Bell 222 Trex 450 (Heliartist)

[crazyerick]

From my Hughes experience it was to lower the CG. I also had it in the "normal" 450 position and after trying it in the lower position she was much happier in banked turns.

[frogbmth]

I left everything where it was in the heli, so battery on the upper front tray (though further forwards), BEC and ESC on front lower tray, Rx at the back between the frames.

[omster]

I have the HeliArtist Airwolf V2 on order, but ordered the wrong one (wanted the kit with the retracts)

One of the hobby shops I spoke with said I could use the FUSUNO Airwolf Retract System - is this what you're using?

[lrogers]

No, I got the Heli Artist set. The place I ordered mine from has a reto-fit kit for $23 (I Think it was) , but shipping from Hong Kong adds another $20. I saw on another site a guy used the set you were talking about and it worked okay.

[frogbmth]

If I were doing it all again, I would have scratch built retracts, if I couldnt get the heliartist ones that is. I might still do that, I had to mod the causemann retracts a lot, until little remained of them.

Drew used the Fusuno retracts and they don't fit. They need modding and you need to cut through the trex frame to get the axle to fit. Expect a fair bit of work to use a retract set, so IMHO you might as well scratch build.

Andy

[omster]

frogbmth - not what I wanted to hear, but thanks for the warning. I'm going to forge ahead with the fusuno kit and see what happens... that's why we tinker in this hobby, right? Maybe I can post some pictures of my struggle with the build...

lrogers - glad to hear it's possible to use the fusuno kit with the heliartist body - thanks! how has the weight of the fuse and retracts affected your birds overall flight?

[lrogers]

Don't know yet, just got the retracts squared away last night. Hope to have some flight testing this weekend or early next week.

Andy told me he upped the head speed a bit to compensate for the extra weight on his. I'm more concerned about messing up the programing of the new radio than I am about the weight.

Andy also mentioned that the guy that used the Fusuno retracts had to do some modifcation to make it work. Just a heads up.

[frogbmth]

You see the problem is, both the fusuno and causemann retracts use a single rear axle to operate the rear struts, but the wings housing the retracts are higher than the plane the heli baseplat is on. The heliartist retracts seem to use inkages running down each side of the heli from what I can see. This seems the best option and is likely to be how I rework mine.

My rear axle is a little bent and squeezed to fit, Drew cut into his heli frame so the axle passes through the heli frame.

Drew also said that getting the Fusuno set in was like getting a ship in a bottle :arggg:

Andy

[lrogers]

You are correct Andy. The Heli Artist set has a wood bhd set in the fuselage at the base of the stub wing and a ply doubler set against the outer edge of the wing. The axle sets in a hole in the outer piece, goes through the inner piece and is secured with a collar set against the backside if the inner bhd. The axle protrudes into the fuselage and has a wooden control horn CA'ed in place AFTER (this is where things get sticky-pun intended) the push rods are installed and the whole thing is tested. Now, up front, there is an axle running side to side that captures the front strut/wheel and three wood control horns. The center horn (right next to the strut) goes to the servo and the two outboard horns connect to the main struts.

I think I'm going to cut a small "c" shaped piece of wood or styrene and glue it to the back side of the front fuselage bhd so I can give the push rods a bit more support. They are a little too flexible for my liking.

Tonight, I'm going to test the radio settings and if they are all right, off come the landing struts/skids and tail rotor shaft so the initial fitting of the mechanics to the fuselage can begin!

[BlackTitanium]

No, I got the Heli Artist set. The place I ordered mine from has a reto-fit kit for $23 (I Think it was) , but shipping from Hong Kong adds another $20. I saw on another site a guy used the set you were talking about and it worked okay.

Let's not confuse people. It's not a retrofit for kits without the retracts. It is a CNC upgrade kit. It replaces the wood pieces in the retract system with metal parts.

http://flying-hobby.com/catalog/images/Airwolf450_CNC_retract_system_upgrade_pack_B.jpg

[drewpyfz6]

If I were doing it all again, I would have scratch built retracts, if I couldnt get the heliartist ones that is. I might still do that, I had to mod the causemann retracts a lot, until little remained of them.

Drew used the Fusuno retracts and they don't fit. They need modding and you need to cut through the trex frame to get the axle to fit. Expect a fair bit of work to use a retract set, so IMHO you might as well scratch build.

Andy
Hey Andy,
Those metal retracts do look rather good, better than the wire spindles we have. :YeaBaby:

[drewpyfz6]

Let's not confuse people. It's not a retrofit for kits without the retracts. It is a CNC upgrade kit. It replaces the wood pieces in the retract system with metal parts.

http://flying-hobby.com/catalog/images/Airwolf450_CNC_retract_system_upgrade_pack_B.jpg

Can I ask where these are sold?
Not seen them available, and they are for the HeliArtist fuselages?

Thanks in advance. :thumbup:

[frogbmth]

Darn I need a set of those, I am sure I can retrofit them into my butchered retract system ;)

[lrogers]

If I had know that when I ordered my kit, I would have got that one too! I think that would make the install a lot easier.

[omster]

HeliArtist - Airwolf 450 CNC Retract System upgrade Pack - one of the accessories found here:
http://flying-hobby.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=96_158

you can also get just the CNC landing gear for about half the price...

not sure if these upgrades will work with the fusuno kit, since I don't have it yet...

anybody have a picture of the HeliArtist retracts they'd like to share?

[BlackTitanium]

HeliArtist - Airwolf 450 CNC Retract System upgrade Pack - one of the accessories found here:
http://flying-hobby.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=96_158

you can also get just the CNC landing gear for about half the price...

not sure if these upgrades will work with the fusuno kit, since I don't have it yet...

anybody have a picture of the HeliArtist retracts they'd like to share?

The other CNC landing gear set is for the V1 and V2 Airwolf without the retracts.

http://flying-hobby.com/catalog/images/CNC-Landing-gear_B.jpg