Upgraded my CP v2

[Ronarse]

I added the CPX frame, canopy, and EXI head. Started to hover yesterday but the weather wasn't that great (wind blowing) It feels so much nicer and more responsive.

[Ronarse]

Planning on getting the DX6i and better servos. Anyone have some SG90s they want to sell. Are the dimensions the same on the SG90 and MG90?

[copterboy]

SG90 22x11.5x22
MG90 23x12.2x29

Looks like there is some difference in the dimension of how far the servo horn will stick out from the frame. Would need to check the servo-swash links stay straight enough, or maybe add a turn onto the servo-swash links to adjust out the reduction in length caused by the angled link.

From what I recall, the V1 and V2 both needed a little filing down around the servo holes even with the smaller SG90, so I would also expect the same of the CPX frame.

[Ronarse]

My SG90s should be here today, about to go meet a guy to buy his DX6i, and ordered the Spektrum 6115e last night. Soon I get to be fancy like everyone else.

[CyprusDave]

Congrats

You're going to have nice-flying heli, and have no doubt learned a lot You're well on your way now, it seems the addiction is taking hold

[Ronarse]

Addiction..... yes and the spousal bitching that follows. Funny thing is, she doesn't know about the receiver that should be coming in the mail. got my package from Xheli last night. I had forgotten that I ordered tail blades for the CNC tail that I have. I already have the belt drive pulley assembled onto a spare belt drive shaft. I guess I'll go ahead and throw the new tail on when I install the new servos. Anyone know if SG90s are anygood for the tail? My stock Esky tail servo sucks nuts and is getting replaced.

[Tomstoy2]

I know people that have used it for a tail servo, but truth is it's not really suitable. What you want is a dedicated tail servo as fast as possible.
I've had phenominal luck with a HS-5084.
The good news is that if you get a good servo now it will follow to whatever else you can sneak by the finance minister in the future, in the same size category.

Get use to the bitching!

[Luke Warmwater]

Originally Posted by Ronarse

Anyone know if SG90s are anygood for the tail? My stock Esky tail servo sucks nuts and is getting replaced.

It depends what you want to do with the heli. On my cheapy 450 (cheap clone inside a Jet ranger fuselage) an SG90 does just fine. All I need from the tail is to keep it pointing in a backwardish direction and an SG90 with the cheapy HK401b gyro in rate mode is more than adequate for that. In fact it will sit happily without any drift and stops the heli pretty much bang on after a piro.

If you want to fling the heli around at all, turn her upside down or any form of aerobatics other than a scale style flying, then as Tom says, you need a dedicated tail servo, because an SG90 simply won't keep up. But for hovering and scale flying an SG90 should be OK....

But be honest with yourself about what you want to do. If you decide only want to do simple scale flying most of the time....an SG90 won't be good enough, as that 1% of the time you want to try something out, it will still let you down. It won't say to itself "Oh, OK, you hardly ever ask much from me, so this time I'll perform" - it's a piece of equipment, that will only do what it is capable of....and no more....ever.

[Ronarse]

I appreciate the advice. I installed the sg90s, EXI CNC tail (w/ appropriate main drive gear) spektrum 6115e/ DX6i and now the help goes into an uncontrollable spin. I switch between rate/ HH mode and nothing changed. I am considering switching back to the Esky tail rotor setup, but am unsure if there are programmable setting to aid in keeping the CNC tail on. Any advice?

[Ronarse]

I am still trying to master a stable-controlled hover before I go any further.

[Ronarse]

Ok, just reversed the gyro and it seems to have done the trick. Either that or the beer seems to keep it under control. Will post updates.

[ChopperNoob]

Originally Posted by Ronarse

Ok, just reversed the gyro and it seems to have done the trick. Either that or the beer seems to keep it under control. Will post updates.

Trust me, beer does not help when trying to fly helis!

[wulfrun]

Originally Posted by Ronarse

Ok, just reversed the gyro and it seems to have done the trick. Either that or the beer seems to keep it under control. Will post updates.

Lesson learned Always check when changing things around. Shove the tail and see what the servo does, check that it makes sense before trying to fly. No amount of beer can compensate for a reversed gyro, although it may help with the after-effects of trying to fly like that

[Ronarse]

Does anyone have some solid numbers for the DX6i as far as a beginner's standpoint. I have mine setup according to Nuttcaze's that I got off of Youtube. I was wondering what others are running. Still trying to get the gist of "fancy" over stock, regarding the transmitter.

[sutty]

Post your nuttcaze settings, and we can comment.

Cheers

Sutty

[Ronarse]

Sutty,
Here is the link for the video. I am at work and don't have time to watch-pause-write-watch-pause-write. Sorry for the inconvenience

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qe2WhjLqdGs[/ame]

[sutty]

No worries. That's what I meant really. I'll watch it later and see how it compares to my own experiences and post back.

Cheers

Sutty

[josh3505]

Hey ronarse, I just went through the same thing you did. I have only been flying helis for two months and started with the belt cpx and ended up getting a blade 450 for the dx6i and better quality. When I set up the dx6i for my belt I used the settings you've probably found and tweaked them all to my heli and my liking. My biggest advice is to look for info on throttle and pitch curves and expo rates and just play with them until you get it. It was all new to me but with research and time everything makes sense. There is tons of info on every subject of the spektrum menu that I did not understand. Good luck!

[CyprusDave]

Posted this before, but here it is again.

I think it's important to understand what you are trying to achieve, then you know why the pitch and throttle curves suggested are good choices. Also you will know the effect of changing the numbers.

As I see it, there are 3 conditions - mechanical setup, normal flying, and 3D (inverted) flying.

Mechanical Setup
For this, I like to use Throttle Hold, which has pitch and throttle curves all of its own, and once you switch into Throttle Hold, these curves take effect, doesn't matter where the flight mode switch is set.

The important thing during setup is to know you will have max negative pitch at zero stick, zero pitch at mid stick and max positive pitch at full stick. For this I use a pitch curve of 0, 50, 50, 50, 100. That way I know as long as the stick is even close to mid point, I should have zero pitch. So switch to Throttle Hold and do mechanical setup to ensure zero pitch as mid stick, and an even neg/pos pitch setting at zero/full stick. Then adjust your swash mix in your TX to give the actual range you want, usually between +/-8 to +/-10 degrees.

Of course, in throttle hold, throttle curve is flat zero, as you don't want the motor running

Normal Flying
For normal flying, you want to get the headspeed up, then try and keep it pretty constant. The higher and more stable headspeed will translate to a more stable heli, and the tail will hold better as well. You'll be flying mostly on blade pitch change, which is easier, and is how a full-size heli flies. So a good throttle curve for normal flying is 0, 45, 80, 90,100. The small changes at the top end are to try and keep the headspeed constant, compensating for the increase in drag as the blade pitch increases. When moving from the stock Belt TX to a DX6i with these curves, the head speed will be quite a bit higher in the hover, which can be a bit intimidating at first, but you'll soon get used to it Also make sure you start to open the throttle very slowly, as the stock ESC does not have soft start.

For pitch, you want zero at mid stick, this lets the headspeed come up before the heli tries to take off. Below mid stick, you only want a little negative pitch (couple of degrees), to help in a descent on a windy day (and to keep the heli steady on the ground as the headspeed comes up). Above mid stick, a linear curve is good. So a good starting point is 40, 45, 50, 75, 100.

Inverted (3D) Flying (Idle Up)
This is the easiest to set up, really not much choice here. Pitch-wise, you want zero pitch as mid stick, full positive pitch at full stick (for upright flying), and full negative pitch at bottom stick (for inverted flight). So the pitch curve here has to be linear 0, 25, 50, 75, 100.

For throttle, you want as constant a headspeed as possible, whether upright or inverted. So you need a V-shape throttle curve, 100, 90, 80, 90, 100.

If you look at the upper part of the curves, they are the same from mid stick upwards for both normal and 3D (idle up). So as long as you are at mid stick or above (either on the ground or in the air), you can switch from normal to idle up and back again without affecting the heli.

A bit long-winded maybe , but hope it helps

BTW, if you're flying a scale heli, and never flying inverted, well, you can set whatever curves you want. But as long as you understand the principles, it's not difficult to work out a set of curves that give you the flying characteristics that you want

[sutty]

+1

Sorry I never got the chance last night, but now I see I don't have to as Dave has covered that pretty conclusively.

One tiny thing I would expand upon. Dave mentioned that it might seem a little intimidating at first, using the Normal throttle curve that ramps up so quickly, and that you would soon get used to it. This is true, and the beauty of it ramping up so quickly is that the top half of your curves will match between Normal and Idle up, so from then on, the vast majority of your normal flight, will effectively be performed in the part of the curve that precisely matches your idle up curves above mid stick. Now maybe this is obvious, but I thought I would mention it anyway. This lack of transition, and the fact that when in normal you are effectively in the top half of idle up means that all the fear factor with regard to switching to the dreaded idle up is completely removed.

You can just flick it, and if you are above mid stick, absolutely nothing happens.


Cheers

Sutty