who has left the clear tape on the gaui paddles?

[istandalone]

after reading a thread a minute ago, i decided to start a thread to ask who keeps the tape on their paddles and who doesn't. i can't figure out how to create a pole thread, so i guess this will have to do. so, what did you do? leave it on? take it off? and why?
i took mine off both pairs of paddles, the stockers and the white light weight paddles and have had no problems at all, at least that i can tell.

[bpd964]

I left mine on.. ( i know you already know this). I am gonna stick around to see what the deal is..

Actually, I'm gonna pull them off and go fly right now and I will say if it makes a difference or not... BRB

[worldofmaya]

If I knew it one week earlier, I would have logged a flight without stickers... anyway, I don't think if there's no reason for it, everyone but one on it and companies add a sticker...
-klaus

[bpd964]

Ok.. I just finished flying and I must say that in my personal experience, the tape on the flybar paddles "DO" make a difference.. I'm no 3D pilot and I am not very experienced at all so every little change that my heli goes through, I notice it.

On spool up, there is a very small change in the way it sounds.. kinda like a whistle but then it goes away as the HS reaches the max.. Cyclic is a little more touchy but I still had control. Really hard to explain but it feels like It moves faster (as far as the cyclic movement, not the heli). If someone else tries this please fill us in..

[skydude]

Why would they bother putting that tape on there if they did not think it would enhance something?

I assumed the holes were to reduce weight and the tape kept a smooth airfoil. I handle them carefuly so as not to puncture tape.

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[mysticmead]

exactly.. the holes are to reduce weight. the reason they appear to move faster is because there is less air resistance without the tape. I've seen paddles that had a huge slot cut out instead of holes like on the hurri. you wouldn't want to fly those paddles without the tape. the tape is there to retain the airfoil and make the paddle react in a predicted manner.

[Mikej]

I have flown about 80 odd flights with it on

[bpd964]

Well, now at least I know for sure.. I see plastic covering on just about every new plastic equipment I buy. Including cell phone and pda screens.. Who knew that this would be any different..

Should I pull the plastic from the screen on gyro..? it might make the tail hold a little better..:YeaBaby:

[bpd964]

I have flown about 80 odd flights with it on

I've logged several flights with it until today.. I have a spare set with the tape still on.. i'm putting those back on for now.

[mjdee14]

Guys....The tape should be left ON....it's no different than a wing.

When you build a model wing out of wood do you leave the covering off...NO.

The holes are simply to lighten the paddle...the plastic is to keep it aerodynamic. Without the tape the air would go through the holes at certain angles of attack and cause all sorts of turbulence. You may or may not feel it but it's happening and it's
not a good thing. :Fan

Leave the tape on.....it's important.

[istandalone]

the weird thing is, when i got my hurri kit and when i got my white lightweight paddles, the tape that was on them wasn't stuck on perfectly, and was peeling up a bit on the edges. it made it look like it was supposed to be taken off.

[Hawk18052]

I almost took mine off, because as someone said, it's kinda normal to take the pastic cover off a new cell phone or dvd player or mp3 player. It just seems like ya should but I checked the Finless videos just in case and he left them on so I did as well. just got my replacement motor mount, should be flying soon I hope.

Hawk

[xodarap1]

I left mine on. Figured that the holes were there to reduce weight and the plastic to keep a clean airfoil surface.

[L0stS0ul]

I just got a set of the lightweight paddles and the sticker was not on the paddle. I had to add it. I can't remember if I had to do that with the stock paddles or not.

[mjdee14]

I just got a set of the lightweight paddles and the sticker was not on the paddle. I had to add it. I can't remember if I had to do that with the stock paddles or not.

No fo r some reason the stock paddles come with tape already on them. I had to add the shinny tape to mylight paddles also.

[worldofmaya]

All stock Hurricane paddles come with stickers on them, light weight does not... there were a few issues with stock paddles. Stickers came off. Doing it yourself is much better.
-klaus

[Vinger]

The tape HAS to be on as it provides the paddle with the airfoil shape it needs to function properly. The light paddles come with the tape, but it is not stuck on, you have to do it yourself. Basically any lightweight sticker/tape will work as long as you clean the paddle thoroughly before applying it.

[istandalone]

another thing, in the manual, nowhere does it state this. you'd think if it's that important they'd put it in the manual.

[worldofmaya]

Don't know who began to drill holes, but there are still a lot of paddles out there without stickers... there's quit a lot of missing information in Gauis manual. They don't really describe different settings with their Esc, at least my kit didn't have a separate manual/ information page. Creating a "new" manual and adding correction pages in an PDF is something strange too... but that's the way it is.
-klaus

[mjdee14]

If your a newbie heli flyer I would think having the tape off would be kind of like adding Expo to your cyclic. What your doing is allowing the air to go "though" the hole when the paddle is at an angle of attack, essentially dimminishing it's ability to change the tourqe efect of the main blades. As I also said before....the holes would also cause turbulence and you don't want that either....

[Hawk18052]

Well I'm gonna try to gey more than 5 inches off the ground today, with the stickers on. there's alot of suff lacking in the manual. i've bin taking down my own notes as I progress. Today I'm gonna try to get my throttle curve set up.

Hawk

[concept1]

this is one of those things going back to basics of flying. you need the airfoil!! it isn't in the Gaui manual because the stock paddles are assembled! and you don't find much info period because paddle Airfoil has been beat to death over he last 20 years and anyone buying a helicopter of this size should have some basic knowledge of flight! Helicopters are not Toys and do require some knowledge and understanding. Honestly I don't believe anyone should fly anything untill they understand the basics or at least the theory behind it. lift, cyclics etc . yes Paddle design might fit into the the more advanced stuff like Airfoil and blade and paddle design dynamic balance weight and such along what makes a blade good for one guy but terrible for another? I find in todays world many guys are skipping this step I would highly suggest for anyone to learn about blade and paddle design and make up, you will find it might help your flying. for example if you are a stick banger only! you will find a blade with more of the weight in the center of the airfoil fits you better then a blade with most of it's weight on the leading edge. a heavier leading edge will be much more stable and controlable but not as fast. I might say a blade really is junk because it won't fly stable but you might love it because it 3d's very very well! most guys like the rotortech blades because they do a very good job balancing stability with quickness. same goes for paddle design. I have built many many Carbon Paddles, weight, balance, airfoil and just where you put the flybar all makes a huge difference on how they fly