Introduction - new to helicopters

[kgfly]

Gorilla gear is only available from RCHover AFAIK, certainly nowhere in Australia.

There is no support for expo on throttle curves. A typical starting set of curves would be something like:

Normal
T: 0 65 75 80 85
P: 40 45 50 75 95 (approx -2 to +9)

Stunt1
T: 95 90 85 90 95
P 0 . 50 . 100 (approx -10 to +10)

Stunt2
T: 100 95 90 95 100
P: 0 . 50 . 100

[daveh1]

I tried the rods and golf balls and did not like them. I ended up putting a set of 600 landing gears on my 450 (requires drilling new holes in the landing skids) and I was alot more confident at taking off and landing.

[akeepsake]

Thanks dave I have ordered some gorrilla gear so that will help for the fast landings!!!! Will still try the balls and rods for now I think once I can hover ok i will loose them (just wanto protect those blades!!! they dont grow on trees, actually I am using woodies so I suppose they do LOL!)
Ken My dx7 has expo on throttle and pitch but with no % just on or off I am pretty sure it just smooths out the curves
Mine is set up as per finless vids but set at +10 on pitch thats the only difference
Why only 85 on throttle in norm?
Another question which pinion should i have? (i am using the 11 at present with 325pros) is this ok dont know much about head speeds yet???? :dontknow

[akeepsake]

I tried the rods and golf balls and did not like them. I ended up putting a set of 600 landing gears on my 450 (requires drilling new holes in the landing skids) and I was alot more confident at taking off and landing.Thanks dave I have ordered some gorrilla gear so that will help for the fast landings!!!! Will still try the balls and rods for now I think once I can hover ok i will loose them (just wanto protect those blades!!! they dont grow on trees, actually I am using woodies so I suppose they do LOL!)
Ken My dx7 has expo on throttle and pitch but with no % just on or off I am pretty sure it just smooths out the curves
Mine is set up as per finless vids but set at +10 on pitch thats the only difference
Why only 85 on throttle in norm?
Another question which pinion should i have? (i am using the 11 at present with 325pros) is this ok dont know much about head speeds yet???? :dontknow

[kgfly]

Andrew,

You are right, the DX7 does have an Expo feature on the T and P curves. It is not adjustable and simply smooths out the piece-wise linear curves. So if your for example your pitch curve is 0 . 50 . 100 then enabling expo will have no affect as there are no "corners" in the curve to smooth out.

Assuming you are not using governor mode on your ESC, then the throttle curve is used to control headspeed. At any given pitch, higher throttle means higher headspeed. Higher headspeed means more stability in wind but also more twitchy/responsive cyclic and more current drain. So for calm flying in Normal mode you can afford to have lower headspeed. For more agile or aggressive flying in Stunt1 or Stunt2 you select a higher headspeed. It's all a balancing act.

If you are running a 430L(3550kv) with 3S lipos then 11t is ideal and should give you peak headspeed in the 2400 to 2600 range. Later on you might go up to 13t for aggressive 3D (although I doubt I will ever get there!) where folks like ~3000rpm.

[CraterMaker]

FINALLY! After all sorts of shipping shenanigans, my Trex 450SA is here today! Of course the flybar is bent... the end where it goes up near the corner of the box... :arggg: But they are sending me a replacement.

[akeepsake]

FINALLY! After all sorts of shipping shenanigans, my Trex 450SA is here today! Of course the flybar is bent... the end where it goes up near the corner of the box... :arggg: But they are sending me a replacement.

Now the fun begins !! Keep us filled in on your progress!!!

[CraterMaker]

I've started looking it over carefully. Here is what I've found "wrong" with it out of the box (so far). I guess I'm posting this to help others and to ask if I have the right mindset about setting this thing up well:

1) The swash plate was frozen on the main shaft. It took about 5 lbs. of pressure by hand before it broke loose to slide up and down. Not sure why. It was a bit rough afterwards, but a little light oil as per the finless maintenanc video and now it's smooth.
2) The fly bar was bent in shipping.
3) The interaction between the swash plate and the anti-rotation bracket was a bit rough. I think from the molding process. A needle file brushed up and down on the inside of the slot made that silky smooth.
4) The flybar control arm/rod assembly was not "flat". A bit twisted. I think this happend when they WAY over torqued the screws holding them together.
5) Movement of the tail linkage rod felt really rough. I oiled the tail rotor shaft. Helped a little. The main problem was that the guide hold in the horz stab mount was too small. I carefully reamed it out a little at a time until this was smooth.
6) The whole heli teetred on it landing skids. i.e. they didn't both rest flat at the same time. The left landing skid was REALLY tight in the struts. After breaking it free, I could bend the front and back struts in parallel with each other allowing the skid to rest flat.

That's all for now! I've ordered three 65mg's. I was thinking about waiting for the new Hitec servo/gyro combo to come out, but not sure if I have the patience... :dontknow

[akeepsake]

sounds like a friday arvo special!!!
My 450se went together without a hitch! I hope it all turns out ok :roll:

[CraterMaker]

I think the tail is rotated about 5-10 degrees too. The tail rotor is not parallel to the side plates, looking down the front of the heli. Not sure about the belt tension. From what I've read, the tension is a bit of an art!

I would have rather built it myself, but I got a really good deal on it. I've never had an ARF plane for instance... Built them all myself.

[akeepsake]

you can adjust the tail rotor ok It has a screw that clamps it in place Just loosen it and line it up with the frame and you should be sweet! As for the belt tension watch finless vid on maintenience in regards to the freedom of rotation this will give you an idea if you are on the right track

[CraterMaker]

I adjusted the tail boom. The tail rotor shaft is parallel to the ground now. I decided the belt tension was too loose. I tightened it up a bit and can not detect any loss in freedom of rotation. I think I've done all I can without spending money on the electronics. I have 3 HS65MGs on order. Still trying to figure out what to do about the radio and the gyro/rudder servo. I have a Futaba 7CAP. I'm not sure if I want to go the cheap route and crack it open to remove the throttle ratchet and get a Berg, or splurge on a 2.4GHz setup. Deci$ion$, deci$ion$... :wink:

[akeepsake]

Hey craterman r u off the ground yet! Which way did you go with your radio gear?
Cheers

[Claude626]

This will be either one of the most exciting or foolish things I've ever done: This will be my first Helicopter!

Thought about a blade CP or PRO, but decided to just go ahead and get the SA.

I've downloaded all the Finless videos and I have a pretty good idea what servos, gyro, and batts to get, reading here and other places. I am getting excited! Wish me luck...

I will post here again when I decide what electronics to get, before I click on the "purchase" button to have a peer review before I make a mistake. :)


And almost 2 months after your post, I'm sitting in nearly the identical shoes you were in!!!

I did all the above as quoted. (except I went with the SE v2 version)

xD

[key]

You might want to take a look at http://www.helipedia.com

[Kieth_jason]

hey everybody...

Got myself recently a complete combo pakage from Heliproz. Well other than the fact that it took 2 weeks to arrive to India, the package was so beautiful and more probably becuz this is my first one, the 450X.

Now the thing is guys, i've built the heli setup, but am a little confused on how to get the motor , servos, the speed controller all setup and welded.

The combo package includes the
(3) Hitec HS-55 servos
(1) Hitec HS-50 tail servo
LogicTech 2100 Heading Hold gyro
Align 430LG brushless motor
Align 25 Amp ESC with BEC
YunTong 20C 2100mah LiPo battery and
Eflite Celectra charger

I need some info on how to setup the electronics... any threads or videos or links... anything would be a tonn of info guys.

Thankyou in advance,

Kieth Jason.

[nwtampaguy34]

the 11 pinion is fine with the 325's. you shouldnt have expo on throttle. i use 20% on cyclic. dont use training gear for long or you will get used to it and when you take it off your will tend to want to go down hard. Good luck

[nwtampaguy34]

just wondering why you would have any expo on throttle???? I allways thought you should only use it for cyclic controls?????

[Seeker]

just wondering why you would have any expo on throttle???? I allways thought you should only use it for cyclic controls?????

You shouldn't have any expo on throttle.