Anyone have a STEP-BY-STEP on Swashplate replacement?

[GG07]

While I am not having any issues with any of my models right now in regards to their swashplates, I am toying with the idea of replacing some of them with the aluminum type as offered by third-party vendors such as Microheli.

Problem is... I haven't a clue how all the rotor components come apart in order to get to the swashplate and swap out the plastic one.

So... Does anyone have a PDF or a link that provides a step by step disassembly proceedure with photos that I can check out? I could probably figure it out without one, but I would prefer to know going in exactly what parts need to come off first, etc. I also don't want to end up taking stuff off that may not need to come off to get to the swashplate.

Also... Does anyone have any experience with doing this and if these aluminum replacements are worth the trouble? The stock plastic ones seem rather fragile and I worry that the little ball joint that attaches to the servo arm will eventually break off through crashes and adjustments.

Now that I am getting some of my favorite models dialed in, I would really hate to have a vital part break on me and screw everything up. It would be worth it to me to replace some of these stock parts with sturdier aircraft aluminum versions, if they are worth the price and the labor involved in upgrading to them.

Thanks in advance for any input you may be able to offer on the subject!

Cheers.

[]Rick.

[Piloto-de-Avion]

YouTube

YouTube

[GG07]

Thanks for the link, but that doesn't cover the swashplate replacement I was looking for. Does this guy have a video on specifically the replacement of the swashplate? I looked on the YouTube page but didn't see anything else but the video you linked here.

Anyone else have a SWASHPLATE replacement video or other tutorial?

[Pfloyd]

Take the body off.
Take the landing gear off.
Unscrew the lower gear.
Take out the inner shaft.
Remove lower blades from blade holder.
Unscrew lower blade older.
Remove top bearing from main shaft.
Slide lower blade holder off the shaft.
Pop servo rods from swash plate.
Lift swashplate off of shaft.
You have successfully removed the swash.

[GG07]

Thanks but...

I'm looking for a demo with either photos or a video showing the process. I've never done this before, and I would like to see the process performed on video or in a series of photos, so there is no doubt in my mind as to how to proceed, and do it once the right way.

I see a lot of forum posts on various heli web sites from people asking for the same thing, but so far, I have been unable to find a video of the process. Interesting that there seems to be video walk-thrus for far more basic and self explanatory repairs/maintenance, but nothing on this. I would think a swash plate video would be at the top of anyone's list who wanted to provide some helpful heli upgrade/repair videos. There sure are a ton of requests for one out there.

The guy who produced that video linked above was asked by half a dozen people on his YOU TUBE page for one on how to replace a swashplate which are now months old, but I never saw any replies from him, leave alone an actual video.

Anyone else have a link to the specific kind of step-by-step I am looking for?

[newhelicrasher]

It is pretty self evident if you just start doing it. there is an exploded parts diagram that came with your bird in the instruction manual but honestly its not that complex and prety easy to figure out how to get apart if you just dive in and try taking it apart....not rocket science or astro physics.

[GG07]

Originally Posted by newhelicrasher

It is pretty self evident if you just start doing it. there is an exploded parts diagram that came with your bird in the instruction manual but honestly its not that complex and prety easy to figure out how to get apart if you just dive in and try taking it apart....not rocket science or astro physics.

I gather from these last two comments that there isn't such a video or how-to out there. Odd that every mundane aspect of maintaining these models seems to have a video on how to do it, but when it comes to one of the most involved part replacements there is, no one seems to have bothered making one for that.

Maybe I will make one after I have figured it out on my own.

[Pfloyd]

There is no video, there is no tutorial. Just take it apart...it is easy. All of us have done it at one time or another.

[newhelicrasher]

+1

We are not trying to understand quantum.physics in order to achieve astral projection or pit a ripple.in the space time contortium. Just grab that lil.screwdriver included with your heli and start unscrewing the obvious ones that need unscrewing. You are over thinking it.

Take the bottom collar off the main shaft....that lil metal thing under the white gears.slide off the gears. Now pull up on the whole blade.assembly....the shaft with everything attached will come out. See the little black collar under the swash? Unscrew and remove it by sliding it down. Pop off your rods....done. Do the same in reverse to put it back together. It would be a waste of 3 minutes to make a video about it.

I understand that people have different skill sets but imho if you cant figure this one out you are going to really struggle in this hobby and it may just not be for you...which is ok boats are not for me.....especially old replica models of ships with lots of ropes. Tried to build a scale.model of old ironsides once.....once.

[GG07]

Have you ever torn down an HO scale brass steam locomotive? I have.

I always prefer to go into a new project with as much information as I can get. A video on this process would have given me that additional info and more confidence in getting it apart without a problem.

As luck would have it... The swashplate on my second MCX I am about to convert over to an MCX S300 went belly up and separated , refusing to stay together anymore, so I took it apart in advance of receiving a new Microheli aluminum replacement. You guys were right... It wasn't that hard, but that still doesn't mean that a video wouldn't be a great benefit for those with less mechanical ability and experience.

So now... I actually NEEDED to perform this maintenance instead of just doing it to see the difference between the plastic swash plate and the much touted Microheli aircraft aluminum upgrade. It looks like the MIcroheli doesn't have a two piece swash, so hopefully these are not prone to separating like the stock one does.

And I still find it odd that HH has videos on every other possible maintenance procedure you can perform on these, but nothing on what I would consider to be one of the more involved tear downs where a video would seem an obvious how-to to provide their customers!

[Gimpdiggity]

I know this thread's a little bit old now, but I had to take my swash off after breaking it with my big dumb fingers, and I just kind of started going at it with a screwdriver and taking things apart and I got it off of there just fine.

Half the fun of having an RC vehicle is tinkering with it, and what better way than to just start ripping things apart??

[GG07]

Originally Posted by Gimpdiggity

I know this thread's a little bit old now, but I had to take my swash off after breaking it with my big dumb fingers, and I just kind of started going at it with a screwdriver and taking things apart and I got it off of there just fine.

Half the fun of having an RC vehicle is tinkering with it, and what better way than to just start ripping things apart??

Since I posted this thread, I have torn down and reassembled several of my heli's for various upgrades and part replacements.

You're right, that it isn't really that hard to do, but there are a few things that need to be carefully checked before flying the model again after putting it back together.

Most important is making sure that the main gears are level and have no wobble, and also that the motor pinion gears are centered on their respective main gear and are not touching the other rotor main gear for obvious reasons.

Also, make sure that all the parts that are attached to the main shaft via a pre-drilled hole in the shaft are secured back into their same respective hole, and also that the shaft is properly oriented. The bottom of the outer shaft has a flat spot on one end which is the bottom and where lower rotor main gear attaches.

In the beginning it helped that I own two of every model I have, so I could compare what I was doing against an assembled version to check my work, and of course now that I have done this more than half a dozen times, it takes me less than 5 minutes to tear one down or put one back together after installing a new swashplate or some other replacement or upgrade.

Still think a video HOW-TO would be of benefit for someone who has never done this before. As I said, you can never have too much information when it comes to things like this.

[Gottria]

Funny, I had to replavce mine for the first time last night. It came apart easy and went back to gether no problem. Problem is it flys like crap now. I'm going to take it back apart tonight and give it a good look over.

I mentioned to the guy at the LHS that it didn't fly forward very good, he handed me a new swash that had two longer balls and said to install this and it will be more responsive. I'll keep playing with it. Ohh and I also bought a new SR120 while I was there.

[newhelicrasher]

Originally Posted by Gottria

Funny, I had to replavce mine for the first time last night. It came apart easy and went back to gether no problem. Problem is it flys like crap now. I'm going to take it back apart tonight and give it a good look over.

I mentioned to the guy at the LHS that it didn't fly forward very good, he handed me a new swash that had two longer balls and said to install this and it will be more responsive. I'll keep playing with it. Ohh and I also bought a new SR120 while I was there.

A couple things to check....make sure flybar can bounce up and down easily but not so sloppy that you get alot of side to side movement.


Next i would check the up and down play of the main shaft...grab the fly bar with two fingers and hold the landing gear....pullup and down there should be very little play.

Lastly make sure the blades can rock on their built in feathering shafts freely...any debris will really mess up a flight.

[Gottria]

OK, I took everything apart and discovered I put the screw for the collar shaft on the wrong side and it was sliding up the shaft. Moved the screw to the other side of the collar and aligned it with the hole in the shaft and not it's nice and tight. Flight is much better but going forward causes it to wobble side to side, it does move forward but if you go to fast it wobbles.

Also just discovered the LHS sold my a swash for the MCX2 not the MCX, so I moved it to the shorted balls but still wobbles going forward.

[newhelicrasher]

The guide rods on the mcx frame are too short for the mcx2 swash...while it is in your hand give it full forward and look...that may be the problem if kot it sounds flybar related..bent? Too tight? Too much side to side play?

[GG07]

Actually...The newer MCXs that are shipping now from HH and other retailers has the same taller/longer guides for the swash pin as an MCX2, so the swash can be used on the MCX now, but I recommend also using the MCX2 lower rotor head cause on the longer balls the stock MCX head guides are not long enough to hold the linkage securely.

If you buy the Microheli aluminum head, this one will work too and isn't that much more to buy than the MCX2 head would cost.

I've got an empty newer model MCX frame here and they actually look identical to the MCX2 frame now, so it looks like both models are using the same frame, with just different motors and a few other parts changed. Makes sense from a production cost perspective to only have one frame for both models.

On the flybar thing... I always screw it down until it doesn't bounce, and then "slowly" back out the screw just to the point that the flybar can bounce, but will not have any lateral movement. Just up and down. not side to side. This has corrected the toilet bowl problem on every single model I own, and became clear as the best first step to correct flight problems, ahead of changing blades and other more time consuming testing and experiments with parts changes, readjustments etc.

[Gottria]

Flybar looks good, tightened the screw till wit wouldn't bounce then backed it off till it freed up. Moved the plastic ball ends on the rods till the swash was level, except it's almos at the end of the rod. Also moved the TX trim to max to get the swash perfectly level and gave it a test flight, great movement, I can now fly it down the hallway again.

So what needs to be ordered from Micoheli to get this flying good?

[GG07]

Originally Posted by Gottria

Flybar looks good, tightened the screw till wit wouldn't bounce then backed it off till it freed up. Moved the plastic ball ends on the rods till the swash was level, except it's almos at the end of the rod. Also moved the TX trim to max to get the swash perfectly level and gave it a test flight, great movement, I can now fly it down the hallway again.

So what needs to be ordered from Micoheli to get this flying good?

What I have been doing is buying all the Microheli parts for the outer shaft from the retaining collar up.

That would be the following:

Aluminum retaining collar and top bearing for top rotor in outershaft (Top blades and flybar attach to the head of the inner shaft).

MCX2 Aluminum swashplate

Aluminum lower rotor head

To find these, just go up to eBAY or Amazon.com and type "Microheli MCX2". You can probably find these a bit cheaper on eBAY from merchants like "NitroHobbies, Hopmeup, or ValueRC

http://www.amazon.com/InnershaftBear...3&sr=8-1-fkmr2


http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_no...eli+Blade+MCX2

[dhyayi]

thanks for this information