matty_p80

did i miss something? i don't recall trying to sell anything or writing anything offensive and i haven't been contacted by any moderator!!

anyways!!!

sorry about the forced break! it is becoming extremely impossible to try and get online as the hotel have their panties in a twist as the only place we can pick up their Wi-Fi is in the lobby (not very big) and they don't like us all sitting there at the same time, so they've come up with a sad excuse that the router is U/S when we all can pick up the signal very strongly and the password is the problem!!! Tel A'viv!!!!

so i'm sitting in BK, of all places, utilising their free Wi-Fi while my car's front wheel gets some love and attention! (managed to clip a curb and really dented the rim)! to add to the car problems, the passenger window wouldn't go down so gave it a little push and it's dropped off the runners and is sitting in the bottom of the door!!!! really helpful when i have a 30-40 minute drive into work everyday!!!

excellent news is i found another flying field, this time just outside the village i'm staying in and had a bit of a fly of my B400 and P51 (although slightly too breezy for the little one!)! if i didn't have this car business to sort out. i'd be there now!!!!

hey Jay and Donica, although very scary your story did make me smile! "Don't mess with the Southern Lass!"

gonna try and post this now as, like a dolt, forgot to do it in notepad first!

hopefully be back soon!

Matty )

matty_p80

oooooo-eee! wot a commotion i missed! just read back thru the goings on and would like it on record for anyone out there:

i personally hold no political or religious views! i do not, however, have anything against those that do and would be called a very non-understanding human being if i did! everyone is entitled to their views and acceptance and understanding of other person's beliefs and views and not judgement is what fellowship is all about!

being of no particular faith, i did not join this thread because i thought of it as any way religious but when reading through the posts found the people posting to be of like mind and friendly !! i also had the great honour to meet with JD (thread instigator) when visiting the US and found him very amiable and a very good teacher and mentor and not a religious fanatic!

all people who contribute on this thread have tolerance and enjoy experiencing other view points, which sometimes puts a more real perspective on the goings on in our lives! several of us have had some quite tragic events happen to us in the last couple of years and this has been a very welcome outlet and support provider!!

even though i have only met one of the many contributors on this thread, i consider them all friends, as they would come to my assistance at the drop of a hat to the maximum extent of their capabilities if i were to require it!

we are all friends brought together by the passion of flight!

anyone with an issue on this please be up front and talk to us directly, as you can read, we are a friendly bunch and will discuss anything intelligently!

[ JD sorry for dragging this up again but i have had no Wi-Fi for the last two weeks and really needed to say that!]

big hugs from everyone's friend

Matty )

neil trett

hi all.my name is Neil,from victoria bc.i have just been gifted with a double horse transporter and a syma s009 apche.for some reason,the chinook won't turn on,could it just be a problem with the li po battery?it worked fine when i got it,but it took a couple minor crashes as i was figuring out the trim.i took it apart and checked the wiring pretty thoroughly,and everything seems to be ok.any tips are appreciated,thanks.i am new to this hobby,being into slotcars mostly.

mydartswinger

Welcome, Neil.
I'm not very familiar with that particular helicopter, however, I'll try to give you some general items to check. The problem could be in one of several places. Let's start with the cheapest to fix. Check the batteries in the radio. A dead radio will prevent the helicopter from doing much of anything (maybe a couple of lights).

If the batteries in the radio are fine, hook up a voltmeter to the helicopter's battery. If the voltage is at or below (sometimes even near) the battery's listed voltage, the batte ry is shot. Also, look for an abnormally "puffy" appearance to the battery, as well as any pasty gray goo coming from the battery. If any of that is present, the battery is likely done for. LiPo batteries are sensitive to impact, charge rate, voltage discharge, and heat. If you have drained the battery until the helicopter was doing absolutely nothing, you possibly over discharged the pack.

If both the radio and helicopter batteries check out fine, check for any control system binding or catching. That can cause it to appear to not work, as well as over stress the battery and electronics. Loosen the binding control surface, if needed, and recheck.

If all of the above check out fine, the board if probably gone. In that case, the helicopter is pretty much a paper weight (unfortunately). Unless the manufacturer is willing to send you a replacement board (doubtful).

If the heli turns out to be a paper weight, I feel your pain. No fear, though, you still have the Apache to work with. This is a fun, challenging, and rewarding hobby. Welcome to the addiction.

PS:
What scale slots you run? I used to run 1/32 scale at a local slot car "club" track when I was living in Alaska. Mostly Fly, Ninco, and Scalextrics cars (also did some of the Fly big rigs). Lots of fun times there. I've looked in other places in Texas and North Carolina, only to find that people are running 1/24th scale, if at all. I guess that I'll have to go with a home set up if I choose to get back into it (probably get one of the big Ninco track systems designed to fit on a 4x8 table).

flyachopper1

Hello all,
It was another real nice day here in Farmerville and we got out early this morning to fly. There was no wind at all and the temps were not yet uncomfortably high. We gave the 600 and both 500s a good workout. Donica has been flying her 500 everyday since finishing it and is in love with it. Finally, I get to use my 500 again. We had both in the air at the same time for the first time today and they dance together very well.

Now that the weather has settled out here we have packed the Harley and are heading out in the morning for the Gulf Coast to tour a bit. After a few days of that we will be back here in Farmerville to pack up the cars and trailer to head to Nebraska. Donicas bosses have agreed (once again) to not ask her to work the Southwestern region. She will finish her vacation in Nebraska and will be heading out to Oklahoma City for two weeks work after that. I will stay on in Nebraska for awhile. We have discussed things some and have come to think seriously about relocating my home from Nebr. to Baton Rouge. I will look into that and make some plans soon.

Best get some sleep so we can get on the road early.

Later me friends.

alfredbmor

Hi all, I have a simple question. I have been building a Century 50 NX, it looks really great and it is my ticket from electrics to glow helicopters. In my short experience (several years with little flying practice), I have learn about the importance of the cyclic servos centering, I also have tested on my electric trex, that 65HG work great and they are not digitals. I also know that Futaba g401 gyro is a must with a matching digital tail servo (S9254), then my question is: what kind of affordable type and brand of servos do you guys recommend for this machine. Let me say that I am still far from 3D practicing.
Thanks.

Alfred.

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

For a 50 size glow?

Hitec 635's will do, 5625's or similar would be a little better. Futaba 9252s are showing up fairly cheap in the classifieds as well.

dooleyje

Neil.. on an electric the ESC must arm before power is past through. Usually the throttle will need to be all the way off and possibly the throttle trim tab will need to be all the way off before it will arm. A bad solder joint on the connectors are another prim suspected area to look. Follow Darts suggestion and get back to us. Welcome to the thread.

Alfred, Welcome to the thread. Also check about the Align brand servos. They are very nice and not that expensive for digital servos. You would want the Align610. I use a lot of JR servos and they can be expensive but you can shop around for full size servos such as the 4121, 4721, 8231 in used. If you are not into 3D then any good sport servo will work as well. Get the best you can afford the first time out. Just keep in mind that digital servos will feel better and the heli will respond nicer without the cyclic chase we see in some set ups.

No flying for me this week end.. It is HOT. I at least I am stuck in the store this week end. My servos/ESC/gyro tail servo finally came in for the Gaui 425 but no motor yet. I am still undecided on it.

Dave has it stopped snowing Yet? You need to come south and sweat your pinion off. It is great weather for flying though, no win/ very little on those hot humid days.

Hey Dart... did you attend the 600 race?

See y'll,,

Jim

mydartswinger

Yep, had a blast as usual. My wife and I both participated in the pre-race ceremony. She was one of the 100 military spouses holding the large US flag shaped like the US, and I was one of the 600 soldiers in the formation on the front straight. Before the ceremony, we walked around the infield and hung out at the dirt track. While at the dirt track, "Papa" John himself was there doing a meet and greet with the soldiers and family members. After the ceremony was done, we watched the race from the infield.

I'm currently in Texas with my family, and will be on my way back to NC shortly after Father's Day.

We got lucky and there was a jet event about a 45 minute drive down the road. My wife and I went, taking a couple of our friends with us. We all had a blast, despite sweating our butts off. I got quite a few pictures and a few videos, including some of a VERY nice F-16 painted in Thunderbird's livery. If ya'll are interested in seeing them, I'll be posting them up on Photobucket and YouTube, and I'll post a link later.

I have gotten a little bit of flying in while I've been here. However, I haven't had the best of luck with it. My first flight here in TX was on my 250. It was during sunset, so the sun was low, making visibility difficult in some areas. I was doing good with it, until I decided to do a roll. The roll itself went well, but after going back upright was when things started to go south. Once back upright, the tail started to go nuts. This caused me to lose control, allowing the helicopter to go between me and the sun. That's when I lost orientation, leading into the heli flying over my head and taking a nose dive into the ground to my left. Initial inspection looks like standard broken parts. I have most of the parts back at the house in NC.

My second flight was on my Parkzone Bf-109G, that I recently upgraded the motor and ESC on from the Parkzone BL15 to the E-Flite Power 25. I hand launched it, and she climbed out easily, maneuvering into my first turn. She flew pretty well until I made about my 3rd turn when she wouldn't pull out of the turn, making her auger into the ground at full speed. She was in many, many pieces. I've been limited to flying pixels again in the meantime. I will, however, be picking up a 4S battery this week to fly my E-Flite F-86 Sabre (got to see one of these fly at the jet rally yesterday as well) on.

Later Ya'll,
Shannon

mydartswinger

As promised, links to the pics and vids from the event yesterday.

Pics:
[link=http://s371.photobucket.com/albums/oo160/mydartswinger/Northeast%20Texas%20RC%20Jet%20Rally%202010/]http://s371.photobucket.com/albums/oo160/mydartswinger/Northeast%20Texas%20RC%20Jet%20Rally%202010/[/link]

Vids:
F-16
[link=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN9XCs-YVVY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN9XCs-YVVY[/link]

Turboprop Yak 54
[link=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Y9vrZ3vwnU]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Y9vrZ3vwnU[/link]

Enjoy!!

alfredbmor

BarracudaHockey and Dooleyje, thanks for your promptly advices. Yes this is 50 size glow. I have not seen cheap align servos around here, I will have to check that up with the RC&ME store guys. The combo digital servo and G401 just arrived from Tower. I have installed cheap hitec servos on cyclic but I did not want to risk anything and thats why I wanted to ask you.
BTW, what should I look for now (on cyclic servos)?, speed or torque?
Thanks guys and have a great week.

Alfred.

dooleyje

Alfred, If I were to upgrade I would go for some nice digitals that have torque and speed. What you have now is fine. Hitec servos are very nice servos and are some of the best made so have fun with the helicopter. I personaly go for the digitals because they have such a better feel. It is hard to explain. The faster the better not because i want the controls to be fast but because the feel is more accurate. I want torque to match the job I am asking the servo to do. I always suggest to folks to purchase the best Eq. they can afford on their first purchase. The brushless servos are on the market but I have not used any yet...expensive.

Shannon, Yep the jets are soooo cool. I love to watch them. Sometimes I will see a turbine powered helicopter at fly-ins,,,,very nice.

Jim

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

Digital servos, combined with a slop and bind free control system, return to center every time so you don't feel like you're chasing trim and chasing the helicopter all the time.

The other advantage is they always produce full torque, where analogs only reach full torque within a few degrees of their commanded position.

alfredbmor

I have found the following:

HS 5625 MG Digital high Speed metal gear BB.

Speed .17 sec/60o @ 4.8 V (Which is the battery that I will use, before thinking on upgrade to a Lipo and a phoenix regulator)
Speed .14 sec/60o @ 6.0 V

Torque 109.7 oz/in @ 4.8 V
Torque 130.53 oz/in @ 6.0 V

They are not exactly a bargain but the price is to much fair than JRs and Futabas with close numbers.
Tower Hobbies $54.99 each
Two of them @ $105.98.

They are now in my wish list, by now I have three standard ball bearings. I feel like my fingers are burning, then as a therapy, I will break in the engine with the servos that I have already installed and maybe next month I will go for them.

What do you guys think about that choice?

Alfred.

dooleyje

Sounds like a great choice Alfred.

Hey everybody Hobby King has the Zippys on sale for $13.95 for 35C 2100 Flightmax. I have some of the 2200mah and they have a bunch of punch.. lot more than the Flightpower Evo25. Order about 4 or 5 so the shipping will not kill you. Use EMS express mail.

Still no flying for me for a while and I hope the weather will hold off tomorrow so I can do a battery or 12. The heat has been way too much for me lately. No news on the home front heli shop. The Gaui 425 is not finished, I have been lazy.

See ya's

Jim

alfredbmor

Thanks dooleyje:

I would go for those 2200mah

I have these FlightPower EONX 30 LiPo 3S 11.1V 2200mAh 30C and they have real punch. The chinese one get inflated so quick and the 30 dlls shipping is telling you to buy more.

There is a lot of difference on chinese and Flightpower punch.
With Flightpower I have been flying for about 8 or 9 min. my oldest battery is about three years old and still have enough punch, even that it is the oldest 2170 version.

But money is money and 14 bucks for a 2100 is the ticket for a lot of fun this summer.

rcmiket

Just noticed your from El Paso where you flying?
Mike

dooleyje

Alfred,

I also have some FP2170 EVO's that are 3 years old and have not had a problem at all. They have hundreds of cycls on them. I just bought 2 EONX 30 batteries yesterday but I haven't tried yet. My Zippies have ohhhhh....about 100 cycls on them with no swelling but I think my chargers are the shinning star in that. The Celpro 4 chargers are simply plug and play and they take really great care of your batteries. Cellptro is the only chatgers I will use. The Zippies are the better of the oversees batteries and folks here swear by them and have moved away from TP and FP batteries. We do not sell them any more at the store unless it is a special order. The Hyperion batteries are the hot item now with 40c and above ratings and still cheaper than the TP and FP lines. The bottom line is that you must have a good charging system that will not over charge and will balance the cells every time. The Cellpro chargers charge through the balance leads and not through the power leads so they charge the cells vs charging the pack as a whole. The Cellpro reads the cell and sets it self up to charge them at the best and safest manner. It takes about 45 mins to charge a 2100-2200 ma battery afters a 7.5 min flight. If you want faster charge you can set it up but you have to make sure your battery can take it. Thats one reason batteries go bad. Over charging or too high of a charge rate. The number one reason folks have battery problems is that they tryn to fly too long and discharge the batteries below 3v per cell and then the battery is toast really quick.

The Gaui425 has a gyro and tail servo and a receiver installed now. I stole the gyro and tail servo out of my EVO .50. It is a Futaba 520 and a 9254 servo. The 425 has proven to be a very nice helicopter so far. It is actually a 550 with a shorter boom and you can convert it back with a boom/belt and a motor change or a pinion change depending on the motor used. I hope to convert it to flybarless soon and then I can return my gyro back to the EVO. Speaking of 550's, wow, the new Trex550 is almost here. I have seen it in the store. Some of our customers travel overseas and sometime we get to see products that won't be at the distributors for several months. THe Trex550 looks like a small 700 but larger than the Trex500. Those of you wanting a Trex500 now is your chance to pick one up in the classifieds. Folks will be selling them off to get the 550.

I had a nice flying session yesterday and flew my Gaui 200 and Trex450. I love to fly the .50 Evo but it is soo nice to not have to spend and hour cleaning oil off the electrics. The Gaui 200 is a blast to fly but a bit on the small side when flying off of the grass. It sits very low and the tail blads will dig in the grass. You have to fly off of a car mat or something. NOOOO i am not hand launching it. Like i said a very nice day to fly but super hot. I was soaking wet with sweat.

I have to go cut some grass before it gets hot and i have to work at the store tonight. Take care everyone and I hope our Canadian freinds are receiving some off this warm weather.

Jim

alfredbmor

At Santa Teresa grass farms, when ever my small family let me go. Where do yo use to go?

rcmiket

Out off Montana. Danny's place, great facility.
Mike

alfredbmor

I have heard about that field, A friend of mine called Gabriel told me about it, I wanted to go over there last year but Gabriel quit flying and I have been kind of busy on some weekends taking the kids to some parks and only when I really can I take my trex with me and fly two or three batteries, but I hope to be able to stop by there, soon.
Are there shades?
This friend of mine told me something about the fences that were close to the landing area.
What do you think?

rcmiket

Great place to fly. Plenty of shade and the fences are not a issue.
Mike

cajungirl

Hay y'all,
Whewie, on the road, on the road, on the road. Spent a few days down on the Gulf Coast cattin' around. The oil down there is a sad thing but there's a lot of that area still clean and beautuiful. I got to show Jay some of my favorites spots down there and he loved it all. We're now on the road to Nebraska. Should roll in there sometime late tomorrow night. Just in time to get rested and attend the grand opening of the new medical heli service there.

No flying recently for us but the weather in Nebraska has been real nice lately so we hope to get some done there soon. It's gonna be good to see family and friends there again.

Done with lunch so we best git ta gittin' down that highway again.

See y'all later.

dooleyje

Nice flying field Mike. We have several nice places here in the Charlotte, NC area.

Donica, WOW road warriors for sure. Well I finally had a chance to fly for myself yesterday. I had the field all to myself. It was super hot but who cares. Any day flying is good. I flew 8 batteries. 4 in my 450 Pro and 4 in my Gaui200. I did not fly my niro because I tenp. stole the gyro out of it for the Gaui425. I would have stayed but my deep cycle battery that I use to charge from was in dire need of a refreashing. WE are hosting an electric fly-in next weekend so if anyone is close by then stop in. I have the Gaui425 almost finished. The cyclic servos are mounted and the ESC is mounted. I will order the motor next week.

Later,

Jim (JD)

alfredbmor

Mike; thanks for the pictures, they are really explicit, I see great shades and big planes too, I will have to ask you how to get there, it is a nice place to fly in.