Axe CP tail/gyro problem

[daufhammer]

I need a little help with my new Axe CP. I have been flying it for about 2 weeks now and am getting pretty good at tail in hovering, but had a really small little crash the other day (really my first one). I only broke the ball join off of on of the main rotor grips, but got it replaced just fine and adjusted the tracking a bit to get it dialed in again. The only problem now is that in order to keep the tail in place i have to turn the tail rotor trim on my radio all the way to the right. Before the crash it would be almost dead center. Could my tiny crash from about 1 foot off the ground have changed the electronics somehow? Im also not having the best luck trying to adjust it on the 3-in-1 e board with the 3 adjustments there.

I also find that sometimes my heli will jump up in the air a few feet sometimes without me touching the throttle sick. No wind either... im inside. Its almost like the pitch of my blades gets stuck then all of the sudden it be normal and it will climb a few feet.

Any thoughts? Or any other Axe CP tuning tips for a beginner would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Drew

[atomicplatypus]

Regarding the jumping... take a close look at the feathering spindle in your head block. That’s the small shaft that you screw the blade grips into. It’s easy to bend in a crash and may affect your blade pitch. Also check the o-rings that attach to the feathering spindle which can get stuck even if they look fine. My solution was to apply some silicone lubricant to the o-rings. Do you fly with the radio antenna extended all the way? I was noticing glitching on my AXE if I didn’t extend the antenna even if I was only hovering a few feet away.

Regarding the tail... my first thought regarding your tail problem was to check the pot settings in the 3-in-1 but you said you’ve done that. I’m only guessing here but check to make sure nothing else was damaged in your crash. Check the feathering spindle as mentioned before and do the servos move freely. Check that the swash plate turns and moves freely. Look for anything that is not moving freely. I’ve found the stock AXE battery doesn’t have a lot of power so if something is bogging down your motor the tail motor may not be getting enough power.

The 3-in-1 pot needs very tiny adjustments and make sure you mark the default position with a marker so you can reset if needed. Be sure to only adjust with the little plastic screwdriver supplied with your heli.

Good luck! Let us know what you find.

[skunkworx]

As far as the crash knocking the elctronics off, I'm not too sure that's possible, however, check the top one. It is the centering pot. set ALL of your trims to dead center (except the vertical one next to the throttle).

Start the spin up and note which way it spins (no touching the left stick except to give it throttle!) if it spins to the right (the nose!), then turn the pot to the left and vice-versa if it goes the other way until you can take-off with very little rudder inputs. (I might have it backwards, so forgive me if I'm off just a bit!)
*note that if your mixes are out of adjustment (second pot) and the heli spins right really fast or doesn't hold for squat, you'll have to give it more mix. Right gives you more tail motor power, left decreases (get the trend on the POTs yet?). If you adjust your mixes, you'll also have to adjust center and maybe your gryo settings as well because they are all kinda linked together.

**Note also that if your gyro gains are set wrong it will feel about the same so you have to go after one or the other. Best bet is to turn the gyro up until it wags just a but and then back off a td until it sits ok.

After that, check your mechanical. If your spindle is bent, you'll notice it pulling to one side, or vibrating really badly (usually this is not the case though!) I recommend the same about the silicone in the dampeners (or just use some spit!) makes them easier to install with less binding. Make sure whatever you use it DOES NOT HAVE PETROLEUM DISTILLATES!!! These will eat plastic and rubber to bits.
(FYI the Trex 450 V-1 rubber dampeners are a perfect match in this head setup)
Lastly, check your spaing on your flybar and paddles. You can do this with a ruler or even better a slide rule that you can get from Home Depot or Harbor Freight (I also use a digital micrometer, but the slide rule is easier and much cheaper!:shock:)

If the spacing is out, you'll run into a bunch of vibes which drain power away from an already heavily taxed brushed setup!

Good luck with your bird! let us know how it's coming along