View Full Version : Sourcing battery O-rings
I tried a few places in town, but nobody seemed to stock them. Finally found them on Ebay - 5 for £1.88 + 30p p&p.
70mm x 3mm NBR 70 Shore O-Ring x 5
from 'quality industrial products'.
They're slightly thinner than the Mikado ones, but not by much and they seem to hold the battery in place very nicely.
Mikado charge over £8 for 6. Ouch.
I might have just bought the last ones but I'm sure they'll have some more in soon.
K
Just a thought. Has anyone any ideas on why the original O-rings seem to perish so quickly. I got through 3/5 within a few months of my first flight. My first theory was that I had an old kit and that they were already close to the end of their shelf-life when I bought them. But I wondered whether storing the helicopter with the battery in place and the O-rings stretched might have shortened their life?
K
LITHIUMSTATIC
05-17-2008, 04:15 PM
But I wondered whether storing the helicopter with the battery in place and the O-rings stretched might have shortened their life?
K
Same here..... I now remove my battery and this seams to help. I'm looking for a cheaper alternative now.
Blackrat
05-18-2008, 07:57 AM
O-rings - depending on the material used are not very flexible , cold weather doesnt help either .. if you could mount silicone fuel tubing it would be a better solution .. i have just used rubber bands in place :D
Hi All,
Align makes velcro straps that work nicely. They cinch down tight. And there's no worry about them breaking (except in a crash when you want them to break). And they're dirt cheap.
Personally, I don't like the o-rings because a failure could be catastrophic.
Keep 'em flying,
LJS
By 'catastrophic' do you mean they might get caught in the gearing?
K
Hi wlfk,
Yes. Or worse yet fly out of the heli if you're flying 3D! Velcro's a sure thing.
Keep 'em flying.:YeaBaby:
LJS
I've never felt that the battery is insecure, though I have worried about the rings snapping and getting caught up in the gears.
I'm trying an experiment where I leave the 1st and 3rd bands in place, and leave the 2nd and 4th loose.
If these bands perish as quickly as the older ones I'll look into alternative methods.
K
stevehonn
05-20-2008, 04:34 AM
I bought my Logo 500 at 3D Masters last year and bought a spare set of 'O' rings as I expected them to have short lives, pretty much the same as the Swift's which lasted a very short time. I've still got the original 'O' rings fitted some 10 months down the line, sometimes the heli is stored with a pack fitted, sometimes without and they are still as good as new. As its a 500 I'm only using 2 'O' rings supplemented with velcro on the bottom of the battery tray and the packs, they've also survived around 5 heavy crashes so far too.
Actually, a really sharp Logo pilot here, Zguy, showed me what was killing at least my o-rings.
The canopy can rub and slice at the oring with you put it on. I have the plastic canopy, and it was doing a nice job of putting a little slice in the oring when I'd install it.
A little cutting later, and I haven't replaced an o-ring in months.
Could be what's causing the problem.
-Aox
billyd
05-20-2008, 01:05 PM
Right now I am only using one o-ring to hold the battery in place. But I have velcro in three places on the bottom and that combined with the o-ring and the battery is going nowhere. I just had a bad crash and the battery didn't even shift.
That being said I will not replace the o-ring when it breaks. As mentioned by others, Align sells velcro straps which are far stronger and much more convenient to use. Readyheli sells them. In fact I am using one right now on the logo to hold the Rx battery in place. In fact I have three or four laying around the shop I think I will ditch the o-ring when I do the rebuild.
jamesotron99
05-20-2008, 04:52 PM
I just pulled the velcro straps off my Logos because I felt that the O-rings give a stronger hold. I have velcro tape along the bottom of the packs and the battery tray though, too.
billyd
05-20-2008, 05:04 PM
I just pulled the velcro straps off my Logos because I felt that the O-rings give a stronger hold. I have velcro tape along the bottom of the packs and the battery tray though, too.
I might have been jumping the gun then. Just have read several complaints about the o-rings giving up pretty quickly. Mine is fine though... I haven't had any problems yet. I like the convenience of the strap over the o-ring though. The strap is as loose as you want it to be while installing the battery. However the o-ring can be quite difficult to connect to the hook, especially the one towards the front of the heli. That's why I went down to one o-ring.
jamesotron99
05-20-2008, 05:10 PM
I found the straps to be a pain in the arse because they were always sticking to the velcro on the pack.
robmoney
05-20-2008, 06:51 PM
Trex 600 velcro battery straps seem to work very well from what I have seen.
Wbird
05-20-2008, 11:32 PM
Can't say much for longevity because I have only had my Logo for about a month now but I feel better about the o-rings than the velcro straps on my rex's. Make sure you file or cut the flashing off the tabs that you hook the o-rings onto or that will definitely shorten the useable life. Also I installed plastic tie wraps on all the o-rings and cut them off with about 1 inch to grab on to. When passing them through you can reach the tie wrap and it makes a good handle to pull it down with. I am also using a set of 4900 packs that pretty much fill the area and they have to stretch a bunch. So far no sign of wear.