I think i have the sticky collective - but i'm getting used to this thing (long ways to go mind you...). If i'm not up to reversing the washers, will the collective eventually loosen up?

I also seem to be having some receiver issues...a couple of times my blade would spin up to full throttle no matter what I was doing - or so i thought. Eventually I realized that for some reason it was taking my L/R collective input as throttle inputs. Fiddled with the 4-in-1 a bit (checking the connections etc) and it seemed to behave after that.

Also I got a new set of main blades (flats) - they are already showing the first tiny cracks at the edges (from the grass or whatever) - should I be repairing these cracks with tiny bits of tape or glue before they get worse and the covering starts to peel..any suggestions in this matter?

I've got my training gear back on but had some issues there too - kept flying apart. I took the tubing pieces on the inside of the poles and moved them up past the brackets so that the stilts couldn't pop out of the that center thing. Then to keep the balls from sliding inside I wrapped small bits of tape an inch or so on the inside of the stilt. Seems to work okay - it's still flexible, but doesn't fly apart instantly upon hitting the ground.

wgp:
the sticky collective will not go away.. or until the spindle bolts come loose and your main blades + grips come flying off the rotor head. Its a very simple thing to do, and your cheating yourself of how it performs if you dont, Especially if your a new heli pilot, Heli's are unpredictable to begin with, by having the collective do what it pleases, it only adds to the frustration of learning how to hover.
If you are going to patch the ends of the heat shrink on the main blades, do it in the smallest way possible, CA or Tape, and try to match the other blade exactly the same as possible as not to throw off the balance of the rotor head too much.

I just maidened mine, and after hearing everyone tell me how hard it was gonna be, i found it quite easy to hover.

I skipped the step about scooting around without lifting off and just throttled up and took off. Hovered for about 10 seconds, then put it down. Spent the first battery just hovering, and second flight i moved into forward flight, just doing laps around my yard and figure 8's under the trees.

3rd flight i turned a 5 gallon bucket upside down and landed on that a few times, landed on the roof of the car, wove around stuff in the driveway, but this was at 9:30, so it was kinda dark.

I flew in the living room a little on the second flight, just to see how different it was in perfectly still air.

I have an aerobatic kit on backorder, and cant wait for it. It's really tempting to put it inverted, but i dont think it will hold altitude.

This is the first heli i ever flew, and i really like it! I cant wait to fly something with a driven tail though[:'(] trimming the tail rotor as the battery dies is annoying


Heli's are fun though!!

I totally envy you Mud. You're makin' this sound too easy =)

Nice hangar though, I can see why it was easy to go from a 3d plane to a heli, you've already got enough prior experience to give you a headstart

I have my proportional cranked pretty high so it stays true in climbout, so its not right from the beginning of the battery.. by the time I get to the end of the battery, the gyro gets real squirley, and the trim on the tail is back to center for the final set down. Sometimes, its all its got left to land it clean..

i flew it 3 more times today, I got alot better at hovering, and towards the end it was blowing about 5 mph straight towards me, and i am learning how to correct for wind.

Then i took it up and started doing some figure 8's, (this was the 1st flight, 4th overall) and this was the first time i had enough room to really fly forwards, so i found out how fast it goes... pretty fast. This little thing moves around pretty well. I was flying the 8's, and someone came up behind me and said "you been flying heli's a few years right? cuz you're doing really good for it being such a small electric" and i said "nope, first flight was last night, this is my 4th flight on a heli"

I am also doing more spot landing, this time i used the top piece of the white foam that it comes in, but it blew away from the rotor wash

the 3rd flight i did today, i went up to about 75 feet, and turned kinda hard, not really though, and swung the tail rotor around, and the rotor came separated from that big black gear, and it stopped spinning, and it just spun around and around until it hit the ground, pretty hard.

So i took it home, and glued all that broke, 1 skid holder lol. This thing is tough, i've had alot of blade strikes on the ground when landing on grass, and they are holding up pretty well.

Question, Would i be able to use the symmetrical carbon blades without the aerobatic upgrade kit? id like to put them on to fly around until the hop ups come.

Thanks!
Scott

A heli pilots nightmare, losing the tail.. ewwww....Yeah that little piece of gas hose that holds the tail rotor is nice for beginners so it flys apart if you strike it, it needs to be checked before every flight. For better piece of mind it can be replaced with a small retaining collet, I dont know the diameter of the tail shaft, I just happen to have had one in my little box of goodies that fit. As far as the carbon sym blades on the 10t pinion of the stock motor, I'm sure it'll fly though you may not have the power without the gear reduction to use them to their full potential, and the added strain on the motor may heat it up a little more than normal.

Okay i got a problem here - the heli just wants to go left, I cannot seem to make it go right or hardly go forward/backward. If I push right all the way I can sometimes hold it steady, but I can't seem to control it's direction - note that this is still on the ground dragging around on training gear.

Any ideas on what might be the problem?

Also at full throttle it just doesn't seem to want to fly - is this all a sticky collective - I mean I might have the sticky collective problem - but I'm too new to know what i'm doing wrong. Also I cant' seem to find any good info (with pictures!!) on how to do that washer change...just too daunting with all those parts!

does it want to Tip left, or Turn left? As far as the Daunting part, Welcome to the world of RC helicopters.. you can refer to your manual the blade came with, there is an exploded view of every single piece its made of and where it belongs. Piece (039) and (040) just need to be swapped in their position, both sides inside the blade grips. You will need 2 of the appropriate hex keys to get it apart, and it can be done while in the heli itself. Make sure you pay attention to the order of the washers that seperate the bearing and the o ring, after carefully removing the spindle you will need to hold it to get the other bolt loose, do this carefully with pliers and a rag protecting the spindle, or a vice making sure you dont bugger it up, squash it, or alter its shape and smoothness in any way shape or form. Then put it all back together with a medium grade loctite applying the loctite with the head of a pin so it doesnt gush all over everything. Then afterwards, reward yourself with a nice frosty beverage of your choosing..

If your heli is spinning left and you can't seem to get the trim dialed in its probably time for a new tail motor. I've had this happen a couple times. The tail just gets to the point where it can't keep up. I'll change the tail motor and it's all better. I just wished those little motors lasted longer.

a helicopter can 'go' left in more than one axis. thats why its important to specify how it does so ..

Okay gather around and listen to my newb-ish tail of woe!

So um the thing is (you pro pilots out there put down your drinks so you don't spew on your monitor!!), one of the flybar paddles as been twisted 90 degrees probably since the 2nd or 3rd flight. Being the total newb that I am, I just didn't notice...so as I was checking things out, looking at pics to possibly figure out the collective fix etc...and I was like whoa, these pictures don't show one twisted! Then I started thinking, duh you idiot why would they have what is basically a giant airbrake in a heli like this - so I lined up the flybars (waited for my battery to charge again all day), and boom! Perfect heli...so I spent a whole charge hovering around (well skidding/hover) - I mean I can't believe I missed that!

Ah well nothing hurt but my pride and I'm just happy to be flying! (Well practice flying, hopping anyways) Nothing wrong with this heli, except the part that connects the controller to the ground!

You have to have the throttle and trim full down, and the idle up switch must also be off before it will allow you to start.

Hahaha wgp, how the HECK did you manage that! [X(] The worst I ever did was make a very slight bend which I noticed while staring downwards. LOL dude, I'm surprised you didn't total your heli the next time you flew after bending that flybar! Fortunately I prepared myself when you gave the warning to put our drinks away....LOL. Good luck flying though

Hehe thanks...well it's amazing that it even came remotely close to lifting off with my, er, modded airbrake!

Been flying mine now for a couple of months. Changed to the upgrade motor and blades. Did the first loop yesterday.

I take it to our local flying field. It handles a little breeze with no problems.

Pretty cool.

Dale

i got a prob

i was trying to land on grass, and a skid got caught and i had a blade strike. I heard a "pop" and went over to look at it, and i broke the ball link on the head that holds the pitch linkage. I broke the actual ball, it came off and stayed in the round thing that holds it.

Any idea what to do? i think it could get it where it was and use a tiny bit of epoxy, or do i have to get a whole new head?

Help!
Scott

I would think all you would need is a swash plate. Things like push rods and connecting links should NOT be glued together even on a micro heli. You will just cause more problems then the fix is worth.

assuming its the ball link on the paddle control frame, glueing will not hold it, though if your hobby shop has a metal ball link with a screw end the same size, you might get away with pre drilling it and replacing it with one. Though that entire part is 6 bucks. cheap enough to have a spare? good luck

if its the pitch control link, then there is not enough room where the flybar passes through to go that route

i found what i need on horizon hobby,

I think it's part 005 in the parts list, rotor head frame A?

10 bucks i think, now to tell dad

I suggest a paper route.. to suppliment your hobby..

i mow the flying field 15 bucks a cut

makes sense, take a plane, if it's still too long to fly off of, or too many grass clumps, cut it again, and get another 15

oh.. i guess i just assumed eeryone flew off of paved runways.. my bad..

Thank you for the explanation, Dark Wombat. Does your Blade fly much better now that you've completely swapped out the electronics?


Yeah, this hobby gets expensive doesn't it, Mudsurfer? All together, I think I spent nearly $80 on spare parts. Essentially, no part of the rotor head is the original, being that I broke just about everything there at least once. But, I keep learning and crashes are a lot less common now. $80... that could've nearly bought me a full -body massage! [:'(]