Would you like a higher quality Canopy?

[LITHIUMSTATIC]

How many of you would like Mikado to beaf up their fiberglass canopies a little? Just enough to keep them from cracking or tearing apart from normal use. Some of you may be completely happy with the thiness and flexability. Now is your time to say so.

[th3tick]

Thanks, Jeremy, for getting this started. Bet you'll never guess which way I'm leaning...

John

[LITHIUMSTATIC]

I understand..... Everything in the Mikado kit is first class quality, other than the canopy. I'm kind of suprised.

[Automan]

Same here. Great quality all over the kit not including that crappy extremly thin fragile canopy, i really dont like it at all. I hope to find a much stronger canopy soon.

[stevehonn]

Although it's thin, it's not that fragile as mine has been stuffed into the ground around 4 times now and is slightly battered but still very useable plus it's very light!

[Ticidytoc]

IMHO I do not believe this is a "quality" issue.

Mikado built the lightest fiberglass canopy I have come across, by doing this it is being looked upon as "flimsy" or "weak". Of course to have a light canopy you will have to sacrifice something, personally I would rather see an optional plastic canopy offered than having the light canopy made heavier. The Logo 500 plastic canopies seem to be holding up quite well, even in crashes.

[LITHIUMSTATIC]

An optional plastic one would be nice for the Logo 6003D. Put some stickers on it and go. Cheaper to replace in a crash.....

Someone suggested in another thread that they could reinforce the problematic areas of tearing and cracking. A few grams isn't going to hurt. I don't want it to be super thick and heavy, but a nice strengthening in problem areas wouldn't be asking for much. I like nice paint jobs, but like it on something that will last.

[Eyon]

maybe tows around the edges and down the center, ala X-Cell?

[uragano47812]

I think that before to reinforce it, it is better if mikado review the design...

This is only my opinion of course...

[Mille aka Fredrik]

I gave my Canopy to a friend so he could make a mould of it and supply me with new ones ;)
He will elaborate with different GF cloth and see if he could make a strong and light one...

Yes, they are very 'flimsy', but they are light! 84 grams weight mine.
Have crashed an it held up very well.

[JKos]

Mikado seems to be one of the few companies which truly understand that electric helis should be as light as possible. There is a reason the canopy is so light... That's how they want it to be.

- John

[th3tick]

maybe tows around the edges and down the center, ala X-Cell?

"tows"? :confused:

[ozace]

I didnt vote, i think the question is worded wrong.
The FG canopy i have is terrific quality, i cannot fault it. However with the super light weight it may not be the most durable canopy around.

Had the question been, would you sacrifice the super light weight for more ruggedness and durability, then i answer yes.

[th3tick]

I didnt vote, i think the question is worded wrong.
The FG canopy i have is terrific quality, i cannot fault it. However with the super light weight it may not be the most durable canopy around.

Had the question been, would you sacrifice the super light weight for more ruggedness and durability, then i answer yes.

That still sounds like "Give it a little more reinforcement." to me. :thumbup:

[ozace]

yes more reinforcement would be a good thing for me, i just didnt want to agree with a quality problem:DOH

[Eyon]

"tows"? :confused:


sorry, probs the english wording for it.

http://winshiprc.tripod.com/carbon_tow1.jpg

Like that, but much thinner, like 1/4" wide at the most

[Automan]

Mikado seems to be one of the few companies which truly understand that electric helis should be as light as possible. There is a reason the canopy is so light... That's how they want it to be.

- John

It's nice that they think about that (as been mentioned before) but they just went way overboard on this poor canopy, it's just to damn fragile and will not protect anything, it's almost like.. put a little sticker on it and it breaks.
And i dont really think there would be that much savings on the weight doing it this way, compared to making it similar to the T600 canopy that is just a great canopy, just not worth it if you ask me, Mikado just didnt have to make it this thin and fragile.

Mikado did a great job on this heli, a fantastic heli, a lightweight and tuff heli, but they just messed up on the canopy and those cheap LG, that's all.

The LG on this heli, feels real cheap and not worthy to put on the heli... i just trown mine away, didnt even try to mount them, and i put some real LG on there instead.

So there are Two things in these kit's that are out of balance.. in this great quality kit, it's 1: canopy to thin and fragile (and slobby job they did putting it together), 2: landing-gear could been much better, with stopscrews etc to hold things in place.

[surfanarchist]

I've said it here before, or maybe I was just thinking it. Anyway, the canopy is weak. In this thread it gets referred to as fiberglass but I don't see any fiber in mine. I think the thing is just thin plastic. But I like to see everyone happy, so if Mikado says that the super light canopy is right from their perspective of weight and performance then so be it. But then I'd like to see them offer a canopy similer in weight and construction to the Trex 600 or Minicopter Joker. I'd buy it.

[NTM]

I reinforced mine down the edges with strips of fiberglass before I ever flew it. It was already cracking from being mounted one time !

[Automan]

I've said it here before, or maybe I was just thinking it. Anyway, the canopy is weak. In this thread it gets referred to as fiberglass but I don't see any fiber in mine. I think the thing is just thin plastic. But I like to see everyone happy, so if Mikado says that the super light canopy is right from their perspective of weight and performance then so be it. But then I'd like to see them offer a canopy similer in weight and construction to the Trex 600 or Minicopter Joker. I'd buy it.

I must say it do feels like ordinary very very thin plastic, like some extremly thin lexan and way to fragile. It's so thin i almost didnt dare to paint it, or hold it... i just dont like it at all.

I think it is wrong by Mikado to make it so thin, they made such a good job on the rest of the heli (weightwise and really good design etc) so they didnt really have to make this canopy so thin and light, would have been much better with a canopy like the T600 or similar.

I will try to reinforce my leaf/paperthin canopy, so it is possible to use it more then once ;) But im still looking for a replacement, hope to find one..... anyone know if there is a different canopy that fits these helis L600/L500 ?

[Ticidytoc]

Wow, I am amazed that folks think the canopy actually protects. I have had several instances where the durable bleach bottle actually caused more damage (frames) than it did protect anything in a crash. I can see it absorbing some of the impact, but that energy will be transfered to some other place.

I'm sure there will be many who disagree with me on this, I have never looked at any canopy and thought, wow, this is going to protect my gear in a crash.

Most heli's are built to fly well, not crash well. The only helis I know of that crash well are on G3.5 :wink:
my .02 :flamesuit

[th3tick]

My one T-Rex 600 crash ejected the pack (which tore the velcro) into the canopy, which protected it as it skidded across the field. The pack came out unscathed. Now that's what I want a canopy to protect!

I do agree that it's not for protection. I just want one that doesn't tear during normal use. Installing the grommets is an exercise in frustration - hard rubber into thin FG. Then, the edges, which came with two tears, have grown another two in the first 20 or so flights, and I'm trying to be careful...

I believe I'm the one who said it just needs reinforcement around the edges, and mounting holes. A little more beef there would be fine. That, and cleaning up that hideous seam...

John

[BruceW]

I plan on using clear packing tape on the inside of the canopy around the grommet holes before installing them.

[LITHIUMSTATIC]

I plan on using clear packing tape on the inside of the canopy around the grommet holes before installing them.

Use the kind that has string in it. It's very strong and comes from the USPS office.

[Ticidytoc]

Would someone please post some pictures of the "problem" areas. Mine has not cracked and I do believe I have a light weight solution for reinforcement which may or may not work depending on the area.

Thanks.