I have heard people complain about the starting system of the Sceadu (Something about a one-way bearing?) What is different about it? I would like to know before I buy one.

Thanks!

How do you like your new Sceadu, fitenfyr?

You are not the only person that is disappointed with the Sceadu.
Mine has an over heating problem, pitch-roll coupling and the crappy starting system. I bought a one-way starter adapter from Rick's www.ronlund.com it was $28.00. The Sceadu is very high quality, just someone dropped the ball You might want to check out the forum at www.rotary.com since their has been alot of Sceadu posts. By the way make sure you washout is installed properly, flat side up and the humped part down it will go on both ways. This only applies if you had to bend the rods.

Fred

Thanks everyone. It's a bit of a bummer I'll have to get another $30.00 part, that kind of stuff really adds up after awhile.

If I get the one-way wand will it work on my Raptor too?(I still don't fully understand what is different about the Sceadu's mechanics)

How are the ball links on the Sceadu? Should I look into Rocket City ones?

I checked the rotary.com link it is not about Heli's . Any ideas ?
Never mind , I figuered it out, Rotory.com .

I don't understand the problems being reported in these posts with using a standard wand without a one-way bearing. I'm brand new to helis (I've been flying my Sceadu .30 for about a month), and I have a standard wand. Every now and then the engine will start backwards, but this happens on fixed wing aircraft too. It's no big deal, just shut down and try again. When the engine ticks over, just pull out the starter wand. No problem. I can't imagine why anyone would bother to spend the money on a special starter. Maybe I just haven't been in it long enough to have bad things happen to me.

One more thing: Anybody who has pitch/roll coupling on their Sceadu has no business blaming it on the machine. The phase is adjustible and the manual tells you how to set it up. It is absurd to suggest that there is some design problem with the head that causes such a problem. The phase on mine is perfect. Finally, w/r/t overheating, I had no problem on mine whatsoever. I suspect that most people experiencing these problems don't have their engine set up properly or may be running the wrong kind of fuel. I fly in southern Cal. and use an OS .32. Runs like a champ. I'm using Cool Power 20 or 30% and set the needle for a nice smoke trail with crisp throttle response. I love this machine!

It is slightly dangerous starting the heli that way. What if one day the wand doesn't just pull out, and instead the engine flings it at you or your heli?

Regarding the coupling. There are several heli guys with lots of experience that say there is indeed a problem. I believe them. Reportedly the problem has been tracked down to defective swashplates(the inner balls are not on the same plane as the outer ones).

Volare: Got it. That makes sense, it just hasn't happened to me (yet). Maybe this is because I set my throttle trim for a nice low idle; so when my engine starts, things are pretty much in sync. One thing I have learned to do, however, is to rest the wand on the edge of the opening on the canopy until the starter stops spinning before I pull the starter completely free of the machine. Otherwise I found that the still spinning wand can spin out of alignment and go flying out of the rubber cone on the starter, possibly hitting something. Does the wand with the one way bearing have a more positive attachment to the starter that solves this problem?

Volare: Do all Sceadus suffer from this reported coupling problem, or was it a manufacturing defect that crept into only some of them? Like I said, mine seems perfect.

Zeal also makes a start wand that has both hex and round features all in one,its gold in color,has a 1 way in it,and goes into any rubber cone in any starter itll hold up to everything from a 32 to a 91, its about 45 bucks from LHS's,ron and heliproz dont sell it,I think you can get it from Great Planes,had mine for a year after going thru 2 KSJ units that clamped onto the starter shaft and my wallet I wont use anything else

Helihead,

fitenfyr answered your question well, he knows more about the Sceadu than I do. It probably is an isolated problem.

The starter shaft that I got from Ron's is dangerous!!! It plugs into the rubber cone of an airplane starter. Well, as I pulled it from the heli it flew out of the the rubber cone and hit the transmitter switch. Man, would you believe that it went from idle normal to idle 1 luckly my hand was still on the head. Do you realize how hard it is to hold a heli running 30% percent and full throttle while pulling the fuel line. I am so glad nobody had gotten injured

Fred