TRex 450 SE nV2 to 500E Makeover ...

[sb930]

I had to replace my tail belt a couple days ago, and one result of placing the elevator servo so far in-board is that it covers the belt pulley and makes it difficult to slip the new belt in there. I was able to do it without removing the servo, but it's a tight fit.

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x256/pkoslowsky/IMG_3469.jpg

[kingkahuna]

Here is the perfect couple

[Snarf]

Doh! I was wrong about the over slung fly bar.

Me too (I've just fitted the RC-Tek head). However it's a great replacement for the 450S plastic head that I had fitted originally and I think it will take some serious maneuvers before there is a fuz strike.

Wish me luck. The weather has been awful here so I'm still waiting to maiden the new bird. She does look cute though.

42906

[Drew816]

Ever notice that the Ebay Blue Hughes 500 bodies for the T-Rex from Jet Tech and Sylvian look JUST like the Heliartist N23CP only it's missing the GREEN stripe and registration number? Any thoughts, are these 'reject' Heliartist bodies that didn't get to the last stages in the finishing process or what?

http://cgi.ebay.com/FOR-T-REX-450-Hughes-500-Glass-Fiber-Scale-Fuselage_W0QQitemZ300181515494QQihZ020QQcategoryZ3 4056QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1 247QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/Hughes-500-Fiber-Glass-Scale-Fuselage-For-T-REX-450-SE_W0QQitemZ230229269197QQihZ013QQcategoryZ34056QQ rdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1247QQc mdZViewItem

http://www.heliartist.com/product_hughes_n23.html

I love the N23CP Heliartist body but at almost double the price of the normal R/W/B Align kit I'm mentally having a tough time justifying the price and these others seem like a bit of a middle ground.

Thoughts?

[SimonV6]

Ever notice that the Ebay Blue Hughes 500 bodies for the T-Rex from Jet Tech and Sylvian look JUST like the Heliartist N23CP only it's missing the GREEN stripe and registration number? Any thoughts, are these 'reject' Heliartist bodies that didn't get to the last stages in the finishing process or what?

http://cgi.ebay.com/FOR-T-REX-450-Hughes-500-Glass-Fiber-Scale-Fuselage_W0QQitemZ300181515494QQihZ020QQcategoryZ3 4056QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1 247QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/Hughes-500-Fiber-Glass-Scale-Fuselage-For-T-REX-450-SE_W0QQitemZ230229269197QQihZ013QQcategoryZ34056QQ rdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1247QQc mdZViewItem

http://www.heliartist.com/product_hughes_n23.html

I love the N23CP Heliartist body but at almost double the price of the normal R/W/B Align kit I'm mentally having a tough time justifying the price and these others seem like a bit of a middle ground.

Thoughts?

The heliartist one is a "500D" the other two are both "500E"s
There others looks good to me, but if you prefer the 500D then you want the heliartsit one? :)

[Drew816]

D Model, E Model, they're all the same. :o

Good catch, and a big DUH on my part! Funny though that these E models paint look just like the Heliartist body's paint minus the Green? Suspicious you might say, humm... I'm a little concerned about their quality in comparison and that's what keeps me from making an offer. Has anyone build up one of these Ebay versions yet and reported back their results? I saw one member had bought one and noted the Star washers for the tail boom weren't included but no build details.

Still thinking on all this but building the T-Rex for this purpose in the meantime so...

Happy Flying!

[HeliVador]

Just got mine flying. I love this thing. :YeaBaby:

[ED the HEAD]

You guys have really really nice machines!!!
I think I'll mod my T-rex soon with a 500D fuse!
AWESOME!

[CT4]

Ever notice that the Ebay Blue Hughes 500 bodies for the T-Rex from Jet Tech and Sylvian look JUST like the Heliartist N23CP only it's missing the GREEN stripe and registration number? Any thoughts, are these 'reject' Heliartist bodies that didn't get to the last stages in the finishing process or what?

http://cgi.ebay.com/FOR-T-REX-450-Hughes-500-Glass-Fiber-Scale-Fuselage_W0QQitemZ300181515494QQihZ020QQcategoryZ3 4056QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1 247QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/Hughes-500-Fiber-Glass-Scale-Fuselage-For-T-REX-450-SE_W0QQitemZ230229269197QQihZ013QQcategoryZ34056QQ rdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQ_trksidZp1638.m118.l1247QQc mdZViewItem

http://www.heliartist.com/product_hughes_n23.html

I love the N23CP Heliartist body but at almost double the price of the normal R/W/B Align kit I'm mentally having a tough time justifying the price and these others seem like a bit of a middle ground.

Thoughts?

All of the asian fuselages are made by the same company. I think that Align gets the pick of the run also the Align come with full glazing,front window installed. The others are usualy only supplied with front windows, sometimes not installed and sometimes the wooden floor pan is not installed to square, from what I have seen.

[guru101]

Hi guy's you have some great fitting tip's here, wish i found this thread before i butchered my fuse to allow the elevator servo in without touching. The mod on the riser blocks was a no brainer (0.8mm ply on all sides for mine). The extra magnets on the front will be next but was something i would not have expected to have to do. I also raised the whole mechanics assy by 3mm to give me better flybar clearence and to allow the supplied tail pushrod to work without rubbing. my question is to all with the red or blue tail version owners, do any of you know the paint code/name of the white color? so i can touch up where i cut a hole in the side for my elevator servo, and fix up the crappy job done on the front windscreen. Any info on the color would be great.

Cheers guru101

[CT4]

guru 101
As they are painted in China I doubt if there would be any colour codes that would mean anything here in Australia. If you take it to a smash repairer or paint supply shop they should be able to match the colour for you.

[BlackTitanium]

All of the asian fuselages are made by the same company. I think that Align gets the pick of the run also the Align come with full glazing,front window installed. The others are usualy only supplied with front windows, sometimes not installed and sometimes the wooden floor pan is not installed to square, from what I have seen.

The Align fuselages are made by HeliArtist.

[CT4]

BT
Thats the company that makes all of them. I think that Align get the pick of the run as there fuselages are always good, and have the little extras that make putting it all together easy.

[evo5]

The Align fuselages are made by HeliArtist.
So they are exactly the same?

[CT4]

So they are exactly the same?

I have one of each and I can not see any difference. They just paint them different colours depending who is buying / onselling them.

[Tintin]

So I was having a heck of a time test fitting the mechanics getting things to properly line up. After a lot of puzzling I concluded the floor in my fuse was installed at an angle!?!? :arggg: (see pic).

I'm going to have to shim things to get the main shaft to exit the fuse at a straight angle...

This build is turning out to be a bit more of a challenge than I thought it would be... but it keeps me off the street... :D

Might have been covered already, but are you sure this is not intentionally?
I mean, if you look at a boom/pod heli from behind it will lean towards right because of the left thrust of the tailrotor. If you mount the frame with a right list the fuselage will be level when flying....

Just an idea..

[BlackTitanium]

Might have been covered already, but are you sure this is not intentionally?
I mean, if you look at a boom/pod heli from behind it will lean towards right because of the left thrust of the tailrotor. If you mount the frame with a right list the fuselage will be level when flying....

Just an idea..

Both of my HeliArtist 500D and N23CP fuselages were level.
Pretty sure it's not intentional. :...:

[Wenlock]

Bob, it looks like you discarded the star-shaped plywood boom mount and used a foam plug instead - or is the plywood boom mount hiding behind the foam?

Seems to me that the fewer rigid connections we have between the mechanics and the body, the better, so I'm all for discarding the plywood thing at the end of the boom.

[RChristopher]

Yes, i am using only a strip of foam. At the moment mine is inserted after attaching the tail gear, but securing the foam to the tail boom in the appropriate spot via goop prior to inserting into fuse might be a better method. Recently I have had my foam move due to a bit of vibration.

I did a teardown recently to take care of a few items I had been putting off, and when I put her back together I was getting a vibration I wasn't getting before. So a few new items came up. For me it was making sure the T tail and related stand offs don't touch the 500E tail boom. I also applied a small piece of latex rubber between the T tail and standoff. Also I found that my flybar paddles were just a smidg off. There was a good bit of difference when they were straight again. I found a wierd thing regarding my main blades. I snug them up, but they can be easily rotated back for transport, and loose enough that centrifugal force can straighten them out when run up. Well, after several tweaking exercises and during another test I throttled down and rearranged the main blades just eyeballing a straight line. Voila!!!! Less vibration!!?? Hmmmm ........

Oh well, onward through the fog. Oh, on a little different note, I cratered my new 450 SE V2, which I had gotten to replace the one in the 500E. Doing a bit of test work for 3D I had what appeared to be a brownout. Through a few aggressive moves it appears I may have overloaded the stock ESC. In the middle of a backward track I had a severe drop in head speed, along with intermittent lose of control. Nevercould regain full control and eventually nosed in. So far total repair cost is about $150.00. Luckily I already had half of those parts on hand. But now if I want to continue working on 3D I need to explore external BEC's or upgrading the ESC. So, even with the scale ships, be carefull regarding loading of the system! The use of digital servo's, among other things, may warrant more capable controllers.

Happy Flying

Bob C.

[warpspeed]

Ouch! Sorry to hear about the crash. We need big field-sized nets to jump up and protect our precious darlings before they get any ideas about becoming lawn darts.
Just out of curiosity, was it a Spektrum rx?

[RChristopher]

Yes it was an AR7000 Rx. The ship is back in the air now, with the same motor and ESC, and a Spektrum voltage protector for what it's worth, but a Scorpion HK-2221-8 V2 and 45 amp ESC are enroute as replacements. Hopefully this helps.

Cheers

Bob C.

[Rex-flyer]

My MD 500E with XL mechanics

[RChristopher]

Attached are a couple of shots of a little addition to the usual battery strap. I was a bit concerned about the unsecured end of the battery possibly adding a bit of vibration, so I placed a small bit of velcro on the battery end and under the lower front ledge of the 450 frame, then ran a strap length wise to the battery per the pics. Intent is to dampen any potential vibration. Yea right :)

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a328/n50482/Helis/BatterySaddle3-SM.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a328/n50482/Helis/BatterySaddle2_SM.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a328/n50482/Helis/BatterySaddle1_SM.jpg

[warpspeed]

Finally managed to get a few shots in flight.
http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/scootermonkey/0464-1.jpg
http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/scootermonkey/0424.jpg
http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/scootermonkey/0512.jpg
http://i121.photobucket.com/albums/o222/scootermonkey/0488.jpg

I'm still working on getting decent evening pics so the lights show up better....

[oppie]

I put my 500 military in. It wasn't to bad though, I crushed the front canopy a bit. What happened is I wired it up for lights and ran a wire up the tail fin and that wire came loose and got wound around the tail rotor and the bird spun in! It was my own fault for a bad wiring run. If anyone knows of someone that has had the missfortune of a serious crash but still has a front canopy I am interested.