Tail case slip mid air

[ericcolon]

First close call with my Fusion. As I switched to idle up, I noticed that the tail rotor was at a 45° angle. I was able to auto down without any damage. Upon inspection, the tail case was still really tight in the boom.

The bird was hit with an unexpected wind gust when it happened. Can a gust of approx. 30-35 mph cause the tail case to slip? I guess it's time to pin it.




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[Slyster]

Did you pin it? That should be impossible if you pinned it. The heli comes with a special small screw just for that purpose.. and you also should pre-drill a tiny old for it too.. otherwise it will just dent the boom and not penetrate it.

[ericcolon]

No, it isn't pinned. Mine is the old kit and I failed to pin it. I learned my lesson.

What baffles me is that the tail case was not loose at all when I brought her in.


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[Ah Clem]

There is a lot of torsional force on the tail gear box, due to the torque tube. Mine is a very early kit also.

I drilled holes in both the front and rear gearboxes and installed short, sheet metal screws to pin the boom to both boxes.

[ericcolon]

Originally Posted by Ah Clem

There is a lot of torsional force on the tail gear box, due to the torque tube. Mine is a very early kit also.

I drilled holes in both the front and rear gearboxes and installed short, sheet metal screws to pin the boom to both boxes.

Will do. I'm just thankful that I still have it in one piece. Autorotation training on the sim paid off. Lol.


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[Michaelinpr]

Saludos Eric. I am surprised that your kit was not pinned. You got yours from grandrc 3 months after I did and mine was the pinned version. Maybe that is why you got such a deal. When I get home I will post pics of what I think is the best way to pin the tail case.

[ericcolon]

Originally Posted by Michaelinpr

Saludos Eric. I am surprised that your kit was not pinned. You got yours from grandrc 3 months after I did and mine was the pinned version. Maybe that is why you got such a deal. When I get home I will post pics of what I think is the best way to pin the tail case.

Thanks Michael, pics will be helpful. I cant complain about the price I paid for the kit though lol.


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[Carapau]

Yeah, this was a very common occurrence on the very first kits.

[Michaelinpr]

Sorry but all the pics I am taking are coming out really blurry.

Basically I ended up drilling and tapping a 3mm screw with a frame washer on it behind the vertical tail fin. This way no matter what the tail fin will at least keep the screw secure. I had the stock pin in but ended up with almost the same result as Eric. The tail was super tight but that tt has a lot of force to it.

Just be sure that if you do tap the tail case behind the tail fin, that you do not end up with the screw sitting in the middle of that big hole in the tail boom. Just take some measurements before you drill.

BTW Eric, we are making a trip down to Yuaco next Sunday. I am not sure where exactly. I do know that Luis galarza flies some where there and it is pretty nice. I will let you know.

[ericcolon]

Originally Posted by Michaelinpr

BTW Eric, we are making a trip down to Yuaco next Sunday. I am not sure where exactly. I do know that Luis galarza flies some where there and it is pretty nice. I will let you know.

Cool let me know.



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[s0laris]

Yes pin it.. also I pin the the other side too. I have 2 set screws on each side of the boom mount.

[sansone]

mine had the tiny pointed setscrew and the tailcase rotated anyway.. so pin it

[s0laris]

its best to drill the hole 1st for the screw to be effective.. otherwise it just puts a dent in the boom

[ericcolon]

thanks for the tips! I'll post some photos when I'm done with the mod.

[aclysma]

How do you "pin" the old tail case design? I have a new one and an old one. The new one has a pointed screw and a place to screw it in. The old one does not.

[s0laris]

Drill a hole... careful to not hit the torque tube if you drill with it in place

[AeroMattics]

I added a little CA to bond the screw within the small hole in the boom. Otherwise, it tends to vibrate and back out. I came down after a few flights and noticed my pin missing once and since using the CA I haven't had an issue.

[backburner1955]

Pete,

Where is the pinning screw supposed to go? Mine must be an older version, there is no threaded hole for the pin. That is no problem, I will just drill and tap a hole.

Is it supposed to be above the "window" in the tail case, just left of the clamping screw in the tail case?

[s0laris]

Here is a pic of mine. I had to dremel a slot on my pin cause i used too much lock tite lol

[backburner1955]

That is exactly where I thought it is supposed to go. Thanks