Cobra fuselage for Trex 450

[wartoy]

Ok folks, share your wisedom. I have been beating my head againt the wall looking for a crobra fuse for a trex 450. Other than very thin vacume formed plastic halves or the extremely propriatary mini Titan there is nothing to be found.

In a hobby where fiberglass fuses for 450s are sold all day long Is there a technical reason or any business reason why noby body make a cobra body for a 450?

I know this is coming over like a rant but that was not my intent. Any and all comments welcome.

Thank

[bladerunner469]

You might want to try Darth,s fuselage,s hope this helps

[wartoy]

Darth's fuses are the thin vacume formed halves. Not saying that's bad. I want one the quality shown in better fiber glassed fuse as seen at arodyne. Iwas wonder since nobody offers a fiber cobra if there was a reason.

[Darthdrk]

Originally Posted by wartoy

Ok folks, share your wisedom. I have been beating my head againt the wall looking for a crobra fuse for a trex 450. Other than very thin vacume formed plastic halves or the extremely propriatary mini Titan there is nothing to be found.

In a hobby where fiberglass fuses for 450s are sold all day long Is there a technical reason or any business reason why noby body make a cobra body for a 450?

I know this is coming over like a rant but that was not my intent. Any and all comments welcome.

Thank

Probably not any specific reason. FG for the 450 size in most cases is to Heavy for the 450 size. Could be just no one got around to making one. The lighter weighing fuselages are more Idea for the 450 size . Another thing is that the Cobra has a lower sitting tail boom and in the case of most 450 size helis may require a mod or two . You really just cant add an elevated tail to an existing 450 chassis and expect it to work .

[wartoy]

Hey darth! I knew you would have a good answer. Again I want to say there is nothing wrong at all with your fuses. I have never been able to cut vacume formed haves straight and I will never get them to fit right. That's why I am desperate for a ready made fb fuse like what aerodyne makes. If i could deal with your fuses I would have 3 of them.

Thanks again

[Darthdrk]

Ive been doing alot of custom builds for people who like yourself dont want to deal with the assembly side of it. Even in offering the fuselages in Kit form, Ive been doing trim work enough to where the individual shouldnt have to worry about getting the lines straight, They are already precut straight and ready for assembly.

[wartoy]

I may have to try one of yours out some time!

[Stone Axe]

Darth, you totally rock for participating in this forum.

If you aren't familiar with Darth's work already, just Google him, he is a total scale heli rockstar.

The Cobra presents several challenges - mainly the elevated tail. Also, the tight fitting fuse does not lend itself well to the typical dual frame 450 chassis.

[Varc]

I've been wanting a fiberlgass Cobra as well. Besides Airwolf being number one, the Hughey Cobra and the Hughes 500MD are my favorite helicopters. I've already got a nice Hughs 500 fiberglass fuse, so a Cobra would be a nice addition.
I'm on the same page as wartoy, I don't like assembling those two-halved fuselages.
Back when I got into helicopters with Centuries Hummingbird Airwolf, there was a guy that was making some pretty sweet Airwolf bodies for the Hummingbird with a nice retract kit. I could never get the trim right, and I could never get those halves glued together. Plus, I could never have gotten it as nice as his demo model was. It wasn't you Darth, but it was somebody else making scale fuselages for helicopters.
Now we need some for the 120Sr.

[Darthdrk]

Only others making fuselages that small back then was myself, JMD and I think Century had a couple for the hummingbird.
I do offer assembly assist.

[fireplug1111]

DARTH does kickass work.. he custom made some wasp and antennas for my trex500 109....

[hellafreaky]

Not to hijack but where can you buy good decent-looking light-weight thermo-formed fuses for a 450? I'd like to find a nice Jet Ranger.

I currently have a FG version on order from Facu but I plan on saving that for a more higly detailed scaler. I'd like the thermo for a good daily flier so that i wouldnt be too bummed if I crashed it.

Thanks.

[bladerunner469]

Originally Posted by hellafreaky

Not to hijack but where can you buy good decent-looking light-weight thermo-formed fuses for a 450? I'd like to find a nice Jet Ranger.

I currently have a FG version on order from Facu but I plan on saving that for a more higly detailed scaler. I'd like the thermo for a good daily flier so that i wouldnt be too bummed if I crashed it.

Thanks.

Here,s a place i don't know how heavy they are i got one on it's way to me now hope this helpsWow iam sorry http://www.ehirobo.com/shop/index.php?cPath=352_315

[wartoy]

What place?

[n1977m]

I've also have been looking for a Cobra fuselage that I could mate with Trex450 mechanics. Trex450 tail booms exit too high for a scale Cobra and I believe that is the reason we dont see any fuselages for 450 Align/clone mechanics. Also as stated above, the Cobra fuse is quite narrow and the double-frame 450 would be quite a tight fit. With this in mind I've made modified mechanics (with the help of CNC water-jet cutters) that are based on the 450 Pro frame. It is narrow and lends itself well to the purpose. I've started calling it a "450 Lowboy" as the tail boom exits the frame almost an inch and a half lower than stock mechanics.
I've noticed quite a few others with this same interest as I have in the Cobra / Trex combo. I will most certainly post video if anyone is interested in the concept. As it is, I just registered for this site today and I was not prepared to post pics, yet. Pics are forthcoming.

Mike

[dfgipe]

Varc, many of the CX fuselages are perfect for the 120SR. I have been building one of Mike Manrow's AH-1 Cobra fuses for my 120 and it's coming out very nice. You just need to take your time trimming the parts. I too appreciate Darth and the others who produce some of these fuselages we might not have at all.On my Cobra, I ditched the boom and mounted the tail motor like Darth does on his 450s.God I love this "freaking" hobby!!!!!!!!!

[drakonis]

Originally Posted by n1977m

I've also have been looking for a Cobra fuselage that I could mate with Trex450 mechanics. Trex450 tail booms exit too high for a scale Cobra and I believe that is the reason we dont see any fuselages for 450 Align/clone mechanics. Also as stated above, the Cobra fuse is quite narrow and the double-frame 450 would be quite a tight fit. With this in mind I've made modified mechanics (with the help of CNC water-jet cutters) that are based on the 450 Pro frame. It is narrow and lends itself well to the purpose. I've started calling it a "450 Lowboy" as the tail boom exits the frame almost an inch and a half lower than stock mechanics.
I've noticed quite a few others with this same interest as I have in the Cobra / Trex combo. I will most certainly post video if anyone is interested in the concept. As it is, I just registered for this site today and I was not prepared to post pics, yet. Pics are forthcoming.

Mike

i would be very interested in seeing your work. i have wanted an older cobra for a while. but i cant get a tail lowering kit anywhere. lets see what you got.

[22charlie]

All of the comments here are correct regarding a Cobra fuse for a 450.

I have a TT Cobra and can say while the fuse is a great compromise it is exactly that, a compromise.

It is specifically tailored for the Mini Titan and the elevated tail is a marvel, and works well. The unit flys very well too.

The biggest barrier to a true scale 450 fuse IMO would be the diameter of the main gear. The TT unit is bulged at the sides to accomodate the gear and are very obvious if you look, but are somewhat hidden by the scale wing stubs and missiles. A T-Rex with it's double stacked frames AND the bulging gear would not have a hope I feel. The Cobra is too narrow for 'glass IMO.

I reckon you would have a better chance with a 500

[n1977m]

I'm sure that most realize that there will never be a "truly scale" 450 Cobra because of the main gear however the TT Cobra is pretty much all there is out there for a 450 Cobra. I say a compromise is better than nothing. With the main gear located 1.25" above the tail boom C/L there just might stand a chance to locate the main gear inside of the engine nacelles (or slightly lowered nacelles) on a Whiskey or Zulu version. I wholly agree with you about the T-rex double-stacked frame but the Pro frame is a different story. I'll get some pics of my Lo-boy and elevated tail setup on here asap and check it and see what you think.

[Darthdrk]

Hers a pic of my AH-1S and it flies excellent.
And I have a vid of it here: [ame]http://youtu.be/MxMLXp3Rgu4[/ame]