Mini Dragonfly rookie
08-24-2005, 11:08 AM
#1
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Dayton, OH
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Mini Dragonfly rookie
I have just begun the wonderful journey of R/C flight. I originally got an aircraft. Since then I have gotten somewhat familar with the RC controls and the the basics of RC flying. I have had long hours of ms flight simulator so I am well veursed in flight terminology. However, I' m not very well veursed in the terms of the R/C parts of a helicopter
I just got a mini dragon fly and am having trouble balancing it. From what i was told is the small paddle props are supposed to sit parrell to the ground. I am going at eye lvl to line the blades up, but always seems to be a bit off. Is there a better why then the eyeball methed to algining the paddles.
My situation to me does seem to difficult to correct but so far I am not having much luck. The heli when on the ground and throtled at a mid-ranged speed tends to vibrate heaviely. it has a slight clockwise rotation and a pull to the left. I continued to adjust the prop and paddles and it still does the same things. I have expect the rotation because of the lower rpms, but the hop drift to the left I have not been able to correct.
I took the heli outside in the grass just to make sure it was not do to the lower rpms. I was able to get the heli in the air but once in flight it had an immediate hard pull to the right. Not to the left like it was when it was hopping on the ground, but a hard right bank. I am sure it is all about the balancing on the heli, but i havent really been able to find and solid guides on balancing
It seems the paddles no matter how tight i make them, adjust on thier own. The weights seems to help it. anyways help is thankful
I just got a mini dragon fly and am having trouble balancing it. From what i was told is the small paddle props are supposed to sit parrell to the ground. I am going at eye lvl to line the blades up, but always seems to be a bit off. Is there a better why then the eyeball methed to algining the paddles.
My situation to me does seem to difficult to correct but so far I am not having much luck. The heli when on the ground and throtled at a mid-ranged speed tends to vibrate heaviely. it has a slight clockwise rotation and a pull to the left. I continued to adjust the prop and paddles and it still does the same things. I have expect the rotation because of the lower rpms, but the hop drift to the left I have not been able to correct.
I took the heli outside in the grass just to make sure it was not do to the lower rpms. I was able to get the heli in the air but once in flight it had an immediate hard pull to the right. Not to the left like it was when it was hopping on the ground, but a hard right bank. I am sure it is all about the balancing on the heli, but i havent really been able to find and solid guides on balancing
It seems the paddles no matter how tight i make them, adjust on thier own. The weights seems to help it. anyways help is thankful
08-24-2005, 04:20 PM
#2
Senior Member
My Feedback: (2)
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Brampton,
ON, CANADA
Posts: 2,518
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
RE: Mini Dragonfly rookie
First few things;
The helicopter will naturally move the left during take off, you don't want to set trim for this, as once you get into the air, you will be rolling to the right as the helicopter overcompensates.
The mains spin, and the tail counters the mains, the tail is, when all is said and done, a prop, and is pushing air, and that air will push the helicopter to the side (usually left). Once the helicopter is actually in the air, then you can apply trim to counter the left drift to keep the helicopter stable in flight.
For setup, your swashplate (the thing all the linkages are connected to), must be level with the ground. So set your servo arms to be at a 90 degree angle with the swashplate if possible. Now, your flybar paddles must be level with the swashplate, NOT the ground. It's also important to make sure, that your servos are in the neutral position when setting flybar paddle angles, if they aren't, then moving your flybar paddles is only screwing up their angles and will affect in-flight movement.
As for vibration, there is numerous causes in a helicopter because of all the moving parts. However, one of the most common problems I find with micro (fixed pitch) helicopters is that loose or semi-loose blades just don't work that good. Tighten your blades as safely as they will go. Now, before each flight, line the leading edge of your blades up as close to a 90 degree angle as possible with your flybar. Make sure the blades are not only straight with the flybar, but ALSO straight with eachother. When looking at the blades from the side, they should be lined up in a straight line right across your head. This should solve most of your vibration issues. If you continue to get vibration, it's possible you have a bent main shaft. I had one on one of my birds and it wreaked havoc for flight stability. Another cause for heavy vibration in the head is un-balanced main blades. It's not a very common problem on fixed pitch birds, but it does happen. I've had a set of blades I purchased once be completely off, and other pairs be perfectly balanced.
Try the above, if you still have problems, I can make a quick n dirty tutorial of how I balance my fixed pitch blades using nothing but the helicopters rotor head.
The helicopter will naturally move the left during take off, you don't want to set trim for this, as once you get into the air, you will be rolling to the right as the helicopter overcompensates.
The mains spin, and the tail counters the mains, the tail is, when all is said and done, a prop, and is pushing air, and that air will push the helicopter to the side (usually left). Once the helicopter is actually in the air, then you can apply trim to counter the left drift to keep the helicopter stable in flight.
For setup, your swashplate (the thing all the linkages are connected to), must be level with the ground. So set your servo arms to be at a 90 degree angle with the swashplate if possible. Now, your flybar paddles must be level with the swashplate, NOT the ground. It's also important to make sure, that your servos are in the neutral position when setting flybar paddle angles, if they aren't, then moving your flybar paddles is only screwing up their angles and will affect in-flight movement.
As for vibration, there is numerous causes in a helicopter because of all the moving parts. However, one of the most common problems I find with micro (fixed pitch) helicopters is that loose or semi-loose blades just don't work that good. Tighten your blades as safely as they will go. Now, before each flight, line the leading edge of your blades up as close to a 90 degree angle as possible with your flybar. Make sure the blades are not only straight with the flybar, but ALSO straight with eachother. When looking at the blades from the side, they should be lined up in a straight line right across your head. This should solve most of your vibration issues. If you continue to get vibration, it's possible you have a bent main shaft. I had one on one of my birds and it wreaked havoc for flight stability. Another cause for heavy vibration in the head is un-balanced main blades. It's not a very common problem on fixed pitch birds, but it does happen. I've had a set of blades I purchased once be completely off, and other pairs be perfectly balanced.
Try the above, if you still have problems, I can make a quick n dirty tutorial of how I balance my fixed pitch blades using nothing but the helicopters rotor head.
