Blade 400 tips and hints for newbie please

[b400]

Hi i'm new here
I just buy the blade 400 on december and its my first r/c heli. I know I have to practice on simulator like Reflex XTR. But here I just want tips on how set the blade tx dx6i or the helico to help me when I think I will be ready on nearly future to hover it.
I know the tail servo can receive more than 275 hz. Which servo can I buy to optimize tail performance?
thanks

sebastien

[jetpilot]

I told you before JR3400G!

First thing to learn listen the experienced flyer!...lol


Luc

[carlo_the_wonder_frog]

many good servos to choose from, not just the 3400, try Futaba 9650, or 9257. Also the airtronics 94217.

[Dilbeck]

Give this a try, D/R (on everthing but rudder) to 90 % , EXPO (on everything but rudder) to 20 % .:smokin: Change the pitch curve to hover at half stick instead of 3/4 But dont change the throttle curve. This setting on pitch curve: (pos-L=0 pos-2=51% pos-3=69% pos-4=85% pos-H=100%) This will lower the head speed for a nice controlled hover and will get you hovering at 1/2 throttle with a good steady head speed. This is for hovering and training only! (DO NOT FLIP THE IDLE UP OR STUNT MODE WHILE HOVERING WITH THESE SETTINGS) This will let you enjoy a nice hover and tooling around in the back yard or in the house provided that your swash plate is level and trimmed properly.

[b400]

Thanks Dilbeck,
Exactly what I want. I wil try both, but hover at mid stick seem to be really good idea. I not try to hover right now, my house too small, but I start the engine, try it at 35% throttle left stick. The bird seem really stable:wink:. Blades are tracking correctly.
Thanks again for the advice Dilbeck, I will try right now!
Sebastien

[Corwin]

JR 3400G gets my vote also, hard to pass up on the 3 year warranty and great service that Horizon Hobby provides on JR products. Really quick servo also.

[BKF]

How does one go about mounting the JR3400G to the Blade 400? The mounting holes are different, aren't they? The stock servo case has one hole in the center of each side. The 3400 has 2 holes on each side.

Do you just use one set of holes, or some sort of tail boom mount instead of the stock mount?

[sokal]

iv been told to mout it like the Trex on the tail. so ill buy another mount and control rod. but i hope CG stay

[fogger]

OK, my new friend and I decided to try upgrading the servos to get his 400 flying more respectably. We went with Hitec HS65MG servos for cyclic and the venerable Futaba 9650 for rudder. The swap was mostly straight forward. The Elevator servo (front most one with the pull-pull linkage) was the easiest, it was a tight fit but squezed in there. The Aileron and Pitch servos, mounted together behind the main shaft, were more difficult. We ended up removing some material on the main shaft side of the opening with a dremel, and I had to take the backs off of the servos to get the strain relief out of the way so I could squeeze the servos in there. Since they are metal gear I hope they will not need to be removed any time soon. :)

The Tail servo was a bit of a challenge. I had to shorten the pushrod as far as it would go, and getting the forward mounting screw in was hard due to the small access slot in the frame.

We decided to use the stock gyro for now, but we have a 401 to use if that one can't hold up. We did switch it to digital mode. After removing all trim I got the travel close to right but it still binds in one direction a little. I can't see any way to change the servo travel limit with this gyro. If anyone knows how please let me know.

First test flight was good, the centering is much improved and the tail held well even though the main rotor was badly out of track and balance due to a missing damper that was replaced by a washer. I had forgotten the owner told me he did this and the vibes were pretty bad, but it still flew better than before :)

-Fog

[LockMD]

Give this a try, D/R (on everthing but rudder) to 90 % , EXPO (on everything but rudder) to 20 % .:smokin: Change the pitch curve to hover at half stick instead of 3/4 But dont change the throttle curve. This setting on pitch curve: (pos-L=0 pos-2=51% pos-3=69% pos-4=85% pos-H=100%) This will lower the head speed for a nice controlled hover and will get you hovering at 1/2 throttle with a good steady head speed. This is for hovering and training only! (DO NOT FLIP THE IDLE UP OR STUNT MODE WHILE HOVERING WITH THESE SETTINGS) This will let you enjoy a nice hover and tooling around in the back yard or in the house provided that your swash plate is level and trimmed properly.


Was this a solution for the wag? It did not work. In the adjust menu went to d/r&expo change both from 100% to 90% and INH to 20% and left the rudder alone. I have to come to the conclusion it has to be the servo. No matter what settings I use, cant get rid of the wag.

[Dilbeck]

These setting were for someone just needing a nice hover not anything else,

[fdrotormedic]

Hey Fogger,

Did you have to reverse the servos when you installed the HS65mg ? Got any pics of the install?

[kidphc]

OK, my new friend and I decided to try upgrading the servos to get his 400 flying more respectably. We went with Hitec HS65MG servos for cyclic and the venerable Futaba 9650 for rudder. The swap was mostly straight forward. The Elevator servo (front most one with the pull-pull linkage) was the easiest, it was a tight fit but squezed in there. The Aileron and Pitch servos, mounted together behind the main shaft, were more difficult. We ended up removing some material on the main shaft side of the opening with a dremel, and I had to take the backs off of the servos to get the strain relief out of the way so I could squeeze the servos in there. Since they are metal gear I hope they will not need to be removed any time soon. :)
-Fog

Don't the MG servo's hate having their cases squeezed? Thought they lead to binding in the gears and pre-maturely destroyed the servos. Do they fit loose enough in there?

I'm asking since a friend is looking into buying the B400 and upgrading pretty much the same way. Of course I got elicited to help with the upgrade. :)

[fogger]

Once they are in there there is no real pressure on them, -if- you remove enough material from the frame. The front one was pressed in a little tight but it appeared to function just as fast and smooth as the others... My buddy already sold the 400, he's going to get a 600 :)

-Fog

[b400]

yeah thanks guys

[mr_heli]

Which rudder boom mount is recommended for the B400 for use with another servo such as S9257 or JR3400G?

[LockMD]

I used the stock mounts with a JR 3400G

[BmacSWA]

Exactly how did you mount it? Doesn't the case's irregular shape get in the way? A little trimming?

Brian

[LockMD]

you might want to check out the 400 forum, this is my post in there:

http://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=66813

[sokal]

http://www.helifreak.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=40644&d=1204506988
http://www.helifreak.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=40645&d=1204506988

[singingperry]

See the thread, "anyone have these skids" on the Blade 400 forum. BIG easy newbie mod!

[singingperry]

See the thread "Anyone have these skids?" on the Blade 400 forum. BIG easy mod, gotta try it!Sorry about the double post thunderstorm goin on computer's weird tonight.

[singingperry]

Odd thing I have tried using suggested settings on the dx6i for the g4 realflight only to be frustrated. Turns out if I just leave the radio menu on airplane helis fly just fine