easy*. About then is when I abandoned Rudd, but never got to the dreaded "hop and hope". I would have broken many blades without training gear! Using this method I find it hard to see how so many break landing skids while hovering. (I expect this will come when I get it above 2M!)

Those skids are pieces of crap I broke them with a light landing.. ...... , I made my own by cutting off original skids (I kept the bars that come down from heli) and drilling holes in two pieces of wood, also sanding them down so they look like skids and then spray painted them black, look pretty slick, and don't break all the time =).

Quick Fix for Skids...

I super glued my skids back on then wrapped with sewing thread... a drop over the thread...
Haven't had another problem...

Thread acts like fiber reinforcement....
Just an FYI..

They even held during crash that bend the main shaft...

Wussies?????........why I oughta!!.......

some students dont appreciate the humor.....But for ones that dont like the discipline.......I HAVE TO TAKE THEM OUT BACK AND SLAP THEM AROUND A LITTLE......

now?.......which one are you??.....


wussie???......umph!.......why I never!!.....

pileit...It surely can be done.....at first it may seem harder than balancing a penny on a pencil lead but once your focus becomes pin point its just as exciting as your first hover...

A very revealing truth is the fact that even seasoned pilots find it very hard to do...But when a newbie masters it, his very first hover can be as much as 60 seconds....and by the next battery he will land only a few times.....

The concentration is enormous,exciting and incredibly rewarding...

Plus......and you'll have to trust me on this....(well? I guess you could ask any of my flyers)....I have taught many many pilots....and in some cases two at one time....and.....have never had one crash before they had a stable hover.....and in my book ...thats proof enough.....

But hey?....if you dont believe me.....well.....uh.....

I'LL CRUSH YOUR HELICOPTER WITH MY FOOT IF I SEE YOU........LOL.......just kidding..

I don't get it?

Radd has a heli guide that's awesome, earlier i put Radd's is for wusses... =). Radd's does help a lot though... especially the fear you have at first.

I just want to say thanks Radd for your training method. I may not have followed it exactly, but I'm sure without it I would have taken longer and spent more. You are probably responsible for many crash spares not being sold! (Do you get sh*t from vendors? :-) )
RE. My Esky 3D: I am going to shelve it and get a FP dragonfly from Like90. The thing is just too "Jeckyl and Hyde". One day I get 4 packs of stable hover, the next it yoyos, then next the trim seems way out and cyclic is unpredictable. I smell citrus!
I'm going to get all the orientations right and get some FF before going CP, and then it'll be a Trex.
Esky was great for learning mechanicals and such, but now I want more flying! (I must land on furniture!)

ozandy...Sounds strange I know.. but....are you placing you battery on the bird exactly the same everytime....they are very sensative to CG...

Unless something in the linkage is wobbly and worn out I would say something has to be moving on you...like your fly bar?......but first make sure your battery is loaded in the same place front to back and side to side....and then trim it well....take two asprin and call me after the third fllight...

Radd, I've been pretty careful to mount the batt the same each time. I had to create a special mount to get it forward far enough. Before every flight I pick it up by the rotor head and ensure the skids come off the table evenly. I guess this is only accurate to within a 1/2cm or so, but I thought this was sufficient? I've also balanced the blades before mounting and after every significant crash, and I check the paddles often (CAd flat).
The crunch came for me when, about 1 minute into the 3rd pack for the evening it suddenly launched itself at me at eye level wobbling like a hula dancer. Full forward cyclic slowed, but did not stop it, so I had to dump it into the floor. Not much damage (ball link on blade grip, CA'd back), but the swash had seperated, which I suspect may have caused the loss of control. After disassembly, fixed swash (CAd back together) and reassembly it just did not fly right. (very inconsistant)
I think some of this is due to the fact that I have disassembled things just too often and the soft plastic bits are now too rough to work correctly. Heli maintanance is fun, but just as I was enjoying flying more than fixing I am again in "debug" mode instead of "flight training" mode. Hence the move to FP until I need the abilities of CP.
The shame is that a week ago I was loving this heli.

If you've operated on your bird too much then you should see a wobble or sloppiness in the parts...Somehow I dont think its worn out....and it does sound like you swash seperated....you'll be surprised what you uncover if you just sit for a while and stare at things...

FP's are carefree and fun...But dont give up just yet on your heli....It can do bad things to your pride....Remember...they are only pieces of plastic and what -not...if its mechanical it can be replaced.....(Not upgraded....)....

There have been times in my frustration that I pretended my micro was like building a ship in a bottle....checking each piece under a magnifying glass as if it were on a pair of twizzers.....just as frustrated as you are now...remember....when you discover the problem you will feel like a king!!.....and it will be more than worth it....

My flying lessons have helped many thousands....but ...hardly any of them will believe that they were written from success after many heartbreaking failures.....( they still get around 300 hits a day from people learning to fly)...

I am not going to completely give up on the Esky, just shelve it for a while. I have had a few "Eureka!" moments, but this bird seems to require them weekly! Given I am stuck indoors in a pretty tight area, the FP is the best use of my time for now.
I used to teach skydiving, and The Radd lessons are reminiscent of the course structure: Heading control, hover control, limited fwd movement, etc. Crawl before walk is necessary!